Message For Messengers

Jacob At Jabbok ( Gen 32:22-32 )
This is the second spiritual encounter of Jacob's life. The first was at a place called Bethel ( Gen. 28:10-22). At Bethel, he saw a ladder, here, at Jabbok, he saw the Lord. At Bethel, he became a believing man, at Jabbok, he became a broken man. At Bethel, he became a Son of God, at Jabbok, he became a saint of God. At Bethel, he died to his sins, at Jabbok, he died to his self. He left Bethel with a spring in his step, he left Jabbok with a lasting limp, but a forever changed heart. All men need a Bethel experience, a time when we meet God and receive Him and become His child. Isn't salvation wonderful? However, many never go beyond that! They get saved and that's it, they never produce anything for the Lord. While we must have a Bethel experience if we intend to get to Heaven, we also need a Jabbok experience if we ever hope to be useful to the Lord. The very thing that happened to Jacob needs to happen to every believer. He spent the night wrestling with the Lord and he was never the same.
I. JACOB WAS VERY MUCH ALONE ( Verse 24a ) All he had was gone. Family, servants, wealth, livestock. He was all alone. If the Christian would be strong in the Lord, he needs to find himself alone with the Lord. ( The value of a daily quiet time - Jesus - Matt. 14:23; Luke 6:12). Never fear being alone with the Lord, He only intends good !
II. JACOB WAS VERY MUCH ALIVE ( Verse 24b-25a ). The angel was unable to overcome Jacob. Jacob represents the man of the flesh. He pictures that person who lives carnally. That is that old nature. It is stubborn, unyielding, fighting, self-sufficient. It is everything the saint of God ought not to be! Ask yourself today: "Who is alive, my self, the old man, or Jesus Christ?" Do you constantly find yourself fighting against the Lord? Who is alive in you; the flesh or the Lord? ( Rom. 6:6-7)
III. JACOB WAS VERY MUCH ALTERED (Verse 25b-32) . This one night in Jacob's life was result of 20 years of patient activity by the Lord. We have and want instant everything today. Yet, there is one thing for sure, instant holiness is not available to anyone. It is the result of prayer, sacrifice and self-denial.
A. He Was A Broken Man (Verse 25b-27)
1. He Was Clinging -. No longer fighting, just holding on. If we insist on fighting God, He will eventually bring us to a place where we no longer fight, but we just hold on to Him. He knows exactly where to touch your life to get your attention, Ill. Absalom and Joab - 2 Sam. 14:28-32. His desire for us is that we cling to Him in utter brokeness and dependence upon his power. ( I can't even walk!)
2. He Was Confessing - The angel wanted to know his name. Jacob is forced to admit just who he is. Jacob - trickster, supplanter, cheat, one who takes you by the heel. Or, in our terms, One who twists your arm! Jacob
had to come to the place of realizing exactly who he was before the Lord could use him. By the way, God can't use us until we are willing to admit that we are sinful and prone to failure .
B. He Was A Blessed Man ( v.28-30 ) - The Jacob who had left Canaan was capable of deceiving a brother, of lying to a blind father, of cheating a crooked uncle. But, the man who returns is a man with a new nature. No more Jacob, a "trickster", now he is Israel, a "Prince with God." God's purpose in breaking us is to make us over fresh and new. Saul/Paul - He was worthless until he was broken before the Lord! But, once he was broken, the world was touched for Jesus!) What can He do with you? The prerequisite for blessedness is brokenness. When Jesus broke the bread, it became a blessing to thousands of people. Today we want blessing without breaking. Only a smitten rock can bring forth thirst quenching water in the wilderness. That's why, Jesus Christ the Rock of Ages was broken for us on the Cross of Calvary. He is that smitten rock. When the alabaster box was broken, the place was filled with odour.
C. He Was A Branded Man ( Verse 31-32 ) - The limp. Everywhere Jacob went after that day, he carried the mark of God upon his body. When he stood before Pharaoh - Gen. 47:7-10. Every step he took reminded him and everyone around him that he was the Lord's and that the Lord had touched his life. The believer is no different - Matt. 5:16. We ought to be branded for the Lord! ( Paul - Gal. 6:17!) ( The Law of the Bond slave - Ex. 21:1-6.) The walk of the believer ought to be different - 2 Cor. 5:17! ( When a man is right with the Lord, he will be out of step with the world!). Jacob had a mark on him. A bond slave in the Old Testament had a mark on his ear. Prophet Isaiah had a mark on his lips. Apostle says, I carry the dying on Jesus Christ in my body. Jesus Christ has a mark on His hands, legs and His side. The mark that God expects the New Testament believers to have today is the mark of holiness. Like the Old Testament Priests who had on their foreheads, HOLINESS UNTO THE LORD, we are called to bear the mark of holiness upon our lives.
CONCLUSION
Jacob's life was one of contrasts. Before this incident, faulty, substandard living marked him. After this eventful night, spirituality and holiness marked him. If you were honest tonight, which would you say best describes your life? Substandard or spiritual? Perhaps this would be a good time for you to come and have a little talk with Jesus.