Family of God: RE: [Awake4HisReturn] Jacob

Have you ever wrestled with God? This is what I want, but maybe not what God wants. My flesh wants to go away from here, but my spirit says I need to stay. I have too many things to do here, all I want to do is rest. If we want to see our loved ones saved we dont have time to rest.
-----Original Message-----
Date: Saturday, July 09, 2011 8:49:02 am
To: Awake4HisReturn@yahoogroups.com
From: "Michael J. Knight" <michaelnight82@yahoo.in>
Subject: [Awake4HisReturn] Jacob - A Broken Man

Jacob - A Broken Man

Jacob is a classic example of a man whom God succeeded in breaking. He
had two meetings with God - one at Bethel (Genesis 28) and the other at
Peniel (Genesis 32). Bethel means "the house of God" (a type of the
church) and Peniel means "the face of God". We all need to go beyond
entering the church of God to seeing the face of God. At Bethel, it says
that "the sun set" (Gen.28:11) - only a geographical fact, but also
indicative of what was happening in Jacob's life, because the next 20
years were a period of deep darkness for him. Then at Peniel, it says,
"the sun rose" (Gen.32:31) - again a geographical fact, but Jacob too
had finally come into God's light. Many believers who have walked with
God through the ages, have had two meetings with God. The first was when
they entered the house of God (the church) through being born again. The
second was when they met God face to face and were filled with the Holy
Spirit and their lives were transformed.

At Bethel, Jacob dreamt of a ladder set on earth whose top reached up to
heaven. In John 1:51, Jesus interpreted that ladder as referring to
Himself - the Way from earth to Heaven. So what Jacob saw was actually a
prophetic vision of Jesus opening up the way to Heaven. The Lord then
promised Jacob many things in that dream. But Jacob was so earthly
minded that he could only think of earthly security, physical health and
financial prosperity. And so he said to God "Lord if You take care of me
on this trip and give me food and clothing and bring me safely home,
I'll give you 10% of my earnings." Jacob treated God like a watchman who
was to take care of him. And if God did that, Jacob would pay Him His
wages - 10% of his income!! That's exactly how many believers treat God
today too. They desire only material comforts from Him. And if the Lord
gives them these things, they attend the church- meetings faithfully and
give some of their money for the Lord's work. Such believers are
actually doing business with God, seeking their own comfort and profit,
just like any worldly businessman. Jacob spent 20 years of his life
grabbing earthly things. He tried to grab a wife from Laban's family and
got two! He didn't want two, but he got two anyway!! Then he cheated
Laban and grabbed his sheep and thus became a very rich man. He had gone
penniless to Laban's house, but ended up as a very rich man there. No
doubt he attributed his prosperity to God's blessing - as many believers
do today!!

But what is the real mark of "God's blessing"? Is it prosperity? No. It
is to be transformed into the likeness of Christ. What's the use having
a good job, a good house and many comforts, if your life is still
useless to God and to man? But God hadn't finished dealing with Jacob.
He met him a second time at Peniel. Many of you need a second encounter
with God - an encounter that will take place when you hit rock bottom in
your life - and when God, instead of judging you and sending you to
Hell, fills you with His Holy Spirit! We read in Genesis 32 that Jacob
was scared because he had just heard that Esau (whom he had cheated of
the birthright 20 years earlier) was coming out to meet him. He was sure
that Esau would kill him. It's good for us when God allows us to face
certain situations that scare us. Because, when we are afraid of what
men might do to us, we will draw near to God. At Peniel, Jacob was alone
(Gen.32:24). God has to get us alone first of all before he can meet
with us. That's why Satan has ordered life in today's world to be so
rushed and busy (especially in the cities) that even many believers have
hardly any time to be alone with God. Their lives have become so busy,
that matters of low priority (like God) have been crowded out of their
timetable altogether! This is the tragedy in today's Christendom.

God wrestled with Jacob for many long hours that night, but Jacob would
not yield. That wrestling was symbolic of what had been going on in
Jacob's life for the previous 20 years. And when God saw that Jacob was
stubborn, He finally dislocated his hip from its socket. Jacob was only
about 40 years old at that time, and he was a very strong man. His
grandfather Abraham had lived up to 175. So, we could say that Jacob was
in the prime of his youth, with 75% of his life still ahead of him. To
get a dislocated hip at such a young age would have been the last thing
he wanted - for it would have shattered all the plans he had made for
his future. To understand it in today's terms, it would be like a young
man of 20 getting his hip dislocated, and having to use a crutch for
ever after!! That can be a shattering experience. Jacob would never be
able to walk without a crutch for the rest of his life. God had tried in
so many ways to break Jacob but He had not succeeded; and so He finally
gave him a permanent physical disability. That succeeded in breaking
Jacob finally. God may do the same for us, if He finds that we need it.
He disciplines only those He loves, in order to save them from some
greater catastrophe. After God had dislocated Jacob's hip, He told him,
"All right, I have done My job. Now let Me go. You never wanted Me. You
only wanted women and money." But Jacob wouldn't let go of God now. He
had been changed - at last! This man who had spent his life grabbing
women and property now grabs hold of God and says " I won't let You go
unless You bless me". What a great work was accomplished in Jacob's
heart when his hip was dislocated, so that He now desired only God.

Like the old saying goes, "When you have nothing left but God, you will
find that God is more than enough"!! That's true. Now God asks him,
"What is your name?" And Jacob replies, "My name is Jacob". "Jacob"
means deceiver. Jacob admits at last that he is a deceiver. Are you
perhaps a deceiver too? Have you been fooling others around you that you
are a spiritual man? If so, will you be honest with God today and tell
Him that you're a hypocrite? Many years earlier, when his blind father
Isaac had asked him his name, Jacob had pretended that he was Esau. But
now he was honest. And the Lord said to him immediately, "You won't be a
deceiver (Jacob) any more" (v.28). Isn't that an encouraging word? Did
you hear it? "You won't be a deceiver any more" Hallelujah! And then God
told Jacob, "Your name will henceforth be Israel (prince of God), for
you have striven with God and with men and have prevailed". What a
transformation - from a deceiver to a prince of God. And it was all
accomplished only when Jacob was broken. That's our calling too - to be
seated with Christ on His throne, as a prince, exercising spiritual
authority over Satan, and releasing men and women from Satan's bondage.
As members of the body of Christ, we are to have power with God and with
men and prevail. We're called to be a blessing to all men. But that can
happen only when we're broken. And we can be broken only when we're
honest with God about out hypocrisy and our deception.

Many centuries later, when a descendant of Jacob, Nathaniel, met Jesus,
the Lord said of Him, "Here is a true Israel in whom there is no Jacob
(no guile)" (John 1:47)!! He then reminded Nathaniel of the ladder that
Jacob had seen at Bethel and told him that he too was an "Israel" - not
because Nathaniel was perfect but because there was no guile or
deception in him. It says here that Jacob named that place "Peniel" for
he had finally seen the face of God. At Bethel, he had been taken up
with the house of God. You may have been in the house of God for many
years and yet you may not have seen the face of God. Then you need a
second encounter with God - where you see His face. Jacob says in
excitement, "Now I see Your face O God and my life is preserved."

He who has ears to hear let him hear.

Remember
Only one life, will soon be past,
Only what is done, for Christ will last.

The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the
communion of the Holy Spirit be with you all. Amen. (2 Corinthians
13:14)

Love & Prayers,

Michael J. Knight.

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