Sometimes You Have to Fight For Your Blessing

Genesis 32: 24-30 Be aware that Jacob had successfully deceived his brother Esau and his father, Isaac, in order to receive the blessing of the first-born. Here we find Jacob reaching out to his brother to be met with news that his brother was coming to meet him with four hundred men. Immediately Jacob is afraid for his life and the lives of his wives and children. A fear that has legitimate standing considering that Esau had vowed to slay Jacob. His conscience is in full-effect now though it was noticeably missing at the time of the offense. Jacob decides to make plans and intelligent ones. He decides to split up his party so that if Esau does have ill intentions and massacres the first party, the second party will be saved. But he does not stop there. Though we may see a way of escape, a way of minimizing the potential damage and are able to think our way through a problem we must not solely rely on this ability. This falls under the heading of doing all you can, exhausting all the options available to you. But Jacob immediately follows this up with prayer and supplication to God. Interestingly enough, he begins the prayer by reminding God it was His idea in the first place for him to return to his home country and family where God would be waiting for him. As if to say, hey, I am in this predicament because I am doing what you told me to do. Yet, even with such a stance Jacob is able to recognize his unworthiness of God's love and mercy. Nonetheless, he seeks God's protection from Esau. Again, he reminds God of His promise that He would "surely do Jacob good" and make his offspring as the sand of the sea. How could God follow through with this promise if He allowed Esau to kill Jacob and his family? Thus, even as Jacob prays for protection and providence from God the blessed assurance can be found within the same prayer. After splitting up his camp and sending his family away to what he hopes is safety he encounters and immediately gets into a wrestling match with an angel. The wrestling match goes on for the rest of the night and into the next day's dawn. During the wrestling match Jacob was holding his own and this led to the angel causing his thigh bone out of joint, most likely from the pelvic bone or hip. This was perhaps a show of power just to remind Jacob that this wrestling match could really be over at any time the angel decided. In any event, the angel implores Jacob to let him go as the dawn has come. Even with his hip bone out of socket, Jacob refused to let go of the angel and demanded a blessing. Upon being refused the angel inquired of Jacob's name and upon being told informed Jacob that he was now renamed Isreal because of his consistent and persistent struggle with God and man. Jacob did inquire about the angel's name and though the angel did not answer this question he provided Israel the blessing he had struggled so vigorously for. Matthew Henry draws some interesting conclusions from this passage. First, he suggests that this angel is actually Jesus. This, in my opinion, is not worth the debate regarding if this is simply a typical angel or the Son of God. The bottom line here is that God's will is carried out. However, it is a particularly encouraging thought to consider that your fervent prayers, your incessant and earnest prayers can call upon He who sits on the right hand of the Father making intercessions for us (Romans 8:34). I would have to concede its a pretty big deal to have Jesus personally come see about your situation. But more pressing is how he delves into the wrestling factor. Consider the following: "When the spirit helpeth our infirmities, and our earnest and vast desires can scarcely find words to utter them, and we still mean more than we can express, then prayer is indeed wrestling with God. However tried or discouraged, we shall prevail; and prevailing with Him in prayer, we shall prevail against all enemies that strive with us. Nothing requires more vigour and unceasing exertion than wrestling. It is an emblem of the true spirit of faith and prayer." (Matthew Henry Concise Bible Commentary) Jacob struggled long and hard and was willing to endure all to see his blessing. Another example of such fervor can be seen with Jesus in the Garden of Gethsemane. In Luke, the only one of the four gospels that points out during his prayer that he was visited and strengthened by an angel and evenso, that prayed even more earnestly until it was as if he was sweating blood (Luke 22:39-44). Prayer is always necessary and should be practiced always. But there are those times when life really staggers us and the agony we subsequently feel is overwhelming to the point where it feels that we may potentially die from it. I have had such moments. It is in these times that we must fight the hardest and longest in our prayers. Where we must bite down and push on, where we ask for strength to continue the fight when out mind, body, and spirit get weary. Sometimes you can't let it go until the blessing comes. Sometimes you have to take it.