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The Prayer of
Jacob
Genesis 32:3-12
If I had to
categorize the issues people want to talk to me about, I'd guess that
about 10% have to do with questions about the Bible; doctrinal issues or
explanations of a passage.
Another 10% would be more along the lines of spiritual guidance --
here's where I am in my journey, here's where I want to be, how to I get
from point A to point B?
What do you think the other 80% has to do with? Relationships. Between
members at New Hope, within marriages, kids, or extended family --
parents and siblings. By far, the most perplexing issues we face have to
do with getting along with each other.
Unanswered questions about the Bible are rarely more than frustrating.
Sometimes they can be quite serious, but most of the time we can live
with them. Unresolved issues about spiritual direction can be
significantly more nagging. But nothing affects us more, nothing keeps
us up at night, nothing unnerves us like unsettled relationships.
That's why today’s prayer hero is so important. No one struggled more
with family relationships that Jacob. Remember his story?
He was the second of twins born to Isaac and Rebecca. Jacob can mean
"one who follows closely," or "one who grasps the heal" When Esau was
born, Jacob followed closely thereafter and had his hand on his
brother's heal. Hence the name.
Two or three moments in their story are significant. Once, Esau, who was
a hunter came in from the field, and was starving. His brother Jacob,
more of a homebody/shepherd/farmer, was cooking a stew. Esau bargained
away his birthright for a bowl of Jacob's special recipe. The birthright
was always given to the oldest child. In Jacob and Esau's case, that
meant that when Isaac's estate was divided, Esau was to receive a
two-third's share, and Jacob one-third. Esau, thinking short term
gratification, and Jacob, always looking for a deal, reversed that
long-standing tradition. But that wasn't the only time Jacob reached for
something that wasn't rightfully his.
When Isaac was old, he wanted to bless his two sons. The blessing of the
patriarch was more than a nice note from dad saying, "Son, You make me
proud. " It was a forecast for the future. It determined destiny. So
with his mother's assistance, Jacob fooled his father into giving him
the richer of the two blessings. When Esau discovered what had happened
he was mad enough to kill his brother. So Jacob had to run away.
He went to live with his mother's brother, Laban. There he met and
determined to marry his beautiful cousin, Rachel. Laban agreed, but
Jacob had to work for him for seven years. The Bible says that Rachel
was lovely in form and beautiful. That working those seven years seemed
like only a few days to Jacob. Can you imagine how excited he was when
his wedding day finally arrived?
That's when Laban gave Jacob a taste of his own medicine. Instead of
giving Rachel in marriage, Laban gave his older daughter Leah, whom the
Bible says had beautiful eyes. That doesn't mean she had big pretty
eyes, it means that she was one of the girls who get prettier in the
dark. She was not attractive. But behind all those veils and after all
the celebrating they did at weddings in those days, Jacob was
none-the-wiser. Until the morning. That's when he realized he'd been
duped.
Laban explained that their custom was that the older girl always married
first, but that he could go ahead and marry Rachel too, if he worked
another seven years. That seven years was characterized by more struggle
-- struggle between Leah and Rachel, between Jacob and Laban, between
the girls and their father. They rank right up there with the Bible's
most dysfunctional families.
Finally, God tells Jacob that it's time to go back to his home and have
a big family reunion with his brother Esau -- the one who wanted to kill
him. But being Faithful to God doesn’t always make sense to a world view
and we see that Jacob packs up his family and heads home.
We'll pick up the story in Genesis 32:3 - 8. (Read text).
"Great fear and distress." That's how the Bible describes the condition
of Jacob's emotions as he prepares to reunite with his brother. And who
can blame him. His brother is on his way with 400 men. That means two
things from Jacob's perspective;
one, his brother has been wildly successful. He can order 400 men at a
moment's notice to mount up and ride out.
Two, it means Esau has a long memory, a short fuse, and blood in his
eyes. No wonder Jacob is scared to death. So he divides up his caravan,
thinking that one group will be able to escape if the other is attacked.
Let me take a minute here in the story to remind you of something that
keeps coming up in these stories of ancient heroic prayer warriors. They
always turn to God, but they always do what they can. Prayer never means
that we are somehow exempt from trying to do what we can to deal with
any problem.
"Oh, Lord, help with this test I have to take tomorrow," does not exempt
you from studying.
"Oh, Lord, help me land this really important business deal," doesn't
mean you don't have to show up for work tomorrow.
"Oh, Lord, bless my marriage," doesn't mean you can go on being the same
clod you've always been.
Prayer requires that we work with God, not let God do all the work.
So, let's look at what Jacob prayed. (Read 9 - 12). I want to point out
four characteristics of this prayer that I think can help us.
The first characteristic is one of History
Jacob's family had a history with God. "O God of my father Abraham, God
of my father Isaac."
OK, let's take an informal survey. I want you to raise your hands. How
many of you are first generation Christians; that is, how many of you
are the first in your family, as far as you know, to be Christians.
Raise your hands.
Okay, how many are second generation Christians? Your parents were and
you are the second generation in your family to follow Christ?
Then the rest of us would be third or fourth, or more.
This proves two things and it’s a double-edged sword.
One, we need to be more evangelistic. When I ask how many are first
generation Christians, we should see hundreds of hands go up if we're
really on the ball evangelistically. We're not reaching out to our
community like we should. Or more personally (Put your name here) is not
reaching out to the community like they should.
Second, the faith is most often passed down through families. If you are
a second or more generation Christian, then even if there are some
unhealthy features in your family relationships, you have something to
be thankful to God for. Your family has a history with God.
Regardless of what the preachers on TV say this story shows, having a
relationship with God does not guarantee an absence of struggle. On the
other hand, if there is struggle in your family, it does not mean you
don't have a relationship with God. We get this idea that if we are all
just really tight with God there won't ever be any dysfunctions or
unhealthy ways of relating. That's just not true. It's tough living
together. Having a history with God doesn't mean an absence of struggle,
but it does provide a basis for reconciliation.
If you can say that God is the God of your parents and grandparents
before you, that's a blessing you can claim in prayer -- that's a
positive you can celebrate.
Another part of this idea of having a history with God includes Jacob's
own relationship. God wasn't just the God of his father and grandfather.
He was Jacob's God as well. In the last part of verse. 9, Jacob prays,
"O God who said to me .... “
Jacob had several personal encounters with God. The vision of the angels
climbing up and down the ladder; angelic visits to his wives; God's
visit to tell him to return to his home; on his way there angels met him
and encouraged him on the journey. Twice we're told in Genesis 30 that
God listened to Jacob's wives, Rachel and Leah when they prayed for
children. We know that Jacob had a personal relationship with God
because he had passed that on to his family. Rachel and Leah grew up in
a home that worshipped idols. They learned to pray to the one true God
from their husband.
So here's the first lesson we learn from Jacob about prayer; history
matters.
Having a family history helps us, not only in providing a basis for
reconciliation when we need it, but also in encouraging our faith. More
important than a family history, however, is a personal history. It
isn't enough that mom and dad pray or go to church or give or are
involved in ministry. We have to be prayerful, church attendees,
involved and giving. We have to have that personal relationship.
The second characteristic is that of Humility
Look at vs. 10 "I am unworthy of all the kindness and faithfulness you
have shown your servant. I had only my staff when I crossed this Jordan,
but now I have become two groups."
Early in life Jacob had tried to become rich and powerful under his own
arrogant power. He wound up running away from home with nothing but a
stick in his hands and the robe on his back. But over a period of 14
years he learned how to rely on God for everything.
You will never pray heroically if you believe more in yourself than you
believe in God. Humility is to prayer what gasoline is to fire and
arrogance is to prayer what water is to fire.
Listen to an example of Jacob's humility in Genesis 31 :38 - 42 (read).
Jacob was able to recognize how God had cared for and blessed him for
those twenty years. Humility is just that; the ability to see God's hand
in your life, and to know that without it, you would have failed.
By the way, when Jacob finally meets Esau in Genesis 33, he bows down to
him seven times. Humility not only empowers our prayer life, it helps
mend broken relationships, too.
The third characteristic we see is one of Help
In Genesis 32:11, Jacob finally gets around to the heart of his prayer.
He has recalled his history with God. He has humbly expressed his
dependence on God for everything. Now, he cries for help. "Save me, I
pray, from the hand of my brother, Esau, for I am afraid he will come
and attack me, and also the mothers with their children."
So you're in the middle of a real struggle. You feel surrounded,
defeated, afraid, hopeless, hemmed in on every side. Have you asked God
for help?
Notice that Jacob is really specific. "Save me from the hand of my
brother Esau." He names names.
Notice that he is honest about his emotions. "I am afraid he will come
and attack. "
It’s OK to be honest with God about your emotions He created them so He
understands them better than we do.
Here is a man who has been phenomenally successful in just about
everything he's ever attempted. He has survived twenty years with a
conniving father-in-law. He has become rich beyond his wildest dreams.
He has been assured by God that he will be the one to carry on the
promise God gave Abraham and Isaac, that all nations of the world would
be blessed through their offspring.
Still, he knows when he needs help and he asks for it. It isn't truly
prayer, until we truly turn to God for help. Never be embarrassed to ask
God for what you need. If you need it, he'll give it. If you don't need
it, he'll give you something better.
Finally, Jacob's prayer teaches us about hope.
Listen to the hope he expresses in vs. 12, "But you have said, 'I will
surely make you prosper and will make your descendants like the sand of
the sea, which cannot be counted!”
Okay, God. I'm walking into the teeth of the sharks now. But you
promised and I'm counting on it. The very next day, here's what
happened.
Genesis 33:4, "But Esau ran to meet Jacob and embraced him; he threw his
arms around his neck and kissed him. And they wept." Jacob had asked God
to save him from an attack. God gave him back his brother. God always
gives us more than we ask for.
Before we close today I wanted us to notice one more thing about Jacob's
heroic prayer life. DO you remember that odd story in Genesis 32:22,
where Jacob wrestles with God all night long.
It’s found in verses 22 – 31.
I have heard a lot of different preachers go a lot of different places
with this story. What do we do with it? I Have found one thought that I
will give to you and you can think about it this week and if you have a
better thought please bring it to me.
Jacob struggled with every relationship he ever had. His father and
mother, his brother, his wives, their father, later on his own children.
He even struggled with God himself.
Sometimes we look at other families and develop a touch of relationship
envy. They seem to have it all together. They get along. They have this
great marriage. They have these perfect children. They have wonderful
relationships with their siblings and parents.
Sometimes we even look at the faith of others and we envy their walk
with God. They seem so spiritual, so intimate with God. We feel so
distant and so disconnected. Yet here's the story of a key player in
God's plan to redeem the world, and God shows us all the nasty
dysfunctions of his family, all the lies and deceit and duplicity, all
the arguing and pain.
Then, to top it off, Jacob even wrestled with God himself. I don't know
about you, but that part of the story gives me hope. I'm a Jacob. I may
end up limping home, but I'm not going to let go of God until he blesses
me too. And you know what? God honors that kind of stubborn faith.
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