WEBVTT 00:00:00.560 --> 00:00:06.480 Today we're gonna talk about the importance of discomfort in our relationship with God. 00:00:07.040 --> 00:00:08.320 That's what we're talking about today. 00:00:08.400 --> 00:00:11.759 So woo! Discomfort! Who's ready to feel not comfortable? 00:00:12.000 --> 00:00:12.480 Anybody? 00:00:12.880 --> 00:00:14.080 Yeah, you shouldn't clap. 00:00:14.160 --> 00:00:15.039 Why would you clap for that? 00:00:15.119 --> 00:00:16.640 You people clapping are weird. 00:00:16.800 --> 00:00:19.039 Um, talking about discomfort. 00:00:19.199 --> 00:00:20.960 Now, here's the deal for context. 00:00:21.039 --> 00:00:23.440 We're in a series right now called People God Uses. 00:00:23.679 --> 00:00:29.920 And what we're actually doing is we're looking at the family tree of Jesus, which is a really interesting, interesting list of names. 00:00:30.079 --> 00:00:30.399 Okay? 00:00:30.719 --> 00:00:33.119 Like we're talking about a group of people. 00:00:33.200 --> 00:00:34.479 These are the ancestors of Jesus. 00:00:34.640 --> 00:00:37.359 Matthew chapter one gives us a bunch of those names. 00:00:37.520 --> 00:00:47.119 And it's like a who's who of really incredible stories from the Bible, but also a who's who of really messed up, flawed, scandalous people. 00:00:47.359 --> 00:00:49.600 You know, it's amazing when you read through the list. 00:00:49.679 --> 00:00:59.119 If you know the stories in the Bible, you read through the list of the people that end up basically bringing Jesus into the world, and you're like, wow, man, God has low standards, you know? 00:00:59.280 --> 00:01:02.799 And that should that should encourage you because it means that that he can use even us. 00:01:02.880 --> 00:01:05.680 Because all of these people are people God used to bring his son into this world. 00:01:05.760 --> 00:01:13.760 And what's even crazier is with all their flaws, God used a lot of these people to do incredible things when they were on the earth. 00:01:14.239 --> 00:01:24.640 You know, God, God, He's so incredible, and this is something that we say pretty often, it's important for us to understand that the Bible, it's not a story of amazing people doing great things for God. 00:01:24.719 --> 00:01:31.040 It's the story of really broken, flawed people who have an amazing, loving God who can use their brokenness to do incredible things. 00:01:31.120 --> 00:01:32.560 And that should give a lot of us hope. 00:01:32.640 --> 00:01:38.239 Because even when we're broken and kind of messed up, God can still use us if we want him to. 00:01:38.640 --> 00:01:40.799 You know, I want to be useful to God. 00:01:40.959 --> 00:01:42.719 I want to be part of the story that he's telling. 00:01:42.879 --> 00:01:49.439 I think it's the greatest story that's ever been told, the story of God's love for people and the lengths that he's willing to go to bring people to himself. 00:01:49.840 --> 00:01:53.040 There's never been a greater story than that, and I want to be part of that story. 00:01:53.280 --> 00:02:10.000 And when I look through this list of names of people that God used to bring Jesus into the world, this list of names that that becomes the family tree of Jesus, I see people who have so many issues, and yet every single one of them, in some way, was used by God to do something really special. 00:02:10.159 --> 00:02:13.360 I want to learn from that because I want to be someone that God uses. 00:02:13.599 --> 00:02:18.000 And so last week we started by looking at a man named Abraham, who's the first name on the list. 00:02:18.319 --> 00:02:19.439 That's why we started there. 00:02:19.599 --> 00:02:22.159 And we said that Abraham, we're giving everybody nicknames. 00:02:22.319 --> 00:02:23.520 Abraham is the believer. 00:02:23.759 --> 00:02:25.599 He was a person with great faith. 00:02:25.840 --> 00:02:27.120 Didn't have perfect faith. 00:02:27.280 --> 00:02:32.560 His faith absolutely stumbled, like everyone with faith does, but he had enduring faith. 00:02:32.639 --> 00:02:35.680 He was a believer, and God likes to work with believers. 00:02:35.919 --> 00:02:41.520 Today we're gonna look at his grandson, a guy named Jacob, and Jacob is the wrestler. 00:02:41.840 --> 00:02:43.360 He's a wrestler. 00:02:43.599 --> 00:02:46.479 And we'll talk about what that means in just a little bit. 00:02:46.639 --> 00:02:50.719 Just know that Jacob's someone who could handle some discomfort in his journey. 00:02:51.039 --> 00:02:53.439 Now I'm gonna go ahead and be really direct and honest. 00:02:53.520 --> 00:02:55.680 Um, I don't like Jacob at all. 00:02:55.759 --> 00:02:58.319 And I would say it to his face if he was alive right now. 00:02:58.560 --> 00:03:01.199 I think Jacob is the worst. 00:03:01.360 --> 00:03:09.759 Like, you know, like when you when you grow up and maybe you become familiar with people in the Bible or whatever, and maybe it's a whole new thing to you, and you're coming here and it wasn't part of your childhood. 00:03:09.840 --> 00:03:19.520 I didn't start going to church until I was in the fourth grade, and that's because we moved to a new house, and this person invited my parents and I to go to church, and we went, and that person got arrested the very next day. 00:03:19.680 --> 00:03:21.120 Literally, never saw them again. 00:03:21.199 --> 00:03:22.159 They went to jail. 00:03:22.319 --> 00:03:25.280 And so, but they invited us to church, so it worked. 00:03:25.439 --> 00:03:27.280 And uh, and we started going and we liked it. 00:03:27.360 --> 00:03:31.439 And I and as a kid, I just thought the stories that I heard in church were so cool. 00:03:31.599 --> 00:03:39.840 I thought they were awesome, and I was really open to it, and so I started reading my Bible, I started reading Genesis, and uh, man, that is not rated PG. 00:03:39.919 --> 00:03:46.639 Like, if you've ever read those stories, my parents were like, Stop reading the Bible, stop it, because you're not ready for some of this stuff. 00:03:46.719 --> 00:03:49.599 Like the Bible doesn't, it doesn't cut the ugly parts out. 00:03:49.759 --> 00:03:52.080 It's one of the cool things about scripture, it's really honest. 00:03:52.240 --> 00:03:58.639 And so I start reading the Bible and I start reading all these stories, and pretty soon I've got certain people in the Bible that I'm like, man, that person is awesome. 00:03:58.800 --> 00:04:01.360 You know, like King David, I loved him when I was a kid. 00:04:01.599 --> 00:04:09.360 I loved his story because yeah, he has issues and he makes mistakes, but then there's all these things about David that are just awesome and admirable, and I wanted to kind of be like David. 00:04:09.520 --> 00:04:14.639 I've never heard a person say they want to be like Jacob because he's awful. 00:04:14.960 --> 00:04:16.480 He's the worst. 00:04:16.639 --> 00:04:17.839 I'm just he's just the worst. 00:04:17.920 --> 00:04:18.560 Let me explain. 00:04:18.720 --> 00:04:21.439 Um, from birth, he's awful. 00:04:21.600 --> 00:04:22.160 From birth. 00:04:22.240 --> 00:04:22.720 It's possible. 00:04:22.800 --> 00:04:26.560 Okay, so Genesis chapter 25, here's where Jacob enters the story. 00:04:26.720 --> 00:04:32.560 Isaac, his father, pleaded with the Lord on behalf of his wife because she was unable to have children. 00:04:32.720 --> 00:04:39.199 The Lord answered Isaac's prayer, and Rebecca became pregnant with twins, but the two children struggled with each other in her womb. 00:04:39.360 --> 00:04:42.480 So she went to ask the Lord about it, why is this happening to me? 00:04:42.720 --> 00:04:46.079 And the Lord said to her, The sons in your womb will become two nations. 00:04:46.319 --> 00:04:48.399 From the very beginning the two nations will be rivals. 00:04:48.560 --> 00:04:52.959 One nation will be stronger than the other, and your older son will serve your younger son. 00:04:53.199 --> 00:04:57.519 And when the time came to give birth, Rebecca discovered that she did indeed have twins. 00:04:57.680 --> 00:05:01.839 The first one was very red at birth and covered with thick hair like a fur coat. 00:05:02.079 --> 00:05:04.560 It's like a wookie, basically, is what happened. 00:05:04.800 --> 00:05:05.360 That came out. 00:05:05.519 --> 00:05:06.959 So they named him Esau. 00:05:07.040 --> 00:05:09.680 Um, I don't think he was like a Wookiee, he's just a hairy kid. 00:05:09.839 --> 00:05:15.439 Uh then the other twin was born with his hand grasping Esau's heel. 00:05:15.680 --> 00:05:17.279 So they named him Jacob. 00:05:17.600 --> 00:05:19.839 Isaac was 60 years old when the twins were born. 00:05:19.920 --> 00:05:28.879 Now, that name Jacob in their language, in the Hebrew language, it translates to the supplanter or the one who deceives. 00:05:29.199 --> 00:05:37.279 Because he was born grabbing a hold of his older brother's heel, like he was trying to pull him back in and say, I want to be first, me first. 00:05:37.360 --> 00:05:40.639 Like, and that is exactly who Jacob ends up being. 00:05:40.879 --> 00:05:42.959 As a brother, he's he's terrible. 00:05:43.040 --> 00:05:47.439 I'm sure a lot of us in the room have had some pretty, pretty awful siblings at times, you know. 00:05:47.600 --> 00:05:52.560 Um, my little brother, I love him to death, but one time when he was like four, he stabbed me in the leg. 00:05:52.720 --> 00:05:53.519 Stabbed me. 00:05:53.680 --> 00:05:54.240 Literally. 00:05:54.319 --> 00:05:57.600 Uh, it was with a pushpin, it wasn't like a knife, but it counts. 00:05:57.759 --> 00:05:59.279 I've been stabbed, okay? 00:05:59.519 --> 00:06:00.319 It counts. 00:06:00.560 --> 00:06:02.480 A metal, it broke the flesh. 00:06:02.639 --> 00:06:05.759 And what was awesome is that he was really young, so I pretended that I died. 00:06:06.000 --> 00:06:08.000 And he cried over my body. 00:06:08.240 --> 00:06:11.040 And uh then I was like, surprise, you know? 00:06:11.199 --> 00:06:13.600 Um, because that's what you do when you're a sibling. 00:06:13.680 --> 00:06:16.639 You try to ruin the emotional health of your siblings. 00:06:16.720 --> 00:06:17.439 That's what you do. 00:06:17.600 --> 00:06:20.480 And uh, and Jacob, Jacob was really good at this. 00:06:20.560 --> 00:06:22.079 Like, guys, the worst brother. 00:06:22.240 --> 00:06:27.120 So, because his brother Esau was the oldest, there were a few things in their culture that were due to him. 00:06:27.279 --> 00:06:29.040 One was something called the birthright. 00:06:29.279 --> 00:06:37.519 The oldest, the oldest male in their culture would be given the inheritance from the father and all the authority that went along with the father's authority. 00:06:37.680 --> 00:06:43.519 So, you know, at a certain time, Esau was destined to have the birthright, the authority and the inheritance. 00:06:43.680 --> 00:06:44.800 And that's a big deal. 00:06:45.040 --> 00:06:50.240 Well, one day, Jacob stumbles upon Esau, and Esau is like starving, like legit starving. 00:06:50.319 --> 00:06:51.839 Remember, this is 4,000 years ago. 00:06:51.920 --> 00:06:58.560 There's no refrigerators, there's no drive-throughs, and so you would go through famines, you would go through times where you hadn't eaten in days and days. 00:06:58.720 --> 00:07:04.240 And Jacob happens upon Esau in that state, and Esau's like, please give me some food, because Jacob has some. 00:07:04.399 --> 00:07:07.519 And Jacob's like, I'll give you food if you give me your birthright. 00:07:07.680 --> 00:07:12.800 And there's some back and forth, but finally Esau, in kind of a moment of weakness, says, Fine, take it, whatever. 00:07:12.879 --> 00:07:13.839 And then he he eats. 00:07:13.920 --> 00:07:19.839 And so Jacob takes advantage of his starving brother and deceives him into giving him the birthright. 00:07:19.920 --> 00:07:22.319 That's the kind of brother that Jacob is. 00:07:22.959 --> 00:07:25.199 He's a terrible brother, he's a terrible son as well. 00:07:25.360 --> 00:07:27.279 Isaac, when he gets older, it goes blind. 00:07:27.439 --> 00:07:28.800 Isaac, he's he's blind. 00:07:28.959 --> 00:07:35.600 And so when it comes time for Isaac to give the blessing to his children, that was another part of their culture, is you would bless your children. 00:07:35.759 --> 00:07:41.920 And in their culture, they believe that the blessing that your father would speak over you, it would stick with you for your whole life. 00:07:42.079 --> 00:07:46.800 And we might look at that and say, that's really superstitious, but how many people's words have stuck with you for years? 00:07:46.959 --> 00:07:48.079 Like, think about that. 00:07:48.319 --> 00:07:50.800 And so it's time for Esau to be blessed. 00:07:51.040 --> 00:07:57.040 And so Esau's out, he's hunting, and Jacob finds out that when Esau gets back, his father is going to bless him. 00:07:57.120 --> 00:08:09.600 And so Jacob puts on some of Esau's clothes, disguises himself like Esau, goes into the tent of his blind father, does his best Esau impression, and his father blesses him, thinking it's Esau. 00:08:09.759 --> 00:08:12.319 So then Esau comes back and he's like, Dad, I'm ready for my blessing. 00:08:12.399 --> 00:08:14.240 And the dad's like, What are you talking about? 00:08:14.399 --> 00:08:15.360 I just gave it to you. 00:08:15.439 --> 00:08:16.879 And he's like, What are you talking about? 00:08:17.040 --> 00:08:19.920 And then they figure out what happens, and Jacob stole the blessing. 00:08:20.079 --> 00:08:21.519 And he's like, Dad, just bless me. 00:08:21.600 --> 00:08:23.120 And Jacob's like, I already blessed him. 00:08:23.199 --> 00:08:27.839 Like I said he was gonna be blessed, and he is, because they believed it was that powerful. 00:08:27.920 --> 00:08:30.639 And so Esau said, If I see him again, I'm gonna kill him. 00:08:30.879 --> 00:08:32.159 And Jacob runs away. 00:08:32.320 --> 00:08:37.679 Which is another thing Jacob happens to be really, really good at doing is running away from things. 00:08:37.840 --> 00:08:39.519 Again, he's the worst. 00:08:39.759 --> 00:08:40.080 Okay? 00:08:40.480 --> 00:08:43.200 So later on, Jacob becomes a father. 00:08:43.519 --> 00:08:45.519 He has 12 sons, one daughter. 00:08:45.679 --> 00:08:46.399 Poor girl. 00:08:46.559 --> 00:08:54.879 And uh and the thing about Jacob as a dad is if he was a bad son, or if he was a bad son and brother, I guess, he's an even worse father. 00:08:55.120 --> 00:08:58.960 So what happens is he shows extreme favoritism to one of his kids. 00:08:59.120 --> 00:09:05.039 Like extreme favoritism, to the point that the other brothers don't even have to wonder if their dad likes this one more. 00:09:05.440 --> 00:09:07.440 And it's the 11th child. 00:09:07.600 --> 00:09:18.080 So he's got ten older brothers that end up being so filled with jealousy and rage that they end up selling their brother Joseph was his name, to slavers in Egypt. 00:09:18.320 --> 00:09:19.120 So they sell him away. 00:09:19.279 --> 00:09:22.240 Then they convince their dad that he was just mauled to death by a wild animal. 00:09:22.399 --> 00:09:27.039 And if you feel bad, if you're like, poor Jacob, remember what he did to his dad. 00:09:27.200 --> 00:09:28.480 Like, totally deceived his father. 00:09:28.559 --> 00:09:31.279 It's kind of like it's just the family tradition at this point. 00:09:31.440 --> 00:09:43.600 And so they they sell Joseph away, but it backfires because instead of their father now loving them, now that Joseph's gone, their father just takes all of that love and gives it to Benjamin, who is the youngest child in the family. 00:09:43.759 --> 00:09:51.519 And all this kind of comes to this boiling point where years later there's this famine in the land, and the only place to get food is Egypt. 00:09:51.679 --> 00:09:59.039 And Joseph, who was sold as a slave to Egypt, has actually risen in the ranks, and he's actually second in charge of all of Egypt, but the brothers don't know that. 00:09:59.279 --> 00:10:04.000 They go to Egypt, all but Benjamin, who stays with his father, to get to get food. 00:10:04.240 --> 00:10:06.000 And Joseph's in charge of food distribution. 00:10:06.080 --> 00:10:07.600 They see Joseph, they don't recognize him. 00:10:07.679 --> 00:10:12.559 It's been a long, long time, years and years and years, but he recognizes them, but he sees that Benjamin, his little brother, isn't with him. 00:10:12.639 --> 00:10:16.240 And in Joseph's mind, they've probably just done the same thing to Benjamin that they did to him. 00:10:16.399 --> 00:10:21.120 And so Joseph kind of plays this game with them and he says, Hey, how do I know you're not spies? 00:10:21.279 --> 00:10:22.399 Because they were foreigners. 00:10:22.480 --> 00:10:26.000 And they said, We're not spies, and they start telling them about their family, and they mention this Benjamin. 00:10:26.080 --> 00:10:28.080 He says, Well, I don't see this Benjamin with you. 00:10:28.159 --> 00:10:30.720 And they're like, Well, yeah, that's because he's with our father. 00:10:30.960 --> 00:10:32.799 And Joseph says, Okay, well, here's the deal. 00:10:32.879 --> 00:10:34.080 I'm gonna keep one of you here. 00:10:34.159 --> 00:10:35.679 I'm gonna hold one of you captive. 00:10:35.919 --> 00:10:42.639 And he chose this brother Simeon, and he says, Until you bring this Benjamin back to me, he stays here. 00:10:42.879 --> 00:10:49.279 And so the brothers go back, and they have to convince their father to let Benjamin come with them so that Simeon can be freed. 00:10:49.360 --> 00:10:50.320 It's this huge mess. 00:10:50.480 --> 00:10:52.639 And we read about it in Genesis chapter 42. 00:10:52.720 --> 00:10:53.360 This is real quick. 00:10:53.519 --> 00:10:59.360 It says, When the brothers came to their father Jacob in the land of Canaan, they told him everything that had happened to them. 00:10:59.600 --> 00:11:02.639 The man who was governor of the land spoke very harshly to us, they told him. 00:11:02.720 --> 00:11:07.120 He accused us of being spies, scouting the land, but but we said, We're honest men, not spies. 00:11:07.360 --> 00:11:09.279 We're twelve brothers, sons of one father. 00:11:09.440 --> 00:11:13.759 One brother is no longer with us, and the youngest is at home with our father in the land of Canaan. 00:11:14.000 --> 00:11:17.440 Then the man who's governor of the land told us, This is how I'll find out if you're honest men. 00:11:17.600 --> 00:11:21.440 Leave one of your brothers here with me, take your grain for your starving families, and go on home. 00:11:21.519 --> 00:11:23.679 But you must bring your youngest brother back to me. 00:11:23.840 --> 00:11:29.440 Then I'll know that you're honest men and not spies, and I'll give you back your brother, and you may trade freely in the land. 00:11:29.679 --> 00:11:32.159 And here's Jacob's response in verse 38. 00:11:32.720 --> 00:11:34.720 My son will not go down with you. 00:11:34.879 --> 00:11:38.080 His brother Joseph is dead, and he is all I have left. 00:11:38.240 --> 00:11:40.799 Keep in mind, he's talking to his other sons. 00:11:41.120 --> 00:11:41.759 Right? 00:11:42.320 --> 00:11:43.039 He's it. 00:11:43.200 --> 00:11:45.039 He's the only one I care about. 00:11:45.279 --> 00:11:50.559 If he dies, if anything should happen to him on your journey, you would send this grieving white-haired man to his grave. 00:11:50.720 --> 00:11:53.679 I mean, he looks at his children, he says, I don't care about you. 00:11:54.080 --> 00:11:55.600 I only care about him. 00:11:55.840 --> 00:12:02.720 And I'm willing to let my other son be held captive in a foreign land, then risk this son. 00:12:03.440 --> 00:12:05.919 Like I said, guys, I'm not joking. 00:12:06.080 --> 00:12:08.240 Jacob is the worst. 00:12:08.799 --> 00:12:09.120 Okay? 00:12:10.399 --> 00:12:15.759 For years and years I would think about this fact that Jacob, there's like no redeeming quality about him. 00:12:16.159 --> 00:12:21.679 And it's maddening because the story we're about to read here in a second, he has his name changed to Israel. 00:12:21.840 --> 00:12:28.080 He becomes the namesake of the entire nation of people that God uses in scripture to bring his son into this world. 00:12:28.720 --> 00:12:32.960 It's named after him, and there's like nothing good about him. 00:12:33.919 --> 00:12:35.679 I thought that for a very long time. 00:12:36.240 --> 00:12:39.039 That Jacob's just he's the worst, and he is he's really bad. 00:12:39.440 --> 00:12:49.279 But a couple years ago, I was listening to a message by this pastor that I I've listened to for for years, ever since I was in college, and he did a message on Jacob, and I was like, ah, I don't want to hear a message on Jacob. 00:12:49.360 --> 00:12:51.039 I I can't stand Jacob. 00:12:51.279 --> 00:12:59.360 And uh and he said something in it that for the very first time thought occurred to me that I never thought I would have. 00:13:00.399 --> 00:13:01.519 I went, whoa. 00:13:02.639 --> 00:13:04.240 I kind of want to be like Jacob. 00:13:04.480 --> 00:13:06.879 And that threw up on my mouth a little bit because I don't like Jacob. 00:13:06.960 --> 00:13:07.919 He's he's the worst. 00:13:08.080 --> 00:13:10.000 Okay, let me let me explain. 00:13:10.320 --> 00:13:13.600 Jacob has this moment in his life, and it's like it's a defining moment. 00:13:13.759 --> 00:13:15.279 It is the defining moment of his life. 00:13:15.360 --> 00:13:22.159 And it takes place a little bit after he's deceived his father and his brother, and a little bit before his son Joseph is sold into slavery. 00:13:22.399 --> 00:13:26.159 What's going on at this moment in his life is he's at he's about to go back to his home. 00:13:26.399 --> 00:13:27.440 He hasn't been there in years. 00:13:27.600 --> 00:13:31.120 The last time he was there, his brother Esau said, If I ever see you again, I'll kill you. 00:13:31.200 --> 00:13:39.120 And so Jacob took that threat seriously and he went and stayed somewhere else until he wore out his welcome there because he's a very deceptive person, and that's what deceptive people do. 00:13:39.279 --> 00:13:41.120 And so it's time for him to go somewhere else. 00:13:41.360 --> 00:13:52.240 And he's headed back home, but he he remembers the grudge that he and Esau have, so he sends a messenger ahead just to sort of scout and let him know what's going on, and maybe tell his brother Esau that he's gonna come. 00:13:52.399 --> 00:13:59.200 And so as they're traveling, this messenger comes back and he says, Hey, your brother Esau is on his way to meet you with 400 men. 00:13:59.600 --> 00:14:01.679 And he's like, We're all gonna die. 00:14:02.480 --> 00:14:04.879 And you know, you think, what would you do like in that situation? 00:14:05.039 --> 00:14:05.759 What do you do? 00:14:06.000 --> 00:14:07.360 You know, you man up, right? 00:14:07.600 --> 00:14:15.360 You man up and you go first, and you go out and you meet with Esau and you bury the hatchet and you own your mistakes and you get humble, whatever, right? 00:14:15.440 --> 00:14:16.480 That's what you do, right? 00:14:16.799 --> 00:14:17.679 Not if you're Jacob. 00:14:17.759 --> 00:14:18.240 No, no, no. 00:14:18.320 --> 00:14:21.519 If you're Jacob, you move yourself to the back of the line, okay? 00:14:21.679 --> 00:14:22.559 Which is what he does. 00:14:22.720 --> 00:14:30.159 And you divide your family up into groups because you're like, okay, they might get these, but they if they go after these, these can get away. 00:14:30.320 --> 00:14:33.679 And so if I split everybody up, I can make sure that at least some of them survive. 00:14:33.759 --> 00:14:38.879 And then I'll hang back here and and and have the advantage of seeing how it all plays out. 00:14:39.039 --> 00:14:40.639 That's what that's what Jacob does. 00:14:40.799 --> 00:14:45.759 Again, guys, if you haven't caught on to this theme, the worst, right? 00:14:46.159 --> 00:14:50.159 And so Jacob sends his family off in front of him, like, hope it goes well. 00:14:50.399 --> 00:14:52.559 Have fun with those 400 guys. 00:14:52.639 --> 00:14:57.200 I'm just I'm just gonna be back here, you know, guarding the land or whatever. 00:14:57.279 --> 00:14:58.159 And he he stays back. 00:14:58.240 --> 00:15:02.879 And and we get to this moment in his story, in Genesis 32. 00:15:03.679 --> 00:15:06.240 This left Jacob all alone in the camp. 00:15:06.480 --> 00:15:09.840 And this is one of those stories where a lot happens in a few words. 00:15:09.919 --> 00:15:11.120 It's it's kind of odd. 00:15:11.360 --> 00:15:16.879 And a man came and wrestled with him until dawn began to break. 00:15:17.200 --> 00:15:22.720 And when the man saw that he would not win the match, he touched Jacob's hip and wrenched it out of its socket. 00:15:23.120 --> 00:15:25.200 And the man said, Let me go, for the dawn is breaking. 00:15:25.279 --> 00:15:28.159 But Jacob said, I will not let you go unless you bless me. 00:15:28.399 --> 00:15:29.120 What is your name? 00:15:29.279 --> 00:15:29.919 the man asked. 00:15:30.080 --> 00:15:31.360 He replied, Jacob. 00:15:31.600 --> 00:15:33.679 Your name will no longer be Jacob, the man told him. 00:15:33.759 --> 00:15:38.159 From now on you'll be called Israel, because you have fought with God and with men and have won. 00:15:38.399 --> 00:15:40.000 Please tell me your name, Jacob said. 00:15:40.080 --> 00:15:41.039 Why do you want to know my name? 00:15:41.200 --> 00:15:41.759 The man replied. 00:15:41.840 --> 00:15:43.279 And then he blessed Jacob there. 00:15:43.519 --> 00:15:47.120 Jacob named the place Penail, which means face of God. 00:15:47.519 --> 00:15:50.720 For he said, I have seen God face to face, yet my life has been spared. 00:15:50.799 --> 00:15:55.919 The sun was rising as Jacob left Penail, and he was limping because of the injury to his hip. 00:15:56.080 --> 00:15:58.320 And as far as we know, he limps for the rest of his life. 00:15:59.600 --> 00:16:01.279 It's a weird story, right? 00:16:01.919 --> 00:16:05.600 And so, like theologically, this is what's apparently happening here. 00:16:05.679 --> 00:16:08.080 Uh God has taken on the form of a person. 00:16:08.639 --> 00:16:14.720 And this is actually something that God does a few times in Scripture, like the biggest time would be Jesus, okay? 00:16:14.879 --> 00:16:22.720 But even in the Old Testament, there's a few moments where God comes disguised as a person, essentially, and interacts with people. 00:16:22.879 --> 00:16:28.320 And in this specific situation, he does this with Jacob and gets into a wrestling match with a guy. 00:16:28.399 --> 00:16:29.279 It's a weird story. 00:16:29.440 --> 00:16:34.720 I mean, just picture you're Jacob and you're worried about your family and you've set them all off and you're by yourself, and who knows what you're about to do. 00:16:34.799 --> 00:16:37.519 Maybe you're gonna pray, maybe you're gonna just cry, I don't know. 00:16:37.679 --> 00:16:47.279 And from the distance, like you see a guy walking toward you, and as he gets closer, you recognize like he seems like he's coming at me, you know, not just toward me, but to me. 00:16:47.519 --> 00:16:50.799 And then the guy comes and just starts to wrestle with you. 00:16:50.960 --> 00:16:54.799 Like, have you has anyone here ever wrestled, like legit wrestled before? 00:16:55.039 --> 00:16:55.360 Okay? 00:16:55.919 --> 00:17:05.279 I had a roommate in college who was a wrestler, and we always used to, all the guys in in my dorms, we used to mess around and we did like, we would box and things like that until a guy broke his nose and then told us to stop. 00:17:05.440 --> 00:17:11.119 Um and uh but one day, one day we had this horrible idea to like wrestle. 00:17:11.279 --> 00:17:16.240 And uh I learned a valuable lesson that day is that you cannot beat a wrestler. 00:17:16.480 --> 00:17:17.279 It's impossible. 00:17:17.440 --> 00:17:26.799 If someone really knows what they're doing wrestling, you will, you will lose because they can twist your body into shapes that you didn't know your body could twist into. 00:17:27.039 --> 00:17:36.319 And they can they can move your joints into places where you're like, I literally don't know how to move right now because it feels like if I do, I'm gonna break every bone that I have. 00:17:36.480 --> 00:17:38.960 And uh, and so my roommate was a really good wrestler. 00:17:39.039 --> 00:17:44.640 I've never felt so much tension and I've never felt so much discomfort in any moment in my life than wrestling. 00:17:44.799 --> 00:17:51.119 And that's what goes on with with Jacob and this man, God. 00:17:52.000 --> 00:17:56.720 They wrestle, and this goes on for hours and for hours and for hours. 00:17:57.519 --> 00:18:03.039 And it gets to the point where God just says, you know, I'm tired of this, and he just dislocates his hip. 00:18:03.359 --> 00:18:04.960 And then he says, Let me go. 00:18:05.279 --> 00:18:09.119 And Jacob says, No, not until you bless me. 00:18:10.079 --> 00:18:11.920 And so the man gives him a new name. 00:18:12.480 --> 00:18:19.359 God gives him a new name, and his name is Israel, which literally translates wrestles with God. 00:18:20.880 --> 00:18:27.039 Jacob went from being the deceiver to the one who wrestles with God, and that's at least an upgrade, right? 00:18:27.119 --> 00:18:27.759 We can admit that. 00:18:27.839 --> 00:18:31.839 That's definitely the one who deceives versus the one who wrestles with God. 00:18:31.920 --> 00:18:34.319 He gets this new name and he gets this blessing. 00:18:35.680 --> 00:18:44.559 So I'm listening to this pastor a few years ago tell this story, and he says this thing about Jacob, and again, I've I've never liked Jacob, and I just think he's the worst. 00:18:44.640 --> 00:18:47.680 And the pastor says, you know, here's the thing about Jacob. 00:18:47.839 --> 00:18:48.880 Say what you want about him. 00:18:49.119 --> 00:18:54.640 Say what you want to say about him being a horrible person and deceitful and selfish and cowardly, and all those things are true. 00:18:54.720 --> 00:19:03.359 But here's the thing about him: he was someone who would rather have died holding on to God than to have lived knowing he had let go. 00:19:05.119 --> 00:19:14.319 Jacob was someone who would rather have limped away from a genuine encounter with God than just avoid it altogether. 00:19:15.680 --> 00:19:25.680 And when I heard him say that, the idea that Jacob would rather have died holding on to God, that he refused to let go of God, no matter how much discomfort he felt, he would not let go of God. 00:19:26.319 --> 00:19:27.599 That that hit me. 00:19:28.559 --> 00:19:32.720 And I had to do some soul searching and ask myself, man, do I cling to God like that? 00:19:33.680 --> 00:19:35.680 Do I hold on that tightly to God? 00:19:35.759 --> 00:19:40.160 And for the first time in my life, I found myself saying, Man, I think I kind of want to be like Jacob, you know. 00:19:42.079 --> 00:19:45.440 See, it's a powerful idea to wrestle with God. 00:19:46.079 --> 00:19:48.000 We as people, we don't like, we don't like to wrestle. 00:19:48.079 --> 00:19:49.200 We don't like to wrestle with anything. 00:19:49.359 --> 00:19:53.039 We want lives that are tension-free and discomfort-free. 00:19:53.119 --> 00:19:59.519 That is why so many of the products that we buy are all about maximizing comfort and alleviating tension. 00:20:00.960 --> 00:20:04.000 We want as as little discomfort as possible. 00:20:04.799 --> 00:20:21.519 But when it comes to God, when it comes to our relationship with God, if we don't wrestle with Him, if we don't embrace some discomfort, if we don't actually like go there with God from time to time, we miss out on the greatest blessings. 00:20:22.480 --> 00:20:23.920 We miss out on the greatest blessings. 00:20:24.000 --> 00:20:26.640 We have to be okay with the struggle. 00:20:26.880 --> 00:20:31.119 We have to be okay with the idea of wrestling with God and struggling and really going there. 00:20:31.200 --> 00:20:34.640 I mean, if you look at Scripture, some of the greatest people in Scripture, they were wrestlers. 00:20:34.880 --> 00:20:36.480 Like they they they wrestled with God. 00:20:36.559 --> 00:20:39.680 If you know the story of Job, a really incredible story. 00:20:39.839 --> 00:20:42.319 Job experiences tremendous tragedy. 00:20:42.640 --> 00:20:43.680 He loses children. 00:20:43.759 --> 00:20:45.119 I mean, it's it's it's intense. 00:20:45.200 --> 00:20:49.200 And in the midst of that tragedy, he's having a really hard time with God, as you can imagine. 00:20:49.440 --> 00:20:54.880 I'm sure many of us have been in situations like that where we're looking at God and we're saying, hey, God, you're doing it wrong. 00:20:55.440 --> 00:20:59.200 Maybe you have the boldness to actually say it, maybe you just think it. 00:20:59.599 --> 00:21:00.960 But that's where Job is at. 00:21:01.039 --> 00:21:02.720 He's he's like, God, you've messed up. 00:21:02.799 --> 00:21:06.799 You've clearly made some major mistakes because I've been faithful to you, and look at what's happening. 00:21:06.880 --> 00:21:10.319 And so he goes to God and he starts asking God some pretty intense questions. 00:21:10.480 --> 00:21:12.079 I don't know if you've ever done that before. 00:21:12.319 --> 00:21:16.880 If you've ever gone to God with some pretty intense questions, like you're kind of demanding an answer. 00:21:17.359 --> 00:21:21.039 But Job does this for a while, and then God responds. 00:21:21.440 --> 00:21:22.319 This is really interesting. 00:21:22.480 --> 00:21:27.359 This is in Job chapter 38, and we learn in this that God is a good wrestler. 00:21:27.920 --> 00:21:29.039 Check this out. 00:21:29.519 --> 00:21:33.839 God talks, Who is this that questions my wisdom with such ignorant words? 00:21:34.480 --> 00:21:39.440 Brace yourself like a man, because I have some questions for you, and you must answer them. 00:21:40.240 --> 00:21:42.799 Where were you when I laid the foundations of the earth? 00:21:43.200 --> 00:21:44.720 Tell me if you know so much. 00:21:45.359 --> 00:21:48.559 Who determined its dimensions and stretched out their surveying line? 00:21:49.039 --> 00:21:50.960 What supports its foundations? 00:21:51.119 --> 00:21:55.279 Who laid its cornerstone as the morning stars sang together and all the angels shouted for joy? 00:21:55.440 --> 00:21:58.720 Who kept the sea inside its boundaries as it burst from the womb? 00:22:00.000 --> 00:22:07.039 And as I clothed it with clouds and wrapped it in thick darkness, for I locked it behind barred gates, limiting its shores, I said, This far and no farther will you come. 00:22:07.200 --> 00:22:08.880 Here your proud waves must stop. 00:22:09.119 --> 00:22:12.640 Have you ever commanded the morning to appear and cause the dawn to rise in the east? 00:22:12.960 --> 00:22:16.799 Have you made daylight spread to the ends of the earth to bring an end to the night's wickedness? 00:22:17.200 --> 00:22:21.039 As the light approaches, the earth takes shape like clay pressed beneath a seal. 00:22:21.119 --> 00:22:22.640 It is robed in brilliant colors. 00:22:22.880 --> 00:22:25.839 The light disturbs the wicked and stops the arm that is raised in violence. 00:22:25.920 --> 00:22:28.480 Have you explored the springs from which the seas come? 00:22:28.640 --> 00:22:29.920 Have you explored their depths? 00:22:30.240 --> 00:22:32.160 Do you know where the gates of death are located? 00:22:32.319 --> 00:22:33.839 Have you seen the gates of utter gloom? 00:22:34.000 --> 00:22:35.519 Do you realize the extent of the earth? 00:22:35.680 --> 00:22:36.960 Tell me about it if you know. 00:22:40.000 --> 00:22:41.119 God's a good wrestler. 00:22:43.039 --> 00:22:46.319 Job finally gets a chance to respond in Job 42. 00:22:46.400 --> 00:22:49.119 He says, I know that you can do anything and no one can stop you. 00:22:49.920 --> 00:22:53.119 You asked, Who is this that questions my wisdom with such ignorance? 00:22:53.440 --> 00:22:54.000 It is I. 00:22:54.720 --> 00:22:58.799 And I was talking about things I knew nothing about, things too wonderful for me. 00:22:59.279 --> 00:23:00.640 You said, Listen and I will speak. 00:23:00.720 --> 00:23:02.559 I have some questions for you, and you must answer them. 00:23:02.880 --> 00:23:05.839 I had only heard about you before, but now I've seen you with my own eyes. 00:23:06.240 --> 00:23:10.480 I take back everything I said, and I sit in dust and ashes to show my repentance. 00:23:10.880 --> 00:23:13.839 That is Job limping away from his wrestling match with God. 00:23:14.319 --> 00:23:15.519 But here's the beauty in it. 00:23:16.400 --> 00:23:21.119 After this moment, Job is blessed by God like you cannot believe. 00:23:22.079 --> 00:23:25.279 Everything that he lost, it's given to him double. 00:23:27.200 --> 00:23:31.200 Just like Jacob received this incredible blessing at the end of his wrestling match. 00:23:31.279 --> 00:23:32.960 I mean, he has his entire identity changed. 00:23:33.039 --> 00:23:36.079 He'd spent his entire life being known as the one who deceives. 00:23:36.160 --> 00:23:37.839 And he was a very deceptive person. 00:23:37.920 --> 00:23:42.960 But I imagine if you grow up and your name is deceiver, maybe at some point you just kind of own that. 00:23:44.319 --> 00:23:50.160 And God changes his name and says, From now on, you are Israel, for you have wrestled with God and won. 00:23:51.920 --> 00:23:53.519 He has an entire new identity. 00:23:53.599 --> 00:23:54.400 He's richly blessed. 00:23:54.559 --> 00:23:59.680 Job is richly blessed, but but first he wrestles with God and he experiences great discomfort. 00:24:00.000 --> 00:24:01.119 We look at someone like David. 00:24:01.200 --> 00:24:06.720 If you've ever read the Psalms, the Psalms are ancient songs and poems written about God. 00:24:06.799 --> 00:24:10.400 And in many of the Psalms, the best ones, David is just, he's giving it to God. 00:24:10.559 --> 00:24:11.359 He's frustrated. 00:24:11.440 --> 00:24:16.559 He's going through some real hardships in life, some tough situations, and he's just going to God, like, where are you? 00:24:16.720 --> 00:24:17.359 What are you doing? 00:24:17.519 --> 00:24:18.960 You're asleep at the wheel. 00:24:20.160 --> 00:24:24.000 And then by the end of some of those Psalms, he's like, But you're amazing, and I'll worship you with my whole life. 00:24:24.079 --> 00:24:26.319 And what we see happen there, it's a wrestling match. 00:24:27.680 --> 00:24:35.359 David's wrestling with God, and he's he's giving God all of the discomfort, all the pain, all the struggle, but by the end of it, God is winning. 00:24:36.880 --> 00:24:39.839 And he realizes the blessing that comes from knowing God. 00:24:39.920 --> 00:24:41.279 And here's why I'm talking about this. 00:24:42.400 --> 00:24:47.119 I know so many people that want to have a relationship with God, like David had. 00:24:47.759 --> 00:24:53.200 I mean, you read the Psalms and you recognize the closeness that David had with God and the depth of his relationship with God. 00:24:53.359 --> 00:24:55.039 I know a lot of people who are like, I want that. 00:24:55.119 --> 00:24:55.759 I mean, who wants that? 00:24:55.920 --> 00:24:56.640 Anyone want that? 00:24:57.359 --> 00:25:01.519 I know lots of people who want that, but they don't want to go through what David had to go through to get that. 00:25:03.200 --> 00:25:05.279 I mean, a lot of us want the blessings of Job. 00:25:05.440 --> 00:25:08.240 How many of us would love it if God just doubled everything we have? 00:25:08.400 --> 00:25:10.559 I would love if he doubled everything I had except for children. 00:25:10.640 --> 00:25:14.319 I don't want that, but everything other than that, double it, you know? 00:25:16.240 --> 00:25:20.640