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As we come to look in the word again, I remind you and my heart, I know it’s easy to forget that which is indispensable, and if you only make helpful what is indispensable, God won’t use it anymore. Indispensable is indispensable. In my Bible on every page, I put an arrow in the margin pointing up, so when I open my Bible, I’m reminded that you need to trust in the Lord. He’s promised He would meet us, and He will.
Let me share this verse. Recently I’ve been looking at the wonderful book of Philippians, and this Philippians 1:6, “I’m confident of this very thing, that He who began a good work in you will perfect it until the day of Christ Jesus. There are many things in that passage, but there are two things for sure, and that is God is faithful and He’s going to take us all the way. The second is that it shows that the Christian life is progressive; He’s going to continue to work in us until the day of Christ. Let’s commit our time to the Lord.
Our Father, we thank You so much for Your indwelling Holy Spirit whose joy it is, whose ministry it is, whose pleasure it is to always turn our eyes to our Lord Jesus Christ. We just pray again as we come now to the close of our gathering, our weekend together, that You would tie up any loose ends in any heart, that You would clinch the message of union with Christ in all of our hearts, and Lord, we just worship You, we do love You, and we just ask You, Lord, to meet with us now. Again, I have to pray that You would protect Your people against anything I might say that is flesh and blood and not from You. Thank You in advance that You are doing it, and will over answer this request, not because we deserve anything, but our Lord Jesus, You deserve it, and we ask it in Your name. Amen.
It’s always difficult for me when we come to the end. We’ve been looking at the testimony, the redemptive history of God’s servant, Jacob. The review I had plan I think the kids did. That was sort of a wonderful review. I’m just going to say a few short things because I want to summarize what was on my heart this weekend. I have a burden that we don’t miss the spiritual reality, and that we end up chasing pictures and religion like Jacob did for so many years.
This much as review. You know the whole story of Jacob revolves around two God ordained, inspired pictures, and that is the birthright and the blessing. Jacob didn’t understand the spiritual side of that. That was a picture pointing to reality. All he saw was a double blessing, “I’m going to get money, I’m going to get land, my kids are going to get blessed, I’m going to have some influence in the future, and every family on the earth is going to be touched by my life, and all that kind of thing. But he didn’t see the spiritual side. He needs a double deliverance; he needs to be delivered from chasing after pictures, and he needs the deliverance we all need, to be delivered from Jacob; he needed to be delivered from who he was by nature. God uses his story to tell our story. It’s exactly the same for every one of us.
I identified what is the spiritual reality of the birthright, the one born first in picture form had the right to be in the line that gave Christ to the world. That one had the privilege in his generation to put Christ on display. In a simple word, you were created to display the image of God. He made us in His image, and we were redeemed to have image formed again in us, so that we could manifest Christ. That’s a high privilege to manifest Jesus.
The blessing was the enablement. Abraham, when he finally discovered God’s blessing, he became the father of faith; it was by faith and grace; it was a gift of God; it was the very Life of God. The birthright, the privilege to manifest Him. The blessing, without which we can, the enablement. How am I going to manifest Him? The answer is by His Life, by the grace of God through faith. That’s the simplicity of the Jacob story, and God had to bring him to that.
Toward the end, we looked at this when we were closing, God brought him to the place in his first turning point where the message was made crystal clear; God in the top in heaven longing to bless Jacob, the sinner, at the bottom, but it had to come through the ladder. There is no way God will bless anyone except through the ladder. He finally saw angels of God ascending and descending on the son of man. He showed them very clearly that this is the only way. Then by arranging appointing times and boundaries, he prepared him, twenty year with Laban.
And then, finally, at the end in the wrestling match he got the reality. I’m not going to read the story, again, from Genesis 32 about the wrestling match, but I’ll repeat the main things. This was his last opportunity; this was the crossroads; this was his opportunity. God wrestled with him all the night long, and then when God saw that He could not prevail, that Jacob resisted through the years, now 97 years old. God had been trying to reach him for 97 years. He’s resisting, resisting, resisting. Now, that He saw that He couldn’t prevail, He said, “Let me go; it’s over. That’s your last shot and you turned it away.” At that point we learned from the Prophet Hosea that right at that time he was clinging to the Lord and said, “I won’t let You go unless You bless me,” and he burst into tears.” Hosea shows us that in Hosea 12:4, “He burst into tears and he cried out for favor, for grace. He said, ‘Don’t leave me. Bless me.’” “What’s your name?” And he said, “Jacob.” God touched his flesh, weakened his flesh, and never touched his will, and now he confesses who he is, like Isaiah when he saw the Lord high and lifted up, you see yourself, a leper of unclean lips in a leper colony. It’s like Daniel, the same way; when you see the Lord, you see yourself. He saw himself, and he repented.
Jesus said, “Let me go,” and then the miracle happened. The dawn was breaking and God was beginning to open his eyes. He needs revelation. All of a sudden, after he repented, after he said, “Give me grace,” he looked at the wrestler, “Who are You? Tell me Your name.” He said, “You know who I am. I’m the God of Bethel; you know who I am.” Then we read that he blessed him there.
Like Job, he had known him by the hearing of the ear through the years, and now his eyes sees Him, and he’s transformed. The Angel of the Lord, the Lord Jesus, said, “No more is your name Jacob. From now on you are Israel.” That was the review; that’s where we ended up when we left off.
We’re going to pick it up in Genesis 32:28, “Your name shall now longer be Jacob, but Israel, for you have striven with God and with men and have prevailed.” I suggested last evening, if you get a chance, go on Family Ministries website and listen to the message that our brother, Paul, gave our last Lord’s day. You’ll see a lot of light in “what is your name?” I’ll leave that there.
Jacob’s name was changed. He’s no longer the supplanted; he’s now a prince with God. Not only was his name changed but his character was changed. He became a new creature. He saw the Lord in reality. Now, if he has the blessing, the birthright, we ought to be able to see that in his life. What we’re going to look at is Jacob after the wrestling match. He lived 50 years after that battle. Genesis 47:28, “Jacob lived in the land of Egypt 17 years; the length of Jacob’s life was 147. He wrestled when he was 97.
I want to fly over that 50 years and call attention to the change, call attention to the transformation that took place in his life. Does he really have the blessing now? Does he have the birthright? Can we look at Jacob’s life and say, “Now there’s a miracle; I see transformation there.” Is there any evidence in those last 50 years that God actually did take him to the reality. We should be able to look at those 50 years and say, “This is what it’s going to look like in my life when I repent and He opens my eyes, and the day dawns, the morning star rises, and I see the Lord.”
I’m going to draw principles, and we’ll see parallels in our own life, but remember that Jacob is just an illustration, and he’s Old Testament, and that means see form. The difference between the Old Testament and the New is the Old Testament gives the truth in seed form, pictures and stories and redemptive history. The New Testament gives the same story in fully developed form. It’s exactly the same. There’s no difference between the Old Testament and the New Testament. So, when you read the Old Testament, it’s all in the seed; it’s there but it’s all seed. Then, you come to the gospels and it’s in the bud. Then you come to the epistles and it’s fully developed. That’s how God gave us His word. So, because it’s in the seed, sometimes you’ve got to look carefully, because if you look at the acorn, you are not necessarily going to see the oak. So, as you meditate under the guidance of the Holy Spirit on these illustrations, usually they’re extreme because if He does the greater, you know He can do the lesser. So, we’re going to watch Jacob in his life, and we’re going to follow him in his experience, and we’re going to see extreme illustrations, and under each illustration we’re going to see a principle of God that is true in every Christian who truly has the birthright and the blessing. May God help us! This is what the transformed life will look like, your life and mine.
As you go through, I’ll tell you what you are not going to find, and this is what I look for, and quite honestly when I started, at first, I was a little disappointed, because I know the changes that took place in my life when the Lord Jesus saved me, and I don’t see Jacob writing any Psalms or writing any hymns. I don’t see him having a hunger for the Bible, the word of God. I’m thinking, “That’s so basic,” and if God is changing him, how come that isn’t there?
He was living in intimacy with the Lord; we know that because we’re going to see the faith of Jacob. When you see his faith, you see the effects of that faith. If you have faith in faith, you are in big trouble. We don’t have faith in faith. Faith needs an object. And that object is a Person, and that Person is the Lord Jesus. If I’m looking at the effects of faith, that means he had faith in Jesus. The story is written so you see the effects and a response and marvelous response that can only be a miracle from an indwelling God. That’s what we’re going to look at. James said that faith without works is dead. I look for the faith and I saw the works. So, I assume the faith. You are not going to live a miracle life if you are not trusting in the Lord. If the sun doesn’t shine, is it the sun? If fire doesn’t burn, is it fire? If the wind doesn’t blow, is in wind? If a flower or incense, if it doesn’t have a fragrance, is it real? Just so, faith without works is dead. And we’re going to see the works in Jacob’s life.
I’m going to give the facts, and I’m not going to quote all of the scriptures, but I think you are going to be familiar with them. I’m first making a couple of general observations, and then I’m going to get a little closer, and then finally, we’re going to look at the principles.
The first observation reminds us that transformation is gradual; it’s a process. I suggested in Genesis 1:6, God is faithful and He’s going to perfect what He’s begun. The next 50 years, we’re going to look at Israel, but Israel is not all Israel. What our brother Feinhour taught a series on Jacob, he made this comment, “As we look at the end, we see a lot of Jacob still in Israel, and we see a lot of Israel in Jacob.” I think you understand what that means in your life. There’s still a lot of me after the Lord transforms me, and there’s a lot of you after He transforms you.
Jacob was self-sufficient and now he keeps dipping into that again, and we’re going to see that in his life. There’s a lot of family favoritism. Remember before how his heat was toward Joseph, Genesis 37:4, “His brothers saw their father loved him more than all his brothers. They hated him and could not speak on friendly terms.” And then after he thought he was dead, Benjamin became his heart. Listen to Genesis 34:30, “Therefore, when I come to your servant, my father, and the lad is not with us, his life is bound up in the lad’s life.” Benjamin was a big part of his life.
Long before this and after the wrestling match, Jacob was still scheming and dealing with Esau. Israel is there, but so is Jacob. I’m not going to spend a lot of time applying this, but I know two things, one from Philippians 3:12, the Apostle Paul says, “Not that I’ve already obtained it, or already become perfect, I press on, so that I may lay hold of that for which I was, also, laid hold of by Christ Jesus.” I know one thing, I haven’t arrived. I’m sure I haven’t arrived; there’s still a lot of ground to be possessed, and still a lot of uncrucified flesh that needs to be reckoned dead, but I also know this, what we read in chapter 1 verse 6, “I’m confident that He who began a good work will complete it.” It’s a process; it’s day by day.” Now, we’re going to look at the process of 50 years.
A second general observation is just because we’re no longer resisting God as the main direction of our life (it might creep us now and then), Jacob’s 50 years illustrates that we are not exempt from the everyday trials of life. Just because we’ve given our lives to the Lord, it’s not all flowers, no trees, honey and no bees; it’s not that. We are not exempt; we still live.
Let me give you an overview as he crossed over the river. After he saw, his eyes were open, he saw the Lord, he still had to face Esau who wanted to kill him. After he saw the Lord, he had to deal with the fact that his daughter, Dinah, was raped. It was not easy, even for someone looking to the Lord. Two of his sons became murderers. That’s something he’s got to deal with, but he’s wrestled with the Lord and his eyes are open, and his name is now changed, his life is changed, but he’s got this problem. His firstborn son commits incest, and he’s got to deal with that. On the way back to Bethel, Rachel, his beloved wife, the nurse that was taking care of her died on the way. You’ve got to deal with that; we’re not exempt. He had to go to the funeral of his father, Isaac. Isaac died. His sons lied to him and broke his heart about Joseph. He’s a new creature but he’s got to deal with life. One of his sons was held hostage in Egypt. That’s life; he’s got to deal with that. That came up in his life; he’s not exempt from those kinds of things. There was a famine, a great famine, and he had to deal with that, as well.
Even though we meet the Lord and He opens our eyes and we see birthright and we’re to manifest Christ, and we see the blessing the indwelling life will enable us to manifest Christ, every now and then there is something that comes up in our life, and we’ve got to deal with it. There are setbacks, and disappointments. You love Jesus, and He has revealed Himself to you, but you still have to bury your loved ones. As a Christian in Christ, what does that look like? You still have to suffer loss. Sometimes we get discouraged and depressed. When Pharaoh asked, “How old are you?” he asked Jacob, here’s his answer, Genesis 47:9, “Jacob said to Pharaoh, ‘The years of my sojourn are 130. Few and unpleasant have been the years of my life, nor have they obtained the years that my fathers lived during the years of their sojourn.” I’m not saying it’s all gloomy and sad. It’s not. I just listed those to show that we’re not exempt.
You know how his spirit revived when he learned that his son, Joseph, was alive. John Newton, the poet…. I love poetry. By the way, if anyone writes poetry, your heart to the Lord, and you send that to me, it will mean more to me than if you send me a million dollars. I just love to see the expressions of God’s people pouring out in poetry. John Newton wrote this little poem. See if you can relate to it…
Strange and mysterious is my life
What opposites I feel within.
A stable peace, a constate strife,
The rule of grace,
The power of sin.
Too often I am captive led,
Yet daily triumph in my head.
Thus, different powers within me strive,
And grace and sin by turns prevail.
I grieve, rejoice, decline, revive,
And victory lives in doubtful state,
But Jesus has this promise made,
That grace shall overcome at last!
The paradox; we’re doing great but really… Anyway, that was Jacob’s life after the wrestling match.
Before I show you the individual principles, there are a couple of obvious changes that we can see, certain events that are clearly marked, and nobody has to dig deep; these are right on the surface. In addition to the fact that he was not exempt from the troubles of life, he had a constant limp. For 50 years He made his helpless dependence public. He could have done it another way. He did it for some of His children; He just worked in their heart, and they lived. But everybody could see the difference in Jacob.
Jacob’s return to Bethel at the command of God, he stopped at a place called Shechem, in the land of Canaan. He actually stayed there a little while. He bought a piece of land, built a shelter for himself and a couple of booths for his animals. Then in Genesis 33:20, he erected there an altar and called it El Elohe Israel. This time it’s not a pillar; it’s an altar; it’s worship. To enter into the power of that, we’ve got to go back to where he set up the pillar 20 years before. God had promised him Genesis 28:13, “I am the Lord, the father of your father Abraham, the God of Isaac.” Jacob responded, Genesis 28:21, “Jacob made a vow, ‘If God will be with me and keep me on the journey that I take, and give me food to eat and garments to wear, I will return to my father’s house in safety, then the Lord will be my God.’” When he walked away from the vision, from the realty, he said, ‘He’s the God of my grandfather, He’s the God of my father, but He’s not my God.” “I’m going to wait; I want to see.”
Now he comes to Shechem and he builds an altar, and he names it, Genesis 30:20, “El Elohe Israel”. El, as you know, means God, God Almighty; it’s short for Elohim, God Almighty. What’s the next part? Elohe; what does that mean? El, God – of. God Almighty, God of Israel. Do you understand what he is saying. Israel was not yet called the nation; it’s not called Israel. He’s talking about himself, and he builds an altar. His heart has been changed. He says, “I’m going to name this altar “God, the God of Israel”. He’s now accepted Him as His God. He was the God of my grandfather; He was the God of my father; and now, praise God, He’s become my God.” That’s an obvious change in his life.
There’s another obvious evidence. Just before he arrived where he was heading, Genesis 35:2, “Jacob said to his household and all who were with him, ‘Put away the foreign gods which are among you. Purify yourself and change your garments.’” Verse 4, “They gave to Jacob all the foreign gods that they had, the rings which were in their ears, and Jacob hid them under the oak which was near Shechem.” That’s a change. He had tolerated idolatry in his family for many, many years, and now He says, “It’s over; bring all the idols, bring all the gold, bring all the superstition, we’re going to have a funeral,” and they buried them. Then he said, “Change your clothes. We’re going on a pilgrimage.” That is obvious, that God had met him.
God said, “Go back to Bethel; come back where I made it so clear that I can only bless through the ladder.” So, he goes back, Genesis 28:19. When he first went there, he called the name of that place “Bethel”, the house of God, but now he met the Lord, and is coming back, Genesis 35:7, “He built an altar there, and called the place ‘El Bethel’, because there God had revealed Himself to him when he fled from his brother.” “I’m going to name this Bethel, the house of God. Not anymore; now it’s El Bethel, the God of the house of God.” Do you see the change in his life. He’s now putting the Lord first.
There are other clear markers. We see it in his vocabulary. When he was with Laban, you didn’t hear stuff like this, but he told his brother, Esau…. Esau said, “Wow, you’ve got a big family.” He said, “It’s not my family. God gave me those children. God gave me that family.” And then when he saw all the wealth, Easu said, “You’ve done well for yourself, brother,” and he said, “No, God has been gracious to me.” His vocabulary is changing. He gathered his family together and said, Genesis 33:5, “The Lord was with me in the day of distress, and He’s been with me wherever I have gone.” Genesis 48, when he was blessing Joseph, the sons of Joseph, “The God before whom my father Abraham and Isaac walked, the God who has been my shepherd all my life to this day, the angle who redeemed me from all evil, blessed the lads and may my name live on in them, the names of my father Abraham, Isaac, and now Jacob.” May my name live on. He’s changed; he is transformed and is he enjoying the realty.
Jacob should now be an object lesson of grace, the Life that is in us. Once again, I scan those 50 years, and I was asking the Lord to help. Commentators help some. Let me share a few things I found. The first principle that caught my eye after the change, he had to meet Esau. We’re going to look at these events, and I’m going to give you words that are principle. I think the principle of meeting Esau would be victory, and not only victory but victory over the past, because he surely illustrates the past. Remember, Esau wants to kill him, and he’s afraid that he’s going to kill him. After the prayer was the wrestling match, Jacob lifted up his eyes and looked, and behold Esau, four hundred men with him. He divided the children among Leah, Rachel and the maids.
As I said last evening, this is not a welcoming committee. Genesis 32:27, “What is your name?” He said, “Jacob.” He said, “Your name will no longer be Jacob but Israel. You have striven with God and men.” That first application of “and men” is Esau. He’s got to meet Esau now. Jacob’s sinful past has caught up with him, and I think he’s living under condemnation. He works hard to appease him, and he tries to give him gifts and tries to give him everything. Esau’s heart at that time was to kill Jacob. He had held that bitterness for all of those twenty years and had that grudge, and when he comes, Jacob is still scheming, and he gives him the birthright. Three times he calls him “Lord”, “my Lord”, no, actually it’s six times he calls him “Lord”, and six times he calls himself “your servant”, and he bows down before him seven times. He’s giving back the birthright; he’s trying to appease Esau, “Don’t kill me.”
Here is what Jacob expected after all this scheming. I hope I can do this and not fall down. Somebody be ready to pick me up. Here’s how he expected to meet his brother. Here is how he met his brother. I think you’ll all agree there’s a big difference between a kill and a kiss. God worked in Esau’s heart. When he saw his brother, he embraced like we saw in the children’s play. He embraced him and he kissed him. It said that Hebrew kept kissing him. It’s an amazing miracle. “You are going to prevail.” You don’t prevail with Esau by dealing with Esau. You prevail with Esau by dealing with God. You deal with the Lord.
There’s a Bible verse that says, Proverbs 16:7, “When a man’s ways are pleasing to the Lord, He makes even his enemies to be at peace with him.” That’s a Proverb and not a promise. That’s sometimes not true. Jesus pleased the Lord, and His enemies were not pleased with Him. In Romans 8, this is the first principle of victory, victory over the past, verse 1, “There is, therefore, now no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus.”
Let me give you the second illustration. Not only victory in his dealing with Esau, but his dealing with the death of his beloved wife, Rachel. We read about his great love for her. He had to work seven years for her, and then another seven years. In Genesis 29:20, “Jacob served seven years for Rachel; they seemed to him but a few days because of his love for her.” He loved Rachel, and yet, something happened here. The love of his life dies. Like I say, these are extreme examples, and I don’t see a big ceremony. I don’t see months of grieving, like you see in some of the other saints that have died. I don’t see any expression of depression or loneliness. It’s a strange word, Genesis 35:21, “Jacob set up a pillar over her grave; a pillar of Rachel to this day, and then Israel journeys on.” Don’t read that la, la, la. It’s a powerful testimony when a Godly man has to bury his wife, or a Godly woman has to bury their husband, and then journey on. That’s a miracle. The Bible in Philippians talks about the peace that passing understanding. I used to think that was just more peace piled on, and if I wasn’t anxious and I trusted the Lord, I’d get more peace. No; it passes understanding. It’s not my understanding. People are watching Jacob; people are watching you as you stand at the gravesite of another, and the peace you have passes their understanding. It’s not logical. How could you be singing? How could you be rejoicing? Tears running down your face and your heart is thrilled because you know so much; you know where your loved one has gone. He journeyed on.
Just in our fellowship, Family Ministries, how many times has this been repeated? How many have gone before us to the Lord, and we’ve watched? I was going to name them but I’d leave some out. You know the experience; you’ve buried a loved one, and God has given you grace to journey on, to pick up and leave it with the Lord. I say that is an illustration, as his dealing with Esau pictured victory over the past, and no condemnation. Now, we’re seeing grace, the grace that God gives when you have to do something that is difficult, like burying a loved one.
Speaking of her, there’s another illustration. You know Rachel died giving birth to a child. She said one time, “Give me children or I die.” It’s sort of amazing that she dies in giving childbirth. Genesis 35:17, “And when she was in severe labor, his midwife said to her, ‘Do not fear, for now you have another son,’ and it came about as her soul was departing, for she died, that she named him Ben-oni, but his father called him Benjamin.” Again, we just sort of read these things la, la, la. How he loves Rachel! Working all those years seemed like days; he loved Rachel. Now, she has a baby and she’s giving him a son, and she has a dying wish, and her dying wish is to name him Ben-oni. If your loved one gives you a dying wish, if God were to take my Lillian home, and Lillian said, “Oh, before I go, promise me that you are going to paint in purple Poka dots, I would do it; I’m going to give her her dying wish. This is his wife’s dying wish; name him Ben-oni, son of my sorrow. And he said, “No, I’m not going to give you your dying wish. I’m going to call him Benjamin, the son of my right hand.” I think that expression “my right hand” is a title for the Lord. I can’t prove that, but I think that’s the hand that touched his thigh, that weakened him, that brought him to the Lord. It’s a sign of grace. He meets with Esau, and there’s victory. He lays his loved one in a grave, and there’s grace. It stands against nature; it’s against anybody not to give somebody their dying wish, and yet God is working in his heart.
There is another experience illustrated in Genesis 48:43, this was in that wonderful display of crossing the hands there. Joseph took both of them, Ephraim on his right toward Israel’s left hand, Manasseh on his left toward Israel’s right hand, and brought them close to him. Manasseh was the natural firstborn, and Ephraim was the younger, and Joseph wanted Jacob to bless his sons, and when he was ready to bless, we read in verse 14, “Israel reached out his right hand and put it on Ephraim’s head, though he was the younger, and crossed his arm and put his left hand on Manasseh’s head, even though Manasseh was the firstborn. Then Joseph stopped him, as we saw in the play, Genesis 48:18, “Joseph said to his father, ‘Not so, my father. This one is the firstborn; put your right hand on his head. Jacob said, verse 19, “His father refused and said, ‘I know, my son, I know. I know that I’m crossing my hand.” It’s interesting, I think Jacob had a flashback because now he’s blind, and he’s old, and I think what he was saying to Joseph was this, “I remember when my father was blind, and I remember there was a blessing, and I was not the firstborn; I was the younger, and I deceived him. I dressed up like my brother. I tried to take on somebody else’s identity, in order that I could get a blessing, and he touched me and I lied, and he smelled, he asked my name and I didn’t tell the truth, and I was deceiving him. But now I have revelation from God, and He showed me that it’s not him that is going to be the spiritual firstborn; it’s him.” So, he crosses his hands against nature, a supernatural thing, and he blessed the other way. I love the way those kids just jumped back and forth. That was awesome.
As he deals with Esau, victory. As he heals with his bride, his lovely wife, grace. As he deals with his grandsons, revelation. These are the signs of a change in your life. You are going to have victory. You are going to live by grace. These are evidences of his faith, and you’re going to have revelation.
Let me give another. He thought Joseph was dead, and the guy in Egypt was just some wicked ruler. He doesn’t know he’s alive. You remember the story, Joseph demands that he release Benjamin. Now, you are touching his heart because his life was wrapped up in the lad, and he loved Benjamin so much. Genesis 41:14, “Joseph said to them,” he’s talking to his brothers, “you are spies, and this is how you will be tested. As surely as Pharaoh lives, you’ll not leave this place unless your youngest brother comes here.” Those boys were terrified because they knew what Benjamin meant to his father. Verse 30, “Now, therefore, when I come to your servant, my father, and the lad is not with us, his life is bound up in the lad’s life.” But now watch; we saw Jacob relate to Esau, we saw Jacob relate to his wife, we saw Jacob relate to his grandsons, and now he’s got a problem, you’ve got to let Benjamin go. Genesis 43:13&14, “Take your brother, also, arise and return to the man, and may God almighty grant you compassion in the sight of that man, so that he’ll release to you your other brother and Benjamin. As for me, if I’m bereaved of my children, I’m bereaved.” That’s a sign of his faith; he’s trusting I the Lord. Everything is redemptive, “I’ve got to give it to the Lord. I can’t let him go; that’s my life.” It’s like Abraham and Isaac on Mt. Moriah and he says, “Oh, okay, and may the Lord watch over you and take care of you.”
I see in Jacob a change. I see Jacob being moved. As he relates to Esau, he finds victory. As he relates to the troubles in life and his own wife, he finds the grace of God. As he deals with his grandson, he sees the revelation of God; God is showing him. And now he’s releasing, what a surrender, to release Benjamin into the care of Almighty God. I see these changes.
You know the story of Joseph and Jacob. When Jacob heard that Joseph was alive, the Bible says that his spirit revived. Joseph then invites him, and says, “Come up to Egypt and I’ll take care of you and I’ll watch over you. Just come to Egypt and live.” My wife needs to hear this, “Take not thought for the stuff, and just come,” and he packs up his family, and they are on their way to Egypt. On the way to Egypt, I’m going to see my son, and haven’t seen him for seventeen years, and he’s alive; I can’t believe it; I can’t wait to see him. He’s invited me to come. He gets to Shechem, and he said, “Whoa, whoa, whoa, stop. I can’t go there.” Genesis 46:1, “Israel set out with all that he had and came to Beersheba, not Shechem, and he offered sacrifices to the God of his father, Isaac.” Looks like he’s a little bit afraid, because I think maybe he remembered what God told his grandfather, Genesis 12, “There was a famine in the land, and Abram went down to Egypt to live there because the famine was severe.” “Oh, I’m in a famine now, and I’m going to Egypt in the famine, and I’m not sure this is right.” Remember the Pharaoh of Egypt drove him away; that’s when he lied about his wife and all that. And then God appeared to Isaac with this word, “Do not go to Egypt.” Now, he’s thinking, “I want to see my son. Seventeen years I thought he was dead, and he’s alive, and I can’t wait to get there, but I can’t go. I can’t go.” So, he sets up a Beersheba and waits and sets up a tabernacle. His whole family were on a journey and he stopped. And then we read this precious verse, Genesis 46:3, “And God spoke to Israel in a vision in the night, and said, ‘Jacob,’ and Jacob said, ‘Here I am,” He said, ‘I am the God of your father; do not be afraid to go down to Egypt. I’ll make you a great nation.’” He waited on the Lord for direction, even though the incentive was so big and so powerful, to see his son after seventeen years who he thought was dead. He stopped and he waited, and then God says, “It’s okay; I want you to go.” That’s a change; that’s the change in his life.
When He dealt with Israel, we have the principle of victory. When he dealt with his wife, we have the principle of grace. When he dealt with his grandson, it was revelation. When he had to give up Benjamin, that’s surrender, faith and turning it over to the Lord.
Let me give one more, Genesis 49 is Jacob blessing his children. I just think it’s so neat that this guy, Jacob, started off in the first record of him we have of him, he’s stealing a blessing, and now he’s giving a blessing, everywhere he goes, and not just on his deathbed. Genesis 47:10, “And Jacob blessed Pharaoh,” and went out from his presence. He’s blessing everybody. He’s not stealing the blessing; he’s now giving the blessing. That’s a change; that’s Israel.
Hebrews 11:21, and we’ll close with this final evidence, “By faith, Jacob when he was dying, blessed Joseph’s sons, and he worshipped, leaning on his staff.” Don’t misunderstand. The staff is not the president and vice president and treasurer. He had a staff but he’s not leaning on people at all. That staff represented his helpless dependence, and for fifty years he was walking publicly. Then he says in Genesis 49:29, “He charged them, ‘I am about to be gathered to my people. Bury me with my fathers in the Promised Land. This world is not my home.” He’s Israel; he’s changed. “Bury me in the Promised Land.”
The birthright, the privilege, he has it and we see it in the effects of faith, and we see the victory he had, and the grace that he had, and the revelation that he had, and the faith to trust God and surrender that he had, and his desire to wait for God until God told when to go and when to stay, and it’s alright. We can see it all in Jacob/Israel. He had been transformed.
I want to end with a testimony. I’m not going to look at these notes. I’m just going to tell you the testimony. My wife and I, my Lillian and I, had the privilege to take care of her grandfather, and maybe some of you have heard about him. He was a gem. We had the privilege to take care of him for six years, and it was the last six years. He died at 106. He didn’t come to the Lord until his mid 70’s, but how he loved the Lord. When he first came, he was not senile, and we were able to talk. In the whole six years I never heard him complain about anything. I would help him over to a chair, and he would start to cry and say, “I don’t deserve that chair.” This was a Godly man, the Patriarch in our family. He was from Germany, and so, he used pray in German and English, and he’d get it all mixed up. After a while he didn’t know who we were, but if you came to visit, you’d hear about Jesus. You’d hear about the cross. He never forgot the Lord. He didn’t know us. I used to sit outside the door, Lillian will testify. It bothered me because he was going senile. I know you need to hear the word of God and read it and study, or you aren’t going to grow. I’m thinking this old man is not going to grow because he can’t read anymore. Then I would sit outside his door and hear him pray to the Lord. I would have given every book in the library to have what he had. God was dealing with him.
One day, it was beautiful. This is the day I want talk about. It was so beautiful. When he prayed it was half German and half English. This one day I would be at the door listening, and he would say, “Our Fakter, who ist in heaven, you have beautiful ceiling.” He was so mixed up. But this one day he prayed, and we were there and that was so beautiful. He said, “The day is coming when I’m going to die.” And then he made concentric circles in his prayer. And as he prayed, a little bit in German but mostly in English, when he prayed he said, “When I die, my family will be around my bed.” Then he named, “Gus is going to be there, and Al is going to be there, and their wives are going to be there, and they’re going to be around my bed, but they will not help me.” And then he said, “In that day, Jesu aline, Jesus alone.” Then he formed another concentric circle and he named his grandchildren. “Lillian is going to be there, and Judy is going to be there, and Danny is going to be there, and Paul is going to be there, and they’re going to have their wives there. But in that day they can’t help me. It’s Jesu aline.” And we’re listening. And then he did another circle with his great-grandchildren, and he was naming them. He said, “In the day of death, they can’t help me. Jesus aline, Jesus alone.” I can never forget that wonderful, wonderful prayer.
The day came and I was at a Bible conference, so I was away. Lillian was watching over. She went in in the morning. His family was not there. Many of them had already gone to heaven before him, anyway. There was nobody there, except Jesus aline. Sometime during the night, he had then turned into the glorious kingdom of our Lord Jesus Christ, and it was Jesu aline.
Is there been a change in Jacob? And we read, “He died and worshipped,” that’s a principle, “leaning on his staff.” That’s a revelation of the Lord. He died – Jesu aline, leaning on the Lord.
Every year we come to Hashawha, when I have the privilege to speak, I say it the best that I can, brothers and sisters in Christ, there’s nothing else, Jesu aline; it’s just Him. I want to read these verses and then we’ll pray. Psalm 24:6, “This is the generation of those who see Him, who seek Your face, even Jacob. Selah.” Psalm 47:4, “He chooses our inheritance for us; the glory of Jacob whom He loves. Selah.” Psalm 114:7, “Tremble, oh earth, before the Lord, before the God of Jacob.” Psalm 146:5, “How blessed is he whose health is the God of Jacob, whose hope is in the Lord His God.” Isaiah 45:19, “I have not spoken in secret in some dark land. I did not say to the offspring of Jacob, ‘Seek Me in vain.’” Isaiah 29:23, “Thus says the Lord who redeemed Abraham concerning the house of Jacob, ‘Jacob will not now be ashamed, nor shall his face turn pale, but when he sees his children, the work of My hands in the midst, He’ll sanctify my name. Indeed, they’ll sanctify the Holy One of Jacob and stand in awe in the God out of Israel.” Isaiah 41:8, “You, Israel, my servant, Jacob whom I’ve chosen, descendant of Abraham, my friend.” Isaiah 41:14, “’Do not fear, you worm, Jacob, you men of Israel. I will help you, declares the Lord. Your redeemer is the Holy One of Israel.’” Isaiah 43:1, “Thus says the Lord, ‘Your Creator, oh Jacob, He who formed you, oh Israel, do not fear; I’ve redeemed you, and called you by your name. You’re mine.’” Isaiah 2:5, “Come, house of Jacob, let us walk in the light of the Lord.” Isaiah 27:6, “In the days to come, Jacob will take root, Israel will blossom and sprout and will fill the whole world with fruit.” That’s not all the Jacob verses; there’s more. God calls us “Jacob”, and we have been transformed by the revelation of Christ into Israel. So, may the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, the God, your God, go with you. Let’s pray…
Father, thank You so much for Your word. Thank You for the changes that we see so clearly in your servant, Jacob, after You changed his life and changed his name, by the revelation of Yourself. We praise you. We thank You for the victory that he had. Thank you for the grace that You gave him. Thank You for the revelation that he had. Thank You for the faith that couldn’t let go and trusted You with the most precious things in life. Thank You, Lord, for Your working in His heart to know and be sensitive to when You are calling and where You are calling, and take us, Lord, to that last, wonderful outworking of faith. We want to die worshipping and leaning on the Lord. Jesus aline. In Jesus’ name. Amen.