I is for Israel

 This is the sermon I preached on Sunday, July 14 at St. Timothy Lutheran Church. The text is Genesis 32:24-28.

 

Jacob was a piece of work. His name means “he cheats” or “he steals.” 

At birth, as one of a set of twins, Jacob grasped his brother's heel, hence the name Jacob, which can also be translated as “supplanter.” Throughout their lives, Jacob was always trying to get the upper hand. He even went as far as tricking his father into giving him his brother's blessing, which went to the eldest. Esau was born first and would receive the inheritance, but Jacob wanted it all.

As we read throughout Genesis, Jacob's adventures and misadventures should change him, but he is still Jacob—who cheats and steals and is the supplanter—until... this rich story of an encounter with a man. Or is it?

Beginning with a puzzle from previous verses: why does Jacob go to all the trouble of crossing the river with his wives and children, only to head back across it to spend the night alone? The questions…multiply as the story continues: who is this being with whom Jacob wrestles, and what prompts this nightlong battle? What is the significance of all the names at the end of this chapter, especially the new name Jacob receives? As the dawn breaks, we can’t help but ask what sort of blessing Jacob has received as he limps back to his family. And if this is God, how is it that he cannot let go of Jacob until Jacob wills it. So many questions come to mind… and that’s OK (Callie Plunket-Brewton, workingpreacher.org). 

I believe I can answer the first question. For the kind of encounter Jacob would have, he needed to be alone. Can you imagine all the commotion with two wives, children, animals and others? God needs to get us alone, too, to speak to us, to transform us. 

Who is this man Jacob wrestles with? He obliquely gives his identity in our story’s final verse, “…you have striven with God and with humans, and have prevailed.” Can you imagine that? Jacob won the match. A few verses later, Jacob declares, “For I have seen God face to face, and yet my life is preserved” (v. 30). This was after wrestling, after the name change and subsequent blessing. 

There are several peculiarities regarding Jacob's fellow wrestler as well. First, he couldn’t prevail over Jacob. Also, he couldn’t stop the contest. Jacob had to let him go. All this just adds to the mystery. 

Another oddity, this struggle needed to be wrapped up by daybreak. That’s when Jacob insisted, “I will not let you go, unless you bless me” (v. 26). The blessing was in the name change from Jacob, “he cheats, he steals,” to Israel, “God fights.” “This name will replace the name Jacob; it will be both a promise and a call for faith. In essence, the Lord was saying that Jacob would have victory and receive the promises because God would fight for him” (New English Testament, notes). 

Doesn’t the idea of God fighting for you, fighting for us, fighting for our church, excite you and also give you a sense of relief? Our God looks after us, even in ways we would never imagine. Our God is not tame.

I am reminded of another story, with a strange picture of God. It is interesting, mysterious and makes you wonder. It is The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe, part of “The Chronicles of Narnia” series by C. S. Lewis. You may have read the book or seen the movie.

Narnia [is] a land of talking animals; ruled by the evil White Witch. The human characters are four English children who are [living in] a large, old country house following a wartime evacuation. The youngest, Lucy, visits Narnia three times via the magic of a wardrobe in a spare room. [Her siblings later follow her]… In Narnia… the [children] find themselves adventuring to save Narnia and their own lives. The lion Aslan gives his life to save one of the children; later rising from the dead, defeating the White Witch, and crowns the children Kings and Queens of Narnia.

Early In the story, we hear this conversation between Susan and the Beaver couple:

“Who is Aslan?” asked Susan.

“Aslan?” said Mr. Beaver, “Why don’t you know? He’s the King. . . “

“Is—is he a man?” asked Lucy.

“Aslan a man!” said Mr. Beaver sternly. “Certainly not. I tell you he is the King of the wood and the son of the great Emperor-Beyond-the-Sea. Don’t you know who is the King of Beasts? Aslan is a lion—the Lion, the great Lion.”

“Ooh!” said Susan. “I’d thought he was a man. Is he—quite safe? I shall feel rather nervous about meeting a lion.”

“That you will, dearie, and no mistake,” said Mrs. Beaver, “if there’s anyone who can appear before Aslan without their knees knocking, they’re either braver than most or else just silly.”

“Then he isn’t safe?” said Lucy.

“Safe?” said Mr. Beaver. “Don’t you hear what Mrs. Beaver tells you? Who said anything about safe? ’Course he isn’t safe. But he’s good…”

God is good all of the time, but he certainly is not safe or tamed. Like Jacob, we may find ourselves in a struggle with God and we, too, may come out limping. And we’ll be changed as well. 

Have you ever had such a life-altering experience? God calls us to himself to change us. It’s as the Apostle Paul wrote, “So if anyone is in Christ, there is a new creation: everything old has passed away; see, everything has become new!” (2 Corinthians 5:17). Jacob became Israel. A trickster was transformed into the father of a nation. What does God have in mind for us? God wants to grow his church in numerous ways, and God uses us to do so.

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