Genesis 32:22-32 | Wrestling With God | Matthew Dodd

a break in our normal study in the old testament but we're still going to be in the old testament we're going to be in the book of genesis this evening we're going to be in genesis chapter 32. so please turn with me in your bibles to genesis 32 we're going to look at verses 22 through 32 and the title of my message this evening is wrestling with god wrestling with god let's pray father we thank you so much for this privilege to study your word and father in times like we're living in now it's easy for the fear the unbelief the uncertainty of our times to choke out faith and for all of us who eat even know better to find ourselves wrestling with the one we need to trust the most and i pray father god for those so inclined to be wrestling with you that you would teach us how to break that stronghold and help us lord to walk by faith may we leave here tonight built up fortified in our faith walking a different walk because we've been in the presence of our holy god we pray this in jesus name and all my brothers and sisters in christ said amen and amen you know it's it's been said that old habits die hard and i believe it's a true statement in fact i think there's one habit which plagues many and it's the tenacious persistent habit of unbelief and unbelief produces a cornucopia of poisonous fruit fruits such as fear manipulation anger lying anxiety depression striving in the flesh and tonight i want to share with you a passage where we we see how god confronted the unbelief in one of israel's patriarchs his name was jacob and by doing so it's my prayer that we will learn how god wants to build up our faith in him so that we may prevent the poisonous fruit of unbelief and be fortified in our faith let's begin now in verse 22 of genesis 32. now he speaking of jacob arose that same night and took his two wives and his two maids and his 11 children and crossed the forward of the javik he took them and sent them across the stream and he sent across whatever he had then jacob was left alone and a man wrestled with him until daybreak when he saw that he had not prevailed against him he touched the socket of his thigh so the socket of jacob's thigh was dislocated while he wrestled with him then he said let me go for the dawn is breaking but he said i will not let you go unless you bless me so he said to him what is your name and he said jacob he said your name shall no longer be jacob but israel for you have striven with god and with men and it prevailed then jacob asked him and said please tell me your name but he said why is it that you ask my name and he blessed him there so jacob named the place peniel for he said i have seen god face to face yet my life has been preserved now the sun rose upon him just as he crossed over penuel and he was limping on his thigh therefore to this day the sons of israel do not eat the sinew of the hip which is on the socket of the thigh because he touched the socket of jacob's thigh in the sinew of the hip context is everything when you read the bible and when we come to this passage in genesis jacob was 97 years young 97 years young for 20 years he served his uncle laban who by the way if you know anything about laban he was a master deceiver when it comes to deceivers and jacob was one too jacob met his match with uncle laban jacob went from a 77 year old failure to launch mama's boy to a wealthy man who had two wives two maids ten sons and one daughter during the last six years of his time serving his uncle laban laban jacob became very wealthy he acquired goats sheep camels cattle donkeys and servants but jacob's wealth created tension with his relatives because the relatives all thought jacob's taking their inheritance he's taking their wealth away their hearts were filled with jealousy and jacob was in danger of literally losing all that he had acquired according to genesis 31 god commanded jacob to move back to the land of his fathers the land of that god had promised to abraham and isaac and their descendants but there was a problem jacob had to pass through the land of seer the country of edom where his big furry red-haired brother esau lived suddenly jacob's past came back to haunt him and threatened to interfere with his future and as i said a moment ago whenever you're studying the bible context is everything context means everything so it's important for us to see god's heart for jacob when he commanded jacob to return to his home and it's also important to see that god's heart for jacob is god's heart for us the first lesson that we learn if you're taking notes is this found in verses 6 through 21 god wants to bless our tomorrows god wants to bless our tomorrows yes you heard me correctly in the world that we're living in right now when things are literally unraveling at an unprecedented speed i'm convinced that the god of jacob is our god and even though the times are different god's heart for his people has never changed i'm not talking about life on easy street but i am talking about this that god still wants to bless our tomorrows god let us sit in your heart still wants to bless our tomorrows and there's a way that god often does this he confronts the past we try to forget have you ever felt in life like you're on this race track and you keep making the same loop over and over and over again i thought i i thought i've been here before i i thought maybe i learned my lesson and yet i keep seeing that lesson coming back over and over again well could it be that god's trying to confront something in the past that really wasn't dealt with yet that's the idea here god confronts the past we try to forget now to put it nicely the fraternal twins esau and jacob let's just say they had issues and lots of them first esau the oldest he sold his birthright to jacob he was a man of the field he was a mighty hunter he was dad's favorite so he comes out back home after a big hunt jacob had a game plan in mind i want that birthright all that it's associated with it meaning i get the lump sum the lions share when dad passes away it all comes to me i become the head of the family the judge i own the majority of the property it's all mine and he wanted it from big brother so what does he do well the hunter becomes the hunted jacob knew his brother he studied his brother and he knew when his brother came home from a big hunt guess what he's famished so jacob cooks up this meal a stew a red stew a lentil stew plenty of time before his big brother comes home so that the whole camp is filled with the smell of the red stew and like a wild animal the nostrils capture that scent and esau goes right to jacob's tent and jacob that moment begins to smile like a cheshire cat gotcha trap's been set esau says give me a taste of that red stuff there jacob says first sell me your birthright esau hyperbole exaggeration says what good is my birthright if i'm dead yeah right swear it jacob says he swears it a cup of stew esau devours it wipes his mouth walks away doesn't think about it at all he despised his birthright jacob won second with the help of their mother because the favorite for the mom was jacob because jacob stayed close to mom stayed in the tents well now mom helps jacob deceive their ailing father he's getting blind and so knowing that esau's a furry man and jacob has smooth skin what does mom do they get animal skins and put it on jacob now just think about that how furry was esau when you put animal skins to deceive your blind dad you know how furry that man must have been and sure enough isaac begins to say things like you you sound like jacob but you smell like esau you feel like esau and isaac gave the blessing to jacob moments later esau comes in and he realizes that blessing has been stolen his father had been deceived and gave the blessing to jacob and it could never be taken back again jacob would be blessed and blessed indeed and so what did esau want to do the only thing a hunter would naturally want to do kill the one who had deceived his dad taking the blessing taking the birthright so what did jacob do with mom's help he fled to her old home and into the arms of uncle jake uncle laban moved right in traveled miles away and 20 years later god told jacob to go back home and promise to be with jacob every step along the way and that's found in chapter 31 verse 3. here you see in genesis then the lord said to jacob return to the land of your fathers and to your relatives and i will be with you underscore that last section there i will be with you what is god saying god is telling us this i don't just command you to go do something and then leave you to yourself no i will be with you now god is god does god know how esau has felt about jacob absolutely does god know the threat to jacob's life and the promise that comes to jacob and through jacob from god absolutely god knows all of it but what is he saying here he is saying something that should be so reaffirming to all of us i will be with you and the same is true for you and for me in these days when we feel so tempted to wrestle with god god is with us now oh but it doesn't feel like it doesn't have to we're not called to walk by emotions we're called to walk by faith amen it's not about how i feel it's about what god's word says and standing firm on that promise because god's here right now in fact how do i know that god's here right now because he's the one who sustains our every heartbeat our every breath because in him we live and breathe and have our being the apostle paul said now when esau heard that jacob was coming back he decided to welcome his twin brother so he brought with him an army of 400 men what kind of message do you think that sent to jacob so why would god command jacob to go home if going home meant seeing esau the brother who wanted to kill him i mean is this how god plays with his kids is this the kind of god who sets his children up just to see them dash to pieces here's the thing it's true that god was calling jacob back to the promised land but it's also important to recognize that god was also confronting jacob's past the past he had run from and the same is true in our lives who among us has not made a poor choice who among us doesn't have a fractured relationship some of us have addictions struggles but i'm here to tell you god wants to liberate us from all of it god wants to heal our lives and bless our tomorrows by confronting the past we often try to run from now when jacob heard that esau was on his way to see him with 400 men by the way verse 7 tells us he was greatly afraid and distressed matthew dodd translation jacob was having a meltdown at that point knowing that the lord was with him should have been enough for jacob and maybe you can relate to that because shouldn't it be enough for us to know that god's with us shouldn't that be enough and yet for jacob and for many of us sometimes it's not in true to form jacob evaluated his options and he came up with a series of clever schemes verses 7 through eight he divided his camp into two groups why because if one group got attacked the other could escape second he prayed for deliverance in verses 9 through 12. but i'd have you take a look at that tonight before you go to bed because when i read that prayer it looks more like a foxhole prayer if you know what i mean you know one of those crisis moments oh god please deliver me but i'm really not sure so i still have my scheme in my back pocket that's the kind of prayer and then jacob sent esau gifts how much 550 animals when you total them all up and he staged them in groups to make for a long procession or parade so that there's this dramatic effect before jacob actually arrives you see the truth is jacob didn't trust god's promise to be with him so fear gripped his heart and drove him to scheme drove him to manipulate jacob thought the only way he could calm his brother's anger and avert his revenge was through a payoff of gifts and lots of them in fact genesis 32 verse 20 says i will appease him with the present that goes before me that afterwards i will see his face perhaps he will accept me now notice something really important here who has accepted him even the way he is god but it wasn't enough and oh oh what terrible turmoil fills our souls fills our souls when we forget that god is with us and that god is enough the god's accepted us and his acceptance is enough you see what i see here is this that god uses our past to strengthen us how many of us look at our paths and we see how it's weakened us perhaps it's true perhaps your past has weakened you but you don't have to stay in a weakened state because i believe god wants to take that weakness and turn it into a strength he wants to use our past not to indict us not to weaken us not to diminish us but to strengthen us this is god's goal to strengthen us by changing us to fortify our faith and to change our character to purge the manipulation out of the manipulator to prune the control out of the control freak martin luther once said a christian is never in a state of but always in the process of becoming god's changing us he's transforming us now jacob he thought esau was keeping him from god's blessings and promises and god was showing jacob esau is not your problem esau is not the one keeping you from my blessings and promises jacob you are keeping you from my blessings and promises you are doing that and so god would not allow jacob to enter the promised land as jacob jacob needed to change so god used jacob's past to bless jacob's future and many people carry their past around with them the very past they're trying to forget and i believe god wants tonight to be a night we're no longer we're ruled by our guilt and our shame from our past failures tonight can be done it can all be done when we understand the sufficiency of jesus christ's death on the cross when he paid the penalty for all of our sin and there is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in christ jesus listen we don't have to run from our past we can acknowledge our past and at the same time see our past through the blood of jesus christ and hear the lord say to us as his people you're forgiven you're free don't let the enemy shackle you with his lies and tempt you into thinking you're still unforgiven what are you saying if you hold on to that lie you're saying the blood of jesus christ his death on the cross wasn't enough oh there's something more that you have to do some sort of penance crawl on your knees for a quarter mile over broken glass then maybe somehow god will forgive you it doesn't work like that because if our righteousness was earned by our good works then christ died needlessly you see tonight this very important night when the world is swirling out of control tonight we can firmly anchor our lives on the rock of jesus christ and the truth of his word and no matter what flaming arrows of the enemy may come our way as we put up that shield of faith it will not strike us it doesn't have to define us because we're defined by god and what he's done for us through jesus christ amen the failures the addictions the pain that we've inflicted upon others and even on ourselves it can all go we must be convinced of god's heart for us and that he wants to use our past failures included to strengthen us and ultimately bless our tomorrows god is changing us for our good what is he changing us into he's making us look more like jesus christ that's why paul wrote in philippians 1 6 4 i am confident of this very thing that he who began a good work in you will perfect it until the day of christ jesus god's committed god's committed to our good which means he will confront anything that's bad for us and let me tell you tonight number two if you're taking notes it's found in verses 22 through 25 the second point is this for those who struggle with wrestling with god we need to see that unbelief is not good for our souls unbelief is not good for our souls it's poison to our souls god made us for faith and i tell you when we walk by faith because it's the way we were made there's something that just resonates within us there is a calm there is a confidence there's a courage even when the storms are raging against us and people will look and they'll marvel and they'll wonder and they'll question how is that possible and you say my savior my lord greater is he who is in me than he who is in the world amen unbelief is not good for our souls it is junk food for our souls it's poison for our souls we were made for better we were made for relationship we were made to walk by faith now in verse 24 to pound the point home god often waits for a teachable moment in our lives and you see this with jacob verses 22-23 jacob he sends everyone away jacob had done all he could do no more schemes left in his bag oh tricks and in the middle of the night jacob was alone with his fears and his uncertain future have you ever had one of those moments you've done all that you can do and you could do no more and you come to that place finally where you realize oh there's one thing i should have been doing all along it's a teachable moment it's a teachable moment suddenly the ears begin to open the heart begins to soften and the mouth begins to say lord help me help me lord help me it's a teachable [Music] now jacob he thought he was all alone but he learned here that night that he wasn't alone because god was with him remember he was the one who promised to be with him every step along the way but true to form god wasn't with jacob the way jacob thought god would be with him and i find that interesting because sometimes we put god in a box and we say god i know you'll be with me if you do it this way do it this way and then i know you're with me and so what does god say when we sell tell god that i'm not going to do it your way because your way is not my way your way is too restrictive and i'm not going to be defined by your restrictive ways your way's too limiting i'm not going to be defined by that now i'm going to wait for you to be teachable i'm going to wait for you to open your ears i'm going to wait for you to come to the end of your hoarded schemes and finally utter the words god help me help me charles spurgeon once said as sure as ever god puts his children in the furnace he will be in the furnace with them may not be the way we expect but i promise you this it'll always be the right way because god's ways are always the right way amen isaiah 43 verse 2 says when you pass through the waters god says i will be with you and through the rivers they will not overflow you when you walk through the fire you will not be scorched nor will the flame burn you and all of this we need to see that god is confronting us because god loves us don't let that fact escape your notice god's doing all of this because he loves us hebrews chapter 12 verse 7 and verse 10 i combine them together shows us the father heart of god for his children the writer of hebrews says endure hardship is discipline god is treating you as his children and god disciplines us for our good in order that we may share his holiness when we're going through these difficulties god is changing us he's shaping us he's conforming us he's bringing about a greater good and through that crucible of difficulty all the impurities in our character are being heated up so they can float to the surface so that god can whisk them away and we come out refined as pure gold partakers of his holiness i tell you what the best life is not a happy life it's a holy life to be a partaker of god's holiness it's important to note that jacob had been wrestling with a god for a long time by the way well before this wrestling match oh he'd been wrestling with god for a long time and god actually took the initiative to wrestle with jacob to show him he had been living like that for the last 75 years now at first jacob probably thought he was wrestling one of esau's men but the bible reveals the true identity of jacob's opponent the angel of the lord god's son scholars believe a pre-incarnate appearance of jesus christ hebrews chapter 12 verses 3 through 5 and by the by the way another important principle of interpreting scripture is this we interpret the old in light of the new i'm sure jay is going to be talking about that tomorrow night we interpret the old in light of the new the newer revelation in the womb he jacob took his brother by the heel and in his maturity he contended with god yes he wrestled with the angel and prevailed he wept and sought his favor he found him at bethel and there he spoke with us look at this now we have the defining of who jacob is wrestling even the lord the god of hosts the lord is his name there it is so a pre-incarnate appearance meaning before the actual birth of jesus christ jesus appeared as a man the angel of the lord and he wrestled with jacob so jacob was wrestling with god now why did god appear to jacob in the form of a man because jacob had been treating god like he is a man he's been treating god like he's a man frail finite forgetful unfaithful a foe and not a friend i love the words of a.w tozer who once wrote in his book the knowledge of the holy what comes into our minds when we think about god is the most important thing about us so when you and i think about god what comes to mind do we think in terms of lack insufficiency insufficiency frailty finiteness then you're not talking about the god of the bible because our god is infinite he's not frail he's all powerful he's all-knowing he's everywhere present let me tell you he remembers his promises i am so grateful god is not a man god is faithful he never forgets he remembers his people and his promises isaiah 49 verses 14 through 16 but zion has said meaning israel they're claiming the lord has forgotten me forsaken me and the lord has forgotten me so god responds can a woman forget her nursing child and have no compassion on the son of her womb even these may forget but i will not forget you behold i have inscribed you on the palms of my hands and from a new testament standpoint that has great significance when you think of the nail scarred hands of our savior jesus christ oh a nursing mom may forget her child how in the world is that possible i have no clue and the lord's saying if they forget i want you to know i'm not like them i will never forget you you're always before me i've inscribed you on the palms of my hands god's not frail he's not finite he's infinite he's all-powerful he's for us and let me tell you something he is mighty to save he is mighty to save and that's why paul says in romans chapter 8 verse 31 if god is for us who is against us oh i see a lot of people against us i see a lot of people against christians and i'm here to tell you not to be a downer it's going to get worse my friends the bible says so persecutions will increase and this is the time where we don't back away in fear this is not the time where we sit down and shut up this is a time when we rise up step forward and proclaim the excellencies of our god the good news of the gospel of jesus christ why because if god is for us who who can be against us who is really against us stack them up side by side who will win you see a person who doubts god is a person who wrestles with god bottom line if you're doubting god then you are wrestling with god and so what's the answer stop wrestling with god meaning trust god stop doubting lord search my heart see if there be any shred of doubt i want it gone let me ask you a question is there any reason why we should doubt god has god proven himself to be unfaithful to us in some way i think the answer is clearly no because if he's given us his son aren't we blessed to the full he's given us all we need now i know you're here on a wednesday night a lot of people don't go to church on wednesday nights a lot of churches don't have a wednesday night service you're here on a wednesday night why because you want more of the lord it just is what it is i praise god for you i love that heart but i also know people could come here tonight and you've been wrestling with god all day long deep down you know it's wrong and i believe deep down you you don't want to do it anymore you want to stop you're tired of wrestling with god it's a losing proposition it never works but the truth is many wrestle with god because they don't know anything different wrestling with god one round after another is the very thing that's defined their life and when push comes to shove what do we do we doubt and we wrestle we doubt and we wrestle doubt wrestle over and over again stop wrestling with god we wrestle with god because we doubt god so what is the divine alternative cling to god instead look at the example of jacob here he's wrestling with god and again i i think about this and the thought alone actually wrestling with the second person of the godhead jesus christ a pre-incarnate appearance isn't an amazing thought that that god would condescend to that level and allow the patriarch jacob to wrestle with him i mean think about this if you know anything about wrestling any former wrestlers here wouldn't you agree that god's in a different weight class than jacob and yet god allowed jacob to wrestle with him all night long you know and god could have easily pinned him and a whole lot more he could have turned him into a pretzel right there and when it was time to finish the match what did the lord do he just touched i love that he just touches his thigh the the symbol of jacob's strength and jacob's hip was dislocated right then and there match over done drop the mic go home it's over with a touch it wasn't a twist or a torque and by doing so god revealed his infinite superiority but god also revealed he was jacob's advocate and not his adversary at that moment it could have been over with but god was for jacob not against him and once jacob's hit was hip was dislocated guess what there's no more running there's no more fleeing you're over it's done and so what does he do he cried out for a blessing instead as he held fast to the lord and i love that picture he's been wrestling all night long and god's allowing it get it out jacob get it out come to the end of yourself just get it out now it's time ouch and suddenly the grappler becomes a clinger he stops wrestling and he just holds on bless me that's faith that's the purpose of the teachable moment are you done yet jacob get it out get it out of your system i could handle it i could take it i knitted you i formed you in your mother's womb get it out and let me show you i am faithful i told you i would be with you you've been running from your past run no more cling to me and let me show you the way anyone tired of wrestling with god anybody raise your hand say lord i'm tired i'm tired of wrestling with you you know our world is dry and it's a weary land and our life can be very difficult at times but you know what many of us are making life more difficult than it needs to be because we're wrestling with god rather than clinging to god so let's cling to god instead amen psalm 63 verse 1 and 6 and 8 6 through 8 says o god you are my god i shall seek you earnestly my soul thirsts for you my flesh yearns for you in a dry and weary land where there is no water when i remember you on my bed i meditate on you in the night watches for you have been my help and in the shadow of your wings i sing for joy my soul clings to you your right hand upholds me the right hand the symbol of god's strength my soul clings you know your soul's gonna cling to something it always will i say let's cling to god amen and notice the next part as we cling to god there's another element that needs to be added to the equation as we cling to god what we're really saying is i want to come under your authority i understand that you're the superior one you are god i am not i've got it all out of my system now you are the superior one your god i'm not so i want to come under your authority i want to come under the shadow of your wing i want to be governed by god you know what frank sinatra was wrong when he said i did it my way god's way governed by god god gave jacob a new name now in that day a person's name revealed their nature or their character what their name had come to mean but because of how they had lived their lives how they had lived their lives became the definition for their name so the name jacob means he'll grab her he comes out of his mother's womb he's holding on to his brother's heel he'll grab her but then over time because of the birthright and the blessing it came to mean supplanter i want to take what is yours and make it mine supplanter and so the lord asked jacob what's your name now didn't the lord know jacob's name of course he did so why did the lord ask jacob what's your name jacob's just saying bless me what's your name what was the lord doing in that what's your name heel grabber what's your name supplanter and the lord saying yeah you've been doing it for 97 years in many ways when the lord tells ask jacob what's your name it becomes a confession of sorts why did you have to ask that question but that was the whole purpose of the wrestling match to bring jacob to the point where he no longer wrestles he clings and he realizes who he is and how he's been living and why it's wrong but i love the fact that god doesn't leave him there yep you're jacob and that's what you're gonna be you're jacob nothing different no our god is a god of new beginnings this is what you were but this is what i'm making you to be israel what does the name israel mean it means god fights for god's prince or governed by god it's a beautiful picture yes you were the supplanter yes you were the heel grabber but that's not who you are anymore this is what i'm making you to be governed by god you're my prince and oh by the way for us in the body of christ we are a royal priesthood a chosen people amen oh sure we all have our paths but god's making all things new through jesus christ and so god by giving jacob a new name was giving him a new vision for his life a new way to live his life jacob instead of you fighting your way through life let me fight the battles for you david understood this and that's why he said the battle belongs to the lord when he fought the biggest giant of all goliath let me give you a new vision for life instead of scheming and manipulating and lying and being angry and anxious and depressed will you trust me will you come under my authority and be governed by god and by the way jacob's name new name israel answers jacob's question when jacob says what's your name and the lord says why don't you why are you asking all you need to do is look at your new name to answer your question governed by god god's prince god fights what's your name god and oh by the way verse 31 god also gave jacob a new walk now some people will look at that and say that's a setback i've got a limp it's going to slow me down you know sometimes it's good to slow down though as we run through life that limp was a constant reminder don't do it the jacob way do it the israel way do it god's way walk by faith not by fear not by manipulation not by anger not by depression not by lies or unbelief walk by faith now this doesn't discount that there's going to be times where life is overwhelming and our hearts can be filled with fear but again psalms gives us a solution psalm 56 verses 3 through 4 when i am afraid i will put my trust in you in god whose word i praise in god i have put my trust i shall not be afraid what can mere man do to me and you and i look at that last question and we think man can do a lot to us and historically man has done a lot of terrible terrible things unspeakable things man can and has done a lot just ask abel after his encounter with his brother cain but here's the one thing man can't do he can't take our salvation let me tell you something else he can't take away the joy of our salvation unless you let him those things that matter most in life that determine eternity man can tempt you lie to you manipulate you try to control you but the choice is ours and i say let's not wrestle with god let's cling to god let's trust god and not let the enemy get the final word amen the world doesn't get to define us oh sure man can do a lot but you know what god is the one who will settle all accounts someday god will settle all accounts he's a just god and in the book of revelation you see the tribulation saints who are martyred during the tribulation because they wouldn't take the mark of the beast and they're crying out to god and the prayers of the saints go to the very throne room of god and god brings about justice with the sending of his son come lord jesus come he's going to make all things right but i have a question as i get ready to close what did the lord mean when he said you've striven with god and with men and it prevailed here again we need to see it's a reference to god's heart for jacob and for all who come to him in faith look at the words of hosea 12 4. yes he wrestled with the angel and prevailed he wept and sought his favor here we need to see a very important principle that faith in god prevails upon the heart of god because god wants to bless his children if you know me and you know my relationship with my children for instance my daughter molina eight years old she has no problem prevailing upon the heart of her dad she doesn't i love my little girl well if that's true for me as a earthly father imagine the heart of our heavenly father faith prevails upon the heart of god we don't have to manipulate or strive to get god's attention so that he may bless us simply believe in god and his heart for us we need to stand on god's promises and he will do it we need to cling to god and not wrestle with god and so before us tonight i close with these verses because i think it's our charge i think it's the divine way to stop wrestling with god proverbs 3 verses 5 and 6 trust in the lord with all your heart and do not lean on your own understanding in all your ways acknowledge him and he will make your path straight now what does pass straight mean the idea means he's going to get us to the goal it's not easy street no there will be peaks and valleys there will be turns unknown things around the bend but he's going to be with us every single step along the way and he's going to get us to the end goal what's the end goal we're going to be with him for all eternity and when we do we'll have our resurrected bodies and we're going to look more like jesus in this day what is he doing he's conforming us to look more like jesus so he's preparing us for an eternity with jesus amen he's preparing us for home how about we stop wrestling with god before we get there and let's cling to god until we get there amen let's pray father i thank you for this time and i thank you for this lesson from the life of jacob lord we bring all of our fears we bring all the uncertainty of what surrounds us lord we choose to trust you we're tired of wrestling we want to trust you with all of our heart we're tired of leaning on our own understanding we want to acknowledge you in all of our ways and we want to look more like jesus church if that is your heart tonight you're tired of the wrestling you just want to cling to god and trust him would you just raise your hand tell that to the lord even as you raise your hand you're just making it a prayer lord i am telling you because i need you lord father minister to every heart here and online bring a great revival to your church strengthen the bride of christ we need you god we are yours forgive us for the times we've wrestled forgive us for the times we've doubted we choose to cling to you we choose to trust you in jesus name we pray and all of my precious brothers and sisters in christ

Channel: Calvary Chapel Worship Center - Hillsboro, Oregon

Views: 56

Rating: 5 out of 5

Keywords: The Bible, God, Jesus Christ, Holy Spirit, Holy, Pastor Rich Jones, Pastor Matthew Dodd, Calvary Chapel, Faith, Grace, Revival, Truth, Prayer, Salvation, Calvary Chapel Hillsboro, Church, Christian, Jesus Return

Id: wMJDbKvBgQE

Length: 56min 14sec (3374 seconds)

Published: Wed Aug 18 2021