Are you willing to wrestle with God?

Jacob has just escaped war at the hands of his uncle (who spent the last 20 years extorting him). He’s estranged from his father, hunted by his brother, and distant from God. This happens not because he’s innocent, but because he’s a ruthless deceiver. Just before the wrestling match, Jacob learns that his brother, Esau, is approaching with a small army. In desperation, Jacob sends his family and possessions across the river. As he awaits judgement, Jacob wrestles with God.

Wrestling Leads to Truth | Genesis 32:22-32
Wrestling with God means we are stripped of all the things we build ourselves up with and are left vulnerable before the Lord. We shed our masks and are able to be raw and real about our struggles and failures.

Wrestling Leads to Brokenness | Genesis 32:22-32
The way God helps us is by breaking us of our inherent self-dependence so that we lean totally on Him. Before God can use a man greatly, He must break him, because we all have a propensity to trust in ourselves.

Wrestling Leads to Surrender | Genesis 32:22-32
The frailty of our bodies should make us aware of our weakness and of our need to submit to God. Every time we’re sick or get injured, or when we feel the aches and pains of age, we are forced to acknowledge, “Only God is God, and I must submit and depend totally on Him.”

Wrestling Leads to Change | Genesis 32:22-32
We don’t need to clean ourselves up to come before God. We must be willing to come as we are. Jesus came for the sick, and Jacob knows he is sick and messy. Wrestling with God is not an invitation to sin or argue about sin, but to come to God in order to be changed by His grace.

Wrestling Leads to Blessing | Genesis 32:22-32
Often our greatest victories come out of the ashes of our greatest defeats. Just as He did with Jacob, God must break us of our self-dependence so that He can bless us as we cling to Him in our brokenness.