Sermon: April 6, 2008
"Stretch Marks"
(scripture references are clickable)
Life has not been easy for Jacob, the hero of our story today. It’s been a struggle from birth. We’re told that he and his twin brother Esau struggled against each other even in the womb. Jacob was born second, grasping his brother’s heel. And for this, he was given the name “Jacob”, which literally means “he grasps the heel”. Figuratively, it means “the deceiver” or “the trickster” – a fitting name for our manipulative hero. And this pugilistic relationship between twin brothers continues for years. Later we’re told of Jacob conniving to steal his brother Esau’s birthright, which he “buys” for the price of a bowl of soup. Still after that, Jacob and his mother Rebekah conspire to trick poor old Isaac into giving Jacob the blessing that rightfully belongs to Esau; Jacob dresses up like his hairy older brother and pretends to be someone he is not. Naturally, this causes a rift in the family; Jacob has to flee for his life. (For the whole of the Jacob story, read the book of Genesis, picking up at chapter 25).
And so Jacob flees to the house of his uncle Laban, his mother’s brother. And it turns out that there he meets the master manipulator in Laban. There he meets one who is even more crafty and deceptive than himself. When Jacob falls in love with his beautiful cousin Rachel, after he works seven years for her hand in marriage, Laban tricks his young nephew into instead marrying Rachel’s weak-eyed older sister, Leah. Jacob has to work another seven years before he can actually marry Rachel. This is not a recipe for a nice, peaceful, well-adjusted family, folks. We’re told that the sisters compete for their husband’s affection. Jealousy abounds. And in the end, Jacob ends up with twelve sons and one daughter by his wives and concubines. In the meantime, he returns the favor of manipulation to his father-in-law, managing to get rich off of Uncle Laban’s flocks and herds. After twenty years of machinations, Jacob and his family then secretly slip away with their wealth. And when they are caught by Laban and his party, an uneasy truce, a stalemate, is negotiated.
That’s where our story picks up for today. After twenty years, two wives, two concubines, thirteen children and countless deceptions, Jacob is returning home. He has been on the run long enough. He’s bringing all that he has acquired back with him to the Promised Land. But . . . going home means a reunion with his brother Esau. Esau – the one with whom he had struggled all his life. Esau – the one from whom Jacob had stolen his birthright. Esau – the one from whom Jacob had stolen his father’s blessing. Esau – the one from whom Jacob had fled for his life. Now, after all these years, Jacob has to confront his checkered past. And he has no idea how Esau will react. Will Esau meet him with open arms? Or will he instead take up arms?
And so Jacob first sends messengers ahead of him. He waves the white flag, so to speak. The messengers return – which in and of itself is good news; Esau didn’t kill them! – but they bring a disheartening message: “We went to your brother Esau, and now he is coming to meet you, and four hundred men are with him” (Genesis 32:6, NIV). That’s not good. Esau is coming – and it sounds like he’s bringing a militia with him! And so finally, Jacob has no choice; he is driven to his knees in prayer. Now, Jacob had met the Lord several times before. As he fled his home, on his way to Laban’s house, he first met God at Bethel, where he saw angels ascending and descending a stairway between heaven and earth. There, God revealed Himself to Jacob, saying “I am with you and will watch over you wherever you go . . .” (Genesis 28:15, NIV). God also met Jacob later on, telling him it was time to leave Laban’s house. Right before our passages for today, God sent angels to meet with Jacob yet again. But in spite of all of this, Jacob had never really prayed before this – at least nothing but a few selfish response prayers. But here, as Jacob confronts his past, as all his sins and deceits catch up with him, as he fears for his life and has nowhere else to turn, here Jacob prays. He calls on the God of his father and grandfather, the God who had come to Him in the past. For the first time, Jacob confesses his sins and acknowledges his own unworthiness. And He pleads and begs for help, calling on God to be true to His promises (Genesis 32:9-12).
But it seems that in spite of this positive step, Jacob finds no real comfort. God is still working on him. And so Jacob begins again to strategize. He falls back on his old patterns of manipulation, dividing his camp into two for safety. He sends an elaborate gift ahead of him to Esau, a total of 580 animals, carefully arranged so that they would get the best possible increase. He hopes that this will “pacify” his brother Esau (Genesis 32:20, NIV). In reality, Jacob was either trying to buy Esau off or to repay him for all that he had stolen. And then, finally, when there was no more left to be done, when all his tricks had been used, he sent everyone across the River Jabbok ahead of him. He was ready to spend the night alone.
But it turns out that Jacob was not alone. For there, on the banks of the River Jabbok, after twenty years of chasing, there God finally came face-to-face with Jacob. Finally, there is nowhere else that Jacob can go. Finally, there are no more manipulations he can work. Finally, Jacob is out of control. He’s been backed into a corner. He’s completely helpless, stripped of all his power. And yet, amazingly, Jacob still fights. He wrestles all night with God, who appears to him in the form of a man, humbling Himself to meet Jacob on his own level. Both spiritually and physically, Jacob wrestles with His Maker. And yet, all along, we know that God will win. Even though God appears to Jacob in human form, Jacob is no match for him. And in the end, with just one touch, God wins. He humbles His crafty opponent, popping his hip out of joint, showing that all along, even as hard as Jacob wrestles and strives, God was and is in control.
And yet, still, Jacob holds on, even as he submits. Jacob holds on to God, refusing to let go until God blesses him. Nevertheless, in the very act of asking for a blessing, Jacob acknowledges that God has won, for the greater always blesses the lesser. And in so doing, Jacob finally admits that he is Jacob, the Deceiver, the Unworthy One, the Sinful One, the One who once pretended to be Esau to get a blessing. Now he has to submit, to admit that he is indeed Jacob, to get a blessing. Jacob finally tells the truth. He lays his whole life out before God, who has chased him for twenty years to get him to this point. When Jacob is backed into a corner, when he’s at the end of his rope, when he no longer is able to manipulate or control the situation, he finds that God has been with him all along. And there, finally, Jacob believes. There, his faith begins to grow. There, his relationship with the Lord truly begins and a new life, a new identity emerges. Jacob the Deciever becomes Israel, the One who struggles with God. There at Peniel, when Jacob finally was forced to come face-to-face with his God, there he lived for the first time. And Israel was born of the faith of Jacob and the persistence of God.
And for the rest of his life, Israel remembered this night. With each step, as he limped, bearing the scar, the stretch mark, he remembered his encounter with God. But there were immediate results, as well, to this night of wrestling. For now that Jacob was right with God, now that he has finally dealt with his past, now that he has moved from a life of self-help to a life of faith, his fear of Esau leaves him. For Jacob sees that God has been with him all along – and more importantly, that God is with him now. And indeed, when he meets Esau again the next day, it is a joyful, peaceful reunion (see Genesis 33). Now, don’t get me wrong – Jacob doesn’t totally reform overnight. He still has a life-long learning process before him. But even still, his life has changed. His life has finally begun. His faith has been kindled. And salvation has finally come to Israel.
Friends, this is our story, too. Like Jacob, we have been chased by God. And if we haven’t been caught yet, we will be soon. For like Jacob, we must lift our past life up to God and say “This is how it is. This is who I am. Have mercy on me!” Like Jacob, we must do this for faith and growth to begin. And like Jacob, we all bear stretch marks, marks of forced growth. They may not be as graphic or dynamic as Jacob’s life-long limp, but they are still there. We all know of those places where God has cornered us, where God has dealt with us, where we wrestled with the Lord until we finally submitted to Him. We all know of those places where we finally lost and yet won so much, where we had to give up Self to gain Forever, where, as Jesus said, we lose our life in order to gain it (See Matthew 10:39). And we probably have many more of those kinds of moments to come, where God will catch us again, where we will throw ourselves upon Him, where He will deal with our pride, manipulation, selfishness and self-reliance, where He will strip us down to mold us into the people He knows we can be. We all have those times when we have to say “Have Thine Own Way, Lord – You are the Potter, I am the clay”.[1] Friends, that is a lesson we must learn, a lesson that God will chase us until we do learn it. For friends, when it comes down to it, it’s all about Him. It’s all because of Him. It’s all up to Him. And life is so much better, so much easier, so much fuller and more abundant when we submit to Him, when we bow before Him, when we allow Him to be Who He Is – the Lord, the Master, the Creator, the Potter, our Loving God.
So have you learned? Do you need a refresher? Consider the example of Jacob – and then bow before our Loving, Gracious God and ask Him to help you submit, to help you give in, to help you lose your life to Him so that you can truly gain it. Ask Him to have His own way. Ask Him to help you and to teach you. I promise – the results will be fantastic, beyond even what you can ask or imagine! Hallelujah! Our God loves us enough to chase us; He loves us enough to demand that we be led into a better life for Him! To Him alone be the glory! Amen.
