Proper 27

Genesis 32:22–32 NKJV

And he arose that night and took his two wives, his two female servants, and his eleven sons, and crossed over the ford of Jabbok. He took them, sent them over the brook, and sent over what he had. Then Jacob was left alone; and a Man wrestled with him until the breaking of day. Now when He saw that He did not prevail against him, He touched the socket of his hip; and the socket of Jacob’s hip was out of joint as He wrestled with him. And He said, “Let Me go, for the day breaks.” But he said, “I will not let You go unless You bless me!” So He said to him, “What is your name?” He said, “Jacob.” And He said, “Your name shall no longer be called Jacob, but Israel; for you have struggled with God and with men, and have prevailed.” Then Jacob asked, saying, “Tell me Your name, I pray.” And He said, “Why is it that you ask about My name?” And He blessed him there. So Jacob called the name of the place Peniel: “For I have seen God face to face, and my life is preserved.” Just as he crossed over Penuel the sun rose on him, and he limped on his hip. Therefore to this day the children of Israel do not eat the muscle that shrank, which is on the hip socket, because He touched the socket of Jacob’s hip in the muscle that shrank.

FROM WRESTLING TO BLESSING

Sermon Goal: From wrestling to Blessing, Because the Lord wrestles in our place.

Today we are observing All Saints’ Day. It is not only a time to give thanks to God for our brothers and sisters who have transferred from this Church Militant where we reside, to the Church Triumphant in heaven, but to reflect on how our Lord cares for us who are still on our voyage home.

The reading from Genesis is NOT one of the appointed texts for this day. It was selected because it speaks to how our Lord cares for us, the Church Militant. In many ways life here is a wrestling match, as we struggle with one issue after another, in our quest for relief and ultimately the blessing of everlasting life, where we will be finally free of sin, death, and the evil one.

You see, the Church Militant is constantly under attack by the world, our own flesh, and the evil one. How can we stand against such adversaries? They are too strong for us, but there is One who has and continues to fight against these foes on our behalf—Jesus Christ. He is the One who wrestles with evil in our place, even as he has fought against sin, death, and the devil on the tree of the cross and emerged victorious.

Jacob has spent his life living up to his name as the “heel-grabber”, trying to gain the upper hand by doing things his way. He has a history of wrestling — He has wrestled with Isaac (his father); Esau (his brother); Laban (his uncle); and now he is wrestling with the Angel of the Lord (God himself!). Thus, his name change—you have wrestled with God and with man, but now I will wrestle for you (Israel). So it was and is throughout Scripture—God is the One who fights for Israel and eventually fights the battle on the cross in man’s place.

So this morning we are going to ask, Who Is the Wrestler?

Who is the wrestler? Jacob or the Lord?

Identity is very important in the Genesis text before us. Of course, as we heard the text read we made some immediate assumptions—the same assumptions that are always made. Jacob is the wrestler and the one with whom he wrestles, while a bit vague, appears to be God. Indeed, “the Angel of the Lord” is the preincarnate Son of God, Jesus. These are the wrestlers in our text. You have properly identified them, but if we stop here we will end up on a path that leads to confusion.

Who is the wrestler? Is it I?

What happens when we simply identify the wrestlers and then look for a way to make this Bible story “speak to us”? One move we make is to insert ourselves into the story. We take the role of Jacob and we speak of wrestling with God in prayer in order to receive our blessing, the answer we desire. What that means is that we conclude it is all about us—and it is not.

Another way we frequently understand this text is to interpret it as a battle cry. You will be assailed with the soldiers of Satan and the wicked of the world. Fight the good fight! Do not give up, and in the end you will be blessed with great honor, power, and riches. This also takes us in the wrong direction.

I am not saying that we are not in a battle, because we most certainly are. I am not denying that the evil forces of sin, Satan, and our world are grabbing at our lives and pulling at our limbs in an ongoing attempt to pin our faith to the mat. This is our reality in the Church Militant, our condition, our heritage from our first parents. Evil prowls our streets and rules our institutions. We have institutions in our very own town that bear the cross of Christ on their buildings, yet they are actively promoting the LGBTQ community and lifestyle. God certainly has something to say about this, and it isn’t what the world wants to hear. The reality is, Satan remains an active and dangerous foe who must be subdued, lest we die physically and eternally. Our world continues to shock us daily with its ability to conjure up even greater and more horrific examples of evil and corruption. The evil one is here; the world surrounds us with its corruption; sin is crouching at the door, ready to take us down. We are in a battle, the most serious battle of all, but . . . who is the wrestler?

Who is the Wrestler? The One wrestling for you!

The wrestler is not Jacob, and the wrestler is not us. When Jacob receives his new name, Israel, and when God explains this particular name, he identifies the Wrestler. It is the same One who has wrestled from the beginning, the same One who wrestles with Jacob, the same One who wrestles with Satan on a cross, and . . . the same One who wrestles for us every day of our lives.

The Wrestler is Christ Jesus. Jacob’s new name can mean, “You have wrestled with God,” or it can mean, “God has wrestled for you.” Regardless, this is what is said by God himself: “You have wrestled with God and man . . . but now, I will wrestle for you.” Not with you, not by your side, not if you need a little extra help, not when you are flat on your back. No! I will wrestle for you, just as I have wrestled for you in the past. So I wrestle for you now, and I will continue to wrestle for you until the day you stand in the courts of heaven before the throne.

Think about it —

— It is God who rescues the Israelites from the hand of Pharaoh with the parting of the waters—not man.

— It is God who drives out the Canaanites before Israel that they might possess the Promised Land—not man.

— It is God who takes the burden of our sin to the cross at Calvary and engages in a battle—not man.

— The Christ carries our sins to the cross; it is Jesus who suffers and sheds his holy blood on our behalf; it is the Lamb of God who takes away our sin as he dies in our place.

— And, though it looks as if he has been defeated as he hangs limp upon the tree, the greatest victory of all takes place in three days as the Son of God rises from the dead, having conquered sin, death, and Satan.

— It is God who is our Wrestler. He is the One who fights in our place on our behalf, and he has claimed a great victory which he bestows upon us.

God is the Wrestler. God is our Wrestler. This reality did not begin when Jacob was rolling in the dirt by the ford of Jabbok. It began as Adam and Eve were driven from the garden. This reality did not end when Jesus was victorious upon the cross and Satan was pinned and chained in defeat. It ends when we are safely through the gates of everlasting life.

As noted earlier, this text from Genesis is not one of the appointed texts for the All Saints’ observance, but as I thought about the lyric from the hymn that we will sing shortly —

“We feebly struggle,

They in glory shine.”

I couldn’t help but think of Jacob. You see, this passage has been on my mind of late. We pray and pray for certain situations and the conditions we find ourselves in on this side of heaven — The Church Militant. And sometimes when answers are slow in coming, we wonder if any headway is being made. For example, we hear the word cancer, and we fight and struggle. We pray and we pray, and sometimes it takes a long time for an answer we understand to come. Or worse yet, when the answer doesn’t come we wonder if we are praying correctly: “We feebly struggle.” But hear this dear saints, it is our Lord Jesus who is wresting for you.

Bear with me as we put this another way. When we gather here we sit in the Nave — Latin word for Naval. Look at the ceiling, the wooden slats resemble the hull of a ship. As we look forward, the see the altar, Christ’s throne — indeed the very helm of the ship. And our Lord Jesus is the one who is there, guiding this ship called the Church Militant through the sometimes turbulent seas of this life to the Church Triumphant.

Yes, “We feebly struggle”, but our Lord Jesus fights for us. Satan has been conquered, but he has not quit. Each day we are challenged by the desperate evil of our world, and we find ourselves in a chokehold that threatens our faith. Fear not! There is the Wrestler, the Champion, the Strong Deliverer, the Christ who daily fights for us. When he made you his own in Baptism, your old Adam was killed and the new Adam rose up—but as Luther tells us, the old Adam is a good swimmer who must daily be pushed back under those holy waters. Christ’s strong arm does the pushing.

Fight that strong arm, if you will—try to win the battle by yourself; rely upon your own reason and strength; be your own wrestler! And when you have had your face rubbed in the dirt and the wind pummeled from your body, you will be grateful and thankful to know that the true Wrestler has got your back! To use a military term, “He is your point and your rear guard.” He fights for you, and nothing can stand against him.

Ancient Christian Devotional: A Year of Weekly Readings: Lectionary Cycle C Closing Prayer

Remember, O Lord, the souls of those who have kept the faith, both those whom we remember and those whom we remember not, and grant them rest in the land of the living, in the joy of paradise, whence all pain and grief have fled away, where the light of your countenance shines forever; and guide in peace, O Lord, the end of our lives so as to be Christian and well-pleasing to you; gathering us around your throne, when you will and as you will, only without shame and sin; through your only-begotten Son our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Amen

V 27 (28 Hebrew): Changing Jacob’s name to Israel is important. First, name changes in the Scriptures always point to and identify with the covenant (Abram to Abraham; Sarai to Sarah; Saul to Paul). Second, the blessing Jacob receives is for the whole people of God who will be called “Israel.”

V 28 (29 Hebrew): This appears to be the most misunderstood verse in this pericope. “Israel” can either mean “he strives with God” or “God strives.” If we consider the whole counsel of Scripture, we know God is the One striving on behalf of man. This reality is most clearly seen on the cross as Christ takes our place and strives, battles, and conquers sin, death, and the devil. The message to Jacob appears to be, “You have been one who strives with God and man, but now you will know that God strives for you (for all of Israel).”

V 30 (31 Hebrew): The word “Peniel” means “face of God.” Again, Jacob knows with whom he is wrestling. He is also aware that man cannot look upon the face of God and live. However, the man should be identified as the preincarnate Son of God (Angel of the Lord). Thus Jacob is not killed by gazing upon the face of the Holy One.

Vv 31–32 (32–33 Hebrew): Traditionally and to this day, the Jews consider this portion of the body to be holy, and they will not eat the sinew of the thigh from any animal. That which God touches is indeed holy.

Sermon Studies on the Old Testament (ILCW Series C) Wrestle with God in Prayer!

Wrestle with God in Prayer!

1. Prayer grows out of a desperate need. (vv. 22–25)

2. Prayer exhibits a confident faith! (v. 26)

3. Prayer receives God’s rich blessings. (vv. 27–30