It’s important for us to see our Christian lives within a bigger perspective, in order to understand some of the detail that we struggle with. To the left is a picture of Josh aged 4 wearing armbands and carrying floating aids before he learned to swim. To the right Josh a few years later who has by now become a water baby, completely at home swimming in deep water.
On Sunday morning I showed a video of him winning a race against his brother, so confident and competent had he become.
Josh had to go through a process of transition, of learning to let go of the artificial buoyancy aids, and trust in his own ability to keep his head above water - learning to swim. It was a gradual process but resulted in great joy & freedom as time went by.
God is also taking each of us through a period of transition, but one which lasts all the way through our lives! We have to learn to do almost the reverse of what Joshua did: learn to let go of trusting in ourselves, and trust instead in God to uphold us. As we receive Jesus, we become children of God, so we are told in John chapter 1. But learning a childlike faith in God is a lifelong process – trusting God to provide for us, to protect us, to guide and empower us - is something that takes time.
Living in the world we quickly learned to do what everybody else does, to trust in ourselves, to look after number one. Maybe we understood the theory about trusting God that if we put him first he will look after us, like Jesus teaches in Matthew six, but the reality is much harde r to acquire. Often it’s a bit like two steps forward one step back, or even three steps back!
Every day God will place before us situations where we have to choose whether or not we will put our trust in him or we will go our own way. In one very important respect this is simply repeating the choice that lay before Adam and Eve in the
Garden of Eden: will we trust in God and obey him, or will we choose the path of independence that seems so attractive?
Again and again God presents us with a choice, and invites us to make a decision whether we will choose the path of independence, or choose to stay under the umbrella of his covenant love and protection.
Independence seems so attractive, but in the end we find ourselves exposed and vulnerable, no longer covered by his covenant protection, and we often get hurt in the process, as well as grieving our heavenly father and often hurting others as well.
This is the big picture of our lives at the Bible reveals to us, and there are many examples of how God’s people have chosen the right path or the wrong path and the consequences which followed. And these stories are there as examples of good practice or bad practice for us to follow or avoid – read for instance 1 Corinthians 10, which ends up with a great promiseof 1
Cor 10.13 - have a look!
The story of Jacob is a classic example of the way that God’s people struggle to trust in his promises of covenant blessing, the consequences the result through failure trust, and how God graciously uses circumstances to teach lessons of faith. In fact the story is so significant that it results in Jacob being given a new name, Israel. In the Hebrew culture being given a name is highly significant because the name reflects someone’s destiny, or the circumstances perhaps in which they were born. Esau meant hairy, and Jacob meant deceiver. But in the end he is given the name one who struggles with God and man and perseveres. This indicates that God’s people (including you and me since St Paul says that we Gentile Christians ar e grafted into the vine of Israel, and have also become “the Israel of God” – see Romans chapter 11, and Galatians 6.16)
So let’s look at that story (but do read it for yourself : Gen 25-32):
1. God’s covenant promise to Jacob (deceiver) (Gen 25.19-23) here Jacob, the younger brother is told that he will inherit the birthright given to Abraham and Isaac. The significance of this promise is made clear in Genesis 27.29, and 28.13 to 15.
2. BUT Jacob manipulates his brother to get birthright
Jacob uses his natural gifts of cooking to bribe his brother to yield his birthright, not trusting that God will make it happen.
3. Rebekah & Jacob deceive Isaac to get “Blessing” they conspire to use powers of deception to obtain the blessing of Isaac, again not trusting in God
4. Result – MISERY!
Esau swears vengeance on Jacob, and the whole family is split apart, never to be the same again
5. Jacob flees to his Uncle Laban – God still blesses despite his unworthiness, God still continues to uphold his covenant blessing. This is a great comfort to us for we so often disobey God and deserve to be cut off, yet through Jesus and his shed blood, we are washed clean again.
6. Laban deceives Jacob over his daughters now it’s Jacob’s turn to experience what it means to be on the receiving end of deception, and Laban tricks Jacob into marrying both daughters and having to serve him for 14 years. This is humbling. And yet God is faithful to him.

7. God allows strife in marriage to humble Jacob
God further allows circumstances to show that despite everything, God has the power to bless. Even using family strife. In a similar way God will teach us through all kinds of conflict that his power to bless us is unstoppable.
8. Laban deceives Jacob’s wages – But God blesses!
In the area of finance the odds are stacked against Jacob, but God makes him come out on top.
9. Both Jacob and Laban see God blessing Jacob (Gen 30.27-30) ultimately God’s power to bless is revealed through Jacob winning out through adversity. So it is with us.
10. Jacob returns to face his brother E sau…
Another big test comes as he now has to faces his brother whom he has deceived. Can God protect him?
11. Tries to use his power to win his brothers blessing once again Jacob tries to use his own strength, his own gifts and abilities to engineer his brothers acceptance. He sends over many many gifts to try to win his brothers favour. But even then he knows this is not enough.
12. Then Jacob realises he only needs God’s blessing finally God wrestles with Jacob all night, until Jacob understands that all he need s is God’s blessing. And in this big battle Jacob is renamed Israel to express the way he has learned to struggle to trust in God’s blessing. But God puts
Jacob’s hip out of joint, to help him to learn to bend on God strength and not his own.
In a similar way, God will graciously weaken us in order to save us from trusting disastrously in our own strength.
Questions to consider.
How does the story of Jacob shed light on your own struggles in life?
What do you think of the idea that every day we will face the same choice in different guises: ie. do we trust in God or not?
Did Jacob earn God’s blessing? Do we?
How do we sometimes use our own powers to engineer God’s blessing in our lives? What results?
What areas can you see God trying to teach you to trust him at the present time? How might he be weakening you, so that you learn to trust in him more.?
What blessing comes from learning to trust in the covenant blessing of God rather than choosing independence?
What you think God might be teaching you through the story? How might you respond?