No Match for God Part 2

Guest (Male): This day on a daily walk.
John Randall: Listen, if you want to be used by God, just know this, you got to be broken. You got to be humble, and God has ways of doing that. You might start out thinking you got it all. Hey, Lord, I can see why you'd use me. Um it's pretty obvious. You know? And then God will show you you got nothing apart from me. Oh, how how good it is to be humbled by the Lord, to be broken by the Lord, because that's when you're useful. It's when you think that you're all that that and find out you're not, that you you're you're no good to anybody in that sense. You're filled with yourself. And so God has to empty us. God We wrestle with that. We wrestle with that.
Guest (Male): We hope you're having a wonderful day in the Lord, and welcome again to a daily walk. In Genesis 32, Jacob enters into a wrestling match with God. Talk about a fight you can't win. And yet many still today are wrestling with God. Maybe that would describe you. But the good news for Jacob is following this time of defeat came wonderful victory in his life. Here's Pastor John Randall with his message No match for God.
John Randall: At this time now, Jacob went on his way. It says in chapter 32 in verse 1 and notice as he's on his way that the angels of God met him. And when Jacob saw them, he said, this is God's camp. And he called the name of that place After 20 years of hardship, it seemed like maybe things were finally turning around for Jacob. After all that he'd gone through, it wasn't it wasn't for nothing. He was now a wealthy man. He had a large family. He had the blessing of God upon his life. And even as he's approaching the land, there's there he sees angels in a camp, so much so that he calls it a double camp. The angels have their camp. We We have a camp next to the angels. I mean, God's in this. And I mean, just you can imagine just Oh, I can breathe. I can I can I am going home. This is exciting. God's got new things for me. He made that promise to me. Oh, 20 years is coming to pass. I knew God was in it. I knew he's going to This is exciting. He starts going back and and he has this miraculous vision. These angels are surrounding him. He's blessed. He's encouraged by God's you know, presence and protection. And there's there's only one problem. Esau. Esau. Who's Esau? That's his brother. His big, red, hairy brother that he ripped off 20 years earlier. He's still there. And so now Jacob, as he begins to go home, he realizes, oh, Esau's there. And so he starts out by letting him know, uh I'm coming back in town. Want to let let you know it's been two decades. Look at verse 3. Then Jacob sent messengers before him to Esau, his brother, in the land of Seir, in the country of Edom. And he commanded them saying, speak thus to my Lord, Esau, thus your servant, Jacob says, I have dwelt with Laban, stayed there until now. I have oxen, donkeys, flocks, male and female servants, and I've sent to tell my Lord that I might find favor in your sight. Interesting how he's starting to let his brother know. Calls his brother, tell Lord Esau, his servant, humble servant Jacob is on his way home. Uh and hopefully bygone bygones we can find favor in his sight. Well, look at verse 6. The messengers returned to Jacob saying, we came to your brother Esau and uh he is also coming to meet you, and 400 men are with him. What a what a what a welcoming party. What's going to Why Why all the men? Uh it's just me and my wife and children. 400 men, that's like a that's a small army. And typically that's the kind of group that would go out and do battle if necessary. So Jacob, verse 7, you can understand, was greatly afraid and distressed. And he divided the people that were with him and the flocks and the herds and the camels and the two companies. And he said, all right, if Esau comes to this company and attacks it, then the other company which is left will escape. What What does Jacob do? You know what he does? He results back to what he used to do. He's now put in this place. He's got the promise of God, the blessing of God. He's coming back in. But what does he do when when push comes to shove, when it's crunch time and he's being squeezed? He goes right back into the old Jacob. He starts planning, scheming. Okay, here's what we got to do. If he's coming, what are we going to do? Well, okay, if we'll we'll divide this way and then we'll divide that way. And then if he comes and he well at least one of us will escape and maybe we could get away. He starts scheming. Why? Because he's afraid, because he's distressed. He starts trying to problems to figure it out how he's going to avoid what's coming or what he thinks is coming. How How do you respond? How do I respond when God puts me in situations that are distressing? Do I bring God into it? Do I lean upon the promises he has made or do I try to figure it out? It's interesting because the word distressed here in the Hebrew, it's the the primitive word, it means to press. It means to be narrow in a a narrow spot figuratively like you're Well, you're like you're trapped. He's narrow. He's in He's in straits. He's vexed. And this is how he reacts. He starts sending his And then after that, what he does I'll tell you this, his prayer life increases. That's a good thing. Oh God, you say, well, I don't I don't really pray much. Wait till you hit a trial. You can You can God teaches us how to pray. Isn't that interesting that that what you know, the things that it takes to to make us men and women of prayer. We hit a trial. You know, there's there's one prayer in the day of prosperity, and there's thousands that go up in the day of adversity. We pray like we never prayed before. We get on our knees, on our face. Oh God, be merciful to me. Look at Jacob's prayer of desperation and dependence on God. And this is this is God is God is using this guys in his life. Look at what it says in verse 9. Then Jacob said, oh God of my father Abraham, God of my father Isaac, the Lord who said to me, return to your country and to your family, and I will deal well with you. Look at the Look at the humility of Jacob in verse 10. I am not worthy of the least of all the mercies and of all the truth which you've shown your servant. I crossed over this Jordan with my staff, and now I become two companies. Look at the humility. I mean, before Jacob would say, I am worthy of it. In fact, I will take it. But now he is at this place where God has brought him where he's he's humble. Sometimes God has to do things in our lives to bring us to a place of humility that we realize if not for the Lord in my life, I would have nothing. I mean, it's true. Nobody's self-made here. By the grace of God, we are what we are. What God has provided, what God has done in your life, the gifts that God's given you, the abilities he's given you, what he has provided, your fam whatever it it's it's a gift from God. And Jacob comes to this place now that he's pressed, he's vexed. And he And he says, God, I'm I'm not worthy of the Notice that of the least of the mercies you've given me. I I let When Jacob left, he had a stick. He left with a stick. And he came back with a family and and livestock and all the blessings of God, the promises of God on his life. And notice the honesty also, please, of of Jacob in verse 11. Deliver me, I pray, from the hand of my brother, from the hand of Esau, for I fear him. I want to be honest with you, God. I'm afraid lest he come and attack me and the and and the mother with the children. He's He's humble before God. He's honest with God. I I think it is time to get honest with God. I mean, just be honest with him. Tell him He already knows. And don't let's be want to just dance around the issue. That's not the issue. This is the issue. Be honest with God. Lord, this is my problem. This is what I struggle with. This This is what I've been engaged in. Lord, this I I'm afraid. That's just it. That's why I'm acting the way I'm acting or I'm insecure. All right, then say it. Say it. Say it for what it is. Be honest with God. And then I also love that he reminds God of his promise. Notice verse 12. You said it. Let's be clear on this. You said, I will surely treat you well and I'll make your descendants as the sand of the sea which cannot be numbered for a multitude. Folks, listen, it's really important for us when we are in prayer, when we we are in situations like Jacob is really that we remind God of what he said, not because God forgets. You know, God doesn't forget what he said. I forget. And so when I pray the promises of God, I'm reminding myself, but I'm also saying cuz God keeps his promises. So what I'm saying God, you you did say this cuz I I I have it right here. And so I'm I'm claiming this promise, Lord, because you said it. And And I believe it. I'm reminding myself of what God said. Listen, when you're confronted with something distressing or you're in a spot tonight, what has God said to you? What has he said? He said, don't lean on your own understanding. He said, seek me first, and all these things will be added unto you. My righteousness. You seek me. I'll take care of it. He said He said to trust in him. He said that that he would provide peace that surpasses understanding. These are all the things that God said I have to take hold of the exceedingly great and precious promises, and I pray them in and I pray them out, reminding myself. That's what you said. Notice Jacob Well, he after he prays, he he's also active. Look at verse 13. We're almost through. So he lodged there that same night. And it says, and took what came to his hand as a present for Esau, his brother. 200 female goats, 20 male goats, 200 ewes and 20 rams, 30 milk camels with their colts, 40 cows, 10 bulls, 20 female donkeys, 10 foals. And then he delivered them to the hand of his servants. Every drove by itself. And he said to his servants, here's how we're going to do this. Pass over before me and put some distance between the success of droves. We're going to find that he ended up giving him like over 500 animals. That's like a big farm. I mean, this guy had a lot of livestock. So what he does is he plants Here's how we're going to do it. It says, what we're going to do, verse 16, he delivered them to the hand of his servants. Every drove by itself. Pass over before me. Put some distance between the success of droves. And he commanded the first one saying, when Esau, my brother meets you and asks you saying, to whom do you belong and where are you going? Whose are these in front of you? Then you shall say, they are your servant Jacob's. It is a present to my Lord Esau. And behold, he is also behind us. And so he commanded the second and the third and all who followed the droves saying, in this manner you shall speak to Esau when you find him. And also say, behold your servant Jacob is behind us. For he said, I will appease him with the present that goes before me. And afterward, I I'll see his face. Perhaps he will accept me. So the present went on over before him, but he himself lodged that night in the camp. What does Jacob do? He just starts trying to soften soften up Esau. Send 100 sheep with you. Just Just take them. And when Esau says, hey, what what's what's all these sheep? These are a present for you from Jacob, your servant. He's coming. He's He's behind us. Wow, that's that's a lot of sheep. Next wave, send Give them you know, all these bulls. What are Who Who are these? These are also I mean, in just laying it on thick, giving his brother all these things trying And maybe Hey, maybe maybe Jacob is really trying to do right by his brother. He knows he ripped them off. He knows that what he did was wrong so many years ago. Maybe he's trying to make amends either way. He's afraid. And he he continues. And then after he did that, there was nothing else he could do. And this is where we conclude tonight. This I want you to see this verse 22. And he arose that night and he took his two wives, his two female servants, his 11 sons. He 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. Jacob now he's all by himself. He's alone. The wives, the children they're ahead and he's by himself. And in that moment when he's alone, it says that Jacob wrestled. A man wrestled with him until the breaking of day. And when you see this wrestling match unfold, you realize really from the beginning of Jacob's life, he had he'd always been wrestling, wrestling with everybody. Wrestled with his brother, wrestled with his dad, wrestled with Laban. But ultimately we're going to find out that Jacob was really wrestling with the Lord. And in fact, one man by the name of G. Campbell Morgan calls this incident in the life of Jacob the crippling that crowns. And that's essentially what this story is about, folks. God breaking a man in order to make a man. God humbling a man who is so self-oriented, governed by his own desires. And And for 20 years the Lord has been pounding and shaping and molding and preparing and working And And there's Jacob resisted and fought and struggled. And now he's here in this moment. And this this event right here that takes place in his life, this is a turning point. This is a time of brokenness, a time of repentance, a time of getting right with God, a time of surrender. It was a time of defeat that actually turned into victory. And I'll tell you something. Listen, if you want to be used by God, just know this, you got to be broken. You got to be humble. And God has ways of doing that. You might start out thinking you got it all. Hey, Lord, I can see why you'd use me. Um it's pretty obvious. You know? And then God will show you you got nothing apart from me. Oh, how how good it is to be humbled by the Lord, to be broken by the Lord, because that's when you're useful. It's when you think that you're all that that and find out you're not that you you're no good to anybody in that sense. If you're filled with yourself. And so God has to empty us. God And we wrestle with that. We wrestle with that. And notice in verse 25 it says, and he saw that he did not prevail against him, that he touched the socket of his hip. And the socket of Jacob's hip was out of joint, and he wrestled with him. And he said to him, let me go for the day breaks. But he said, I will not let you go unless you bless me. So here Jacob's wrestling all night and he's fighting back and forth. And then finally, as the day is breaking, his hip goes out of socket. It's touched. The muscle actually shrivels up in that moment. And now now he's crippled. Cuz think about this. There's one thing that Jacob could still do even if Esau took all the presents, attacked his family, Jacob could still run until now. You know, when you read this passage, I remember growing up and being a wrestler myself, not professionally, but uh you understand. School. You know, sometimes you get the wrong impression. You think Jacob had, you know, had him in a chokehold. You know, the angel of the Lord just Listen, I'm not letting you go until you bless me. You might have took out my hip, but I'm going to take out your neck. You know, you you think that's You know, you kind of get this picture in your mind like Jacob was just had him in a grip and and and you know, I'm not going to let you go and let you bless me. So there, you better bless me. But it's very important to realize there is a passage of scripture. It's Hosea chapter 12 in verse 4. And it actually gives us a commentary on what really happened. And I want you to hear this verse, Hosea chapter 12 verse 4. It says it says he struggled with the angel and prevailed. Notice verse 4. I want you to see it cuz it's really important. He struggled with the angel and prevailed. And notice this, he wept and sought favor from him. He found him in Bethel, and there he spoke to us. Basically what happens there, Hosea chapter 12 verse 4. This wasn't Jacob having a grip on the angel saying, I'm not going to let you go unless you bless me. This is Jacob wounded, crippled, pleading, weeping, saying, don't go. Don't go unless you bless me. This is This is a man who is totally broken. This is a man that's at the end of himself. That's really what you see here. And he's crying out and he's saying, please. You know, in the past, if he wanted a blessing, he stole it. If he wanted a blessing, I'll take it. I'll deceive. I'll do whatever I got to do to get what I want. That's how I operate. He was a supplanter. He was a deceiver. From the time that he came out, man, he was grabbing people's heels. I mean, that's just what he was. And now he's in this place where he's broken and he's he's beside himself and he's crippled and he can't run anymore. And he just says, God, please please bless me. He's desperate. And notice that the Lord responds to him. And he said to him, verse 27, what's your name? Won't you be honest? What's your name? It's Jacob. Supplanter, deceiver. 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. And Jacob said, tell me your name, I pray. And he said, why is it that you ask me about my name? And he blessed him there. Jacob's birth name, of course, was supplanter, heel catcher. You remember when he came out, he grabbed hold of his brother's heel, Esau. And so hey, let's call him heel catcher. And it stuck. And he really lived up to that name. He was always cheating, supplanting. And yet Jacob's struggle ultimately it wasn't with Esau. It wasn't with his father or Laban. His struggle was with God. And tonight, you know, maybe you're wrestling with God. I want to I want to let you know, you're no match for him. You can wrestle all you want. There's a easy way and there's a hard way. Surrender brings victory. When when Jacob realized that he was defeated, that's when he was victorious. When Jacob realized that he was weak, that 's when there was a strength that he tapped into that wasn't accessible earlier. God changed his name. God changed his life, making him into a different man with a new nature. And like every single one of us, we have a similar encounter with the Lord where we understand, at least we need to understand that apart from Jesus, Jesus said it, apart from me you can do nothing. And until we come to that place, there's really nothing that can be done in and through our lives. Our natural abilities, our resources are limited. But when we come to a place, whether it's like Isaiah that says, Lord, I'm undone. I'm a man of unclean lips. I dwell among the people of unclean lips. I I need you. It's from that humble position, there in that place called Peniel, where God begins to work.
Guest (Male): We are in a study of Genesis right now on a daily walk. We'll return to Pastor John Randall in just a minute. As we leave you, we'd like to say how much it means to us each and every time we hear how God is at work on our listeners' lives. It would be so encouraging to hear from you. So please write today while it's fresh on your mind. Let us know how we can pray for you, too. Our email address is a daily walk at gmail.com. You can call us toll free at 877 242 0828. Visit our website to listen to today's message again or share it with someone who might benefit by hearing it. We're at a daily walk.org. And while you're there, check out Pastor John's daily devotional. It's a video devo released each weekday morning just for you. It takes only 8 minutes to watch, and it's a good way to start your day or watch on your break at work. We're now able to send them to you by text if you wish. Simply text the word a daily walk to 877 242 0828 and be encouraged each morning with Pastor John. Again, 877 242 0828. Today we'd like to get an excellent resource into your hands from Pastor Charles Stanley who is now with the Lord. It's titled How to listen to God. His voice waits to be heard. You know, there are so many voices coming at us each day in the world coupled with the daily routine of life. It can sometimes leave us confused and frustrated. How do you distinguish between God's voice and all the others? And how should you respond to it? Allow Charles Stanley to help using personal experiences from his life and ministry. And of course, the word of God, too. We're making it available to our a daily walk listeners for the cost of just $12 at a daily walk.org or call us 877 242 0828. That's 877 242 0828 and a daily walk.org. Here at a daily walk, we look to the Lord to provide. And very often he does so through our listeners. We are very grateful for that. We know these are difficult and challenging financial times for many of you. But if God has blessed you with a little extra this month, we'd very much appreciate your support. This would be a wonderful time to hear from you. We try to make it easy to make a donation online at a daily walk.org or call 877 242 0828. And now with some personal applications flowing from Genesis chapter 32, here is Pastor John.
John Randall: You'll notice as we conclude, then Jacob called the name of that place verse 30 Peniel for he said, I have seen God face to face and my life is preserved. And just as he crossed over Peniel, the sun rose on him. And notice 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. The Lord touched Jacob's life. And from that moment, he was never the same. Oh, there was a limp. He couldn't run anymore. He couldn't get away. In one sense, you could say that Jacob was coming to the end of himself. And the sooner we get to that place of coming to the end of ourselves, that's when really again we be we come to the strength of the Lord. We We come to what God wants us to be. And you can fight with God, you can wrestle with God, and you can say, I don't like what you're making. I don't like what you're doing. And I don't like these circumstances. And I And this and also and What What does God have to do in a life to bring us to the end? You ever You ever observe a life and think, what else has to happen? I mean, it's rock bottom further down than that because that's pretty low. I mean, what else do you have to lose before you will humble yourself? What else does God have to do? What what what does he have to do to get your attention? Does he have to cripple you? God forbid. Does he have to like bring you to this place where your heart's so broken because you pursued every single relationship that you went after out of God's will and it's all shattered now. Now you're going to listen me cuz No, God God tries to protect us from that. Tries to keep us from that. This is what you're going to do. You're going to you know, kind of just go and after the flesh and pursue it and then you know, just see how it goes. And then eventually does it have to get to that point? I say it doesn't. And if you're wrestling with God, I'm going to tell you to do one thing, tap out. And he'll he'll do it. I mean, you Hey, God God will touch your life. And maybe right now, you know, God put his finger, you know, as it were, on the hip socket. I mean, shrunk it. So he's he's limping from then on. And maybe God's putting his finger on something. This is the thing that's right here. This is it. This is the thing I want I want to do. Will we humble ourselves? We stop looking and depending on self and we start looking and depending on the Savior. That's when God really begins to work. And I can think of so many so many things in my own life where the Holy Spirit has had to humble me and break me and mold me and And And he's still doing it, by the way. It's a lifelong process. We're perfect when we're in heaven. He who began the good work in us, he'll be faithful to complete it until the day of Christ Jesus. The The work's complete then, not now. I'm in the process. And so are you. How's the Lord speaking to you tonight?
Guest (Male): That will do it for today. But come back next week when we'll pick up where we left off in Genesis here on a daily walk with John Randall.
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