Synopsis of Sermon 10/8/23

Delivered by Bishop Joseph W. Walker, III

Genesis 32:24-30 NKJV 
Then Jacob was left alone; and a Man wrestled with him until the breaking of day. 25 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. 26 And He said, “Let Me go, for the day breaks.” But he said, “I will not let You go unless You bless me!”27 So He said to him, “What is your name?”He said, “Jacob.” 28 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.”29 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.30 So Jacob called the name of the place Peniel: “For I have seen God face to face, and my life is preserved.”

I.            INTRODUCTION 

1. One of the things that is true in our life is the fact that we are becoming. It is a journey where we learn about each other. We are always growing and becoming.
2. In this process, you realize that God has called you beyond yourself, to benefit others. God from time to time will impose his sovereignty on us, to pull us back into alignment. This happens when we get beside ourselves or prideful. God has to bring us back to where we need to be.
   1. Somebody reading this, is in this place right now. What you’re experiencing is about your future. This is not a fight against Satan. It is a fight with God! This is to see if you will finally get beyond yourself. It is a fight to see how bad you want to see your destiny It is a fight that will separate good from great. It will eliminate every generational curse in your life.
   2. This struggle you are dealing with right now, will allow you to walk into the best season on your life, when it is over! Don’t ask about why you are in the fight, but rather ask what is God trying to show you about yourself?
3. Here is the context: Abraham has a son named Isaac. Isaac and Rebecca have two twin sons called Jacob and Esau. When the twins were born, Esau came out first, but Jacob grabbed Esau by the heal and pulled him back, then he pushed himself out first.
   1. Jacob was one that was always trying to get over. Jacob was a manipulator or trickster. For example, on one occasion, Jacob saw Esau hungry. Esau, being the oldest, had the right to the Jacob, seeing that Esau was hungry, said he would give him a bowl of soup, if he would give up his birthright.
   2. During Esau’s vulnerability (being really hungry), Jacob takes advantage of his brother. Jacob and his mom Rebecca was really close, so when Isaac was on his deathbed, she tricks Isaac into passing the birthright to Jacob instead of Esau who was the oldest.
   3. Esau was angry after finding this out, so Jacob fled to his Uncles house. When he gets there, he sees Rachael and wants to marry her. As a result, he agrees to work for her on her Dad’s farm, but was tricked. After working the agreed amount of time, he was given Leah instead of Rachael, because she was the oldest. The Trickster got tricked! He still wanted to marry Rachael so he agreed to work an additional 7 years, in order to get Rachael.
4. When Jacob got ready to return home, he sends gifts ahead to Esau, because initially Esau wanted to kill him for stealing his birthright. Jacob never heard from Esau concerning the gifts that he sent ahead.
   1. Now Jacob sends his camp ahead. He is in Peniel which was called “Face of God”. It is the night before Jacob was going to finally meet with Esau and now he is left
   2. Out of nowhere, there was a man that wrestles him. It turns out to be God. He wrestles all night until the break of day. This was the fork of the road for him. Will he change or will he remain living the same?

II.            YOU WERE LEFT ALONE FOR A SPIRITUAL BATTLE 

• You’ve been running from one dysfunction to another. Sometimes we can leave a trail of pain and confusion behind us. When God gets us in a place of alone, it is so we can work out what to do next. In this alone place is where you reconcile our assignment. It is an opportunity to get ourselves together.
• Aloneness is never intended for you to be lonely. God is with you during this whole time. The songwriter says, “I come to the garden alone…” and “He walks with me and talks with me and tell me that I am his own”.
• God will frustrate relationships. It is scary sometimes when you have to be alone, but being alone is a time to be with yourself.
• At this point and time in the text, God has orchestrated this moment for Jacob.

A.     You can’t escape what God allows 

• When God has you alone it is:

1. To Show You Yourself – It’s the real you that you will see.
2. To Save You from Yourself – At this point, if you continue down this path, you will self-destruct.

B.     It May Be a Nuisance, But It’s Preparing You for Your Next 

1. God apprehended Jacob when Jacob was just minding his own business.
   1. What is it about you that would cause God to choose to wrestle with you? It is about what’s next for you. There are things that God has to deal with inside of us, in order for us to go to the next level.
   2. Some things have to be taken care of, before God can use us for the next level.
2. Jacob prevailed in the wrestling match. This brings about a question. How can you beat God? God is showing Jacob how strong he really is.
   1. God touched Jacobs’s hip and dislocated it. It resulted in Jacob being left with a limp.

III.            THE LIMP WAS DESIGNED TO BREAK YOU 

• God will take you through to get you where you need to be.
• When God gets ready for you, he knows where to find you and how to break you.
• Your limp will manifest in different ways.

A.     Your Strong Will Must Be Brought Under Submission

1. Jacob has to come under submission. All his life, he has never submitted to anyone.
   1. His attitude is unsubmitted. He’s been a trickster all his life. For example, he didn’t want to be with Leah, yet he had babies with her. When you’re like this, you create your own rules.
   2. Example – Cut the lights off and you won’t be able to see. If you stay there long enough, your eyes will begin to adjust to the darkness. Before long you will be able to walk around without bumping into things.
2. Your head controls your actions. Jacob has a head problem!
   1. Proverbs 14:12 NKJV says 12 There is a way that seems right to a man, But its end is the way of death. – The problem is in my mind. This is why parents used to say you had a hard head.
   2. Romans 12:2 says And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God. – It is your mind that controls the action. Your heart is really a spectator of what occurs.
   3. You didn’t lose the battle when you ended up in somebody else bed. You lost it when you picked up the phone.
3. God gives Jacob a limp to put him into submission. This forces him to have to explain what happened to him.

B.     Our Handicaps Remind Us of Our Need for Help

1. My limp says I still need God.

IV.            LATCH ON UNTIL HE BLESSES YOU

• Latching on means you are holding on to something that don’t want to let go of it.

A.     It May Seem Intense but It’s Not Indefinite

1. Jacob wrestled until the breaking of day. Even though you may be wrestling, know that trouble don’t last always.

B.     I’m Not Going Through It Without Getting Something Out of It 

1. Whatever I go through, I’m going to get something out of it. We’re either going to get a lesson or a blessing..
2. James 1:2-4 NKJV says 2 My brethren, count it all joy when you fall into various trials, 3 knowing that the testing of your faith produces [a]patience. 4 But let patience have its perfect work, that you may be [b]perfect and complete, lacking nothing.
3. 1 Peter 4:12-13 NKJV says Beloved, do not think it strange concerning the fiery trial which is to try you, as though some strange thing happened to you; 13 but rejoice to the extent that you partake of Christ’s sufferings, that when His glory is revealed, you may also be glad with exceeding joy.
4. 1 Peter 5:10 NKJVsays But may the God of all grace, who called us to His eternal glory by Christ Jesus, after you have suffered a while, perfect, establish, strengthen, and settle you. – After you come out of it, you will be better on the others side.

V.            YOUR LEGACY IS GOING TO BE BETTER 

• One of the greatest lessons to your struggle, is missing the lesson.
  • It is about becoming, evolving, or even maturing.
• Your fight will not be in vain. It is about legacy. Decisions impact legacy.
• Jacob stole the blessing. The decision Jacob makes now will impact not only him, but it will also impact history.
• While he is wrestling, God said, what is your name? Experiences in the Bible gave you names. God told them to tell Pharaoh that I am sent him. When you pray, “I am”, it inverts God’s name into your answer, before you start praying: Who’s going to make a way? I am. Who’s going to help you pass the test? I am. Who’s going to heal you? I am.
• Names matter. Moses’ name meant “draw out”.
• What does Jacob’s name mean? It means “heal catcher”. It also means “over-reacher”.
• The reason your life is messed up, is because you’re doing the most. Doing the most is always about you.

A.     He Changed My Name 

1. Jacob will no longer mean the most. It would be changed to Israel meaning “Let God Prevail”. All his life, Jacob has done it his way, but now he would change to doing things God’s way.
2. The same Jacob who was always so stubborn comes into a new day, with a limp.

B.     My Limp Is a Part of My Story and For His Glory

1. If you don’t have a limp, something is wrong with you! Your limp tells your story! It tells that you’ve gone through some trials and come out victorious! Where’s your limp?