June 4 2017 Getting Ahead 7 - Becoming Conscious of God's Continual Presence

Acts 2 – Pentecost -

Lord, we think of how we have asked You to be present with us – and we expect You to work in our midst – speak to our hearts. We also want to pray for England right now – all that has been going on there the last few weeks. You are a God of peace – and we long for the day when we experience the peace of God completely – that day when they turn their weapons into plowshares – and the Lion lies with the Lamb – no longer enemies – as Pentecost shows us – the coming together of the family of God. We can be confident that the ways of this world are passing away.

Today I will conclude our series on the life of Jacob – the theme has been Manipulation and Control issues – and how to deal with those in our own life. We left off last week with Jacob wrestling with the angel of the Lord – Hosea talks about it too – he refers to the man as the Angel of the Lord.

Gen. 32:25 When the man saw that he did not prevail against Jacob, he touched his hip socket, and Jacob's hip was put out of joint as he wrestled with him. 26 Then he said, "Let me go, for the day has broken." But Jacob said, "I will not let you go unless you bless me."

Jacob won’t let him go.

27 And he said to him, "What is your name?" And he said, "Jacob."

Jacob is finally able to face himself

28 Then he said, "Your name shall no longer be called Jacob, but Israel, for you have striven with God and with men, and have prevailed." 29 Then Jacob asked him, "Please tell me your name." But he said, "Why is it that you ask my name?" And there he blessed him. 30 So Jacob called the name of the place Peniel, saying, "For I have seen God face to face, and yet my life has been delivered."

This is a transformational encounter for Jacob – a diving moment that changes him. He enters in – He has this experience with God. And the first question is – have you? I believe God wants all of us to have divine moments – divine encounters – with God. Our encounters will not be like Jacob’s. I won’t wrestle anyone after the service!

We are learning to experience God’s presence in our lives in our daily routine. God wants to encounter you as you drive to work – as you sit at your desk – as you go to bed at night.

Jacob knows something is going on like he has never experienced.

The angel refuses to give Jacob his name. God often does not give His name. When God appears to Moses in a burning bush (and He won’t appear to you that way either!). I have seen the plight of my people – and Moses asks – whom shall I tell them? And God gives him His name.

God has been interacting with Jacob all along – and only now is Jacob realizing it. We are like that a lot, aren’t we?! He is still not sure who God is. His theology has yet to come along. He has this conversion experience – an experience of trust and surrender – but his theology is not there yet. It is a leap of faith he is experiencing – but it is not a leap into nothingness, it is a leap of faith because of a real experience. Jacob is believing God because He has experienced God. We should never ask someone to believe something whether they believe it or not. That is not faith. That is naïve non-biblical faith. That is not a conversion experience – it is God being actively involved in your life and your eyes being opened to realize it.

When I look at my story – and coming to this point in my life – I realized that God had been there all along – and all you are doing in your faith is saying – Yes! That is what is happening. I am believing what I know to be real – what I know to be true. It is believing in something you know to be true – because it is something that God has been at work in you already.

Faith is the ASSURANCE – the total and complete conviction of things hoped for – not an oh maybe.

31 The sun rose upon him as he passed Penuel, limping because of his hip. 32 Therefore to this day the people of Israel do not eat the sinew of the thigh that is on the hip socket, because he touched the socket of Jacob's hip on the sinew of the thigh.

Some say he limped the rest of his life. All of us will eventually have some ‘limp’ – that we will experience the rest of our journey. Not physical – but spiritual.

Paul said – because of the revelations given to me – there was a thorn in the flesh given to me – and he asked 3 times for it to be taken away. It could have been a health issue – or people coming at him – but God did not take it away – saying His power would be perfected in our weakness.

Each of us will have a personal thorn – our limp – and it is related to our spiritual formation. What is your name? It may be a health issue – it may be from past wounds or failures – a weakness, temptation, disability – or decisions you regret.

It comes at different times. For some, we don’t receive or recognize the limp until later. For Jacob – it was around age 45. For him – all the ingredients were there, but it required an event to bring it out. For us, that is true too. For some, you have had the event, and you know it. Maybe it happened when you were young – or maybe when you are older – and from then on – it was this – a journey.

The purpose is not so that we say – oh yeah, here is my limp. It is to cause us to cling to God – to not be dependent on ourselves. Paul’s wound was so that he would trust in God. The limp is to be transformational. Our tendency is to think that we will experience transformation when we get rid of the limp. It is always through the brokenness and suffering that we are transformed.

So the wrestling match is complete -

Gen. 33: And Jacob lifted up his eyes and looked, and behold, Esau was coming, and four hundred men with him.

Oh man – I just got this angel off my back and now my brother is coming

So he divided the children among Leah and Rachel and the two female servants. 2 And he put the servants with their children in front, then Leah with her children, and Rachel and Joseph last of all. 3 He himself went on before them, bowing himself to the ground seven times, until he came near to his brother.

For the first time in his life – he puts others first and puts himself in harm’s way for others. He was willing to lay down his life for their well-being. This is a theme of the Bible. We suffer for others’ comfort – we fail for others’ success – we become poor to make others rich – we die for others.

Unless a grain of wheat falls to the earth and dies, it remains alone – but when it dies, we find life.

4 But Esau ran to meet him and embraced him and fell on his neck and kissed him, and they wept.

What an amazing story! What a shock to Jacob this had to be.

5 And when Esau lifted up his eyes and saw the women and children, he said, "Who are these with you?" Jacob said, "The children whom God has graciously given your servant." 6 Then the servants drew near, they and their children, and bowed down. 7 Leah likewise and her children drew near and bowed down. And last Joseph and Rachel drew near, and they bowed down. 8 Esau said, "What do you mean by all this company that I met?" Jacob answered, "To find favor in the sight of my lord."

The tables have turned@

9 But Esau said, "I have enough, my brother; keep what you have for yourself."

Esau himself has become powerful.

10 Jacob said, "No, please, if I have found favor in your sight, then accept my present from my hand. For I have seen your face, which is like seeing the face of God, and you have accepted me. 11 Please accept my blessing that is brought to you, because God has dealt graciously with me, and because I have enough." Thus he urged him, and he took it. 12 Then Esau said, "Let us journey on our way, and I will go ahead of you."

When we go back to the wrestling – He named it Penuel – because I have seen God face to face – and then – to Esau – your face is the face of God.

I go back to the story of the prodigal son. What did the father do? He ran to him! What did Esau do? He ran to the prodigal son! Esau – the fleshly one – the one who despised his birthright – displays the qualities of God – more than the ‘chosen one’

Rahab, the harlot, Ruth, the Moabite – and there is story after story – Jesus himself talks about the Good Samaritan. It is like the non-Christian at work who acts more like Jesus than the Christians! We have all seen that! We think – that guy would make a great Christian!

Gen. 33:13 But Jacob said to him, "My lord knows that the children are frail, and that the nursing flocks and herds are a care to me. If they are driven hard for one day, all the flocks will die. 14 Let my lord pass on ahead of his servant, and I will lead on slowly, at the pace of the livestock that are ahead of me and at the pace of the children, until I come to my lord in Seir." 15 So Esau said, "Let me leave with you some of the people who are with me." But he said, "What need is there? Let me find favor in the sight of my lord." 16 So Esau returned that day on his way to Seir.

17 But Jacob journeyed to Succoth, and built himself a house and made booths for his livestock. Therefore the name of the place is called Succoth. 18 And Jacob came safely to the city of Shechem, which is in the land of Canaan, on his way from Paddan-aram, and he camped before the city. 20 There he erected an altar and called it El-Elohe-Israel.

It means – God – God of Israel – it comes to full fruition – it is not the God of Abraham or Isaac – but Jacob’s God. The God of Israel.

We all need to make it our own at some point

Gen 35: God said to Jacob, "Arise, go up to Bethel and dwell there. Make an altar there to the God who appeared to you when you fled from your brother Esau."

God takes him back to the beginning. God always does this – always a reminder. We think we have found God, what we discover is that He has found us.

2 So Jacob said to his household and to all who were with him, "Put away the foreign gods that are among you and purify yourselves and change your garments. 3 Then let us arise and go up to Bethel, so that I may make there an altar to the God who answers me in the day of my distress and has been with me wherever I have gone.

He has finally got it. One other thing has to happen. In a world of many gods, there is one that stands above – and it is Jacob’s God. So they had to get rid of their idols – and they were probably worshiping all kinds of gods.

Faith has consequences in our lives. It demands action!

Purify yourselves and change your garments – we are HIS! We are giving ourselves to Him and He is our Lord and God and King – and there is a transfer into a whole new way of living.

9 God appeared to Jacob again, when he came from Paddan-aram, and blessed him. 10 And God said to him, "Your name is Jacob; no longer shall your name be called Jacob, but Israel shall be your name." So he called his name Israel. 11 And God said to him, "I am God Almighty: be fruitful and multiply. A nation and a company of nations shall come from you, and kings shall come from your own body. 12 The land that I gave to Abraham and Isaac I will give to you, and I will give the land to your offspring after you."

He still experienced failures – but from then on – he experiences it WITH God – and that doesn’t mean that everything will go just right – but He will go with us – WHEN you pass through the fire. Not maybe someday – but WHEN.

John Ortberg: “I begin each day by challenging myself: How many moments of my life today can I fill with conscious awareness of and surrender to God's presence?”

Do you want a successful prosperous Christian life – or a life lived with God in His presence?!

Which do you choose? The only way to get the first is to do the second.