I don't claim this to be an exhaustive study.
Jacob wrestling with God has always interested me. In short, Jacob is about to meet his brother which he hasn't seen in many many years (after stealing his birth right many years ago) and the night before he meets his brother, Jacob wrestles with some man. After an entire night of wrestling, Jacob proved that he could not be overcome so the other other man "touched" Jacob's side and took his leg out of his socket. That man that Jacob wrestled with was G-d. The full passage is probably needed:
http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Genesis%2032:22-31&version=31
Wow, a bit harsh of God to just tear out his hip and not heal it. Well I think there is something that could be taken from this. Lord bless these words so that they are Yours and not mine.
I believe that God wants us to "wrestle" with Him. It seems kind of strange that God, the Almighty God, could not beat a lowly man in a simple wrestling match. Obviously, God could win at any time but God wanted to know how far he'd go, how much he'd fight. Almost like Job, where he knows that Job will go all the way in staying in the faith. Jacob wrestles for an entire night wrestling and still did not let God go with out asking for a blessing. How far are we going to go when God comes to "wrestle" with us. How long are you willing to wrestle with Him, knowing that there is a blessing to be recieved at the end. Even with Jacob, he didn't know that there was something good to be had in the end but he wrestled and asked God for it.
The next thing I wondered was why did "the man" ask Jacob his name? Surely, the all knowing God would know who He was wrestling. Back in those days, names were your identity. Jacob, meaning "holder of the heel" from the story of how he was born, was known and his identity hinged on what he had done. This described not only his birth but also his sin. Similiar to ourselves, without God, our identity is in our sins and what we do. God is showing us here that Jacob will no longer be defined or known as he once was but as God wants him to be (Israel, meaning "God's Contended"). That name was so strange to me when I first read it but made so much sense when I thought about it more. As Gentiles, as most of us are, we are grafted in to that family or adopted into the family of the Israelites. God WANTS to wrestle and struggle with us because that would signify a relationship. Understanding who we are as a person (either pre or post Christ) and who God is.
I enjoy Jacob's question, "Please tell me your name." And of course God never really gives a straight answer so he says, "Why do you ask my name?" God expects Jacob to know who his God is and I believe that Jacob understands quickly by setting up the alter. We should be able to recongnize God when we wrestle. Remember that there could be two people wrestling with us, and Satan can imitate the being God. Hebrews 5:13-14 tells us that being mature means being able to tell good from evil. Sometimes its easy and sometimes its very difficult.
One last thing that I¡¯ve taken the most out of thinking and reading this anecdote. I read somewhere (I can¡¯t find the source) that this type of injury is impossible to fix. If the ligament is torn then it¡¯ll heal but not completely. Jacob had a limp for the rest of his life. So should we as Christians. I never want to walk the same after struggling with the Almighty. Not only will I have to live with it for the rest of my life but it is something that people will be able to see. My limp doesn¡¯t have to be physical but I never want to be the same person I was before Christ. God sustain me.
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