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Confronting the Inevitable Introduction: A.
Sooner
or later we must face Esau! (v. 1) 1. Verse 1 says: “And Jacob lifted up his eyes, and looked, and, behold, Esau came and with him four hundred men.” 2. For 21 years Jacob had avoided a face-to-face encounter with Esau. a) At the age of 40, Jacob had to leave home unexpectedly to save his life on account of his deceit and trickery, when he stole the blessing of his father, Isaac, from the first-born son, Esau. b) And because of that, Esau hated Jacob, his brother, and said in his heart that as soon as his father was dead, he would kill Jacob. c) So,
following the advice of his mother, Rebekah, Jacob
fled for his life to Padan 3. During those 21 years in hiding, Jacob had become a very rich and successful businessman, amassing large herds and flocks of livestock. a) He had acquired two wives and their two handmaids, 11 sons and 2 daughters, and many men and women servants. b) For 21 years Jacob had avoided Esau. c) But
now at the age of 61, the CONFRONTATION IS INEVITABLE; because now, with a
limp, he is on his way home to d) And
to get to 4. It might take 21 Years or 21 Days - but sooner or later, we must face Esau! B. Who is Esau? 1. For Jacob, Esau was his a) twin brother b) his mirror-image 2. So much alike and yet so different. a) From the womb the two struggled. (1) And Esau won the first match for he came out of the womb first; (2) But Jacob took hold of his heel and followed him. b) Esau was an outdoorsman, a man who enjoyed hunting (1) Esau was a man of the Field, a man of the world. (2) And Isaac loved Esau. He was a Daddy’s Boy. c) Jacob was a Home-Boy, a Mamma’s Boy. (1) He stayed at home and cooked, cleaned and helped his mamma around the house. (2) And so, Rebekah loved Jacob. d) Esau was stronger physically than Jacob, but Jacob was stronger mentally than Esau. (1) Jacob always out-thought and out smarted Esau to get what he wanted. (2) With his mind, he out smarted Esau with a bowl of stew. (3) With his mind, he deceived his father into believing he was Esau, and thus, stole the blessing of the first-born. 3. Esau was the consequence of Jacob’s character. a) Jacob’s trick of stealing the blessing caused Esau’s hatred and desire to kill him. 4. And that is significant, because as it relates to You and to me a) Our Esau is of our own making; our twin, our mirror-image. b) Our Esau is the consequence of our character! 5. The consequence of our character can take the form of a) A person whom we wronged in the past. b) Our past-life (1) An abusive past. (2) An alcohol or drug-filled past. (3) A life of sexual infidelity. (4) A life of greed, love of money. (5) A lying past. 6. Eventually our past will catch up with us! a) “Be
sure your sin will find you out.” b) “Do
not be deceived, God is not mocked; for whatever a man sows, this he will
also reap.” I.
Acknowledge
the Reality of Esau’s Presence (Genesis 33:1-2) A.
The
Most Difficult Thing to Do 1. In Verse 1 again, “Jacob lifted up his eyes, and looked, and, behold Esau came ...” a) He Looked, Recognized and Acknowledged that it Was in fact Esau. 2. The most difficult thing for us to do is to acknowledge that Esau is real! a) 12 Step Program in Alcoholics Anonymous – 1st step b) We would rather deceive ourselves into believing that the Consequence of our Character is just (1) a Figment of our Imagination or (2) a Trick our Eyes are playing, (3) a Mirage in the Distance, or (4) an Imaginary Vision. c) Esau is real. We must acknowledge the reality of his presence! 3. Through
the prophet Isaiah ( 18 “Come now, and let us reason together,” Says the LORD, “Though your sins are as scarlet, They will be as white as snow; Though they are red like crimson, They will be like wool. B. Don’t Rationalize Away His Presence or
Try to Forget 1. Some of us try to deal with the reality of Esau’s presence by rationalizing it away. a) We come up with self-satisfying excuses for our sin. b) But you have seen your own sin and you know what it is!! 2. Some of us unconsciously try to forget, pretending that Esau is not real. 3. Some of us deliberately try to push the thought of sin’s presence into the back of our minds. 4. But we can’t rationalize away what is real a) Psalm 51:3 “For I know my transgressions, and my sin is ever before me. (1) We have to deal with the reality of sin’s presence. (2) Acknowledge the reality of past sins! (3) Acknowledge the presence of a guilty conscious! b) c) 8If we say that we have no sin, we are deceiving ourselves and the truth is not in us. 9If we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. 10If we say that we have not sinned, we make Him a liar and His word is not in us. 5. We all need to acknowledge the reality of our sin! II.
Don’t
Rely Totally Upon Human Resources (Genesis 32:3-21) A.
Don’t
Rely on Messengers (Genesis 32:3-6) 1. Jacob relied upon intercessory messengers to solve his Esau-problem. (vv. 3-5) 3Then Jacob sent messengers
before him to his brother Esau in the 2. But Jacob’s reliance on the human resource of messengers failed (v. 6) 6The messengers returned to Jacob, saying, “We came to your brother Esau, and furthermore he is coming to meet you, and four hundred men are with him.” B. Don’t Rely on Human Reasoning (Genesis 32:7-8) 7Then Jacob was greatly afraid and distressed; and he divided the people who were with him, and the flocks and the herds and the camels, into two companies; 8for he said, “If Esau comes to the one company and attacks it, then the company which is left will escape.” 1. Jacob tried to rely on the Human Resource of Human Reasoning a) He reasoned that if he divided up his family, his livestock and his camels into two groups, and if Esau attacked one group and kill them, then the other group would escape. b) Up till now, Jacob had always relied on his ability to think and scheme his way out of any situation. c) In the past he had been able to out-think Esau. d) Can he rely on his intelligence alone? (1) There is much more at stake than just his life - the lives of his wives and children are at stake! (2) Human reasoning is useful, but to rely totally on it when the lives of your wife and children are at stake is a grave mistake. 2. Human Reasoning is no match for the Esau (sin) problem! C. Don’t Rely on Money (Genesis 32:13-21) 1. Jacob relied upon the human resource of money. a) Jacob tried to deal with his Esau Problem by Giving him a Gift of 200 she goats and 20 he goats, 200 sheep and 20 rams, 30 milk camels with their colts, 40 cows and 10 bulls, and 20 female donkeys and 10 foals. b) And he delivered them hoping that the present would appease Esau into accepting him in peace. 2. But you cannot buy-off the Esau problem! a) That is exactly what is happening now in our society. b) Corporations companies, businesses, medical, educational, social, governmental and even religious institutions are settling law-suits out of courts with large sums of money just so they don’t have to admit any guilt or wrong-doing! c) But a present without repentance will not deal with the Esau-problem! 3. Compensation as a part of justice has its place. a) After you repent of your sins, then the process of correcting past injury or loss is appropriate. b) Making restitution - Zacchaeus, the rich tax collector - after his encounter with Jesus, he stood and said to the Lord: “Behold, Lord, the half of my goods I give to the poor; and if I have taken any thing from any man by false accusation, I restore him fourfold.” III.
Do Use
the Power Of Prayer (Genesis 32:9-12) A.
Jacob
Prayed 1. He prayed to the God of his fathers: “O God of my father Abraham, and God of my father Isaac.” 2. He called on the Lord: “the Lord which said to me, Return unto your country and to your kinfolk, and I will deal well with you.” 3. He confessed his unworthiness - Verse 10 4. He asked for deliverance - Verse 11 5. He pleaded the promise of God - Verse 12 IV. Don’t Resist God! (Genesis 32:24-30) That was Jacob’s Mistake as recorded in 32:24-30. A.
Wrestling
- The Story of Jacob’s Life 1. Wrestling
in the Womb - 2. He
grabbed Esau’s heel as he emerged from the Womb - 3. He
strived with Esau for his birthright and blessing: 4. He contended over and over again with his uncle, Laban. B. Cling to God’s Grace 1. Verse 25: “Prevailed not against him.” a) The angel was not able to Influence Jacob; or he had no power to persuade Jacob by arguments to give up his position. 2. “He touched the hollow of his thigh.” a) He touched the place where Jacob was most vulnerable. 3. Verse 26: “Let me go ....” a) “I will not let you go” b) All Jacob can do now is to cling to him, to hold onto him. c) Jacob has come to the point where he no longer relies on his own resources; but on the Grace of God. 4. So God changed Jacob’s name. a) His
name would no longer be called Jacob but (1) from the root meaning “Governor, Director, Ruler.” (2) Jacob would now be called, “He whom God Directs, Commands, Governs, Rules.” (3) No longer shall Jacob direct or rule his own life thru deceit to get what he wanted; but would be Directed and Ruled by God in receiving blessings as a Prince. 5. Verse 31: The Consequence of Resisting God a) It is going thru life walking with a limp!!!. V.
Humble
Yourself - A.
Jacob
Faces Esau (vv. 3-4) 1. If Jacob had trusted God as he should have, he would have gone out to meet Esau all by himself, leaving his family behind. 2. Finally, Jacob “went on ahead and bowed down to the ground seven times as he approached his brother” (33:3). a) Jacob was definitely humbling himself in front of his brother and all the others. b) Jacob knew in his heart that he was God’s choice in fulfilling God’s covenant with his grandfather, Abraham, but he also knew what he did and the way he did it was sinful and wrong. c) So much so that Jacob was actually willing to give up this role in order to be at peace with his brother. 3. Jacob was very sincere and truly sorry for his actions ‑ his heart was right. a) He was sincerely trying to right what he did wrong and to do the will of God. b) Clearly he was a different man, a man with a new name. c) Though he was not the man he should b or could be, he was not the man he used to be. B. “Who Are These with You?” (v. 5-9) 1. The next event must have been an incredible sight and a tender moment for both Esau and Jacob. a) The two maidservants and their four sons approached Esau and bowed down before him. b) Next, Leah and her seven children did the same. c) Finally, here came Rachel and Joseph, also bowing before this often‑talked‑about uncle. d) Esau’s heart would have been deeply touched as he walked among them, asking their names, raking their hands, and patting the young ones on the head. 2. We must member that one‑on‑one reconciliation usually affects other people. In this case, it involved a whole clan. C. Seeing the Face of God (vv. 10-11) 1. Jacob persuaded Esau to accept the gift: “`No please!’ said Jacob. `If I have found favor in your eyes, accept this gift from me. For to see your face is like seeing the face of God, now that you have received me favorably. Please accept the present it was brought to you, for God has been gracious to me and I have I need’“ (33:10‑11). 2. Spiritual Memories a) Inherent in these words is a very significant and revealing comment. (1) For Jacob to meet Esau face‑to‑face and experience his forgiveness was “like seeing the face of God” (33:10). (2) Spiritual memories must have flooded Jacob’s mind: b) His
experience with God’s grace at c) His protection when God appeared to Laban in a dream and told him not to harm Jacob when he was fleeing from his uncle (31:24). d) His encounter with the angels of God when he and Laban separated (32:1‑2). e) His specific prayer for deliverance from Esau (32:9‑12). f) And most importantly, his “face‑to‑face” encounter with God the very night before he met Esau and experienced his brother’s forgiveness (32:22‑32). 3. A Reminder a) Jacob understood as never before God’s grace and forgiveness in his life. b) Experiencing Esau’s forgiveness became a face‑to‑face, flesh‑and blood reminder of what God had done for him all along when he was wandering in his own wilderness of sin and disobedience. c) Experiencing Esau’s forgiveness was “like seeing the face of God.” |
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