the new Jerusalem

Never Give Up

• Subir Joshua Gorey • Season 2 • Episode 34

Share episode

What do you do when faced with a challenge?
Do you cower, give in, and blame everything happening around you? Or do you stand tall and soldier through?

This week's episode delves into the story of a man who never gave up, who faced situations head-on as they came and always prevailed.

“He said, “Your name shall no longer be Jacob, but Israel; for you have wrestled with God and with men and have prevailed.”
- Genesis‬ ‭32‬:‭28‬ ‭NASB1995‬‬

Send us a text

Speaker 1:

This morning. I'm going to go straight into it and I want to tell you about In fact, I'd like you to just sit back and listen to this story. It's a story of a man whose name is Jacob and I want to tell you. It's a beautiful story, it's about Jacob and his life, and some of you will know it and some of you might not, but today you will and you know. The last week we spoke about Abraham, how, from Abram, he became Abraham and how he was given a son at an old age, a ripe age of 99 in fact, and that son's name was Isaac. And Isaac was asked as an offering to God and Abraham didn't. Abraham did not bat an eyelid, and that's where God becomes his provider. And then it goes on. The Bible tells you that Isaac has two sons after the death of Abraham, and their twins, and their names are Esau the eldest and Jacob the youngest. And the Bible says that Jacob is born second and he was grabbing the heel of his brother on his way out. I want to tell you that in those days, there used to be a blessing released to the first born by the father, and it was of big significance, and because of that Jacob is trying to come out first, ahead of his brother Esau, and, as I said, that's the reason why he was grabbing onto his brother's heel. And I want to tell you that Jacob also means deceiver, grabbing onto his brother's heel. And I want to tell you that Jacob also means deceiver. And the Bible goes on to say that, between Jacob and Esau, esau was a skillful hunter and Jacob was a peaceful man. The Bible says he loved to be indoors, he loved to be within his tent. The Bible says he loved to be indoors, he loved to be within his tent. So basically, two different personalities as twins. One is outgoing and flamboyant and loves game and hunting and he's always out there, and the other one is a quiet guy sitting inside the house. And the Bible even says that Esau was his dad's favorite because Isaac loved game. And the Bible says that Jacob was his mother's favorite.

Speaker 1:

And there's a day that the Bible's and I told you. You should, you know, in your time, one day, just pick up this book and read it. It's a beautiful, it's a story of a time that happened way, way before we were on this planet, and it's really a very different time, when god operated with his people very differently. So it's really good to know these times. Anyway, there's even a time when one day Esau comes back from his hunt and he's extremely hungry and he sees some food lying in the tent, because Jacob's always in the tent and he wants to eat that food. And Jacob makes him sell his birthright Because he's famished. He and he wants to eat that food. And Jacob makes him sell his birthright because he's famished. He says I'll give you that food if you sell me your birthright. And to Esau it didn't matter much, so he sold him his birthright just for a meal because he was famished. Just putting it out there because it's in the Bible.

Speaker 1:

And then there's a time when Isaac decides that he's not sure about how much time he has left and he decides that he's going to call his son, his eldest son, esau, and release his blessing upon him, as is done with every firstborn. And there too, jacob tricks his father and, by the way, with the help of his mother to get his brother's blessing. And it's a, as I said, I'm not going to get into it today, but you should read it on how he tricks his father into making him believe that he is the eldest son because his father the Bible even says his sight is dim, so he's not. He can't see very clearly, but he hears his voice and he's still not sure. So he feels his hand and he is tricked to believe that Jacob is Esau, and he feeds him some food and he gives him some wine and he releases his blessing upon Jacob. And I want to tell you after this, esau is extremely angry with Jacob Now that he has taken his blessing from his father, isaac, and in fact he asks his father is there no other blessing that you can release upon me?

Speaker 1:

And Isaac says no, I released it all on Jacob, thinking it was you, and he has nothing else to bless him with. And Esau is so enraged that he swears to kill his brother Jacob. So you see, from birth, things are not going for Jacob. He was anyway born second, which means he gets nothing. In fact, as per all the laws, he would be a servant to his brother, the first born, the eldest, and his name is cheat and his name is deceiver and he's a silent, quiet guy. He likes it that way, but he's doing things to get ahead and now his elder brother is swearing to kill him and then his mother makes him run away away from where they live, saying go to my brother's home. The brother's name is Laban. The bible says and she tells him go away for some time. Go to my brother's home. And the brother's name is Laban. The Bible says and she tells him go away for some time and I will tell you when the time is right for you to come back. Maybe then your brother's anger for you has gone. So she sends him far, far away from home.

Speaker 1:

And it so happens that when Jacob is on his way to his uncle's home, laban, he sleeps at a place because the sun has set and it's night, and he puts a stone under his head and he falls asleep. And the Bible says there he has a dream, and pay attention to this. And in that dream a ladder was set on the earth, with the top reaching the heaven, and behold, the angels of God were ascending and descending on it. Oh, hallelujah. And I'm reading to you from the Word of God, from Genesis, the 28th chapter, the 13th verse. And behold, the Lord stood above it, oh hallelujah, and said I am the Lord, the God of your father Abraham and the God of Isaac. The land on which you lie I will give to you and to your descendants. Oh hallelujah. So he has a dream about this ladder, and above it is the Lord who is talking to him. And then he goes on to say your descendants will also be like the dust of the earth, and you will be spread out to the west and to the east, and to the north and to the south, and in you and in your descendants shall all the families of the earth be blessed. Oh hallelujah, amen, behold, I am with you and will keep you wherever you go and will bring you back to this land, for I will not leave you until I have done what I have promised you. Oh hallelujah, what a blessing. Hallelujah, what a blessing. And you can read it, and I have released it this morning Genesis 28, chapter 14 and 15 verse. The Bible says God watches over his word to perform it, is watching over his word to perform it. Hallelujah.

Speaker 1:

And anyway, coming back, jacob awakens and he is amazed at what has happened and he's like surely the Lord is in this place and I did not know it. So you see, it basically means that Jacob did not have a relationship with God. He just didn't, and this is the first time he's having a relationship with God? Is he experiencing God? Even though wait, for, his grandfather is Abraham and his father is Isaac? He does not have a relationship with God, and it's in the Bible, people, surely the Lord is in this place and I did not know it. And then he goes on to say how awesome is this place? Oh, hallelujah, what do you think? He isn't like us. How awesome is this place? This is none other than the house of God and this is the gate to heaven. Oh, hallelujah, hallelujah.

Speaker 1:

So Jacob is on the run. Jacob rests his head at night and this is what he sees. And the Lord speaks to him for the first time. And the Lord speaks to him for the first time. So he arose early in the morning. He takes that stone that he laid his head on, he set it as a pillar and he poured oil on it, and he calls that place Bethel. Hallelujah. There's a significance with Bethel, even to Abraham, but I'm not getting into that now. And he calls that place Bethel, even to Abraham, but I'm not getting into that now. And he calls that place Bethel. And he makes a covenant with God there that he will give him a tenth of everything that God gives him hallelujah Jacob's first interaction with God, and he decides to give him a tenth.

Speaker 1:

And Jacob goes on his way to meet his uncle, laban, and the Bible says that he falls in love with his youngest daughter, rachel, and he asked Laban for her hand. And Laban says work for me for seven years and as a wage I will give you my daughter Rachel. And Jacob works for seven years and when the time is right, the seven years have passed and now Jacob is asking for his wife Rachel. Laban deceives him and gives him his other daughter, leah. The Bible says and Jacob gets cheated. And when he asks Laban why he did that, laban turns around and tells him well, you know, we don't give our younger daughter away in marriage without the elder one being married. So he says but we had, you know, we made a deal about Rachel and not Leah. And then he says okay, well, you know, work for me for another seven years and I'll give you Rachel. Oh, how unfair is that. But you know what? Jacob doesn't give up and he continues to work for another seven years and then he gets Rachel as a wife.

Speaker 1:

Now he has two wives, rachel and Leah, and he has a large family and Jacob wants to take his family and leave and go to another place. But Laban does not let him go because he is blessed with Jacob. So again he makes Jacob stay with Jacob. So again he makes Jacob stay and this time Jacob deceives him with his flock and he becomes very rich, the Bible says, and the Bible says exceedingly prosperous, other words, and he had large flocks and male and female servants and camels and donkeys and male and female servants and camels and donkeys. Exceedingly prosperous was Jacob.

Speaker 1:

Be patient, I'm narrating this entire story to you and it has an amazing culmination. So listen to each step as it goes in Jacob's life. So he's cheated. Now he's running from his brother for his life. He's cheated by his uncle For 14 years. He's cheated and yet again he doesn't let him go now. But Jacob now is exceedingly prosperous.

Speaker 1:

And then the Bible says that Laban has his own family, right. So his sons now are unfriendly towards Jacob and his wives. So he decides to leave the place because he feels a lot of hostility and an angel of God tells him to take everything he owns and go back to Bethel Remember Bethel? The place where he put that stone and he anoints with oil. So the angel of God comes to him and says take everything and go back to Bethel. So Jacob flees from Laban and now his uncle is furious because he has realized that he has left him without telling them and he pursues him with his family. But as it goes, it's not important. He makes a peace treaty and they make a covenant with each other, with God as witness, and they make a sacrifice and they share a meal together and they depart ways. And now Jacob is in Bethel. And now he's after 20 years. The Bible says after 20 years.

Speaker 1:

Jacob is now back to being afraid of Esau because of what happened in the past. And the Bible says Esau has gotten to know that he is there and Esau, his brother, is coming to meet him with 400 men. The Bible says and Jacob is afraid. So Jacob decides that he's going to give Esau a gift, a huge number of camel and again you can read it in your time a huge number of camels and donkeys and rams and ewes as a peace offering, and he decides to send it to Esau before him. Maybe it will soften Esau's heart before he sees or comes to his brother. And then he decides that he will split his family and his belongings into two parts and send them into two different parts, two different directions, because in case he is killed by his brother, his brother will not get everything. So he splits his family up and he sends them away, crossing the Euphrates onto the other side.

Speaker 1:

And now I want to tell you something amazing that happens now. Now Jacob is all alone and I want you to picture this. And I want you to picture this. Jacob was born with everything going against him. He was born second and he tried to change it by grabbing onto his brother's heel and coming out first, but it didn't happen and he had no future. And he cheats his way in birthright and he cheats his way into a blessing and then he runs for his life. So he's running for his life now and then he's cheated again and for the next 20 years he's cheated and he toils and he works and he gets cheated, but he continues to relentlessly do what he thinks is right. And now, after becoming exceedingly rich the Bible very rarely says exceedingly rich, and it says Jacob is exceedingly rich. And now, after all that, he's a man in many years now, and he's come back to the point of fear of death at the hand of his own family and everything that he has earned and worked hard for he's let go of. And now he's all alone.

Speaker 1:

And the Bible says when Jacob was alone, a man wrestled with him through the night. The Bible says until daybreak. Now he is all alone. He has given away everything, probably waiting for his brother to come and finish off his life. And now there's a man who's wrestling with him through the night into daybreak could not prevail against Jacob. The Bible says he touched the socket of his thigh and it was dislocated. And then he said to Jacob let me go, for daybreak is near. Wait, I'm breaking this down for you.

Speaker 1:

There's a man wrestling with Jacob through the night and because he is not winning with Jacob, the Bible says he touches the socket of his thigh and is dislocated, and yet Jacob is not letting him go. So now he turns to Jacob and he says let me go, for daybreak is near. And Jacob says to him I will not let you go until you bless me. Oh, hallelujah, some of you can feel God's presence. And then that man asks him what's your name? And he says Jacob. And I'm reading to you from the book of Genesis, the 32nd chapter, the 28th verse onwards, and he said your name shall no longer be Jacob, but Israel, for you have wrestled with God and wrestled with men and have prevailed. Oh, oh hallelujah, oh hallelujah. What is your name? My name is Jacob. No, you shall no longer be Jacob, but you shall be Israel, for you have wrestled with God and you have wrestled with man and you have prevailed. Oh hallelujah, oh hallelujah, oh hallelujah. I want to tell you, god made a promise to Abraham. God made that same promise to Isaac, and I read it out to you this morning. God made that promise to Jacob too. But I want to tell you, the only one who truly lived that promise and saw it come to life was Jacob, because it was through the promise that went to Abraham, that came to life through Jacob. I want to tell you this morning it was through Jacob that the whole of Israel was born, oh hallelujah.

Speaker 1:

The one who wrestled with God and with men and prevailed, oh hallelujah, and with men and prevailed, oh hallelujah. His entire life was a struggle, to the point where he is all alone awaiting his death. And yet, even at that time, there is somebody fighting with him. And now, yet, he is not giving up and he still fights. And he still fights, so much so that his hip has to be broken. And yet he's not letting him go. And the man says, let me go, it's daybreak, I can't be here, I can't be here, let me go. And who are you? Who are you? Who's wrestled with man and with God and yet prevailed? No, you're not Jacob, you're Israel. Oh, hallelujah. Always remember, whatever situation that you are in or whatever situation that comes your way.

Speaker 1:

From this day on, I want you to remind yourself about Jacob, who turned from a name to a nation, and I want to tell you, no matter what came his way, there was something about him that knew he was more than a conqueror. He just did not give up. There's a passage in the Bible that says write down and run with it. Oh, he just went forward relentlessly, years before even Jesus has come on the planet, jacob knew he's more than a conqueror and he wrestled with God, and he wrestled with man and prevailed. Hallelujah, hallelujah.

Speaker 1:

Dear Lord, I thank you for this beautiful word.

Speaker 1:

Thank you for your double-edged sword that does not go back until it has achieved what it has been set out for.

Speaker 1:

I thank you for the chains that you have broken.

Speaker 1:

I thank you for the spiritual minds that you have opened. I thank you for the spiritual eyes that you have opened as well. Lord, thank you for this beautiful word. Thank you for being ever so faithful to us. Even though we are faithless, you remain faithful. Thank you, lord, for coming down on this planet ever so faithful to us, even though we are faithless, you remain faithful. Thank you, lord, for coming down on this planet and giving up your life on that cross for us, lord, being obedient to to death and death on a cross just for us. And I thank you, lord, most of all, that we are more than conquerors in you, in you, lord, more than conquerors in christ jesus. Through any situation that comes our way, lord, and today onwards, we will know that we will wrestle with men and we will always prevail. And we will wrestle with powers, principalities and authorities of the darkness, and we will prevail through the name, that's above all names, where every knee will bow on the earth, above the earth and below the earth. Hallelujah, in Jesus name, I pray, amen.