Genesis 32:28-29 – Then the man said, “Your name will no longer be Jacob, but Israel, because you have struggled with God and with men and have overcome.”
Jacob said, “Please tell me your name.”
But he replied, “Why do you ask my name?” Then he blessed him there.

“…you have struggled with God and with men and have overcome.” What a strange blessing. Everyone knows that Jacob quite violently wrestled with the angel all night but then to be blessed for it? Jacob later says that he saw God “face to face”. He wrestled with God in the form of a man? Perhaps Jesus?

We can guess all we want about whether it was an angel, God Himself, or Jesus but the blessing is intriguing. Seriously, without this incident would you think I was crazy to insinuate that wrestling with God is anything but foolish?

Jacob’s life was pretty strange from our perspective. He was determined, driven, and probably pretty stubborn. Gosh, ya know he labored 14 years just to get the woman he wanted? He was not a preacher, in fact his name means “he deceives”. He deceived his father into giving him the birthright he cunningly “bought” from his brother for a bowl of stew. What did God like about this guy? He blessed him at every turn but from a human stand point he sure didn’t seem to deserve it. In fact from my churching pretty much everything Jacob did would be frowned upon.

I’ve thought a lot about Jacob and realize that maybe God isn’t looking for more slaves to do His bidding. He is Holy and must be worshipped above all else. I just wonder if that rules out the possibility of a little wrestling. One thing Jacob did do in his stubbornness, he committed to his goals, and being blessed by God was top of the list. Maybe that is what pleased God. He certainly didn’t have to entertain Jacob all night if He chose not to. However, to wrestle with him Jacob must have drawn quite close to God. It could be that very possibility that keeps many of us from getting too close to God.

If we wanna be like Jesus we must be close to the Father. If we wanna be close to the Father we will likely have to lose our church engrained preconception that that would be warm, fuzzy, neat, and clean. Maybe being close to God the way God wants to be close to us is exactly that, a wrestling match. We can only “overcome” in a struggle with God if He chooses to allow us to. I think tenacity is high on God’s list of virtues. It certainly doesn’t always seem virtuous, but in the long run … well, most of the time the tenacious are the only ones that make any long runs. The rest are just tourists.

tə-ˈnā-shəs
persistent in maintaining, adhering to, or seeking something valued or desired

God, each day may we overcome. Not just evil, but let us be so close to you that we may wrestle together to carve a plan together. You know where we are going, and You know how we should get there, and now let our fellowship be so close that our hands are interlocked and our wills collide and as the dawn comes we have found agreement and you are again glorified. Might we be that close? Is it possible? May we see you face to face and live? Father be glorified!