“When he saw that he had not prevailed against him,
he touched the socket of his thigh; so the socket of
Jacob’s thigh was dislocated while he wrestled with
him. … So Jacob named the place Peniel, for he said,
‘I have seen God face to face, yet my life has been
preserved.'”
-Genesis 32:25, 30
When we are first saved, God isn’t as strict with us. Sometimes He even indulges us. However, we shouldn’t think He will never discipline us. His indulgence is the beginning of His discipline. Some are gifted in preaching and God gives them a lot of opportunities to preach. Others are good at shepherding new believers, and God sends many to them. The day comes, however, when they are no longer satisfied with their prevailing preaching or shepherding. They are forced to go before the Lord and wrestle with Him. This was Jacob’s experience at Peniel— he prevailed over God but came out limping (Gen. 32:28, 31). In the same way, God allows us to prevail at first. Through our prevailing, we begin to realize that our natural man must come to an end and that pursuing spiritual activities can be vain. The more we prevail, the more we know we are weak and incapable. We are nothing and the Lord is everything.
These are the principles of the work of God the Spirit. The Spirit’s work is accompanied by God’s promise and blessing. When the Spirit is working, we enjoy God’s presence. God’s almighty hand preserves us. In order for the Spirit to work in us, God arranges everything in our environment that we may be conformed to the image of His Son. God allows us to prevail so that we may know ourselves and focus on God rather than spiritual activity. We are the work of God. He makes all things work together for good that He may mold us into the image of His Son.
Adapted from A Sketch of Genesis, by Titus Chu, page 151.
Tomorrow: Knowing Ourselves by Prevailing (2)
