Parashat Vayishlach: A Faith that Prevails

Torah: Gen 32:3-36:43

Haftarah: Obadiah 1:1-21

Brit Chadashah: Heb 11:11-20, Matt 26:36-46

Main Points:

Jacob sends messengers to Esau.

Jacob wrestles with the Angel.

Esau and Jacob meet and reconcile.

Dinah is defiled.

God appear to Jacob in Bethel.

Issac and Rachel die.

Generations of Esau.

What would have happened if Jacob and his mother had trusted God to vindicate his rightful place in all God had decreed? It is not recorded whether Rebekah communicated with Isaac and reminded him about God's plan to bless Jacob, so we do not know if that happened. We do know that Jacob was an opportunist, and now his mother steps into the limelight and creates a plan to deceive her husband. God corrected Abraham when he stepped outside of his plan to give a child to Sarah and God would have corrected Isaac as well. The right thing ended up happening, but deceit was used. God worked through Jacob's flight and would still accomplish his will, but now Jacob would have to deal with a deceiver worse than himself. One of Jacob's lessons is that the will of God must be done with the right spirit.

Our Parashat begins here and Jacob is immediately faced with regressing into his previous behaviors, fleeing the will of God altogether, or being obedient and facing his brother. Jacob has learned to rely on God with the same reckless faith that Abraham had. He did not need to covet what Esau had and was not going back to claim his treasures. His treasure was God. God blessed him, led him, guided him, and fulfilled his promises to him. When Esau responded to Jacob's outreach with a threat of force, Jacob was greatly afraid but prayed. He did not run and he did not try to find a plan “B”. He did not lie, deceive, or politic his way out. He confronted his fear in prayer.

That night Jacob wrestled with a man. Jacob later asserts that “he had seen the face of God and lived." Hosea (12:3-4) states that this person was an angel. It was in the desperation of this struggle that Jacob showed his resolve to be obedient. He had already built an altar of stone, this fight was to bring that altar to his heart. It was his place to contend. The wrestling was never about who was stronger. The angel could have easily overcome him or just simply disappeared. God was contending with Jacob, not to win, but to pull out of Jacob all the godly resolve, faith, and growth he made over the last portion of his life so that Jacob could see who he had become. God knew it, but Jacob had to know it as well.

We tend to fight our trials as though they were the enemy and often do not question the valid purpose they serve in helping us step into what God has spoken over us. The place of your struggle is a sacred altar. God values it and we should too. It is the place where stress is the highest, where we risk the most, and we are forced into a place of radical faith. God can use those who hate us, contending with us, or even those who are out to sabotage us. If his purpose can be accomplished even through the adversity of our enemies, imagine what he can do with a little faith. God can even work with faith that may be a little broken, imperfect, and undone. He has a way of taking our loaves and fishes and breathing strength over it so that we can stand, even in the worst places. This is important because our pursuit of God's promise will bring us into conflict. It is the nature of faith. If you desire to be a prince with God, "the wrestling" cannot be avoided. The fight is often not the main issue, it is our godly response to it that unlocks the wisdom and power of God to go before us. 

Wherever God called you to stand today, regardless of what you are wrestling with, God is bigger. Ultimately what is birthed in your struggle will leave behind an altar for the next person crossing that path in their journey. This is a faith that is expensive but is also life-giving. Don't give up. The shalom of God will meet you in the way and give you strength.

Rav Calev

Apostolic Messianic International

Next Feasts:

Chanukah begins sundown on Dec 25th and ends at sundown Jan 2nd

Purim begins sundown on March 13th and ends at sundown March 14th.

Hebrew words to know:

Prayer- Tifillah or Daven

Prayers After Eating- Birkat Hamazon

Pretty Face- (Yiddish) Shayna Punim

Protestor or Contentious Person- (Yiddish) Davkanist

Rabbinical Court- Bet Din, used to work with administrative issues and determine the biblical standing of ideas, theologies, or courses of action. The Bet Din is used in some congregations to oversee conversions, hatarat nedarim (dissolving of oaths or vows), or even for arbitration to settle disputes and determine damages.

Rags- Schmatta; A Yiddish term for rags or sloppy dress. It can also refer to a pushover parent or a doormat spouse.