Jacob and the Wrestler

Overview

Drawing near to God is perilous. If there’s any place in the Bible where that comes out, it’s here, because when Jacob draws near to God, he finds that God is a wrestler.

This is the climactic moment in Jacob’s life. This is the place where Jacob finally finds out what his life means, finally finds out what his main problem is, finally has a transformation of heart. Before this incident, Jacob plays at religion. After this, he’s a changed man.

To understand this narrative, we have to 1) look at the whole scope of Jacob’s life and how this brings it all together, and then 2) draw out four practical conclusions for us today.