Transformative Faith: Lessons from Jacob's Journey

1) "God keeps his promise. God keeps his promises. From the very beginning, even while he was still in his mother's womb, God has shown that he had a plan, a purpose, a promise for Jacob. One people will be stronger than the other. The older will serve the younger. If you want to be technical, grammatically, notice the word stronger. It's a comparative adjective. So he had a plan for Esau as well. Jacob's people may have been stronger, but Esau wasn't weak. He was strong. Strong? Stronger. But as we have read in verse 34, Esau showed how little he cared about his rights." [01:06:14] (56 seconds) (Download raw clip | Download cropped clip)


2) "God has a plan, a promise, a purpose for each one of us, for each one of my children, for each one of your children. One child may have a bigger mission field, but then the others, their mission may complement, may support the other. Working in unity, working as one body. I watched this Korean show called Physical 100, where the contestants' physical strength, speed, stamina, endurance, et cetera, are tested. And in one challenge, they had to finish building a hanging bridge. And one team, only one team selected a female member to build that bridge. And she carefully finished that bridge. And it took her a little longer. But then her team was able to use that bridge. They walked and run without any trouble." [01:10:02] (80 seconds) (Download raw clip | Download cropped clip)


3) "God will never leave you. God will never leave you. Genesis 28, 11 to 15 says, When he came to a place, he spent the night there because the sun had set. He found a stone and laid his head on it to go to sleep. Jacob dreamt that there was a ladder resting on the earth and reaching up into heaven. And he saw angels of God going up and coming down the ladder. Then Jacob saw the Lord standing above the ladder and he said, I am the Lord, the God of Abraham, your grandfather, and the God of Isaac. I will give you and your descendants the land on which you are now sleeping. Your descendants will be as many as the dust of the earth. They will spread west and east, north and south, and all the families of the earth will be blessed through you and your descendants." [01:12:18] (54 seconds) (Download raw clip | Download cropped clip)


4) "Despite everything, regardless of what Jacob has done, regardless of what we've done, he will never leave us nor forsake us. He will protect us. Amen. never leave us until he has done what he has promised us. Until he has done what he has promised us. His unwavering commitment, his faithfulness to his people, to each one of us is truly amazing. Until he is done, he is going to walk with us. Until he is done, we tend to hide, to run away when we disobey or do something wrong, just like what happened in Genesis 3." [01:16:08] (61 seconds) (Download raw clip | Download cropped clip)


5) "God can change you. Let's go to Genesis 32. Genesis 32.24-28, I'm reading from the New Century Version. So Jacob was alone, and a man came and wrestled. He wrestled with him until the sun came up. When the man saw he could not defeat Jacob, he struck Jacob's hip and put it out of joint. Then he said to Jacob, let me go, the sun is coming up. But Jacob said, I will let you go if you will bless me. The man said to him, what is your name? And he answered, Jacob. Then the man said, your name will no longer be Jacob. Your name will now be Israel, because you have wrestled with God and with people, and you have won." [01:21:48] (47 seconds) (Download raw clip | Download cropped clip)


6) "Those who have had a face-to-face encounter with God will, like Jacob, ever after walk with a limp. Whereas we once walked with a high look and proud heart, we now bow in quiet humility and walk in lowliness of mind. And like Jacob who had a new name, Israel, as a result of his encounter, when we meet the Lord, we too become new creatures. We are born again with a new heart and with new desires. There are some ways, some ways God can change us. He can change our identity. Just like he changed Jacob's identity. He's now Israel, meaning one who prevails with God or let God prevail." [01:23:09] (49 seconds) (Download raw clip | Download cropped clip)


7) "In conclusion, let me say. Jeremiah 29, 11. For I know the plans I have for you, says the Lord. They are plans for good and not for disaster. To give you a future and a hope. God has good plans for his people. wants us to have a good future and a hope. In his time. In his perfect time. We might need to wait sometimes. But the waiting, it has a purpose. It has a reason. God is not delaying. He's not slow to keep his promises. He's being patient with us. He wants us to trust and obey him. Because God is not blind. He's not bound in time. He can see the beginning and the end." [01:29:33] (65 seconds) (Download raw clip | Download cropped clip)