CHOSEN

 

Happy Monday!

Here we are – a little less than three weeks to Christmas …

I love this time of year!

It reminds me of wonder-filled act of love that God extended toward us all

 

‘For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son; that whosoever should believe in Him would not perish but have life everlasting’ John 3:16

 

When God plans – He know the end from the beginning.

 

Christ was chosen from the beginning of time – a perfect sacrifice and intercessor for us all

 

But He was not the only One chosen

The LORD has also chosen us

 

‘Before I formed you in your mother's womb I chose you. Before you were born I set you apart. I appointed you to be a prophet to the nations.’ Jeremiah 1:5 NET

 

‘I have chosen thee in the furnace of affliction.’ Isaiah 48:10 KJV

 

‘For you are a people holy to the Lord your God, and the Lord has chosen you to be a people for his treasured possession, out of all the peoples who are on the face of the earth.’ Deuteronomy 14:2 ESV

I had a conversation with one of my sons recently regarding the upcoming Hanukkah celebration and we also talked about the Jewish people being God’s chosen people. And my son said something that has stuck with me for several days. He noted the tremendous challenges the Jewish people have endured’ over time – persecution, the holocaust, even their enslavement in Egypt in the Old Testament. And my son said, ‘… and still they love God and says He is the LORD their God … no wonder they are God’s chosen people”

 

However – the truth is – He does not love us because we love Him

He loved us – and continues to love us – even when loving Him was/is not a thought in our minds

In fact – we love Him only because He first loved us [I John 4:19]

We choose Him because He chose us

And even when we do not choose Him – He loves and chooses us still

 

It is an amazing love!

And, the beautiful thing is that we are all His CHOSEN people in CHRIST

 

‘For He chose us in Him [Christ] before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in His sight.’ Ephesians 1:4 NIV

 

‘But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his own possession, that you may proclaim the excellencies of Him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light.’ I Peter 2:9 ESV

 

‘Jesus has cleared the way by the blood of His sacrifice, acting as our priest before God.’

Hebrews 10:20 MSG

 

As we reflect on the personal and individuals challenges that we might each be experiencing, as we think about the challenges all have faced throughout 2020 – I hope, through it all, we would still choose Him.

 

He never promised this life would be easy

But He did promise that He would be with us – EMMANUEL, God With Us

 

He chose us because He loves us –

But make no mistake – He loves it when we choose Him too

 

Have a Blessed Day!

WHAT A MATCH!

 

Our leading text points to a monumental wrestling match …

There are many struggling matches taking place in our world today:

The match of families against challenging times,

The match of ethnic groups against social injustices,

The match of hearts wrestling with the bitter pain of loss,

The match of my nation in an electoral process,

The match of all nations against COVID-19,           

The match of  the world against what has been an unimaginable 2020.

 

All are challenging matches of strength and resolve;

And, we could discuss at length any one of these situations – and many more

However – today we are focusing on a match which Jacob had in the Old Testament

What a Match! 

The story tells of Jacob’s encounter with a man –

     A Man who we later understand to be the LORD

And how Jacob boldly declared, even after significant personal injury,

     ‘I will not let go unless You bless me’ [Genesis 32:26]

 

The response from the Man was this,

“Your name will no longer be called Jacob, but Israel, because you have struggled with God and with men and have prevailed" Genesis 32:28

 

That is a power-packed statement!

 

You have struggled with God and with men and have prevailed

 

Now, I have always understood the struggle with man …

But, can anyone truly struggle with God and prevail?

After all, He is the LORD Omnipotent – All Powerful and Mighty

He cannot be overcome by anyone or anything

 

Yet Jacob is told, ‘you have struggled with God and with men and have prevailed’

 

I believe the prevailing victory that Jacob encountered pointed toward the first part of the declaration which was delivered to him at the end of this long wrestling match

 

‘Your name will no longer be called Jacob, but Israel’

 

Jacob underwent a life-changing, identity altering experience –

An experience which was not the sole product of his encounter with the Man that night;

Rather, he had many experiences which culminated in his encounter with the Man that night.

 

His birth name was Jacob – which means ‘one who grabs at the heel’, ‘supplanting’ or ‘deceiver’

His new name was Israel – meaning ‘God Contended’, ‘Wrestles with God’ and/or ‘Triumphant with God’

He was Triumphant with God

Triumphant over an upbringing plagued by favoritism, competition, contention and family dysfunction – playing his own role in the situations and living up to his name

Triumphant over being tricked in business dealings

 Triumphant over an identity crisis which started from his infancy

And now here he was, not stealing a blessing by trickery this time, but obtaining a blessing by clinging to the Blessing Giver

 

It was not a short process –

This wrestling match occurred on the eve of him meeting his brother whom he had tricked out of blessing many, many years earlier – at least twenty years. In the process, he had endured many challenges. He had also amassed a large family, servants and great wealth

 

Yet, here he was still seeking a blessing from the LORD

 

I believe he understood that there was a blessing with his name on it –

     A blessing he would not have to manipulate or trick others to obtain

Because a blessing received by ill-gotten means is not a blessing at all and certainly not one which can truly be enjoyed with peace

 

‘I will not let you go unless you bless me’

 

And that is exactly what happened –

‘Then he blessed him [Jacob] there. So Jacob called the place Peniel saying, “It is because I saw God face to face, and yet my life was spared.”’ Genesis 32:29-30

 

I believe all the trials Jacob faced – and the transformation he underwent – prepared him for the blessing which was for him all along.

 

What God has for you is for you!

 

You do not have to want or grasp for the blessing of another.

And, even when you miss the mark [which we all have at one point or another], it does not cancel out the call of God on your life or the blessing He has reserved just for you.

 

It may take a while for the blessing to fully manifest.

But, in the process, the LORD will use all of your circumstances –

     to prepare you for what He has prepared for you.

 

If you will patiently wrestle and work & struggle and strive –

     allowing your character to be developed

If you will steadfastly cling to the Blessing Giver –

You will ultimately prevail … and you will not be disappointed. 

I promise!

  

‘For the vision is yet for the appointed time;

It hastens toward the goal and it will not fail.

Though it tarries, wait for it; For it will certainly come, it will not delay.’

Habakkuk 2:3

 

Have a Blessed Day!