Connect with Skip - Skip Heitzig

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:01):
Welcome to Connect with Skip Heitzig. We're glad you've joined
us for today's program. Connect with Skip Heitzig exists to
connect you to God's never changing truth in ever changing
times through verse by verse teaching of His Word. That's
why we make messages like this one today available to
you and others on air and online. Before we kick
off today's teaching, we want to let you know that

(00:22):
you can stay in the know about what's happening at
Connect with Skip Heitzig when you sign up for email updates.
When you do, you'll also receive Skip's weekly devotional email
to inspire you with God's Word each week. So sign
up today at connect withiskip dot com. That's connect with
Skip dot com. Now let's get into today's teaching from

(00:42):
pastor Skip Heitzig.

Speaker 2 (00:45):
Just like King's Queen's presidents have their own troops and
entourage around them, there are angels like in Isaiah six
or in Revelation four and five, that are angels of
God's presence that render worship praise to God. In so
so they stand in his presence. Second, they serve God's people.

(01:07):
Hebrews one says they are ministering spirits. Sent by God
to minister to those of us who inherit salvation. Angels
play an active role in your life. I believe you
have guardian angels, the minister, the Bible says, to those
who inherit salvation. Now some of us by some of

(01:27):
the things we do, the activities we do, be it skateboarding,
or maybe you do some radical skiing or snowboarding or
mountain bike jumping. You know, maybe you have like doubled
up angels on your or you know, some kind of
massively strong, very attentive angels. The truth is all of
us have interacted with them. We aren't aware of it.

(01:51):
But Goddess dispatched them to minister to us who are
heirs of salvation. Okay, so they met him. He called
that name Mahanaim double Camp. Then Jacob sent messengers before
him to Esau, his brother in the land of Sir.
Now Sarah's down. If you go east of the Jordan

(02:13):
River and you go down in the deserts of Jordan,
south of what is ancient Edom, towards Saudi Arabia, you're
going to discover Sir. Mount syr Is where Esau went,
and he evidently had conquered the inhabitants of that land
called the Writes, and another group called the Hurrians, and

(02:35):
he had become very successful. God had blessed him, and
he has noticed the entourage he has coming. Jacob sent
messengers before him to Esau, his brother in the land
of Sir, the country of Edom, and he commanded them, saying,
speak thus to my lord. Interesting choice of words, my

(02:56):
Lord Esau. Thus your servant against interesting choice of words,
your servant, Jacob says, I have dwelt with Laban and
stayed there until now. I have oxen donkeys, flocks, male
and female servants. Hint, hint, hint, And I have sent
to tell my lord that I might find favor in

(03:19):
your sight. Now Jacob is the one who initiates contact
with his brother. Why, well, remember how they had that
falling out when Jacob stole his brother's blessing. Jacob knows
there's going to be no peace between he and his
brother unless he resolves the issue that he has left

(03:41):
unresolved twenty years before when he had to flee because
he stole his brother's blessing. Now, I do find it
interesting that he calls his brother my lord Esau, because
that's not how he thought about him twenty.

Speaker 3 (03:58):
Years before this?

Speaker 2 (04:00):
Where did he learn this buttering up approach? Where'd he
learned this kind of flattery from uncle Laban twenty years
of being with Laban Labe and knew how to pour
it on the first time he saw Jacob, he goes,
Oh my, you're my own flesh and blood.

Speaker 3 (04:19):
Sent to me by God.

Speaker 2 (04:22):
And all the time he's figuring out a way to
connive and get him to work for him, and he
does successfully, and then when he's about to leave, he says, oh,
you can't leave, don't you know God, your God, our
God has blessed me because of you. I'll give you
anything you want. He just knew how to butter up Jacob.

(04:44):
Jacob learned quite well. Was watching this quite attentively, and
I think he's employing the same kind of characteristics to
flatter his brother because he doesn't want his brother to
kill him. Then verse six, the messengers returned Jacob saying,
we came to your brother Esau, and he is also

(05:06):
coming to meet you, and four hundred men are with him.
That's not what Jacob wanted to hear. He's thinking, Oh, man,
am I toast It's curtains for me. So Jacob was
greatly afraid and distressed. And he divided the people that

(05:30):
were with him, and the flocks and the herds and
the camels into two companies. And he said, if Esau
comes to the one company and attacks it, then the
other company, which is left, will escape. Now watch how
Jacob operates. He's going to divide his his people into
two camps, and then more camps, four camps later on.

(05:54):
And he's anticipating that his brother's going to attack and
kill the first camp. Guess which camp he's going to
be in. Personally, I think would be in the first one.
Oh No, he's gonna be way in the back, using
his children and wives as buffers for him.

Speaker 3 (06:09):
A little wiss. That's his approach. He's figuring it all out.

Speaker 2 (06:17):
He's anticipating it all in his mind. Verse nine watched this.
Then Jacob said, now he's going to pray. This is
the first recorded or written. This is the first time
we get to hear Jacob prayed. I'm not saying it's
the first time he prayed. He did pray before, but
now it's recorded for us.

Speaker 3 (06:36):
So let's read through.

Speaker 2 (06:37):
It and then we'll make commentent, Jacob said, Oh, God
of my father Abraham, and God of my father Isaac,
the lord who said to me, return to your country
and to your family, and I will deal well with you.
I am not worthy of the least of all the
mercies and of all the truth which you have shown,
your servant. For I have crossed over this Jordan with

(06:58):
my staff. Now I have become two companies.

Speaker 3 (07:02):
Deliver me.

Speaker 2 (07:02):
I pray from the hand of my brother, from the
hand of Esau, for I fear him lest he come
and attack me and the mother with the children. For
you have said, I will surely treat you well and
make your descendants as the sand of the sea, which
cannot be numbered. For the multitude, Jacob really isn't much

(07:25):
different than we are.

Speaker 3 (07:26):
Right.

Speaker 2 (07:27):
It seems that when our back is against the wall,
when we're in a pinch, when there is adversity, then
we go, oh God, we start praying. I find his
prayer interestingly timed. I'm glad he prayed. I don't want
to knock him too much, but I also know it's

(07:51):
part of human nature. We merely go our way. I
got it all under control, I got this covered. I'm
a smart one. You know, I got it all figured out.
Until we're out of options, we're at the end of
our rope, we're between a rock and a hard place,
and then.

Speaker 3 (08:08):
We say, oh God, we.

Speaker 2 (08:10):
Start praying because now we realize we need to depend
on one greater than ourselves. The hymn writer put it, well,
oh what peace we often forfeit, Oh what needless pain
we bear all because we do not carry everything to

(08:31):
God in prayer, everything, but he's afraid, in his fear
and in distress, he begins to.

Speaker 3 (08:39):
Pray to the Lord.

Speaker 2 (08:42):
Could it be just a possibility that one of the
reasons God allows or prescribes steady amounts of adversity in
our lives.

Speaker 3 (08:52):
Is so that we'll always depend on him.

Speaker 2 (08:55):
There were three ministers having a theological discussion about the
proper position for prayer. One of them said, I have
discovered that the proper position for prayer is well seated,
with the hands folded and the thumbs pointing heavenward, indicating
to whom I trust. The second reverend in the group said,
I disagree wholeheartedly. I found the best position in prayer

(09:18):
is to show humility and be on one's knees with
your hands raised in the air to God. The third
reverend said, I have to disagree with both of you, chaps.
I think if you really want to show humility, you
have to get prostrate on the ground all the way
down before God. Now, in the background, a telephone repair
man was listening to these three theologians talk, and he

(09:40):
finally interrupted and said, you know what I've discovered, Fellas.
The best position for prayer that I've ever been in
is when I was dangling forty feet above the ground
on a telephone pull by my heels. That was the
most effective prayer I ever prayed. Words while inextremists at

(10:02):
the end of my rope or at the end of
my poll in his situation, they are very effective.

Speaker 3 (10:11):
This was a very effective prayer.

Speaker 2 (10:13):
Now, notice something about it. I'm glad it's given to us.
In verse nine, he recounts the past. I'm giving you
a few of the elements of his prayer. He recounts
the past. Notice he calls God by his covenant name,
God of my father Abraham, and God of my father Isaac.
He's putting God in the context of who he has

(10:33):
been historically. I think that's healthy when you pray, recognize
to whom you're praying. Remember in Acts chapter four, when
the disciples were threatened by the leadership in Jerusalem, the
church got together and the prayer when something like this,
Oh God, Oh Lord, God, you made the heavens and

(10:56):
the earth and everything that is in them. Who by
the mouth of your servant David, And he quotes Psalm too.
He put it into the context, I realized, the one
I'm talking to is the one who made everything. I realized,
the one I'm talking to is the same one who
has fulfilled all of the promises to Abraham, all of

(11:17):
the promises to my father Jacob. So he recounts the
past number two. He recalls the promise as if he's saying, Look, Lord,
the reason I'm here in this land, this new land,
the reason I left padan Aram is because you told

(11:37):
me I should come, and you bless me for it.
So here I am. I'm here because you told me
to go. He's reminding God, not that you need to
remind God, but really reminding himself in prayer before the Lord,
God's purpose.

Speaker 1 (11:51):
You're listening to connect with Skip Heizig. Before we return
to Skip's teaching in his powerful book Beyond the Summer
of Love Pastor skipp Zig helps you understand God's plan
and his rules for relationships that flourish and reflect his
own love. And when you give a gift of twenty
five dollars or more this month to support the worldwide
ministry of connect with Skip Heitzig, We'll send you Beyond

(12:13):
the Summer of Love. This resource is for anyone interested
in having a successful relationship. Whether you're single, searching for love,
planning to get married, or already married. This book is
a helpful guide to help your relationships flourish as God intends.
Go to connect with Skip dot com slash offer or
call eight hundred nine two to two, eighteen eighty eight

(12:35):
and request your copy when you give twenty five dollars
or more. Now let's get back to Skip for more
of today's teaching.

Speaker 2 (12:42):
The third element is he realizes his own unworthiness. Did
you notice that verse ten, boy Jacob's changing, I am
not worthy, he says, of the least of all of
the mercies and the truth which you have shown, your servant,
I'm not worthy. You're merciful, but I'm not worthy. In

(13:04):
other words, he's acknowledging that he's a sinner. That he's
falling short. Proverbs twenty eight says he who covers his
sin will not prosper. But whoever confesses and forsakes his sin,
that God would bless that person will find mercy, it

(13:25):
says in Proverbs twenty eight, find mercy. I'm not worthy,
he said, of the least of your mercy. Finally, notice
he requests deliverance. This is the heart of his prayer
verse eleven. Deliver me, I pray from the hand of
my brother, from the hand of Esau. Now watch this,
for I fear him, lest he come and attack me

(13:47):
and the mother with his children. He confesses something negative
before the Lord. Please notice that, and notice that it's
in his prayer. And the reason I bring it up
is because some folks make such a big deal out
of having a positive confession. Don't have a negative confession.

(14:10):
Never utter a negative confession, but always a positive confession.
So if you're sick, don't say I'm sick. That's a
negative confession, because you'll get sick if you say I'm sick.
All of that nonsense. Listen, you know why he made
a negative confession, because he was honest. It's better to

(14:34):
make a negative confession and be honest than to make
a positive confession and be dishonest. Tell the Lord what
you feel, if you feel it, tell them do you
think God can't handle it?

Speaker 3 (14:46):
You think God will go?

Speaker 2 (14:47):
Oh?

Speaker 3 (14:47):
I can't believe you said that.

Speaker 2 (14:51):
Doesn't the Bible say the Lord knows our frame and
remembers that we are dust. Do you think God has
high expectations for dust? I'm just so disappointed in my
dust today. I'm afraid God, I'm afraid I'm gonna die.

(15:14):
Several years ago, I was a man who came up
to me after a service with crutches. He had a
broken leg. I had heard that he broke his leg,
and I said to him, I'm so sorry that you
broke your leg. I'd like to pray for you. And
he goes, don't bother, it's not broken. I said, excuse me,

(15:36):
not broken. I'm believing and standing on faith. Now he's
saying this while he's on crutches, hobbling, telling me he
doesn't have a broken leg. And he says, because God
has healed me. I said, are you sure about that? Yes,
I'm sure. Don't give me a negative confession. I said, well,
then do me a favor. Would you don't tell any

(16:00):
unbelievers that God has healed you while you're on crutches.
They're all gonna thank God does a lousy job of
healing people. If you call that a healing Lord, I'm afraid.
I know it's coming. And he was honest before God
for you, said verse twelve. I will surely treat you
well and make your descendants as the sand of the sea,

(16:23):
which cannot be numbered for a multide.

Speaker 3 (16:25):
I love this.

Speaker 2 (16:25):
God did tell him that he's thinking things out loud,
he's processing things out loud. I'm afraid for my life.
Yet at the same time, how can I die if
you said I'm going to have a lot of kids,
And how can these children die if you made these promises.
We have to live for this thing to be fulfilled.

(16:50):
And so he lodged there that same night and took
what came to his hand as a present for Esaw,
his brother. Now watch this present. Two hundred female goats,
twenty male goats, two hundred US, twenty rams, thirty milk
camels with their colts, forty cows, ten bulls, twenty female donkeys,
ten foals. Then he delivered them to the hand of

(17:13):
a servant. Every drove by itself and said to his servants,
pass over before me, and put some distance between successive droves.
And he commanded the first one, saying, when Esau, my
brother meets you and asks you, saying to whom do
you belong and where are you going? Whos are these
in front of you, then you shall say they are

(17:36):
your servant Jacobs. It is a present sent to my
lord Esau. Behold, he is behind us. Behind us, they're
the human shields. So he commanded the second, the third,
and all who followed the drove, saying, in this manner,
you shall speak to Esau when you find him, and

(17:57):
also say, behold, your servant Jacob is by us. Where
he said, I will appease him with the present that
goes before me, and afterward I will see his face.
Perhaps he will accept me. So the present went on
over before him, but he himself lodged that night in
the camp. Five hundred and eighty animals was the gift.

(18:23):
It proves that Jacob had gotten very wealthy while he
was in Padana. Ram God had been very good to him.
Because this is a sizeable gift. This is a huge
flock in and of itself that he's giving. So what
is he doing. He's softening the blow. He's trying to
buy him off, give him present after president after present,

(18:44):
successive waves of gift after gift after gift. So finally
he would think, if he's angry, how can I kill
this guy? He's so nice to me. That's what all
this is about, softening him up. Okay, go back to
his prayer. You don't have to go back to it.
Read you can if you want, But I mean think

(19:05):
in your mind of his prayer. When he prayed and
asked God for deliverance, did he really believe God was
going to deliver him. Well, evidently it wasn't that strong
of a prayer or it didn't have that much faith.
He did say, look, Lord, you said this, and I'm
going to put my trust into you. But you know,

(19:28):
with all of this wrangling afterwards, it would seem that
though he prayed, it wasn't very much faith involved. And
can I just say I relate to that. I relate
to that. Do you remember the man who came to
Jesus and Jesus said, do you believe anything's possible to
those who believe?

Speaker 3 (19:45):
And he said, I.

Speaker 2 (19:46):
Believe Lord, but help my unbelief.

Speaker 3 (19:50):
Do you ever feel that way? Sometimes? Yeah?

Speaker 2 (19:51):
Lord, I trust you, but you know there's just this
part of me help my unbelief. That's how he comes.

Speaker 3 (20:00):
It's so typical of us.

Speaker 2 (20:01):
How often do we unload our burden in prayer before
the Lord? And then no sooner did we unload it,
but we pick it back up nicely, place it on
our little back, and march out of God's presence. God,
you doing anything with that little burden I gave you?

(20:21):
Do you mind if I have it back just for
a while.

Speaker 3 (20:25):
It seems we do that. It seems that Jacob did that.

Speaker 2 (20:30):
Let's see what happens verse twenty two, and he arose
that night, took his two wives, two female servants, his
eleven sons. He had daughters two, but the eleven sons
are mentioned, and cross over the ford of Jabbok. Let
me just help you place Jabbek in between the Sea

(20:54):
of Galilee up north and the Dead Sea down south.
The Jordan River connects both of those bodies of water.
Right in between, about midway is the Jabek River, about
twenty two miles. It flows from the east northeast and
joins and flows into the Jordan River, very very steep
and precipitous. That's why the Jabbek was the ancient boundary

(21:18):
between North Gilead and South Gilead, or Og and Bashon.
Before that, it was a natural barrier, natural border. He
crossed that that night, the Jabek River. He took them
Verse twenty three, sent them over the brook, sent over
what he had. And then Jacob was left alone. So

(21:39):
often God wants to get us alone, quiet, no one around,
and then he'll.

Speaker 3 (21:48):
Speak to us.

Speaker 2 (21:48):
Now he's going to speak very dramatically. Jacob was left alone,
and a man noticed that. And notice that if a
Bible is my version capitalized, is it not okay? Then
Jacob was left alone and a man wrestled with him
until the breaking of day. Now, when he saw that

(22:11):
he did not prevail against him, he touched the socket
of his hip, and the socket of Jacob's hip was
out of joint as he wrestled with him. It's the
first wrestling match in history. You remember the show some
years ago, Touched by an Angel. This is the first episode,

(22:35):
but it was called Punched by an Angel. Jacob was
assaulted by this man. Now, what's funny. I've read a
lot of different commentaries, a lot of different books, and
seeing this as an example and typically how commentators and
pastors loved to deal with his passages.

Speaker 3 (22:56):
Here's Jacob wrestling with God in prayer.

Speaker 2 (23:00):
That's how it's often taken. Jacob isn't wrestling with God.
The man assaulted him, wrestled with him. It's not that
Jacob saw him and goes, I'm gonna pick.

Speaker 3 (23:11):
Me a fight. That's God. I'm gonna wrestle and get
something out of him. It's God.

Speaker 2 (23:19):
Through this him, this man wrestling Jacob to bring him
to an end of himself and cause him to surrender.
So this wrestling match goes on, and I gotta give
it to Jacob, on and on through the night. Now,
probably I'm just figuring. I'm figuring this, but I believe
it happened. I think he sent his wives and everybody

(23:43):
over the river and said, I'll join you. I'm just
gonna spend the night here. Why I'm thinking he's he's
thinking I just need one.

Speaker 3 (23:53):
Night's good sleep.

Speaker 2 (23:56):
I'd been with Laban and had to confrontation with him,
and I didn't have a good night's sleep with him.
And now that's gone. I'm about to see Esau and
you know, if I could just get alone with my
thoughts and just get one good night's sleep. Well, he
didn't get one good night's sleep. Middle of the nineties, attacked,

(24:16):
as it says, he was left alone and a man
wrestled with him to the breaking of day. What is happening,
as we'll see, I believe is God is cracking the
nut the hard shell of Jacob until he finally just

(24:37):
clings to the Lord toward the end of.

Speaker 1 (24:39):
His We're glad you joined us today. Before you go,
remember that when you give twenty five dollars or more
to help reach more people with the gospel through connect
with Skiff Heidzig, we'll send you Beyond the Summer of
Love Relationships in the real world by Pastor Skiff Heitzig
to help you build biblically healthy relationships or repair ones

(25:00):
that have been damaged by sin. To request your copy
of Beyond the Summer of Love, call eight hundred nine
two two eighteen eighty eight that's eight hundred nine two
two eighteen eighty eight, or visit Connectiskip dot com slash
donate for more from Skip. Be sure to check out
the many resources available at connectwiskip dot com, slash store,

(25:22):
Come back next time for more verse by verse teaching
of God's word here on. Connect with skip Heidzig.

Speaker 4 (25:28):
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Speaker 1 (25:49):
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connecting you to God's never changing truth in ever changing
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