Welcome
Hi, I’m Alan Lobaugh, one of the pastors here at Azle Christian Church. Glad you have joined us this morning. Please “Like” and “Share” and comment to let us know you are here. Please take a moment to light a candle with us to remind us of God’s presence, and also have some food elements to share communion at the end of our service.
Tonight we continue with the book study, “I’m Still Here” by Austin Channing Brown. 7 p.m. on zoom if you’d like to join. Recently, the Elders sent a survey by email. Please fill it out. It will help us plan for the fall.
We finish our theme of Back to the Beginning with one more story of Jacob. He is returning to apologize to Esau, and on the way, one night, he wrestles with “a man” whom we later understand to be an angel. Michael Coffey has written a beautiful, meaningful poem about the experience. He titled it “Limp. I will share it here and you can find it on our web page.
Limp by Michael Coffey
Because I journeyed too close to the event horizon
because I dreamed deeper than REM and hallucination
because I half-nelsoned the mystery into self-revelation
because I knew silent stillness is not the only holy way
I limp with a hip socket struck by marvelous pain
I limp with an ego wounded and the wound a blessing
I limp a survivor from a close encounter with the other
I limp slower and wiser, purple hearted from the battle
I could have walked briskly away from the one hiding among us
I could have danced on with a smooth sliding stroll
I could have run tremulous from the infinite unknowable
I could have feigned my gait as if I were free of divine wrestling
Do you walk hiding all your out-of-joint questions and doubts
Do you slip away from the ring when the bell sounds three
Do you hide from the God who would rather have a wrangle
than let you walk on without knowing you are known.
Let us continue our worship with music
Hymns
“To God Be The Glory” #72
“This Is The Day Of New Beginnings” #518
Pastoral Prayer
Children’s Moment
Special Music
“Morning Has Broken”
Scripture - Genesis 32:3-31
Jacob sent messengers before him to his brother Esau in the land of Seir, the country of Edom, instructing them, “Thus you shall say to my lord Esau: Thus says your servant Jacob, ‘I have lived with Laban as an alien, and stayed until now; and I have oxen, donkeys, flocks, male and female slaves; and I have sent to tell my lord, in order that I may find favor in your sight.’“ The messengers returned to Jacob, saying, “We came to your brother Esau, and he is coming to meet you, and four hundred men are with him.” Then Jacob was greatly afraid and distressed; and he divided the people that were with him, and the flocks and herds and camels, into two companies, thinking, “If Esau comes to the one company and destroys it, then the company that is left will escape.”
And Jacob said, “O God of my father Abraham and God of my father Isaac, O Lord who said to me, ‘Return to your country and to your kindred, and I will do you good,’ I am not worthy of the least of all the steadfast love and all the faithfulness that you have shown to your servant, for with only my staff I crossed this Jordan; and now I have become two companies. Deliver me, please, from the hand of my brother, from the hand of Esau, for I am afraid of him; he may come and kill us all, the mothers with the children. Yet you have said, ‘I will surely do you good, and make your offspring as the sand of the sea, which cannot be counted because of their number.’“
So he spent that night there, …
… Jacob was left alone; and a man wrestled with him until daybreak. When the man saw that he did not prevail against Jacob, he struck him on the hip socket; and Jacob’s hip was put out of joint as he wrestled with him. Then he said, “Let me go, for the day is breaking.” But Jacob said, “I will not let you go, unless you bless me.” So he said to him, “What is your name?” And he said, “Jacob.” Then the man said, “You shall no longer be called Jacob, but Israel, for you have striven with God and with humans, and have prevailed.” Then Jacob asked him, “Please tell me your name.” But he said, “Why is it that you ask my name?” And there he blessed him. So Jacob called the place Peniel, saying, “For I have seen God face to face, and yet my life is preserved.” The sun rose upon him as he passed Penuel, limping because of his hip.
Sermon
Who are you? What is your name?
What name have you given this child?
Jacob the heal grabber; Jacob the deceiver; Jacob the disguised; Jacob the cheat; Jacob the liar. Jacob, the one who ran away.
I don’t know if you realize it, but in the Biblical stories, Jacob is rarely alone. Not even in the womb, not in life. There’s only one other time he slept alone, and God came to him that time as well … with. … more blessings.
This time, an unknown shadowy figure, comes at night. Some suggest this is Jacob’s brother Esau. Or his own inner demons. And they wrestle. Has not Jacob wrestled before, at least emotionally, with father Isaac, brother Esau, father in law Laban. Any one of them has a motive of revenge toward Jacob. They are all prime suspects.
And they wrestle until dawn. This is the literary signal that this is an epic story. Under the cover of darkness, all things are hidden, until dawn when one can see clearly. At dawn it becomes clear that this is God, at least that’s who Jacob says he is.
But can we trust Jacob? John Holbert says no, don’t trust Jacob. Jacob doesn’t really see God, until he sees God’s face in his brother. Jacob stands his ground. Gives him the confidence to face his brother. He even says, “For truly to see your face is like seeing the face of God – since you have received me with such favor.
A friend once said this story is her model for reading scripture and doing theology. When we come to something we don’t understand, we should wrestle with it until we find the blessing in it.
And one key point is this: What is your name? That’s what the stranger asks Jacob? What do people call you?
We used to play a game at church camp in Athens: Sort of an icebreaker, We’d ask, “Who are you? And someone would give a simple answer? I am Alan. But then we would keep asking the question and the person couldn’t repeat any of the previous answers. I am 5’10” tall, I am a Christian, I am a brother, I am married, I am the father of three children, … on it would go, I am left handed, I am someone with brown eyes. … how far can you go into this without repeating yourself. Maybe you should try that at home.
Here’s the point: David Lose suggests this story is all about the names: The names we were given at birth; the names we have chosen for ourselves (clever, kind, compassionate); and even the names that others have called us (sometimes with cruel intent);
When the wrestler demands, “Tell me your name” it means confess who you really are. And what a moment for Jacob. Stealer of birthrights and blessings. And let’s be crystal clear, he’s on the road to meet his brother, … gulp, … and 400 of his brother’s men, … double gulp. Jacob’s name confession is a death sentence. Confessing that you are a liar and a cheat, directly to God, … what would you expect? But instead of wrath, God gives Jacob a new name
Ultimately, this story teaches us about the one important name: The name God gives us.
What are the names others call you? What names cut to the heart of you fears? None of that matters. What matters is the name God calls you:
This is, for David Lose a clear example of Baptism, dying to one’s selfish ways, rising to take on a new name, (our catholic brothers and sisters take on a Christian name) We simply say we are now children of God, beloved children of God.
We have taken the term Christened and diluted its meaning. We christen planes, trains, and ships. Smash a bottle of champagne across the bow, it’s christened. But in the original meaning at baptism, we are Christ –ened. We are named in the image of Christ. Named for Christ, named in Christ for the world. Named to be Christ for the world.
When Simon said to Jesus, “You are the Christ, the son of God,” Jesus said, “Blessed are you Simon, but now I will call you Peter, literally, the rock, because flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but the spirit.”
Not just your given name, but now your Christ name. You are called something different now that you are following Christ Jesus.
And this is where things get really powerful, Because if truth be told, we are each called by so many names day in and day out -- some of them good and affirming, many more not -- that it can be terribly difficult even to hear, let alone believe, that God chooses to call us Christ. And yet there it is, in the eighth chapter of Romans which simply brims over with baptismal imagery, Paul’s promise that the Holy “Spirit and our spirit bear united witness that we are children of God; and if we are children, then we are heirs as well, heirs of God and co-heirs with Christ.”
When Jacob meets Esau, Esau calls him “brother. “ Not liar, thief, cheat, but brother. And in that moment, Jacob saw the very face of God.
God has christened us. God has called us beloved. With that new name, God calls you and me, to do the hard things of reconciliation, the difficult things of grace and mercy, The terribly hard things of justice building. In this new moment, life will never be the same.
Take a moment to think of what God is calling you to do. Spend some time in prayer focused on presenting Christ to the world. Of being the body of Christ for people you meet.
Communion
Sharing our Resources
Every week, on your behalf, we are helping our neighbors through their personal crises. Food on their tables, keeping the lights on, keeping their water flowing. All because of your generosity. And sometimes it’s not even financial. We do appreciate your financial support You can continue to give in any of the ways listed in the comments or through our web site. But more than financial giving, sometimes it is the connection we make in a phone call or messages exchanged. I have a challenge to you: Sometime today, call, text, email, or speak face to face. Tell someone that they are called as a beloved child of God. And, if you are feeling God’s spirit, then do it for someone you barely know.
Hymn
“God Dismiss Us With Your Blessing” #439
Benediction
O God, sometimes we are better at wrestling, than at listening. Help us recognize your voice, Help us hear you calling our names, and help us respond in love for our neighbors near and far.