So Jacob was left alone, and a man wrestled with him till daybreak. When the man saw that he could not overpower him, he touched the socket of Jacob's hip so that his hip was wrenched as he wrestled with the man. Then the man said, “Let me go, for it is daybreak.” But Jacob replied, “I will not let you go unless you bless me.” The man asked him, “What is your name?” “Jacob,” he answered. Then the man said, “Your name will no longer be Jacob, but Israel, because you have struggled with God and with humans and have overcome.” Jacob said, “Please tell me your name.” But he replied, “Why do you ask my name?” Then he blessed him there. So Jacob called the place Peniel, saying, “It is because I saw God face to face, and yet my life was spared.” (Gen 32:24-30)
The first thought on this passage might be, “Was he nuts? He knew it was God and he had the audacity to wrestle him all night?” We tend to picture the physical struggle. We fail to recognize that we often struggle with God spiritually. We try to make justifications through His word of something we know in our heart we shouldn't do. We constantly wrestle with God's instructions. We want to do what we want to do when we want to do it. That is our human nature. It is a constant struggle to fully surrender our will to God's.
Jacob was left alone with his fears and insecurities while he waited to reunite with Esau. He had sent everything and everyone before him, including his wives and children, hoping to soften Esau's heart. It was, in effect, a bribe. He couldn't very well apologize for taking Esau's birthright and blessing. He wasn't sorry he had done it; he just feared the consequences of his actions. He feared death.
So, here he was waiting through the long night, wondering what was going to happen when dawn came. All of a sudden, a man appears and wrestles with him until daybreak. How strange that a man should appear out of nowhere for one purpose: to wrestle with Jacob. While the scene itself may seem strange, it was a physical reenactment of all the internal struggles with which Jacob had contended his entire life. Jacob had struggled with his brother from the womb; he struggled with his parents; and father-in-law. In fact, all his life had been a struggle. So, this impromptu wrestling match was the culmination of a lifetime of struggle; a struggle Jacob was determined to win. Out of his perseverance, Jacob was blessed by God although he did not completely escape unscathed. His hip was injured and never healed.
We cannot win in a wrestling match with God. We know that God only wants the best for us, and, yet, we wrestle with Him over and over again. Be mindful that when we finally realize we are not wrestling with God, but with our own selfish nature, then we can be changed. Just as Jacob's hip was never the same, so is our spiritual nature. When one faces God, one tends to be changed forever.
From a Cracked Pot
Wrestling with God