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Contending for Blessing Pt. 2 | Sam Cerny

Posted on 21 July 2012. Tags: , , , , , , , , , ,

  1. THE NAME ISRAEL

    And He said, “Let me go, for the day breaks.” But he said, “I will not let You go unless you bless me!” So He said to him, “What is your name?” He said, “Jacob.” And He said, “Your name shall no longer be called Jacob, but Israel; for you have struggled with God and with men, and have prevailed.” (Gen. 32:26-28)

    1. Apart from God’s name, what is the most common proper name in Scripture? The name Israel.
      1. In Genesis, Jacob’s name was changed to Israel.
      2. His physical descendants are usually referred to as Israel, the children of Israel or the house of Israel. They are usually not referred to as Abraham or the children of Abraham or Isaac or the children of Isaac, but instead are almost always called Israel.
      3. His spiritual descendants are also referred to as Israel, regardless of their ethnic background i.e. Rom. 9:6 and Gal. 6:16.
    2. Why is it that this name stuck? Why has God usually used this name to refer to His people? The answer lies in the origin of this name in Genesis 32…
      1. The Lord said, “Your name shall no longer be called Jacob.” (Gen. 32:28) Jacob literally means “supplanter” or “deceiver,” and this describes how he got ahead in life. Jacob was constantly scheming, manipulating and deceiving people and situations to advance his agenda. He schemed and struggled with his brother Esau (Gen. 25, 27), his father Isaac (Gen. 27) and his father-in-law Laban (Gen. 29-31).
      2. But He then said, “But Israel, for you have struggled with God and with men, and have prevailed.” (Gen. 32:38) Israel literally means “he who wrestles or struggles with God.” In this Jacob learned not to struggle with men for favor, but to wrestle with God for blessing. Not to prevail over men, but over God. Yes, in a sense, God will allow and even wants His people to struggle with and prevail over Him.
    3. While is this name Israel so prominent? Because I believe that it refers to our highest calling! God did not just stick us in a predetermined existence where whatever happens happens. No, we have a chance to wrestle with the God of the universe! We have an open invitation to experience as much of God and as much of His blessing as we choose to.
    4. Practically, what might it look like for you to wrestle with God like Israel did? To not let go until you’re blessed?
    5. For Jacob, specifically, what did it mean for him to wrestle with God? To prevail with Him for His blessing?

  2. UNTIL THE BREAKING OF DAY

    Then Jacob was left alone; and a Man wrestled with him until the breaking of day…And He said, “Let me go, for the day breaks.” (Gen. 32:24, 26)

A. One aspect of this wrestling match was that it went all night. It was not just for an hour, or until midnight, but until the following morning. In other words, this struggle with God took time. There is a measure of blessing that cannot be obtained in a moment, but rather over a season of time.

Given this reality, wrestling with God is not just an issue of clarity (staying focused) or commitment (staying determined), but of patience (staying steady). When faced with disappointments or unexpected delays from the Lord, we need to patiently continue on. In other words, wrestling with Him can mean waiting on Him.

  1. In the days of Hosea, Israel was in a backslidden state. Like Jacob of old, they were trying to prosper themselves through manipulating people and nations. “Ephraim feeds on the wind, and pursues the east wind; he daily increases lies and desolation. Also they make a covenant with the Assyrians, and oil is carried to Egypt.” (Hos. 12:1)
  2. Thus Hosea prophesied and called them to return to the Lord. More specifically, he told them to return in the same way that Jacob returned, by holding onto God and not letting go until He released His blessing. “He took his brother by the heel in the womb, and in his strength he struggled with God. Yes, he struggled with the Angel and prevailed; he wept, and sought favor from Him…So you, by the help of your God, return; observe mercy and justice, and wait on your God continually.” (Hos. 12:3-6)
  3. In this prophecy, Hosea connects Jacob struggling with God and Israel waiting on God continually. A person only waits for something that he doesn’t currently have, but yet hopes and believes that it will come. In the same way, waiting on God is not a passive act, but an active pursuit of Him and His blessings even without any visible or tangible result at that time. In the end, if we wait, He will not disappoint. “Indeed, let no one who waits on You be ashamed.” (Ps. 25:3)

As we pursue God for His blessings upon us, our workplaces, schools and homes, we will have mornings of breakthrough and long nights of struggle. Understanding this, we can learn to embrace those longs nights. To be patient during seasons of divine delay.

However, when we win the match and when His blessings are bestowed, how will we be blessed? How will God bring success? What is coming to us and to those around us?

III. THE FACE OF GOD

Then Jacob asked, saying, “Tell me Your name, I pray.” And He said, “Why is it that you ask about My name?” And He blessed him there. So Jacob called the name of the place Peniel (lit. Face of God): “For I have seen God face to face, and my life is preserved.” (Gen. 32:29-30)

A. God blessed Jacob by allowing him to see His face. In the Bible, there is a link between receiving blessings from God and beholding the face of God. Consider this priestly prayer: “The Lord bless you and keep you; the Lord make His face shine upon you…” (Num. 6:24-25)

  1. In essence, God showing His face is a metaphorical way of saying that God is manifesting His presence. The greatest blessing is the Lord giving Himself to us!
  2. Just as a rose always releases a lovely fragrance, so the Lord’s manifest presence always releases conviction of sin, healing of diseases, deliverance from demons, provision for every need, wisdom for every dilemma, restoration of broken relationships, etc… About this, the psalmist declared, “Many are asking, ‘Who can show us any good?’ Let the light of your face shine upon us, O Lord.” (Ps. 4:6)
  3. Where you live, work or study will become a place named Peniel. It will be saturated with His manifest presence. You and those around you will experience His shining face.

    Moreover, as the end of the age draws near, the shining of the Lord’s face will increase in intensity and clarity upon planet earth. Just as the light and heat of the sun can cause wax to melt and clay to harden, so His manifest presence will result in blessing on some and judgment on others.

    1. For many, unprecedented blessing is coming across the earth. “God be merciful to us and bless us and cause His face to shine upon us…Then the earth shall yield her increase; God, our own God, shall bless us. God shall bless us, and all the ends of the earth shall fear Him.” (Ps. 67:1-7)
    2. For others, unprecedented judgment will fall upon them. “They [the nations of the earth] called to the mountains and the rocks, ‘Fall on us and hide us from the face of Him who sits on the throne…’” (Rev. 6:16)

    Given these promises, let us become like Israel. Let us be a people who will go after His blessing, even if it means a little crippling in the meantime. Who will not let Him go, even if it means wrestling through a long night. Who will not settle for anything less than His manifest presence and abundant blessing upon us, our homes and our workplaces.

For the MP3 of this teaching, check out the Marketplace Christianity Conference MP3 Set by CLICKING HERE

 

Sam Cerny Photo thecall Sam Cerny  |  the Call Institute DirectorAfter graduating from Vanguard University with a degree in Business Adminstration, Sam was a part of a business enterprise in Tibet, China, along with a fruitful church planting effort in that region.  Following those years of missions work, he moved to Southern California and worked with a successful energy company that gained a national footprint over the course of a decade.  In 2009, he and his wife Brooke moved to Kansas City, where he currently directs the Call Institute, which is a one-year track within the International House of Prayer University, and Strike Teams, which is a short-term missions department with IHOP-KC.  They have four children.

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Contending for Blessing Pt. 1 | Sam Cerny

Posted on 19 July 2012. Tags: , , , , , , , , ,

THE BLESSING OF GOD

But he said, “I will not let You go unless you bless me!” (Gen. 32:36)

And He blessed him there. (Gen. 32:29)

  1. This story is literally about Jacob contending with God for His blessing. To understand this story, we need to understand the role of the Lord’s blessing in our lives.
  2. The verb “bless” in Hebrew is barak and is a major theme in Scripture. This word and its derivatives are used about 415 times in Scripture.
    1. After God created human beings, the first thing He did was bless them. “So God created man in His own image; in the image of God He created them; male and female He created them. Then God blessed them…” (Gen. 1:27-28)
    2. After God restarted the human race with Noah and his family, He blessed them. “So God blessed Noah and his sons…” (Gen. 9:1)
    3. While calling Abraham out of the nations, God blessed him. “I will make you a great nation; I will bless you…” (Gen. 12:2)
    4. Aaron began his priestly prayer over Israel by saying, “The Lord bless you and keep you…” (Num. 6:24)
    5. Jesus began his first recorded sermon by saying nine times, “Blessed are…” (Matt. 5:3-11)
    6. The book of Revelation concludes this age by saying seven times, “Blessed…” (Rev. 1:3,

      14:13, 16:15, 19:19, 20:6, 22:7, 22:14)

  3. Given the priority of being blessed, what does barak mean? “To bless in the OT means ‘to endue with power for success, prosperity, fecundity, longevity, etc.’” (Archer, Harris and Waltke, Theological Wordbook of the Old Testament) It implies a success that is beyond what you can gain by your own skills, efforts or ingenuity, but it is given by God Himself.
  4. For Jacob, the blessing of God did not just result in an inner sense of happiness and peace, but also in an outward success and prosperity in every aspect of his life. It affected him spiritually, relationally and materially and even touched those around him, including where he lived and worked. “And Laban said to him, ‘Please stay, if I have found favor in your eyes, for I have learned by experience that the Lord has blessed me for yours sake’…So Jacob said to him, ‘You know how I have served you and how your livestock has been with me. For what you had before I came was little, and it has increased to a great amount; the Lord has blessed you since my coming.’” (Gen. 30:27, 29-30)
  5. This same pattern can be seen in Joseph, where the blessing of God expanded and extended to those around him. Even his place of employment was blessed because of him. “And his master saw that the LORD was with him and that the LORD made all he did to prosper in his hand. So Joseph found favor in his sight, and served him. Then he made him overseer of his house, and all that he had he put under his authority. So it was, from the time that he had made him overseer of his house and all that he had, that the LORD blessed the Egyptian’s house for Joseph’s sake; and the blessing of the LORD was on all that he had in the house and in the field.” (Gen. 39:3-5)
  6. Yet how did Jacob obtain greater blessing? How did he receive more from God? The path to greater blessing can be seen in Genesis 32:22-32…
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II.  THE RESISTANCE OF GOD

Then Jacob was left alone; and a Man wrestled with him until the breaking of day. Now when He saw that He could 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. And He said, “Let Me go, for the day breaks.” But he said, “I will not let you go unless You bless me!” (Gen. 32:24-26)
    1. God approached Jacob and began wrestling with him. Furthermore, He made it difficult for Jacob to win. Consider how God resisted him while he sought to be blessed…
      1. Firstly, to an extent He tried to overpower him. “Now when He saw that He did not prevail against him…” (Gen. 32:25)
      2. Secondly, He crippled him. “He touched the socket of his hip; and the socket of Jacob’s hip was out of join as He wrestled with him.” (Gen. 32:25)
      3. Thirdly, He tried to discourage him. “And He said, “Let Me go, for the day breaks.” (Gen. 32:26)
    2. God’s intent was to bless Jacob, for He had already promised him: “In you and in your seed all the families of the earth will be blessed. Behold I am with you and will keep you wherever you go…” (Gen. 28:14-15) So if God’s goal was to bless Jacob, why resist him? Why delay him? Why make it so hard for him to receive further blessing?
    3. This wasn’t the only time that God seemed to resist His own people, especially those pursuing Him for more. Consider how Jesus resisted the Canaanite woman in Matthew 15:21-28 while she sought healing for her daughter…
      1. Firstly, He ignored her. “And behold, a woman of Canaan came from that region and cried out to Him, saying, ‘Have mercy on me, O Lord, Son of David! My daughter is severely demon-possessed.’ But He answered her not a word.” (Matt. 15:22-23)
      2. Secondly, He dismissed her. “And His disciples came and urged Him saying, ‘Send her away, for she cries out after us.’ But He answered and said, ‘I was not sent except to the lost sheep of the house of Israel.” (Matt. 15:23-24)
      3. Thirdly, He discouraged her. “Then she came and worshiped Him, saying, ‘Lord, help me!’ But He answered and said, ‘It is not good to take the children’s bread and throw it to the little dogs.’” (Matt. 15:26)
    4. Why did God make it so difficult for Jacob? Why did Jesus make it so difficult of this Canaanite woman? Through these wrestling matches, what was He trying to draw out of them?

      III.  THE TENACITY OF JACOB

  2. But he said, “I will not let You go unless You bless me!” (Gen. 32:26)

A. At first, Jacob’s statement may seem proud and arrogant. “I want to be blessed, and I’m not moving till You bless me!” However, it is actually a statement of deep humility. In other words, he was saying, “I’ve tried to make myself successful. I’ve tried to create for myself a blessed life. I can’t do it. You’re my only option and only hope. If you don’t bless me, then I’ll never be blessed. I have no option but to hold onto You and not let go.”

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This is what God was looking for in Jacob, an unrelenting trust and dependence on Him – a genuine faith demonstrated by boldness, tenacity and persistence. In fact, such tenacity and persistence come out of the place of humility, while impatience and giving up easily actually come from a place of pride. When that kind of humility and faith were found, then “He blessed him there.” (Gen. 32:29)

This is what Jesus was looking for in the Canaanite woman, an authentic faith in Him that would not give up no matter what – a stubborn faith that would refuse to be denied by Him. “And she said, ‘Yes, Lord, yet even the little dogs eat the crumbs which fall from their masters’ table.’ Then Jesus answered and said to her, ‘O woman, great is your faith! Let it be to you as you desire.’ And her daughter was healed from that very hour.” (Matt. 15:27-28)

It is critical that we don’t underestimate the importance of our tenacity and persistence in our dealings with God. He highly values and rewards such an unrelenting response…

  1. “I say to you, though he will not rise and give to him because he is his friend, yet because of his persistence he will rise and give him as many as he needs.” (Luke 11:8)
  2. “That you do not become sluggish, but imitate those who through faith and patience inherit the promises.” (Heb. 6:16)
  3. “Indeed we count them blessed who endure. You have heard of Job and see the end intended by the Lord – that the Lord is very compassionate and merciful.” (James 5:11)

Lastly, if Jacob had let go sooner, would he have received this blessing? If the Canaanite woman had given up and walked away, would she have received the healing? If you wrestle with God and not let go, then God will let you win! If you don’t stop, then you won’t lose!

For the MP3 of this teaching, check out the Marketplace Christianity Conference MP3 Set by CLICKING HERE

 

Sam Cerny Photo thecall Sam Cerny  |  the Call Institute Director

After graduating from Vanguard University with a degree in Business Adminstration, Sam was a part of a business enterprise in Tibet, China, along with a fruitful church planting effort in that region.  Following those years of missions work, he moved to Southern California and worked with a successful energy company that gained a national footprint over the course of a decade.  In 2009, he and his wife Brooke moved to Kansas City, where he currently directs the Call Institute, which is a one-year track within the International House of Prayer University, and Strike Teams, which is a short-term missions department with IHOP-KC.  They have four children.

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Interview with Sam Cerny & Bob Fraser | Marketplace Christianity Conference

Posted on 08 June 2012. Tags: , , , , , , ,

Marketplace Christianity National Conference 2012

 

 

 

 

Click the link below to WATCH this great view from Sam and Bob!

Sam Cerney Interview with Bob Fraser

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