Title The sun has risen... /Gen 32:31
The sun has risen… /Gen 32:31
“The sun rose as he passed by Peniel, and he limped because of his thigh” (Genesis 32:31).
The dark night before sunrise was a very painful night for Jacob. It was a time when God's blessings stopped, a time of confusion and chaos where there was no real satisfaction in life and trembled with fear and anxiety. It was a night when faith and the world were mixed, and the powers of sin, curses, and death worked together with the devil. It was a night of wandering in the dark, trembling with fear and trials, and a time with a dark future in despair.
After the sun rose, a light shone on the whole world. The dawn of a new beginning was like the sound of a trumpet of blessing. With the new light that God has given, first, the work of God's providence changes. We are now able to work as a God of blessing. Second, the world changes. The sad and dark world changes to beautiful and happy. Peniel's morning is exceptionally beautiful and full of hope.
Third, everything changes. When man fell, the earth produced thorns and thistles, but when the saints change, all things help and defend the saints. Fourth, the enemy also changes. Esau, who has been sharpening the sword for revenge for 20 years, welcomes Jacob, kisses him, and offers to be his guide. The truth is that if one changes, everything changes. If one person changed, what was behind the change in God, the world, all things, and the enemy as well?
That night Jacob fought with God all night long. Jacob continued to push and pull with God according to his own greed and stubbornness regardless of means and methods. However, due to God's discipline, Jacob's hip bone was dislocated. At the same time, Jacob's selfishness and self-centeredness of the old man fell before God. Jacob repented. It was a night of change, when Jacob became Israel.
Dear brothers and sisters, this is the case today. There is no other way for God's people to live. Just as the sun rose on the morning of Peniel when he completely denied the old man and was born as a new person, a new morning of hope is dawning. When I change, everything changes.