Title Genesis 32:1-12 Esau is coming
Contents
Esau is coming (Gen 32:1-12)
There was a person who lived with long hair all his life because he was afraid of the barber. There was a person who died of malnutrition after living only on juice for fear of poisoning the food. Howard Hughes was one such person. However, there is a problem that the anxiety and fear that have constrained his life is not just a problem for only one person, but is a common psychological phenomenon of all humans today. Certainly, modern man is trembling with anxiety and fear. So, W.U. Ouden diagnosed our age today as the “age of anxiety” and “the age of anxiety”. Anxiety and fear of nuclear war are the biggest problems among teenage Americans today, a study found. In this way, modern people live in an era of more advanced civilization than ever before, and while receiving the benefits of a variety of cultures than ever before, they are living with anxiety and fear about diseases, wars, global warming, and unexpected accidents. The problem lies in the tremendous harm that anxiety and fear cause.
That's right. The problem is that the anxiety and fear that suppress our emotions are doing more damage to us today than the real problems we face. The words of this text provide a fundamental analysis of our emotional problems. Let's look at verse 7. “Jacob was very afraid and frustrated… 』 This shows that Jacob is obsessed with anxiety and fear that things do not go the way he wanted, and the tension and pressure that squeezes his heart. Jacob was afraid. My heart was very upset. Why? Because Esau was coming.
Jacob heard from the messengers he had sent to Esau that Esau was coming to meet him with 400 men (verse 6). So he could not bear the fear and anxiety of Esau and prayed earnestly to God. “I am afraid of him, lest he come and strike me and my wives and wives” (verse 11).
Esau was a familiar hunter and wild man (Genesis 25:27). Like Jacob, he stayed at home and did not know how to communicate with God in silence. When he opened his eyes, he would carry a bow on his shoulder and shoot around the fields to hunt, and in the evening he would return home with a tired body. He was a materialist who disregarded the birthright. Not only that, he was a hedonist. He was not satisfied with one woman's arms. The problem did not end here. He was a violent man who sharpened the sword of revenge on Jacob for stealing his father's blessing (Genesis 27:41). Esau was not a quiet man like Jacob. He was spontaneous and hot-blooded. He was an activist who acted on what he saw and felt instantly.
The root cause of modern people's fear and anxiety is because of humans. John Flavel said, "When man fears, man accompanies evil." Proverbs 29:25 says, “A man is a snare when he fears.” That's right! Jacob, who was returning to the land of Canaan, which he had dreamed of, filled with joy and ecstasy, had no choice but to tremble with fear and anxiety in the face of his brother Esau's challenge. Today's biggest problem is people. Who is coming to me now? This is the problem.
As in the case of Jacob, Esau is running to us now. The culture of Esau is approaching like a wave. Esau's culture is a wild people culture. It is a hedonistic culture. It is a materialistic culture and a violent culture. Today's reckless Western culture is Esau's culture and Satan's culture. Because of this, today's youth are jumping over the fences of their homes and shooting out of their homes as if they were in the field, and they are wandering around while being deceived by Satan's hedonism, materialism, and violence, who hunt our souls today, just like the familiar hunters. Today's parents are trembling with fear and anxiety because they cannot stop the attacks of Satan's culture from themselves and their children. So, is there no real solution to anxiety and fear? no. There is. It is meeting God.
When Jacob failed to stop Esau from running after using all human means and methods he could use, he finally met God who came to him at the river Jabbok. He woke up at night. Then, my wife, children, servants, and all animals handed over the river of Yabbok and stood before God who came alone in human form. And we struggled with rice. The hip bone was broken. I had to suffer unbearable pain. But does he die? Or do you buy it? I held onto God with my heart and did not let go. God said, “The day is dawning, let me go,” but he said, “Unless you bless me, I will not let you go.” He held onto God and did not let go. God said to Jacob, “You shall no longer call your name Jacob, but call it Israel, for you have fought God and have overcome.” He gave the new man Israel the name of the old man, Jacob.
Saints!
Are you afraid? Are you anxious? Are you bored? Meet God. Then you will get all your questions answered.