The Bridge Church of the Nazarene
Sunday, Nov 14, 2021
Aloha. The Bridge currently meets at Oahu Veterans Center in Foster Village (1298 Kukila St, Honolulu, HI 96818) at 9:45am. *NOTE: For federal holidays that fall on Sundays, OVC is closed and we meet online only. *NOTE: Currently, on the last Sunday of each month, we meet at a park or for a service project instead of at OVC. See Facebook or Newsletter for details. We look forward to seeing you in person! For those who can't make it at this time and location, we will broadcast church service online on Sunday morning at 9:45am at: BridgeNaz.org Please join us for worship, prayer, and a message from Pastor Michael! Mahalo and God bless!
Locations & Times
The Bridge
1298 Kukila Pl, Honolulu, HI 96818, USA
Sunday 9:45 AM
Sermon Title: 20 Years Later (Gen 32:2-33:17)
Gen 32:2-33:17
2 Jacob went on his way, and the messengers of God met him. 3 When he saw them, Jacob said, “This is God’s camp.” He called the name of that place Mahanaim (Two Camps).
4 Jacob sent agents in front of him to Esau, his brother, to the land of Seir, the countryside of Edom. 5 He commanded them, saying, “This is what you shall tell my lord, Esau: ‘This is what your servant, Jacob, says. I have sojourned with Laban, and stayed until now. 6 I have cattle, donkeys, flocks, male servants, and female servants. I have sent to tell my lord, that I may find favor in your sight.’”
7 The agents returned to Jacob, saying, “We came to your brother Esau. He is coming to meet you, and four hundred men are with him.” 8 Then Jacob was greatly afraid and was distressed. He divided the people who were with him, and the flocks, and the herds, and the camels, into two companies; 9 and he said, “If Esau comes to the one company, and strikes it, then the company which is left will escape.”
10 Jacob said, “God of my father Abraham, and God of my father Isaac, Adonai, who said to me, ‘Return to your country, and to your relatives, and I will do you good,’ 11 I am small compared to all of the loyalty, and of all the faithfulness that you have shown to your servant; for with just my staff I crossed this Jordan; and now I have become two companies. 12 Please deliver me from the hand of my brother, from the hand of Esau; for I fear him, lest he come and strike me and the mothers with the children. 13 You said, ‘I will surely do you good, and make your offspring as the sand of the sea, which can’t be counted because there are so many.’”
14 He stayed the night there, and took from that which he had with him a present for Esau, his brother: 15 two hundred female goats and twenty male goats, two hundred ewes and twenty rams, 16 thirty milk camels and their colts, forty cows, ten bulls, twenty female donkeys and ten foals. 17 He delivered them into the hands of his servants, every herd by itself, and said to his servants, “Cross before me, and put a space between herd and herd.”
18 He commanded the first, saying, “When Esau, my brother, meets you, and asks you, saying, ‘Whose are you? Where are you going? Whose are these before you?’ 19 Then you shall say, ‘They are your servant, Jacob’s. It is a present sent to my lord, Esau. Here, he himself is also behind us.’” 20 He commanded also the second, and the third, and all that followed the herds, saying, “This is how you shall speak to Esau, when you find him. 21 You shall say, ‘Not only that, but here, your servant, Jacob, is behind us.’” For, he said, “I will appease him with the present that goes before me, and afterward I will see his face. Perhaps he will bear with me.” 22 So the present crossed before him, and he himself stayed the night in the camp.
23 He rose up that night, and took his two wives, and his two servants, and his eleven sons, and crossed over the ford of the Jabbok. 24 He took them, and sent them over the stream, and sent over that which he had. 25 Jacob was left alone, and wrestled with a man there until the rising of the dawn. 26 When he saw that he didn’t prevail against him, the man touched the hollow of his thigh, and the hollow of Jacob’s thigh was strained as he wrestled. 27 The man said, “Let me go, for the dawn rises.” Jacob said, “I won’t let you go unless you bless me.”
28 He said to him, “What is your name?” He said, “Jacob.” 29 He said, “Your name will no longer be called Jacob, but Israel; for you have struggled with God and with people, and have prevailed.” 30 Jacob asked him, “Please tell me your name.” He said, “Why is it that you ask what my name is?” He blessed him there. 31 Jacob called the name of the place Peniel, for he said, “I have seen God face to face, and my life is preserved.” 32 The sun rose on him as he passed over Peniel, and he limped because of his thigh. 33 Therefore the children of Israel don’t eat the sinew of the hip, which is on the hollow of the thigh, to this day, because he touched the hollow of Jacob’s thigh in the sinew of the hip.
33:10 “Please, no, if I have now found favor in your eyes, then receive my present from my hand, because I have seen your face, like seeing the face of God, and you were pleased with me.
33:1 Jacob lifted up his eyes, and looked, and sure enough, Esau was coming, and with him four hundred men. He divided the children between Leah, Rachel, and the two servants. 2 He put the servants and their children in front, Leah and her children after, and Rachel and Joseph at the rear. 3 He himself crossed in front of them, and bowed himself to the ground seven times, until he came near to his brother. 4 Esau ran to meet him, embraced him, fell on his neck, kissed him, and they wept. 5 He lifted up his eyes, and saw the women and the children, and said, “Who are these with you?” He said, “The children whom God has graciously given your servant.” 6 Then the servants came near with their children, and they bowed themselves. 7 Leah also and her children came near, andbowed themselves. After them, Joseph came near with Rachel, and they bowed themselves.
Gen 27:26-34
26 His father Isaac said to him, “Come near now, and kiss me, my son.” 27 He came near, and kissed him. He smelled the smell of his clothing, and blessed him, and said, “Sure enough, the smell of my son is like the smell of a field that Adonai has blessed. 28 May God give you of the dew of the sky, of the fatness of the land, and plenty of grain and new wine. 29 May peoples serve you, and nations bow down to you. Be lord over your brothers. Let your mother’s sons bow down to you. Cursed be everyone who curses you. Blessed be everyone who blesses you….34 When Esau heard the words of his father, he wept with a very great and bitter cry, and said to his father, “Bless me, even me, my father.”
32:8 Esau said, “What do you mean by all this company which I met?” Jacob said, “To find favor in the eyes of my lord.” 9 Esau said, “I have enough, my brother; let that which you have be yours.” 10 Jacob said, “Please, no, if I have now found favor in your eyes, then receive my present from my hand, because I have seen your face, like seeing the face of God, and you were pleased with me. 11 Please take my blessing that I brought to you, because God has dealt graciously with me, and because I have all.” He urged him, and he took it.
12 Esau said, “Let’s take our journey, and let’s get going, and I will go beside you.” 13 Jacob said to him, “My lord knows that the children are tender, and that the flocks and herds with me have their young, and if they overdrive them one day, all the flocks will die. 14 Please let my lord cross before his servant, and I will lead on gently, according to the pace of the livestock that are before me and according to the pace of the children, until I come to my lord at Seir.” 15 Esau said, “Let me now leave with you some of the people who are with me.” He said, “Why? Let me find favor in the eyes of my lord.” 16 So Esau returned that day on his way to Seir. 17 Jacob traveled to Succoth, built himself a house, and made shelters for his livestock. Therefore the name of the place is called Succoth.
2 Jacob went on his way, and the messengers of God met him. 3 When he saw them, Jacob said, “This is God’s camp.” He called the name of that place Mahanaim (Two Camps).
4 Jacob sent agents in front of him to Esau, his brother, to the land of Seir, the countryside of Edom. 5 He commanded them, saying, “This is what you shall tell my lord, Esau: ‘This is what your servant, Jacob, says. I have sojourned with Laban, and stayed until now. 6 I have cattle, donkeys, flocks, male servants, and female servants. I have sent to tell my lord, that I may find favor in your sight.’”
7 The agents returned to Jacob, saying, “We came to your brother Esau. He is coming to meet you, and four hundred men are with him.” 8 Then Jacob was greatly afraid and was distressed. He divided the people who were with him, and the flocks, and the herds, and the camels, into two companies; 9 and he said, “If Esau comes to the one company, and strikes it, then the company which is left will escape.”
10 Jacob said, “God of my father Abraham, and God of my father Isaac, Adonai, who said to me, ‘Return to your country, and to your relatives, and I will do you good,’ 11 I am small compared to all of the loyalty, and of all the faithfulness that you have shown to your servant; for with just my staff I crossed this Jordan; and now I have become two companies. 12 Please deliver me from the hand of my brother, from the hand of Esau; for I fear him, lest he come and strike me and the mothers with the children. 13 You said, ‘I will surely do you good, and make your offspring as the sand of the sea, which can’t be counted because there are so many.’”
14 He stayed the night there, and took from that which he had with him a present for Esau, his brother: 15 two hundred female goats and twenty male goats, two hundred ewes and twenty rams, 16 thirty milk camels and their colts, forty cows, ten bulls, twenty female donkeys and ten foals. 17 He delivered them into the hands of his servants, every herd by itself, and said to his servants, “Cross before me, and put a space between herd and herd.”
18 He commanded the first, saying, “When Esau, my brother, meets you, and asks you, saying, ‘Whose are you? Where are you going? Whose are these before you?’ 19 Then you shall say, ‘They are your servant, Jacob’s. It is a present sent to my lord, Esau. Here, he himself is also behind us.’” 20 He commanded also the second, and the third, and all that followed the herds, saying, “This is how you shall speak to Esau, when you find him. 21 You shall say, ‘Not only that, but here, your servant, Jacob, is behind us.’” For, he said, “I will appease him with the present that goes before me, and afterward I will see his face. Perhaps he will bear with me.” 22 So the present crossed before him, and he himself stayed the night in the camp.
23 He rose up that night, and took his two wives, and his two servants, and his eleven sons, and crossed over the ford of the Jabbok. 24 He took them, and sent them over the stream, and sent over that which he had. 25 Jacob was left alone, and wrestled with a man there until the rising of the dawn. 26 When he saw that he didn’t prevail against him, the man touched the hollow of his thigh, and the hollow of Jacob’s thigh was strained as he wrestled. 27 The man said, “Let me go, for the dawn rises.” Jacob said, “I won’t let you go unless you bless me.”
28 He said to him, “What is your name?” He said, “Jacob.” 29 He said, “Your name will no longer be called Jacob, but Israel; for you have struggled with God and with people, and have prevailed.” 30 Jacob asked him, “Please tell me your name.” He said, “Why is it that you ask what my name is?” He blessed him there. 31 Jacob called the name of the place Peniel, for he said, “I have seen God face to face, and my life is preserved.” 32 The sun rose on him as he passed over Peniel, and he limped because of his thigh. 33 Therefore the children of Israel don’t eat the sinew of the hip, which is on the hollow of the thigh, to this day, because he touched the hollow of Jacob’s thigh in the sinew of the hip.
33:10 “Please, no, if I have now found favor in your eyes, then receive my present from my hand, because I have seen your face, like seeing the face of God, and you were pleased with me.
33:1 Jacob lifted up his eyes, and looked, and sure enough, Esau was coming, and with him four hundred men. He divided the children between Leah, Rachel, and the two servants. 2 He put the servants and their children in front, Leah and her children after, and Rachel and Joseph at the rear. 3 He himself crossed in front of them, and bowed himself to the ground seven times, until he came near to his brother. 4 Esau ran to meet him, embraced him, fell on his neck, kissed him, and they wept. 5 He lifted up his eyes, and saw the women and the children, and said, “Who are these with you?” He said, “The children whom God has graciously given your servant.” 6 Then the servants came near with their children, and they bowed themselves. 7 Leah also and her children came near, andbowed themselves. After them, Joseph came near with Rachel, and they bowed themselves.
Gen 27:26-34
26 His father Isaac said to him, “Come near now, and kiss me, my son.” 27 He came near, and kissed him. He smelled the smell of his clothing, and blessed him, and said, “Sure enough, the smell of my son is like the smell of a field that Adonai has blessed. 28 May God give you of the dew of the sky, of the fatness of the land, and plenty of grain and new wine. 29 May peoples serve you, and nations bow down to you. Be lord over your brothers. Let your mother’s sons bow down to you. Cursed be everyone who curses you. Blessed be everyone who blesses you….34 When Esau heard the words of his father, he wept with a very great and bitter cry, and said to his father, “Bless me, even me, my father.”
32:8 Esau said, “What do you mean by all this company which I met?” Jacob said, “To find favor in the eyes of my lord.” 9 Esau said, “I have enough, my brother; let that which you have be yours.” 10 Jacob said, “Please, no, if I have now found favor in your eyes, then receive my present from my hand, because I have seen your face, like seeing the face of God, and you were pleased with me. 11 Please take my blessing that I brought to you, because God has dealt graciously with me, and because I have all.” He urged him, and he took it.
12 Esau said, “Let’s take our journey, and let’s get going, and I will go beside you.” 13 Jacob said to him, “My lord knows that the children are tender, and that the flocks and herds with me have their young, and if they overdrive them one day, all the flocks will die. 14 Please let my lord cross before his servant, and I will lead on gently, according to the pace of the livestock that are before me and according to the pace of the children, until I come to my lord at Seir.” 15 Esau said, “Let me now leave with you some of the people who are with me.” He said, “Why? Let me find favor in the eyes of my lord.” 16 So Esau returned that day on his way to Seir. 17 Jacob traveled to Succoth, built himself a house, and made shelters for his livestock. Therefore the name of the place is called Succoth.
Word of the Week
Berakhot ( ברכות ): Blessing
Berakhot ( ברכות ): Blessing
Bottom Line
When you’re the cause of a ruined relationship, do what you can to make it right.
Questions
1. A recurring word throughout this sermon was “separation.” Pastor made the point that Jacob’s life was full of separation: Separation from his parents, brother, homeland (Canaan), uncle, God, and Haran. Our lives are also marked by times of separation. Share a time when you separated from a person, place, or thing and it made a big difference in your life.
2. Jacob spent 2 decades in Haran and, while there, it seems he was separated from God. Reflect on a time in your life where you felt separated from God. What was it like? What was the cause of separation? How did God make his way back into your life?
3. One of the most mysterious aspects of today’s focal passage (Gen 32:2-33:17) is the portion where a mysterious figure appears in the middle of the night and wrestles with Jacob. The Scriptures do not say who this is, which has left room for filling in the gaps. Some think it was a demon, others a good angel, and others Jacob wrestling with himself in a dream. Still, others think it might have been God. Some think it was Jesus. Pastor Michael suggested that it could have been Esau or, more likely, Isaac. A) Why did Pastor suggest it was Isaac? B) Who do you think it was and why?
4. The Word of the Week was “Berakhot,” which means “Blessing in Hebrew.” In Gen 27:26-34 we find Isaac’s original blessing of Jacob. Much of it seems to play out, albeit in an unexpected way, in today’s focal passage. A) What are some of the connections between Gen 27:26-34 and Gen 33:1-7? B) According to Pastor, why was Jacob wrestling for a blessing and, this time, what was he going to do with it?
5. This week’s Bottom Line was “When you’re the cause of a ruined relationship, do what you can to make it right.” A) How did Jacob do this? B) Have you ever had to do this? C) Is there a relationship in your life right now where this needs to happen?
When you’re the cause of a ruined relationship, do what you can to make it right.
Questions
1. A recurring word throughout this sermon was “separation.” Pastor made the point that Jacob’s life was full of separation: Separation from his parents, brother, homeland (Canaan), uncle, God, and Haran. Our lives are also marked by times of separation. Share a time when you separated from a person, place, or thing and it made a big difference in your life.
2. Jacob spent 2 decades in Haran and, while there, it seems he was separated from God. Reflect on a time in your life where you felt separated from God. What was it like? What was the cause of separation? How did God make his way back into your life?
3. One of the most mysterious aspects of today’s focal passage (Gen 32:2-33:17) is the portion where a mysterious figure appears in the middle of the night and wrestles with Jacob. The Scriptures do not say who this is, which has left room for filling in the gaps. Some think it was a demon, others a good angel, and others Jacob wrestling with himself in a dream. Still, others think it might have been God. Some think it was Jesus. Pastor Michael suggested that it could have been Esau or, more likely, Isaac. A) Why did Pastor suggest it was Isaac? B) Who do you think it was and why?
4. The Word of the Week was “Berakhot,” which means “Blessing in Hebrew.” In Gen 27:26-34 we find Isaac’s original blessing of Jacob. Much of it seems to play out, albeit in an unexpected way, in today’s focal passage. A) What are some of the connections between Gen 27:26-34 and Gen 33:1-7? B) According to Pastor, why was Jacob wrestling for a blessing and, this time, what was he going to do with it?
5. This week’s Bottom Line was “When you’re the cause of a ruined relationship, do what you can to make it right.” A) How did Jacob do this? B) Have you ever had to do this? C) Is there a relationship in your life right now where this needs to happen?