Churchill Paraphrased

Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see. This is what the ancients were commended for. . . . By faith Jacob, when he was dying, blessed each of Joseph’s sons as he leaned on the top of his staff.

Hebrews 11:1-2, 21

In the dark days of World War II, when Britain stood alone against the seemingly unstoppable Nazi war machine, Prime Minister Winston Churchill rejected the advice of some who said it was time to surrender. “We shall defend our island, whatever the cost may be; we shall fight on the beaches; we shall fight on the landing grounds; we shall fight in the fields and in the streets; we shall fight in the hills; we shall never surrender.”

The patriarch Jacob is one of the most intriguing characters in the Bible. Interestingly, the name Jacob in Hebrew means "contender" or "striver." Early in his life, Jacob shared Churchill’s pugnacity and persistence, particularly in his relationship with God. Despite his many ethical and personal lapses, Jacob clung stubbornly to the God of his father Abraham and His promises. In Genesis 32, Jacob wrestled with God, vowing not to let go until God blessed him. And as a result, God gave Jacob a new name, Israel, which means Prince with God.

Did Jacob earn or deserve this privilege? Probably not. At least not on the basis of his behavior. Did Jacob compel God to bless him? Certainly not! If anything, his outrageous behavior would seem to disqualify Jacob from any blessings God might be giving. Out of his goodness and grace God chose to bless Jacob. For his part, Jacob merely believed that on the night he wrestled with a stranger on the banks of the Jabbok River, he was wrestling with God.

Jacob’s persistence, however, was not consistent. As he grew older, the dramatic moments of his youth faded into the background, replaced by the incessant squabbling of his children. Only Joseph inherited Jacob’s eye of faith to see God’s larger purposes for the descendants of Abraham and Isaac. Yet at the end of his life, Jacob gets a reprieve. At Joseph’s direction, Jacob’s sons took him to Egypt, where he was reunited with Joseph; at long last, the man named “Prince with God” blesses the sons of a prince of Egypt and counts them as his own heirs.

Jacob’s story reminds us that some people start life strongly, only to struggle down the home stretch. They succeed at first with apparent ease, but it later falls apart. Too soon they give up or give in. The pugnacious and persistent faith of youth, later in life, grows distant. Like Jacob, they limp toward the finish line, leaning on the faith of others to carry them home.

For those who start strongly but later in life struggle for meaning and purpose, Jacob’s story has good news: the point is not that we give up, but that God doesn’t. The God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob allows nothing to thwart His promises for His people; not even the inconsistency of Jacob or the cruelty of Joseph’s brothers. God preserved his promise to Abraham by preserving Jacob’s family. A God of faithfulness that fierce could not possibly allow anything to thwart His plans and purposes for our lives.