“And Jacob was left alone; and there wrestled a man with him until the breaking of the day” (Gen 32:24).
To be left alone. No one else in the world in sight. No one to talk to. Nothing but pain. This was the miserable lot of the man who spent almost a year in the maternity ward as a patient. His injuries were so severe, that he had to be in strict isolation, for fear of massive infection that could result if he was not strictly isolated from all others. When a person who has massive areas of their skin burned, they will lose a lot of Plasma which contains the protein needed for healing and recovery. Many burn victims die because of this acute loss of blood plasma. And this would leave them extremely open to infection.
All those months I was in that maternity ward, I learned what it was to feel truly alone. They had to put me in there because it was a small town hospital, and it was the only “room” they had where the strict isolation protocols could be diligently adhered to. Being so alone there, all those months, saved my life.
Even today, those words “Left alone” conjure up the temptation to cringe and panic a little within myself. What different sensations those words will produce to each of us. To some they spell loneliness and desolation, yet I have met others to whom it means rest and quiet. To be left alone without God, would be too awful for words, but to be left alone WITH GOD is a foretaste of Heaven! If we, His followers spent more time alone with Him, we would see much more of spiritual giants in this our day and age.
Jesus has set us an example. Note how often He went to be alone with God; and how He had a mighty purpose behind the command,
“When thou prayest, enter into thy closet, and when thou hast shut thy door, pray.” (Mat 6:6)
The greatest miracles of Elijah and Elisha took place when they were alone with God. It was alone with God that Jacob became a prince; and just there that we, too, may become “sons and daughters of God, (John 1:12) to be “wondered at” (Zech 3:8).
“thou, and thy fellows that sit before thee: for they are men wondered at” (Zech 3:8)
Joshua was alone when the Lord came to him. (Joshua 1:1) Gideon and Jephthah were by themselves when commissioned to save Israel. (Judges 6:11; Judges 11:29) Moses was by himself at the wilderness bush. (Exodus 3:1-5) Cornelius was praying by himself when the angel came to him. (Acts 10:2) No one was with Peter on the house top, when he was instructed to go to the Gentiles. (Acts 10:9) John the Baptist was alone in the wilderness (Luke 1:80), and John the Beloved alone in Patmos, when nearest God. (Rev 1:9)
The developing situation had become serious. Servants had returned with the tidings that Esau was approaching with four hundred men. No response was sent to the friendly message. It appeared certain that Esau was coming to seek revenge. Terror pervaded the camp.
“Jacob was greatly afraid and distressed.” (Gen 32:7)
Jacob could not go back, and he feared to advance. His company, unarmed and defenseless, were wholly unprepared for a hostile encounter. He accordingly divided them into two bands, so that if one should be attacked, the other might have an opportunity to escape. Jacob sent from his vast flocks generous presents to Esau, with a friendly message. He did all in his power to atone for the wrong to his brother and to avert the threatened danger, and then in humiliation and repentance he pleaded for divine protection:
Thou “saidst unto me, Return unto thy country, and to thy kindred, and I will deal well with thee: I am not worthy of the least of all the mercies, and of all the truth, which Thou hast showed unto Thy servant; for with my staff I passed over this Jordan; and now I am become two bands. Deliver me, I pray Thee, from the hand of my brother, from the hand of Esau: for I fear him, lest he will come and smite me, and the mother with the children.” {PP 196.1}
They had now reached the river Jabbok, and as night came on, Jacob sent his family across the ford of the river, while he alone remained behind. He had decided to spend the night in prayer, and he desired to be alone with God. God could soften the heart of Esau. In Him was the patriarch’s only hope.{PP 196.2}
It was in a lonely, mountainous region, the haunt of wild beasts and the lurking place of robbers and murderers. Solitary and unprotected, Jacob bowed in deep distress upon the earth. It was midnight. All that made life dear to him were at a distance, exposed to danger and death. Bitterest of all was the thought that it was his own sin which had brought this peril upon the innocent. With earnest cries and tears he made his prayer before God. Suddenly a strong hand was laid upon him. He thought that an enemy was seeking his life, and he endeavored to wrest himself from the grasp of his assailant. In the darkness the two struggled for the mastery. Not a word was spoken, but Jacob put forth all his strength, and did not relax his efforts for a moment. While he was thus battling for his life, the sense of his guilt pressed upon his soul; his sins rose up before him, to shut him out from God.
But in his terrible extremity he remembered God’s promises, and his whole heart went out in entreaty for His mercy. The struggle continued until near the break of day, when the stranger placed his finger upon Jacob’s thigh, and he was crippled instantly. The patriarch now discerned the character of his antagonist. He knew that he had been in conflict with a heavenly messenger, and this was why his almost superhuman effort had not gained the victory. It was Christ, “the Angel of the covenant,” who had revealed Himself to Jacob. The patriarch was now disabled and suffering the keenest pain, but he would not loosen his hold. All penitent and broken, he clung to the Angel; “he wept, and made supplication” (Hosea 12:4), pleading for a blessing. He must have the assurance that his sin was pardoned. Physical pain was not sufficient to divert his mind from this object.
His determination grew stronger, his faith more earnest and persevering, until the very last. The Angel tried to release Himself; He urged, “Let Me go, for the day breaketh;” but Jacob answered, “I will not let Thee go, except Thou bless me.” Had this been a boastful, presumptuous confidence, Jacob would have been instantly destroyed; but his was the assurance of one who confesses his own unworthiness, yet trusts the faithfulness of a covenant-keeping God.{PP 196.3}
Long to be alone with God. If we neglect it, we not only rob ourselves, but others too, of the special blessing of prayer, since when we are blessed we are able to pass on blessing to others. It may of course mean less outside work. Yet the time alone with God will be sure to render more depth and power. The consequence, will be that “they saw no man save Jesus alone.” (Mat 17:8, Mark 9:8) The need to be alone with God in prayer cannot be over-emphasized. “Come ye yourselves apart into a desert place, and rest a while:” (Mark 6:31)
Jacob “had power over the Angel, and prevailed.” Hos_12:4. Through humiliation, repentance, and self-surrender, this sinful, erring mortal prevailed with the Majesty of heaven. He had fastened his trembling grasp upon the promises of God, and the heart of Infinite Love could not turn away the sinner’s plea. {PP 197.1}
The error that had led to Jacob’s sin in obtaining the birthright by fraud was now clearly set before him. He had not trusted God’s promises, but had sought by his own efforts to bring about that which God would have accomplished in His own time and way. As an evidence that he had been forgiven, his name was changed from one that was a reminder of his sin, to one that commemorated his victory. “Thy name,” said the Angel, “shall be called no more Jacob [the supplanter], but Israel: for as a prince hast thou power with God and with men, and hast prevailed.” {PP 197.2}
Jacob had received the blessing for which his soul had longed. His sin as a supplanter and deceiver had been pardoned. The crisis in his life was past. Doubt, perplexity, and remorse had embittered his existence, but now all was changed; and sweet was the peace of reconciliation with God. Jacob no longer feared to meet his brother. God, who had forgiven his sin, could move the heart of Esau also to accept his humiliation and repentance. {PP 198.1}
That guy in the maternity ward as a patient for all those months. He is like a brand scorched and charred with the burning. But he has been literally plucked out of the consuming flame. Surely then you too are being kept, in your aloneness and pain and disappointment for some high and useful purpose?
Something like Jacob after that entire night of wrestling, all the past is simply our argument for faith. That God has done so much is His pledge that He will perfect that which concerneth us, (Psalms 138:8) because His mercy endureth forever. (Psalms 100:5). Whoever He justifies, He also glorifies. Let us, regardless of circumstance be content with nothing short of God’s best. The key to spiritual growth and personal fulfillment is always going to be that we should honor God and center our desires on him, and His express will. (Mat 6:33), and that we should be content with what God is doing in our lives (Phil 4:11-13).
“godliness with contentment is great gain.” (1 Tim 6:6)
PS That guy who spent all those months as a patient on the maternity ward wrote a poem about how Jesus gave him the example of being alone, in stark midnight of wrestling and anguish: The Garden Alone
Like Jacob, like Jesus, like the man who was a patient on the maternity ward, and like so many others, it is now recognized in the form of testimony (1 John 1:1-3) how that
“on the darkest, longest night, it is enough to find love…”
Who shall separate us from the love of Christ (Rom 8:35)
And to know the love of Christ, which passeth knowledge, that ye might be filled with all the fulness of God. (Eph 3:19)
When depression settles upon the soul, it is no evidence that God has changed. He is “the same yesterday, and today, and forever.” You are sure of the favor of God when you are sensible of the beams of the Sun of righteousness; but if the clouds sweep over your soul, you must not feel that you are forsaken. Your faith must pierce the gloom. Your eye must be single, and your whole body shall be full of light. The riches of the grace of Christ must be kept before the mind. Treasure up the lessons that His love provides. Let your faith be like Job’s, that you may declare, “Though He slay me, yet will I trust in Him.” Lay hold on the promises of your heavenly Father, and remember His former dealing with you and with His servants; for “all things work together for good to them that love God.” –RH, Jan 24, 1888. {2MCP 496.1}
God’s love is total, says Paul. It reaches every corner of our experience. It is wide—it covers the breadth of our own experience, and it reaches out to the whole world. God’s love is long—it continues the length of our lives. It is high—it rises to the heights of our celebration and elation. His love is deep—it reaches to the depths of discouragement, despair, and even death. When you feel shut out or isolated, remember that you can never be lost to God’s love. For another prayer about God’s immeasurable and inexhaustible love, see Paul’s words in Rom 8:38-39.
Find THIS LOVE in your night.
Amen, come soon Lord Jesus.