Jacob had a calling on his life but he had to overcome a notable character flaw, he was a manipulator. Jacob’s name means “supplanter” which is a usurper: one who wrongfully or illegally seizes and holds the place of another. Simply, he was a manipulator. If you stop and think about it, Jacob’s name describes the soul before its redemption. Jacob’s life was one of self-preservation. He had a major calling on his life but believed Our Heavenly Father was not powerful enough to bring it to pass so Jacob needed to manipulate others to achieve his calling… a definite character flaw.
Jacob met his match when he sought to marry Rachel (Genesis 29). Laban beat Jacob at his own game of manipulation thus it took 21 years for Jacob to finally be rid of Laban’s manipulation, but not until Laban had substantially gained much from Jacob in terms of labor. Jacob received what he planted- manipulation.
It wasn’t until Jacob wrestled with GOD (‘elohiym) that his soul was redeemed from the self-preservation flaw. He had to come face to face with ‘elohiym before he would change. This expression of GOD was the angel Peniel which means Face of GOD. This was just prior to him meeting up with his brother Esau, the recipient of Jacob’s manipulative efforts. Jacob had feared that Esau would kill him because of his deception toward their father when he was pronouncing Esau’s blessing mistakenly on Jacob. In the end, Esau forgave Jacob and spared his life, their relationship was restored. Jacob was redeemed from his character flaw and thus Our Heavenly Father changed his name to Israel- the Prince of GOD.
Once we finally come face to face with Our Heavenly Father, our soul has come to the realization of its divine nature. Are we not made in HIS image and likeness? Does not the mature son reflect the attributes of his Father? Isn’t it Our Heavenly Father’s plan for us to be HIS expression on earth?
Romans 12:2 And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God.
The question each of us must resolve is this: Is the fullness of the power of The Holy Spirit resident within us just as it was in Jesus as He walked the earth for the 3 1/2 years of His ministry (prior to Pentecost)? If we truly believe this to be the case, then the second question that demands an answer is this: What is preventing us from accessing this power and authority? It is clear to me that something must change in me.
Psalm 49:15
But God will redeem my soul from the power of the grave,
For He shall receive me. Selah
I am determined to be transformed by the renewing of my mind, not only to comprehend and prove what is good and acceptable, but what is the perfect will of GOD. As I walk out Love (the bond of perfection) as HIS expression towards mankind, I replace the acts of self-preservation with acts where I lay down my life for all of mankind. As I sow acts of Love toward men, I will reap acts of Love. Jacob sowed acts of manipulation and in turn was manipulated by men. He did get what he deserved. This is why Jesus said that we should forgive that we be forgiven:
Matthew 6:15 But if you do not forgive men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses.
This is an expression of the “Law of Victim’s rights”. Our Heavenly Father is bound by HIS righteousness to carry out the Law of Victim’s rights. The scales of equal weights and measures demands that there be a restitution for our lawless behavior toward our fellow man. When we pay restitution or are forgiven our debt, we have in essence rebalanced the scales. When we forgive others of their debts to us, we remove a judgment against them. They are no longer required to pay for their misdeed. “Forgive us as we forgive” removes the need for much righteous judgment from the docket. As Love prevails, forgiveness will spread among the people. The result will be peace. As peace breaks out among the people, wars will cease. Instead of seeking how to extract resources of others, mankind will be able to tap into the abundance of Heaven where there is no limit to the resources available to sustain life. A transition is coming!