Note: Devotion taken from Sunday sermon on February 16, 2025.
“I am not worthy of
the least of all the mercies, and of all the truth, which thou hast shewed unto
thy servant” (Genesis 32:10a).
The old adage is that
there are no atheists in foxholes. In times of deepest distress men often turn
to the LORD in prayer, even if it is a prayer of desperation.
In Genesis 32, as
Jacob faces the prospects of being met with hostility by his estranged brother
Esau, he offers a prayer of deliverance.
The prayer begins in
v. 9 as the addresses God: “O God of my father Abraham, and God of my father
Isaac, the LORD….” He recalls that it was the LORD who sent him on this journey
(cf. 31:3. 13b), with this promise, “and I will deal well with thee” (v. 9b).
In v. 10 we hear what
might be a highpoint of Jacob’s spirituality, as he expresses humility,
lowliness, and offers a declaration of his unworthiness before a sovereign God:
“I am not worthy of the least of all mercies, and of all truth, which thou hast
shewed thy servant…” (v. 10a).
There is an
evangelical spirit in these words. It recalls Christ’s parable of the Pharisee
and the publican, with the tax collector unwilling so much as to lift his eyes
to heaven, smiting his breast, and saying, “God
be merciful to me a sinner” (Luke 18:13). The apostle James likewise exhorted,
“Be afflicted, and mourn, and weep: let your laughter be turned to mourning,
and your joy to heaviness. Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord, and he
shall lift you up” (James 4:9-10).
It is
only after his humiliation that Jacob petitions, “Deliver me, I pray thee, from
the hand of my brother….” (Genesis 32:11).
Jacob
offers us a model of sincere prayer, which begins with lowliness and
contrition. We are not worthy of the Lord’s mercy and truth, and yet he extends
these to us, and he hears and answers our prayers.
Grace
and peace, Pastor Jeff Riddle
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