Genesis 32:1 Jacob also went on his way, and the angels of God met him.
Jacob is a man in transition.
God is developing Jacob to become the leader of His people.
The process is long and takes work. Jacob finds himself cheated, just as he cheated his father when he stole Esau’s birthright.
Jacob faces his failures for others by going through similar situations against himself. He sees and feels what it felt like when he cheated and lied. Yet, in this transition, God sent His angels on his path to meet him.
Jacob is scared for his future.
God had spoken to Jacob and told him to return to his homeland.
Jacob remembered the hatred and strength of his brother Esau. Even though God had blessed Jacob over the years and had provided wealth, he still feared Esau. This fear Jacob had excelled to the point that he planned to send ahead of himself all that God had blessed him with to meet Esau instead of going first. This fear must have excelled over the nights of travel until God meets with Jacob alone. Still, in Jacobs’s fear and lack of faith in God, God sent His angels to meet with Jacob on the way back home.
God’s Angels
We are not told if God’s angels were supernatural so that Jacob would recognize them as from God. I believe they could have been real angels in human form coming across Jacob and sharing words of hope in God. They also might have been people led by God to speak words of faith and hope to Jacob that God had given them to say.
The path is as important as the destination.
God is interested in your growth and maturity as a Christian, father, mother, worker, counselor, student, child, and friend. There will be times of stress as you walk the road of transformation in your life. You will learn of God’s goodness and faithfulness but also deal with weaknesses in your own life that God is in the process of changing. As I read this scripture that I don’t remember reading before, of God sending His angels to Jacob on his way, I believe God has also sent me angels on my path in life.
Look out for angels.
Are you on a fearful path where you seem to be running toward a frightening future even though you know God has called you to go? Do you struggle with fear? Remember, God is invested in your maturing, but change is difficult, and the fear is real. You can be sure God is sending angels your way to encourage you. He is leading you to the time of a dramatic transformation, just as Jacob wrestled with God and his name was changed to Israel. Who knows, you just might meet an angel today!
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