Jacob named the place Peniel (which means “face of God”), for he said, “I have seen God face to face, yet my life has been spared. Genesis 32:30 (NLT)
Jacob was anything but perfect. He was a cheater, a deceiver, a swindler, and a man determined to get his way. For years, he referred to God as ‘the God of his ancestors, Abraham and Isaac.’ It wasn’t until he wrestled with Him at Peniel that Elohim became his God. Because he encountered God personally.
It makes me scratch my head and wonder why God would choose a person like Jacob to be a part of the trinity of patriarchs.
Madeleine L’Engle addresses this in her book, A Stone For A Pillow: Journeys with Jacob. “The glorious message of Scripture is that we do not have to be perfect for our Maker to love us. All through the great stories, heavenly love is lavished on visibly imperfect people… God loves us in our complex isness, and when we get stuck on the image of the totally virtuous and morally perfect person we will never be, we are unable to accept this unqualified love, or to love other people in their rich complexity. If God can love Jacob – or any single one of us – as we really are, then it is possible for us to turn in love to those who hurt or confuse us… And that makes me take a new look at love.”
Jacob’s story gives me hope. Why would He choose me with all my faults and flaws? But that is not how grace works. Grace is undeserved favor. And that grace has spilled over me, rendering me lovable and worthy in His sight. My imperfections are covered by His blood.
Fully known, yet fully loved. This is the gospel of grace.