Overcoming Challenges and Challengers

UV 1078/10,000 Overcoming Challenges and Challengers

For the LORD hath redeemed Jacob, and ransomed him from the hand of him that was stronger than he.


Jeremiah 31 v 11


Jacob was known to be a deceiver right from his early days. He was known as a heel catcher as he wanted to get ahead of his twin brother Esau. He had to run away from home and homeland as he feared retribution from Esau, his brother for stealing his birthright of blessing of their father Isaac. He could have perished in his wanderings in the wilderness. He had to live in dread and fear, constantly looking over his shoulder at any threat of a shadow. The shadow of death, defeat and failure was upon him. But he had a God encounter in the wilderness. He had a visitation of an angel of the Lord. By now he realized that it was not the blessings of the father that he needed but of God Almighty. Thus began a personal relationship with Jehovah. The Lord made way for him to prosper in the desert where no way existed.


When Jacob yielded to the suggestion of his mother Rebecca, he was actually yielding to the enemy of his soul. His soul had been enticed and ensnared by one who was stronger than him- satan. When his mother adviced the heel-catcher to take to his heels, he again yielded to his fear of death. Much later when Esau was advancing toward him, his family and his flock, Jacob was again seized with fear. But the Lord who had chosen to redeem him from all his fears and weaknesses, caused the antagonism in Esau’s heart to change to fraternal love at the sight of a long lost brother. The joy of Jacob’s heart was like that of someone redeemed, a person who has been freed from a long period of abduction. During the period of captivity, we were compelled to do what we did not want to do. The Lord restored our freedom of will, our ability to choose what is right, true, noble, good, perfect and beautiful.


The enemy of our soul is more subtle and strong than any of us. We need the grace of God to escape the net, the snares, the traps he sets for us on our journey. He is always devising ways to make us fall. He captures our thoughts and influences our motives. He is able to flit in and out of our minds to conceive evil desires and designs. He has many weapons in his armoury to abduct our spirits and minds, to enslave our bodies to habits. We are all subjected to such abduction at different points in our lives. Since we on our own free wills submit ourselves to the abduction of our spirits, we need to be ransomed or a price paid to set us free again. It is not a monetary price that is to be paid since money can never create life. It had to be a blood price since the wages of sin is death. God could not violate His own standards or compromise. He paid the highest price possible in sending His own son Jesus as the ransom. Now that we are redeemed, the enemy of our souls is no longer stronger than us. The Lord gives us the spirit of discernment and wisdom to avoid his suggestions or snares. He has given us power to trample on the heads of serpents and scorpions or the force of the enemy of our souls. We have overcome the guilt of the past as well as the fear of retribution and death. We have hope for the future. We are no longer a subject of fear, a slave but the scepter of Jacob, the power to rule has come into our lives and it remains with us forever. Like David we will overcome challenges and challengers who are stronger or much stronger than us. Our victim mentality is replaced by a victor mentality. Circumstances are the new type of circumcision that God uses to strip us of our innate or hidden sinfulness, to polish us and bring out the beauty of holiness and the focus of dedication and devotion, to shape our destiny.


Prateep V Philip