An Undeserved Promise

 “Behold, I am with you and will keep you wherever you go, and will bring you back to this land. For I will not leave you until I have done what I have promised you.”

(Genesis 28:15 ESV)

The passage above is a promise of God, given to Jacob. It’s a promise of God given to a man whose very name means “he cheats.” It means “supplanter.” And it refers to one who overreaches.

He was given this name because, as he was born, he was grasping the heel of his twin brother. It seemed to his parents that he was grasping for that which rightfully belonged to his brother. It seemed to them that he was grasping for that which was not his.

Not only was this their perception, and not only was this his name, it’s also something we see in his character. We learn that he took advantage of his brother to gain his birthright. And he later went along with a scheme of his mother to gain his father’s blessing.

Now, in one sense, it’s commendable that he sought God’s blessing. And it was, in fact, God’s will that Jacob would receive it. But the way he went about it was far from noble.

Yet, even though this is true, God spoke these words to Jacob. As he fled his brother’s hatred and threats, God spoke to him these words. He received this promise of God, of which he was completely undeserving.

And that’s exactly the point. He in no way deserved the promise of God. He in no way deserved the blessing of God. It was given to him by grace.

This is reassuring to us. It’s reassuring because, like Jacob, we seek God’s blessings in all the wrong ways. Rather than trusting in God, we seek to gain them for ourselves. We rely on our own wisdom and efforts, no matter how sinful they might be, to gain what we desire.

But even though this is true, even though we are sinners undeserving of God’s blessing, he’s given to us his promise. And he’s done everything necessary to ensure our blessing. He’s done everything necessary to make it possible.

He sent Jesus into the world, who atoned for our sin by his death on the cross. And because of him, God’s blessing has been made available for us. It’s been provided for us.

Like Jacob, we need only to trust in the Lord. We need only to trust in his work. We need only to trust in his promise.

God, after all, is faithful. As he assured Jacob, he will not leave us until he’s done what he promised us. He will be with us until his promises are fulfilled.