In Genesis 28-31, the transformation from Jacob the deceiver to Israel the overcomer is a lifelong journey and one that the book of Revelation underscores is essential for those who enter the Kingdom of Heaven.
Discover in this study of the Torah reading ויצא Vayetze how our entry into the kingdom of the Messiah calls for a lifetime journey from slavery to freedom.
The Torah reading וַיִּשְׁלַח Vayishlach (“and he sent,” Gen. 32:4-36:43) gives us an active example of what the apostle Paul calls the “ministry of reconciliation” (2Cor. 5:18).
What we see in Jacob and Esau is a profound message for us today, buried amongst sibling rivalry. We should strive to live at peace with everyone, but there still must be a division between the Kingdom of the Eternal and the Kingdom of the Temporary. God wants everyone to leave the Kingdom of the Temporary and join Him in the Kingdom of the Eternal, because the Kingdom of the Temporary will be destroyed on the Day of the LORD.
The LORD sends us into the world to be His ambassadors and part of the kingdom of priests. Will we go? Will we face challenges of our own making or ones that are out of our control?
Ya’akov had to flee his family because of how he deceived his father to obtain the blessing that was his in the first place and he meets with God at Bethel. From there, he becomes even more acquainted with deception at the hands of Laban, but as the victim, not the perpetrator. During this time, God humbled Ya’akov, brought his flesh low so he could live in the Spirit. It’s a pity that the descendants of his grandson Ephraim chose to live by his fleshly example rather than his spiritual example.