Dan Knapp - June 14, 2026
Weakness is the way
Genesis 32 Jacob left Canaan with the sound of his lies echoing through their family, but his journey was interrupted by angels at Bethel. It has been a long, difficult twenty years since then, yet through it he has come to trust that God is with him. But now he faces his brother. Once again angels accompany him on the way before he returns. He’s a different man now. Esau was destined to serve Jacob (Genesis 25:23) but Jacob calls himself Esau’s ‘servant’. Unlike Abraham and Isaac who lied when in danger (Genesis 12 and 26), Jacob tells his people to be honest. Jacob prays humbly, aware that he deserves none of the kindness God gives him. Jacob wrestles a mysterious figure and speaks to him like God and confesses he saw God (Peniel means ‘Face of God’). In this match, God subdues him. Israel comes away limping, yet with a blessing and a sight of God. For more about Christ Central Church Portsmouth visit: https://christcentral.church Or via socials: www.facebook.com/christcentral.ch www.instagram.com/christcentralchurchportsmouth To connect with us email: hello@christcentral.church or give us your details at https://www.christcentral.church
From Series: "Genesis - God's people in God's plan"
The Bible has clear instructions in parts, but most of it is story. Stories of people messing up. Stories of people discovering God’s grace. Stories we can learn wisdom from. The middle bit of Genesis tells the story of three generations who discover what it means to be God’s people in God’s plan for his world. And they don’t always get it right. Their stories include: marriage problems, death and grief, parenting struggles, choosing a spouse, sexual immorality, deception, reproductive ethics, unjust employers, relationships that distort God’s design, the strength of friendship, birth, infertility, abuse, betrayal, forgiveness, aging, value of life from womb to tomb, loneliness, racism, politics, war, buying land, wealth management, and learning wisdom from all the ambiguity of ordinary life trying to trust God in a fallen world. We face many issues in life where we have to ask: What does it mean to be God’s people in this? What’s God’s plan for it?
