Do you have trouble receiving a gift of help or money or care from someone else? It may be more blessed to give than to receive, but if you rebuff someone’s gift, you are keeping them from experiencing that blessing. More than that, if you find it difficult to receive a gift, you might unknowingly be blocking yourself from fully receiving the free gift of God’s grace.
In this second part of the Jabbok River story, Jacob has difficulty receiving the fullness of Esau’s gift of grace, and the story has strong parallels to Jesus’ parable of the Prodigal Son. Be sure to watch Part I: The Emptying River from August 2 first.
Texts: Genesis 33:1-17 and Luke 15:11-32
Preached by the Rev. Anne Robertson at Crawford Memorial UMC on August 9, 2020