Genesis 32:9 And Jacob said, O God of my father Abraham, and God of my father Isaac, the Lord which saidst unto me, Return unto thy country, and to thy kindred, and I will deal well with thee: 10 I am not worthy of the least of all the mercies, and of all the truth, which thou hast shewed unto thy servant; for with my staff I passed over this Jordan; and now I am become two bands. 11 Deliver me, I pray thee, from the hand of my brother, from the hand of Esau: for I fear him, lest he will come and smite me, and the mother with the children.
There are many promises God has made to the human family on condition of obedience, but theses promises are never to be viewed as entitlements or rights, but rather as blessings and privileges which God grants to us solely because of His kindness towards us in Christ Jesus. The practice that is often fostered and indulged by some Christians in demanding blessings in return for obedience should be avoided at all costs, for it constitutes one of the contemporary and false interpretations of scripture that have been disseminated by human agents who have been misled by erroneous teachings and concepts.
In the passage above, Jacob recalls the distinctive promise and command of God which was given prior to his departure to return to his native country, a journey which would obviously be fraught with grave perils, since there was an unresolved grudge between Esau and himself. But in obedience to the direct word of the Lord, who also promised him protection, Jacob packed up his belongings and headed home. Let's read:
Genesis 31:3 And the Lord said unto Jacob, Return unto the land of thy fathers, and to thy kindred; and I will be with thee.
Genesis 32:1 And Jacob went on his way, and the angels of God met him. 2 And when Jacob saw them, he said, This is God's host: and he called the name of that place Mahanaim.
However, Jacob never viewed the promises of God as an entitlement nor as a right, for as stated before, the blessings God promises to the faithful and obedient are given as privileges and should therefore be viewed as such. That's why in his appeal to God, Jacob does not approach the throne of grace with an attitude of demanding that God fulfill His word, but he rather refers to his own unworthiness of the promised blessings. Hence the reason why he says he is not worthy of the least of the mercies of God, which included protection from his foes. When we come before God with this attitude, He always inclines His ears to the prayers and supplications of His people, for they are made in the spirit of humility, instead of rights that must be granted.
The disposition to view the temporal and spiritual blessings of God as entitlements is what drove the Pharisee who prayed with himself, to exalt to high heaven his supposedly good deeds, which he considered as being meritorious in and of themselves. This attitude then caused him to look down upon others as being less favored of God, and the more he indulged and rehearsed his own righteousness, the more vile other sinners seemed in his sight. The publican on the other hand did not harbor this view, but felt that he was not even worthy to come into the presence of God, and so he stood afar off, and smote upon his breast saying, God be merciful to me a sinner. The results of the two prayers and the accompanying attitudes are before us, so that we may reason from cause to effect with an understanding heart and a teachable spirit. Let's read:
Luke 18:9 And he spake this parable unto certain which trusted in themselves that they were righteous, and despised others: 10 Two men went up into the temple to pray; the one a Pharisee, and the other a publican. 11 The Pharisee stood and prayed thus with himself, God, I thank thee, that I am not as other men are, extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even as this publican. 12 I fast twice in the week, I give tithes of all that I possess. 13 And the publican, standing afar off, would not lift up so much as his eyes unto heaven, but smote upon his breast, saying, God be merciful to me a sinner. 14 I tell you, this man went down to his house justified rather than the other.
In our day and in our own experiences, we should always harbor a humble spirit before God, who blesses us daily with the good things in life, and sends His angels to guide and protect us as we go on our way. These mercies of God are not rights, but privileges and blessings He grants to us, because He takes delight in being kind to all people. The good news is that if for any reason we have previously harbored erroneous concepts of God's promises and blessings, He is still there to heal and to save, for the plan of salvation is a restorative process that runs the gamut of all our earthly experiences. Peter was also found to be harboring similar views like the pharisee, yet God instructed and corrected his ideas, so that later on in life, he was enabled to manifest that true humility which comes as a result of God's work within our hearts.
We therefore end with a passage of scripture which encourages us to walk humbly with God in all things, for His matchless love towards us in Christ Jesus is not what we deserve, but rather what He grants to us as a gift. Let's read:
Micah 6:8 He hath shewed thee, O man, what is good; and what doth the Lord require of thee, but to do justly, and to love mercy, and to walk humbly with thy God?
May God add His blessing to the study and practice of His word. "Good night" and God bless!