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\xa0And the Lord said, \u201cNow get up and cross the Zered Valley.\u201d So we crossed the valley. Thirty-eight years passed from the time we left Kadesh Barnea until we crossed the Zered Valley. By then, that entire generation of fighting men had perished from the camp, as the Lord had sworn to them. The Lord\u2019s hand was against them until he had completely eliminated them from the camp. Now when the last of these fighting men among the people had died, the Lord said to me, \u201cToday you are to pass by the region of Moab at Ar. \xa0(Deuteronomy 2:13-18)

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In the land of Esau, the land south of the Zered Valley, the last of Jacob\u2019s unfaithful descendants die.\xa0 Does the text mean to recall more through this geographical point of interest?\xa0 I think it does.

If you recall from the story in Genesis 32-33, Jacob is filled with \u201cgreat fear and distress\u201d (Gen. 32:7) at the prospect of meeting his brother Esau again after so many years in exile with his uncle Laban.\xa0 Jacob wrestles, alone, all that night with a man who he later understands to have been God.\xa0 In some way, this is a story of Jacob\u2019s fear wrestling with a God who proves to be for Jacob, not against him.\xa0 Jacob had a hard time believing that God really could be faithful to his promise of establishing Jacob in the promised land, given the frightful prospect of Esau and his 400 men.\xa0 And so, Jacob\u2019s fear wrestles against the promise of God \u2018til daybreak where he is given the name \u201cIsrael,\u201d the \u201cone who wrestles with God.\u201d\xa0 As it turns out, Jacob\u2019s desire for blessing proves stronger than his fear.\xa0 He survives the encounter and lives, though not without a God-induced limp to humble him and remind him that he always lives by God\u2019s saving, and not his own.\xa0

Our present story in Deuteronomy is similar.\xa0 It is in the land of Esau, south of the Zered Valley, where Israel once again becomes Israel.\xa0 For a 38-year-long night their fears have caused them to disbelievingly wrestle with God\u2019s promises.\xa0 At the end of this long night: their desire for blessing wins out and they are still alive, but not without a significant limp.\xa0 All the fearful fighting men have died and Israel is reminded that they live by God\u2019s promises, God\u2019s provision, and God\u2019s saving\u2014not their own.\xa0

It\u2019s worth noting that this is the first Holy War described in the book of Deuteronomy.\xa0 \u201cThe Lord\u2019s hand was against them until he had completely eliminated them.\u201d\xa0 This language is the same as in other God-directed military campaigns that Israel will undertake.\xa0 It is important to remember, therefore, that the first Holy War is not against the enemies of Israel, but is waged within Israel itself.\xa0 Fear had to die out of the camp before Israel could trustingly receive the promise of God\u2019s victory.\xa0

The promise given to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob could only be received by a people of Abraham\u2019s faith, who were willing to go on nothing more than the word of God, trusting that whatever was needful would be given by God.\xa0 Or perhaps more accurately: a people of Jacob\u2019s limping faith, that through wrestling with fear and doubt would have to discover again and again that God\u2019s blessing was worth pursuing, that God was faithful to his promise, and that anyway: God was the only hope for salvation they had.

The language of fear vs. faith and fear vs. love will show up again and again in the Bible.\xa0 It is at the heart of the account of Saul vs. David that we\u2019ve just finished off.\xa0 Read 1 Samuel 18\u2014the passage is just dripping with the contrast between the fear encircling Saul and the love buoying up David in the promises of God.\xa0 Or again in the New Testament, go back to the passages cited by Pastor Michael yesterday like that from 1 John 4: \u201cThere is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear\u2026\u201d

This dynamic shows up in our own hearts still today.\xa0 So take time to examine: what fears in your heart cause you to wrestle with the promises of God rather than receive them?\xa0 We tritely and simply accuse others we disagree with these days of being \u201cfearful,\u201d particularly when it comes to the culture war battles being fought within the church.\xa0 The accusation may very well be correct.\xa0 But remember: the first holy war is fought within\u2014not without.\xa0 Before we can go crusading against the world\u2014we have to wrestle through the fears of our own hearts.\xa0 Having done so, we may just find that there\u2019s actually no battle to be fought at all on the other side\u2026 just gifts to be trustingly received from the God of promise and blessing who saves us still.

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