阅读经文 

对我们每个人来说，最难的一件事就是承认自己的错误。我们更容易告诉自己，生活中的问题来自外界，即我们周遭的人和环境。当然，我们不完美——但有谁完美呢？所以我们就对自己隐藏我们的罪。

雅各已经变得很善于隐藏了。他一生都是个计谋家，他知道如何操纵别人来达到自己的目的。但最后，在这场奇特的摔跤比赛中，神强迫雅各认识到他是谁。

在圣经中，名字是件大事。名字意味着一个人的身份和性格。“雅各”这个名字意思是“骗子”。（参创 25:26）在这个故事中，雅各不得不向自己和神承认，“没错，这就是我”。

你是谁？神也这样问我们每个人——不是因为祂想为难我们，而是因为祂想要救赎我们。当我们来到神面前，承认自己的罪，以及我们需要神的恩典，祂会在基督里赐给我们一个新的身份。 雅各在摔跤时受了伤，但是，神给我们留下伤口，总是为着我们的益处。自从那天起，雅各开始以一个新的身份生活，一个蒙恩的身份。

愿我们也是如此。

One of the hardest things for any of us to do is to admit our faults. It's much easier to tell ourselves that life's problems come from outside, from the people or circumstances around us. Sure, we're not perfect——but who is? So we hide our sins from ourselves. 

Jacob had become very good at hiding. Throughout his life, he had been a schemer. He knew how to manipulate people to get his way. But finally, in this strange wrestling match, God forced Jacob to recognize who he was. 

In the Bible, names are a big deal. A name says something about a person's identity and character. The name Jacob means "deceiver" (see Genesis 25:26). And in this story Jacob has to admit to himself and God, "Yes, that is who I am." 

Who are you? God asks the same question of each of us——not because he wants to embarrass us, but because he longs to redeem us. When we come to God, when we admit our sin and our need for God's grace, God gives us a new identity in Christ. 

Jacob may have walked away from his wrestling match with a wound, but when God does the wounding, it is always for our good. And from that day onward, Jacob began to live with a new identity, one given by grace. 

May we do the same.