Have you ever been suddenly awakened around 3 am and found yourself wrestling with dark thoughts and fears? Did you feel a sense of helplessness? This time period between 3-6 am was defined by the Romans as the fourth watch of the night. It is a time usually reserved for sleep, but there are battles in the night that make sleep an impossibility. When awakened in the fourth watch, we are keenly aware of our vulnerability, and prayer often becomes a plea for help.
Jacob wrestled with God during this time period, having been told that his brother Esau was coming to meet him with 400 men. Esau had had a grudge against Jacob and had determined in his heart to kill him. Jacob felt his vulnerability: Esau had his 400 men; Jacob had his wives, children and livestock. What did Jacob do? He wrestled until daybreak. In the morning his name was changed from Jacob to Israel because he had struggled with both God and man and had prevailed.
It was dark when the Israelites looked up and saw Pharaoh, his troops and 600 of Pharaoh’s best chariots bearing down on them. Yes, they had left Egypt triumphantly, but now in the dark they were trapped by the sea and they were terrified! But the God who led them out of Egypt was also the Lord of the wind, the waves and the sea. The answer to the vulnerability of the Israelites was the power of the Almighty God. He drove the sea back with a powerful east wind all night. God’s people went through the sea on dry ground. The Lord had promised to fight their battles and He did. The enemy, however, was overthrown into the sea.
Jesus had instructed His disciples to go ahead of Him to Bethsaida. “When evening came, the boat was in the middle of the sea, and He was alone on land. He saw them being battered as they rowed, because the wind was against them. Around three in morning He came towards them walking on the sea and wanted to pass by them” (Mark 6:47-48). Wait! He saw them in the middle of the sea being battered by the wind and He wanted to pass by them?! Why?
What happened when Jacob wrestled all night with the angel? He was given a new name. But from then on he walked with a limp so that at the end of his life he worshiped while leaning on a staff, a reminder that he was dependent on something more than his own strength. His night of wrestling with the Lord showed him his relationship to an Almighty God. For the children of Israel, it was in the night that God showed His power to save. It was Jesus who led His disciples into the boat. In the boat at night their faith was tested.
My faith is often tested in the night. When all I can see is my vulnerability, do I really believe in an Almighty God? But it’s in the night, when my vulnerability is exposed, that I encounter Jesus who can walk on water. And by faith I hear Him say, “Have courage! It is I. Don’t be afraid.” This is what happens in the fourth watch of the night.
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