The Vine: September 16, 2026
Our fresh take on The Vine, a devotional based on the upcoming Sunday’s sermon. This is a tool for you to dive deep into specific verses of scripture and get acquainted with spiritual practices. This iteration of The Vine pairs perfectly with the pastors’ “First Glance Podcast.” The Vine: First Glance Podcast is when the pastors sit down to discuss the scripture for the upcoming sermon. It is a wonderful opportunity to prepare your mind and heart for the week ahead. We invite you to make this a part of your individual spiritual growth throughout the week.
“When her time to give birth was at hand, there were twins in her womb. The first came out red, all his body like a hairy mantle, so they named him Esau. Afterward his brother came out, with his hand gripping Esau’s heel, so he was named Jacob.”
Genesis 25:24-26
Before Jacob and Esau drew their first breath, they were already fighting. Isaac’s wife, Rebekah, felt the twins struggling inside her and cried out to God, “If it is to be this way, why do I even live?” God answered her: two nations are in your womb, and the older will serve the younger. The conflict was not an accident. God was already at work in the struggle — long before either of them knew it.
Jacob came into the world grabbing his twin brother’s heel. His very name means grabber, deceiver, or schemer. He lived up to it. He traded a bowl of lentil stew for Esau’s birthright. He disguised himself as his brother to steal their dying father’s blessing. He manipulated, cheated, and fled the consequences. By every measure, Jacob was not the kind of person anyone would build a nation on.
And yet God chose him. Not because of his character but despite it. Our God is not one who waits for us to clean ourselves up before he gets involved, but a God who steps into the mess and begins the long, patient work of making something holy out of something broken.
That work took a lifetime for Jacob. One night, alone at the Jabbok River, Jacob wrestled with God until dawn. God wounded his hip to get him to surrender. Jacob limped away from that night a changed man. Yet, he would walk with that limp for the rest of his life. Sometimes the very thing that slows us down is what God uses to reshape us.
The last image Scripture gives us of Jacob is as an old man, leaning on his staff, blessing his grandchildren and worshipping God. Hebrews 11:21 gently reminds us, “By faith Jacob, when dying, blessed each of the sons of Joseph, and worshiped, leaning on the top of his staff.” That staff had carried him through decades of running, wrestling, and waiting. And now, at the end, he was leaning on it not to grab anything—but to give everything away. The grabber had become a blesser.
In the movie The Lion King, Simba flees in shame after believing he caused his father’s death. He spends years in exile, trying to forget who he is. Then Rafiki holds up a reflection and says, “Look harder.” And Simba sees his father’s face looking back at him. The one he lost becomes the face of grace calling him home.
Jacob had his own moment like that. After 20 years of estrangement, he returned home expecting judgment from the brother he had wronged. Instead, Esau ran to him, embraced him, and wept. And Jacob said something extraordinary: “To see your face is like seeing the face of God.” (Genesis 33:10) The brother he had cheated and fled became the face of grace. In Esau’s forgiveness, Jacob saw God.
Jesus said, “Anyone who has seen me has seen the Father” (John 14:9). He is the ultimate face of God made visible. Jacob saw that face in the most unlikely place—in the brother he had wronged. Grace has a way of showing up where we least expect it—in the faces of those we least expect...and even in our own.
Spiritual Practice: The Examen
At the end of each day this week, sit quietly for five minutes and ask God two questions: Where did I see your face in another person today? Where did I reflect it? Let the answers be honest. Let them lead you to gratitude, or to prayer, or to a conversation you have been putting off.
One Thing: Look harder
Think of one person whose face you have been avoiding—someone you have wronged, or who has wronged you. Pray for them once each day this week. Ask God one question: “What would it look like to see your face in theirs?”
Questions for Consideration
Jacob was chosen by God before he was born—not because of his character but in spite of it. What does that tell you about how God sees you, especially in your most broken or shameful moments?
Jacob wrestled with God and walked away with a limp he carried for the rest of his life. What struggle in your own life might be the very thing God is using to reshape you?
Jacob said to Esau, “To see your face is like seeing the face of God.” Who in your life has shown you the face of God through grace or forgiveness? And is there someone waiting to see it in yours?
PREVIOUS WEEKS
To view all previous devotions go to https://fumc-rr.org/the-vine