From One Degree to Another

Why does God lift Jacob into preeminence after he wrestles God to retain his ill-gotten blessing—and wins? Peter experiences similar preeminence in the New Covenant. Only these two in Scripture receive complete name changes (Abraham/Sarah, partial). Jacob doesn’t become someone who “is chosen or loved by God,” but “wrestles with God.” And why the common theme of “rocks”? All coincidence? Absolutely not—this is a game-changer.



As Gorsuch explores the deeper mysteries of faith and how the divine and human spirit (not mind) grow in their interactive capacity (perichoresis), from one degree to another, these stories, Jesus’s most difficult sayings, and the prodigal son explode with new meaning, bringing greater coherence to the Scriptures. A relational ontology also begins to emerge, expanding our conventional understanding of morality and metaphysics. The “rock” is that aspect of experience when the Eternal holistically (pre-cognitively) co-conditions the interaction before time (fides directa), so what Jacob, Peter, and all humanity do in genuine faith (knowingly or anonymously) integrates into God’s providential creating of time. This understanding of faith begins to unlock the mysteries of human freedom and divine providence, the problem of evil, and how the Trinity moves redemptively both inside and outside Christianity.