“When Jacob awoke from his sleep, he thought,
“Surely the Lord is in this place, and I was not aware of it.” He was afraid and said, “How awesome is
this place! This is none other than the house of God; this is the gate of heaven.”
[1]
Jacob’s
father had an experience with the Lord during the night at a thin place called
Beersheba. Jacob has his first
experience with the Lord during the night at a thin place he calls Bethel. The distance between the two places is about
150km. Looking at those facts, we could
conclude that Israel has a good deal of such places, and/or that the Lord is in
the Holy Land in a more profoundly felt way than He is in many other places. Those might not even be bad
conclusions - it is the "Holy Land" after all.
Yet this whole event would
not have taken place if not for what we read in 28:1, “Isaac called for Jacob and blessed him and commanded him: “Do not marry
a Canaanite woman. 2 Go at once to Paddan Aram, to the house of your
mother’s father Bethuel.” [2] In verse 10 we read how Jacob subsequently
left Beersheba and set out for Haran.
Jacob did not just happen to be at that spot when he dreamed of his famous ladder. He was on a journey. He had left home for the first time. He had headed out to a strange place he
hadn’t been before, and he had left in obedience to his father. Jacob was on a journey of faith. So it ought not to be a surprise that he
meets the Lord - journeys of faith often have a way of leading to Him.
In fact,
Isaac had blessed him in sending, saying, “May
God Almighty bless you and make you fruitful and increase your numbers until
you become a community of peoples. May he give you and your descendants the
blessing given to Abraham, so that you may take possession of the land where
you now live as an alien, the land God gave to Abraham.”[3]
Subsequently, God says, “I am the Lord,
the God of your father Abraham and the God of Isaac. I will give you and your
descendants the land on which you are lying. Your descendants will be like the dust
of the earth, and you will spread out to the west and to the east, to the north
and to the south. All peoples on earth will be blessed through you and your
offspring.” [4]
What we see
here is the Abrahamic blessing being handed down through the generations. Just as it was made new in revelation to his
son Isaac (Gen 26:3-4, 24), it was now being realized by Abraham’s grandson
Jacob. Those with Abraham’s faith, God
will bless with the inheritance of land and legacy, and they will spread across
the earth to bless all nations. As Don
Richardson says in Kairos, “Blessed to be a blessing”.
It is all so
natural to assume that the reason God has blessed us is because of - and solely
because of - His love for us. That’s
very true, but it’s not the complete story.
He blesses us that we might be a blessing to those around us, and even
those far apart from us. If we fail to recognize
that and live it out, we really have only recognized half the blessing.
Later, Jacob
would be renamed – just as his father was renamed. To Jacob would fall the awesome blessing of
being the embodiment of the nation of Israel. “Then Jacob made a vow, saying, “If God will be with me and will watch
over me on this journey I am taking and will give me food to eat and clothes to
wear 21 so that I return safely to my father’s house, then the Lord
will be my God and this stone that I have set up as a pillar will be
God’s house, and of all that you give me I will give you a tenth.” [5] Israel’s faith would be for God’s presence, God’s
protection, God’s provision, God’s providence, God’s possession, God’s place,
God’s preeminence, God predominant.
Jacob recognized
all of that without even knowing His Name.
What then shall we do, who do know His Name? Something to think about.
[1] The Holy Bible:
New International Version. (1984). (Ge 28:16–17). Grand Rapids, MI:
Zondervan.
[2] The Holy Bible:
New International Version. (1984). (Ge 28:1–2). Grand Rapids, MI:
Zondervan.
[3] The Holy Bible:
New International Version. (1984). (Ge 28:3–4). Grand Rapids, MI:
Zondervan.
[4]
The Holy Bible: New International Version.
(1984). (Ge 28:13–14). Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan.
[5]
The Holy Bible: New International Version.
(1984). (Ge 28:20–22). Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan.
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