Not Alone God reveals His purpose to those He chooses, giving them purpose in the process.

Transcription

1 Session 2 > Genesis 28:10-22 Not Alone God reveals His purpose to those He chooses, giving them purpose in the process. As a college professor, I spend a lot of time with young adults. Students come to our school in South Carolina from many different states and countries, and I often get to talk with various ones about their dreams and plans. It excites me to meet students who yearn to know God more intimately and discover His plans for their lives. Many incoming college students struggle to decide on a major direction of study or even to designate a field of interest. The longer the struggle continues, the greater the likelihood that a student starts to feel anxious and adrift. I try to encourage the strugglers, often asking them to ponder a basic question: Have you decided that you will follow God wherever He leads you? When a student can answer this question in the affirmative, then I offer this word of encouragement: You re not undecided; you re simply waiting on your marching orders! Each year, some students arrive at school from tough situations at home. Maybe their families have been torn apart by divorce or other tragedies. Perhaps they have experienced poverty or significant trials and challenges. While I might not have had the same experiences in life as they have, I encourage them on the promise of Scripture that God makes all things work together for the good of those who love God, who are called according to his purpose (Rom. 8:28). This session focuses on a life-changing encounter between Jacob and the Lord God. At the time of the encounter, Jacob was not searching for God s purpose for his life. He was, in fact, running for his life! His brother, Esau, was intent on killing Jacob for deceiving their father and stealing the birthright and blessing that normally would have been given to the oldest son. Jacob fled the region around Beer-sheba and headed toward his mother s ancestral home. Along the way, God revealed Himself to Jacob in a dream, and the fugitive emerged from the encounter a changed man. He would still experience many difficulties and heartaches in life, but he would do so in the knowledge that God had a purpose for his life taking up the covenant mantle. 20 Explore the Bible

2 UNDERSTAND THE CONTEXT GENESIS 27:41 28:22 Genesis 27:1-40 records Jacob s deception of his father in order to obtain the patriarchal blessing of the firstborn son. Because of Jacob s treachery, Esau bore a grudge against his younger twin brother, deciding that he would kill Jacob after their father, Isaac, died (27:41). Rebekah, the boys mother, got wind of Esau s plot and urged Jacob to flee to the region of her ancestral home. There Jacob could find refuge in her brother Laban s household. Laban had previously been involved in Rebekah s betrothal to Isaac (see Gen. 24:29,50-51). Rebekah assured Jacob that when Esau calmed down, she would send for him to return. Little did she realize that two decades would pass before Jacob s return. Perhaps to create a plausible rationale for Jacob s sudden departure, Rebekah complained to Isaac about Esau s two Canaanite wives. She expressed a concern to her husband that their son Jacob might make the same kind of foolish choice (27:46). Accordingly, Isaac summoned Jacob and charged him not to take a wife from among the Canaanite women (28:1). He instructed Jacob to travel to Rebekah s ancestral home of Paddan-aram and there choose a wife from Rebekah s extended family (28:2). Isaac then pronounced a blessing on his son as Jacob prepared to embark on the journey (28:3-4). The aging patriarch further anticipated a day when the Lord would bring Jacob back to the land of promise. Jacob departed in fulfillment of his father s command (28:5). Meanwhile, Esau observed that his father Isaac had again blessed Jacob and sent him away to find a non-canaanite wife (28:6). Esau then realized how displeasing his Canaanite wives were to his parents. Perhaps in a renewed effort to obtain his father s blessing, Esau married a third wife a woman from the family of Ishmael, a closer relation (28:9). Jacob departed from Beer-sheba and went toward Haran, a place where he had never been (28:10-11). That night, as he slept, Jacob had a dream in which the Lord God stood beside him as he watched angels ascending and descending a giant stairway that reached into the sky. The Lord identified Himself as the God of Jacob s ancestors (28:12-13). Further, the Lord promised that He would give Jacob many descendants, would be with Jacob wherever he went, and would bring Jacob back to the promised land (28:14-15). Jacob commemorated the event by setting up a stone memorial (28:18). He named the place Bethel, which means house of God (28:19). Finally, just as God promised to work out His purpose in Jacob s life, Jacob committed to be a willing vessel for God s purpose (28:20-22). Session 2: Not Alone 21

3 EXPLORE THE TEXT PURPOSE REVEALED (Gen. 28:10-15) VERSE 10 Jacob left Beer-sheba and went toward Haran. Now on the run for his life, Jacob left Beer-sheba, located in the southern region of the promised land. The town later became popularized as the southern limit of Israel s territory in the expression from Dan to Beer-sheba (see 1 Sam. 3:20; 1 Kings 4:25; 2 Chron. 30:5). Jacob traveled northward toward Haran, the city in northwestern Mesopotamia where some of his more distant relatives still lived. The journey between the two cities would cover about five hundred miles. A major caravan route ran northward through Beer-sheba and likely was the road Jacob traveled. The route passed along the central mountain ridge through Hebron, Bethlehem, and Jerusalem before reaching Canaan s heartland. Perhaps as Jacob fled, he wondered whether Esau was following him. He may also have questioned whether stealing his brother s birthright was the right thing to do. He had no idea what even the next day might bring. VERSE 11 He reached a certain place and spent the night there because the sun had set. He took one of the stones from the place, put it there at his head, and lay down in that place. Jacob reached a certain place (literally the place ). The wording suggests that Jacob had no idea of the spiritual significance this place would have for him. Genesis 28:19 indicates the place was formerly known as Luz but would come to be called Bethel. It was located about seventy miles from Beer-sheba (about twelve miles north of Jerusalem). This fact suggests that Jacob had been traveling for several days when he arrived at the place. Jacob spent the night there because the sun had set. Night travel was potentially dangerous and brought many challenges. The text does not indicate any other reason Jacob decided to stay where he did other than the fact that darkness was approaching. It does mention that Jacob took one of the stones from the place and put it there at his head. He would later pour oil on this stone as an offering to the Lord (28:18). At this point, however, he simply placed the stone at his head. Some Bible interpreters suggest that Jacob used the stone as a pillow, while others contend the stone served as protection around Jacob s head as he slept. The mention that Jacob lay down 22 Explore the Bible

4 in that place has an ominous tone; the man who was running for his life bedded down for the night, alone and afraid. So many thoughts likely stirred in Jacob s heart, just as they do when we face times of great challenge. At the same time, God used those stirrings in Jacob s heart to prepare him for the next step in God s plan for his life. Likewise, whenever we face fearful trials and challenges, we too can remember that God uses them to mold us into the people He wants us to be (Rom. 8:28). God promises to be with His people every step of their life journeys. He will never leave or forsake His people (see Heb. 13:5). VERSE 12 And he dreamed: A stairway was set on the ground with its top reaching the sky, and God s angels were going up and down on it. As Jacob slept he began to have a remarkable dream. In the dream, God gave Jacob a vision and began to reveal His plan for Jacob. The Bible records several instances where God communicated with people through dreams (Gen. 40:5-8; Dan. 2:1-3; Matt. 1:20-21; 2:12,19,22). Indeed, throughout the ages, God has spoken to people through dreams, visions, and other means. Today, the most assured way He communicates to His people is through the Holy Scriptures. It is important when we believe that God is giving us a message through some event or person that we validate the message by testing it against Scripture. God will never contradict what His Word teaches. The Hebrew word rendered stairway ( ladder, KJV; ESV) appears only here in the Old Testament. Scholars are uncertain about the root meaning of the term. However, the context makes clear that the word refers to a means of spanning the gap between heaven and earth. Thus, the stairway was firmly established on the ground with its top reaching the sky. Interestingly, Genesis 11:1-9 reports an event in which people in prepatriarchal times sought to build a city and a tower with its top in the sky (11:4). The Lord intervened and scrapped the building project; He confused the people s language so they could no longer understand one another. The Lord stopped the tower of Babel effort because the people pridefully sought to make a name for themselves rather than to obey the Lord. In Jacob s case, the Lord took the initiative to bridge the distance between heaven and earth, between Himself and His frightened, fleeing servant. The stairway in Genesis 28:12 foreshadowed the initiative God would ultimately take in sending God the Son to earth as the Messiah (see John 1:14). Indeed, the Christian faith has never been about people s reaching up to God but rather about God s reaching down to sinful people through the gospel of Jesus Christ. Session 2: Not Alone 23

5 As Jacob observed the stairway in his dream, he saw that God s angels were going up and down on it. The writer of Hebrews described angels as ministering spirits that serve God s people (Heb. 1:14). Perhaps the dream was intended to vividly communicate this same truth to Jacob. Fittingly, the angels accompanied the Lord as He came to Jacob. VERSE 13 The Lord was standing there beside him, saying, I am the Lord, the God of your father Abraham and the God of Isaac. I will give you and your offspring the land on which you are lying. The statement the Lord was standing there beside him raises a question. The Hebrew is somewhat ambiguous, and the expression rendered beside him ( above it, KJV; ESV; NIV) could also be translated above him or above it (that is, above the stairway). In any case, God s appearance to Jacob constitutes a theophany, a special representation of God on earth in a form human beings could recognize. We know from other Bible passages that God s complete, infinite personhood is far beyond our puny ability to see or understand, much less to stand alongside like two friends discussing a matter (see Ex. 33:18-20; Isa. 6:1-5; Rev. 4:2-11). Yet we also have Bible accounts such as this one in Genesis 28:13 in which the sovereign, infinite Lord God made His presence known and comprehensible to certain people. At times in Scripture, the divine presence was referred to as the Angel of the Lord (Gen. 22:11; Ex. 3:2; Judg. 6:22; 1 Kings 19:7). God immediately identified Himself to Jacob as the Lord. This is the covenant name that God would later reveal to Moses at the burning bush; it is the name God bears forever because it reveals His true nature (Ex. 3:14-15). The Lord further clarified His identity with the phrase the God of your father Abraham and the God of Isaac. In other words, the God whose presence Jacob encountered in the dream was none other than the One who established a covenant with his grandfather, Abraham, and reconfirmed it with his father, Isaac. By this identification, God was linking Himself to Jacob s family. The Lord s next words, I will give you and your offspring the land on which you are lying, confirmed that God s intent was now to continue His covenant plan for the ages through Jacob. Tragically, Jacob had sold out to the evils of lying and deception in his selfish efforts to gain the firstborn s inheritance and his father s family blessing. All the while, God had in mind for Jacob a role and purpose that far exceeded the temporal, material blessings of family inheritance. Jacob the deceiver was convinced that he had to go his own way, ignore the God whom his father and grandfather served, 24 Explore the Bible

6 and create his own future by any means necessary. The deceiver now found himself albeit in a dream state standing in the presence of his father s God and hearing the astoundingly gracious plan the Lord had for Jacob s life. God s covenant that He made with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob ultimately applied on a greater level to their descendants. These men would not live to see the day when their descendants possessed the entire promised land; nonetheless, they were called to live by faith that the Lord would keep His promises. The New Testament writer of Hebrews noted that the patriarchs were able to see these promises looking forward and from a distance, yet they lived by trusting in God s faithfulness (Heb. 11:9-10,13). VERSE 14 Your offspring will be like the dust of the earth, and you will spread out toward the west, the east, the north, and the south. All the peoples on earth will be blessed through you and your offspring. The words your offspring will be like the dust of the earth reiterated a promise God had made previously to both Abraham and Isaac. Abraham and Sarah were unable to have a child together until their older years, when God empowered Sarah to become pregnant and she gave birth to Isaac. Isaac and Rebekah were married twenty years before their twin sons, Esau and Jacob, were born. Nonetheless, God continued to keep His promises to these patriarchs that eventually they would have countless descendants (Gen. 22:17; 26:4). God likewise promised that Jacob s descendants would spread out in every direction. They would ultimately become numerous enough to possess the entire promised land. What about all the peoples on earth who would benefit by God blessing Jacob s descendants? Other peoples also would be blessed through Jacob and his descendants. This part of God s promise to Jacob echoed his earlier promise to Abraham (Gen. 12:3) and to Isaac (Gen. 26:4). Ultimately, this covenant blessing to all the peoples on earth would be fulfilled through the Lord Jesus Christ, Jacob s ultimate descendant. The apostle Paul expressed this important conclusion in Galatians 3:8. We cannot overstate the value of this promise in God s redemptive purpose. God revealed His saving purpose to Abraham s family, and ultimately chose to use Abraham s family to bring salvation to the world. The rest of Scripture unpacks this incredible plan the Lord revealed to Jacob. The apostle John wrote in the Book of Revelation that in the new Jerusalem, the city gates will bear the names of Israel s (Jacob s) children (Rev. 21:12). God s promises to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob will endure forever! Session 2: Not Alone 25

7 VERSE 15 Look, I am with you and will watch over you wherever you go. I will bring you back to this land, for I will not leave you until I have done what I have promised you. God s simple words I am with you stated a powerful promise to the fleeing Jacob. What more did Jacob really need other than an assurance of God s presence? God would later make a similar promise to the prophet Jeremiah, a promise to be with the prophet through every difficult circumstance (Jer. 1:9). The Hebrew word translated watch over also can mean guard or keep. Jacob had no idea about all the things he would experience over the next twenty years, but now he knew that he had the promise of God s constant presence and protection. God then added to His assurances the promise to bring Jacob back to this land. Jacob may have wondered as he fled to Haran whether he would ever be able to return to his homeland or see his family again. The Lord now assured Jacob that he would return. God would bring Jacob back to the promised land. God s further statement, I will not leave you until I have done what I have promised you, assured Jacob that God would persist in bringing about His plan for Jacob s life. God would watch over Jacob on his way to Haran. He would providentially guard and prosper Jacob in Haran. Finally, God would lead Jacob back from Haran to the land of the covenant. Believers can likewise be confident that the Lord will never abandon them but will fulfill His purposes in and through them. The Scriptures assure us that God is a God who keeps His promises (Josh. 21:43-45; 2 Cor. 1:20). He who began His work in believers will surely complete it (Phil. 1:6). EXPLORE FURTHER Reflect on a time when you or someone you know felt afraid and alone. What work did God do in you through that experience? Were you able to see that God had a purpose for the process? Even if you still don t see the final resolution, are you trusting Him to complete His plans for you? PRESENCE REALIZED (Gen. 28:16-19) VERSE 16 When Jacob awoke from his sleep, he said, Surely the Lord is in this place, and I did not know it. 26 Explore the Bible

8 Jacob awoke from his sleep a changed man. He pondered the awesome nature of what he had experienced through the dream. His confession, surely the Lord is in this place, and I did not know it, revealed an honest and changed perspective. On the previous evening, the place Jacob stopped to camp seemed to be only a satisfactory hiding place for a fugitive who needed to get a few hours of sleep before continuing his escape. He gave no thought to the possibility that it was a sacred place. That view changed with his nighttime dream. Jacob now acknowledged what Moses would later discover about the far side of the wilderness (Ex. 3:1-2) and what the psalmist David would express in Psalm 139:9-10. Any place is a sacred space when Almighty God reveals His presence there. VERSE 17 He was afraid and said, What an awesome place this is! This is none other than the house of God. This is the gate of heaven. Jacob became afraid as he realized his encounter with the Lord was more than just a dream. Scripture has numerous examples of people who experienced fear when they encountered the majesty of God (see Ex. 3:6; Isa. 6:5; Luke 2:9). Such majesty and power are beyond our comprehension and can induce fear. We need not fear God, however, if we belong to Him. Jacob also expressed his changed attitude about the place where he had slept: what an awesome place this is! The Hebrew word translated awesome is related to the word rendered afraid earlier in the verse. Jacob realized that he had experienced a real encounter with the Lord; therefore, he testified this is none other than the house of God. With this expression, Jacob emphasized God s overwhelming presence in the place. He was not describing a temple per se, for we know of no temple that existed at the time at that location. Jacob also described the place as the gate of heaven. He had watched God s angelic messengers ascend and descend on a stairway at the place. God had revealed Himself to Jacob at Jacob s point of need and provided words of assurance and purpose. Jacob could now press on, knowing that God would be with him wherever he went. VERSES Early in the morning Jacob took the stone that was near his head and set it up as a marker. He poured oil on top of it and named the place Bethel, though previously the city was named Luz. The phrase early in the morning suggests that Jacob awoke from his encounter with God before dawn and anxiously reflected for a time on Session 2: Not Alone 27

9 what it meant for him. As daylight appeared, he felt compelled to mark the encounter as a significant event in his life. First, Jacob took the stone that was near his head and set it up as a marker ( for a pillar, KJV; as a pillar, NIV). While some Canaanite groups in the land erected stone pillars as idols an act the Lord would forbid in the law (see Deut. 12:3) Jacob set up the stone as a commemoration of his encounter with God. Second, Jacob poured oil on the stone as an act of consecration to the Lord. He dedicated a simple offering to the God who met him in a time of crisis, promised to be with him, and gave him an understanding of a higher (and better) purpose for his life. Third, Jacob named the place Bethel. This name in Hebrew means house of God. The ancient name of the place was Luz, a term meaning either almond tree or place of refuge. For Jacob, however, the place had taken on a new, special meaning. It was a place where he met the Lord God. EXPLORE FURTHER Read the article titled Bethel on pages in the Holman Illustrated Bible Dictionary, Revised and Expanded. What would you identify as a Bethel-place in your life a place (or time) in which you encountered God in a life-changing way? COMMITMENT MADE (Gen. 28:20-22) VERSE 20 Then Jacob made a vow: If God will be with me and watch over me during this journey I m making, if he provides me with food to eat and clothing to wear, Jacob made a vow ( vowed a vow, KJV) in response to the Lord s promises to him in 28: Several times in the vow, Jacob used the word if. Given his practice up till now as a deceiver and manipulator, one might wonder if Jacob s vow was simply a brash negotiation with God to obtain the best deal possible. More likely, however, it reflected a grateful personal commitment to the God he had heard about from his father but now had encountered. The vow was part and parcel of the entire worship response that included setting up the stone, anointing it, and designating the place as a sacred meeting site. Jacob s vow for the most part repeated the promises God already had made to him and confessed his deep need (and desire) for God s presence (be with 28 Explore the Bible

10 me), protection (watch over me), and provision (food to eat and clothing to wear). VERSE 21 and if I return safely to my father s family, then the Lord will be my God. Jacob further expressed grateful trust that he would one day return safely ( in peace, KJV; ESV) to the promised land and to his father s family ( house, KJV; household, NIV). The Hebrew word rendered safely carries the idea of wholeness or completeness. Jacob did not know when that would be, but he determined to leave it in the Lord s hands. Finally, Jacob affirmed that the Lord alone would be his God. Previously the text left unclear whether Jacob had a personal faith-relationship with the Lord. At Bethel he expressed a clear personal commitment to the Lord. He would worship the Lord and follow Him wherever He led. VERSE 22 This stone that I have set up as a marker will be God s house, and I will give to you a tenth of all that you give me. Lastly, Jacob vowed that the stone marker, while not an idol, would set apart the place as sacred, as God s house. Jacob essentially promised that he would worship the Lord at Bethel again when he returned. Giving a tithe (a tenth of all that you give me) was an act of grateful worship by those the Lord helped in difficult times (see 14:20). Such a commitment revealed Jacob s acknowledgment that his future was in God s hands. Whatever he became and all he gained would be a result of God s grace. Oh that we as believers would embrace the same attitude about giving and stewardship! We can never buy God s favor with offerings. Christians should not think of tithing as a type of legalistic negotiation. Giving offerings should always be a grateful faith-response to the God of grace who sent Jesus Christ to provide forgiveness and eternal life for sinners. God desires to fulfill His purposes in each one of us. He calls us to make a faith-commitment to Him through Christ, a radical commitment that transforms us by His grace. EXPLORE FURTHER Read the article titled Tithe on page 1577 in the Holman Illustrated Bible Dictionary, Revised and Expanded. What responsibility do Christians have today as stewards? How is giving a privilege as well as a responsibility? Session 2: Not Alone 29