Is there a place or a situation you would rather avoid? Sometimes we deserve the place we find ourselves in. Sometimes not. But we discover that God can meet with us in this place too.
Jacob was someone who didn’t deserve to be blessed by God. He swindled his own brother from the blessing of the firstborn he was supposed to receive. And also he committed identity theft when he went in to see his father about the blessing. And Jacob lied several times about who he was to his father Isaac who was blind.
35 But he said, “Your brother came deceitfully and took your blessing.”
36 Esau said, “Isn’t he rightly named Jacob (deceiver, opportunist)? This is the second time he has taken advantage of me: He took my birthright, and now he’s taken my blessing!
The place of an encounter with God.
But God loved Jacob in spite of his character. Certainly, no one deserves any of God’s blessings. And Jacob is a God example of how God meets with sinful men.
He was a fugitive, fleeing the hatred of his brother Esau. On the way to visit his family in Charan, Jacob slept a night at Beer-Schéba.
And he had a dream :
12 He had a dream in which he saw a stairway resting on the earth, with its top reaching to heaven, and the angels of God were ascending and descending on it (Genesis 28.12)
Heaven came down!
This was the place where the covenant that God had made with his grandfather was renewed.
13 There above it stood the Lord, and he said: “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. 14 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 people on earth will be blessed through you and your offspring. 15 I am with you and will watch over you wherever you go, and I will bring you back to this land. I will not leave you until I have done what I have promised you.” (Genesis 28.13-15)
Fortunately for us, God intervenes in the lives of that others would consider not worthy of God’s grace.
Like Jesus said in Matthew 9:12 It is not those who are healthy who need a doctor, but the sick.
Once more an event of the Old Testament helps to better understand the New Testament. Note that the ladder at Beer-Sheba ” the angels of God were ascending and descending on it.”
But Jesus saw the same thing. Heaven was opened to mankind. But the angels were coming down on the Son of Man. He is the only way to the Father.
Jean 1:51 He then added, “Very truly I tell you, you will see heaven open, and the angels of God ascending and descending on the Son of Man.
This place is the Door of Heaven
When he woke up Jacob cried out and said,
16 When Jacob awoke from his sleep, he thought, “Surely the Lord is in this place, and I was not aware of it.” 17 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.” (Genesis 28.16-17)
So here are some questions we might ask ourselves.
- Though we don’t deserve it, God loves us and renews his alliance with us.
- Your situation is not a punishment from God.
- You don’t know it yet, but this very situation, as difficult as it is, can become for you the « gate (door) of heaven »
In this disaster, even if you don’t know it now, you will discover that :
« The Lord is in this place »
This situation has the advantage to push you to ask the right questions…
You are not alone even if you feel lost
You will see later that HERE was the “door of heaven”.
Like Jacob, you will take the decision to continue your trip with God.
You can download the text of this message here
Does this word encourage you?
Read Genesis chapter 28
(Day 21) The testing of your faith is worth gold
(Day 23) Stop the plunder and looting
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