2002-01-01
Good Morning Devoted Believers,
The consistency and loving compassion that is in God’s carrying out of His part of His covenants with believers is something magnificent to see. Nowhere can we better see the continuity of this better than in His words to a young Jacob who is leaving Beersheba on the way to Haran in GN 28: 10-15. “Jacob left Beersheba and started toward Haran. A sunset he came to a holy place and camped there. He lay down to sleep, resting his head on a stone. He dreamed that he saw a stairway reaching from earth to heaven, with angels going up and coming down on it. And there was the Lord standing beside him. ‘I am the Lord, the God of Abraham and Isaac,’ He said. ‘I will give to you and to your descendants this land on which you are lying. They will be as numerous as the specks of dust on the earth. They will extend their territory in all directions, and through you and your descendants I will bless all the nations. Remember, I will be with you and protect you wherever you go, and I will bring you back to this land. I will not leave you until I have done all that I have promised you.’”
If you have been reading my devotions in the last few days, then you will know that these are a repeat of the same promises given to Abraham and Isaac. Now, they are extended to Jacob as well. At the time this story takes place, Jacob is on his way to the home of his uncle, Laban, to work for Laban and follow God’s direction to leave his parents’ home after acquiring both the birthright and the blessing by deception from his older twin, Esau. The deception that was carried out not only made Jacob live up to his name, which means “deceiver” in Hebrew, but was in accordance with God’s will. You can see in God’s promises above all three elements of the Abrahamic covenant: people; land; King. The last element may be hard to see, but think about what is meant by the words “through you and your descendants I will bless all the nations.” This can be meant as IS 49: 6 is that the Jews will some day carry the Gospel to non-believers being “a light to the nations,” as well as in IS 11: 1, “a shoot from the stump of Jesse, a King shall arise from David’s descendants.”
GN 28: 15 is rich for another promise God makes. He promises His protection for Jacob and to bring him back to this land. He was in what is today Israel. Herein, we see the promise that Israel will be restored to nationhood. We all know that promise was made true on May 14, 1948! God fulfills his part of the covenants he makes with us in His time. We may think that’s an awful long time to wait, but our loving Abba knows best. He never does anything before the time when it will have the greatest impact for good. In other words, He never does something before mankind is really ready to benefit by it. We need to think about how that impacts our own relationship with God in our lives. Often, we ask God for something and find it hard to either get an answer we didn’t want or to wait for His answer to be given in the time He knows is best for us. If we understand and believe in the ultimate righteousness and justice of God’s dealings with us, we will trust Him to know best and to give us the answer to our prayerful supplications that is in our best interests.
Let’s look at GN 28: 16-18 to see God’s presence in this passage. “Jacob woke up and said, ‘The Lord is here! [Jehovah Shammah]. He is in this place, and I did not know it!’ He was afraid and said, ‘What a terrifying place this is! It must be the house of God; it must be the gate that opens into heaven.’ Jacob got up early next morning, took the stone that was under his head, and set it up as a memorial. Then he poured olive oil on it to dedicate it to God.” Afterward, he named the place, ”Bethel,” which means “God’s House.” If we look at this passage for God’s presence, it is stunning! Christ has often been referred to as the Stone or Rock. Olive oil is symbolic of the Holy Spirit. God Himself was in Jacob’s dream there. The town of Bethel was to figure into Israel’s history.
We’ve spoken of God’s vows. Now, let’s look at Jacob’s. GN 28: 20-22, “ Then Jacob made a vow to the Lord: ‘If You will be with me and protect me on the journey I am making and give me food and clothing, and If I return safely to my father’s home, then You will be my God. This memorial stone which I have set up will be the place where You are worshipped, and I will give you a tenth of everything You give me.’” Jacob was doing the same thing that his grandfather, Abraham, had done in GN 14: 20, when Abraham offered Melchizedek a tenth of all the loot he had recovered in the battle with Chedorlaomer and other kings, including the king of Sodom. When God chose to call Abraham, He already knew that he and his descendants through Isaac would be faithful and true to Him. There is more to say about Jacob, which I will save for tomorrow. We can examine the faithfulness of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob and learn a great deal about how their lives were blessed and how our own can be when we trust God.
PRAYER: O Lord, Your promises are always in our best interests and are backed up with the indescribable love that You have for us. They are consistent, righteous, and just. That is one way You show us we can be blessed when we are willing to keep our part of any covenant we make with You. Anyone who has been surrounded by people who make promises and don’t keep them knows how much pain and suffering that brings. You love us enough to never renege on a promise You make. That kind of consistency and faithfulness is a model we should follow when we make promises. Dearest Lord, You give us the example of Jacob’s experience to show us how our own experience can be with You when we are willing to trust and obey You. We acknowledge that lesson today and dedicate ourselves to putting our trust in You. We offer You our gratitude for Your presence in our lives and eagerly listen for Your commands. We beg and beseech You to grant us the patience to wait on Your time and the courage of faith to obey Your commands even when we don’t always understand them or think they come at a convenient time. We humbly offer You our worship, adoration, loyalty, trust, obedience, glory, honor, praise, and thanks. In Christ’s name, amen.
Tomorrow, as I promised above, the Lord leads me to say more about Jacob and other covenants He has made. We are surrounded by His protection, and His loving kindness. When we are faithful to Him, He is delighted by it. He is eager to bless us and to guide us through the challenges to our faith. He has equipped us to overcome whatever the adversary throws in our path. God loves you and so do Peter and I.
race Be With You Always,
Lynn