Pastor Jim’s sermon on the account of “Jacob’s Ladder” as told in Genesis 28 led us to consider that the “Ladder” that Jacob saw in his dream was really a two-way escalator. God is with us!
Click the following Play button to start the recording, then scroll down to follow along (the following recording was from the 9:30 AM service).
The scripture was from Genesis 28:10-19. Open the “drop down” box to see the text. The version shown below is from the New Living Translation…
Genesis 28
11 At sundown he arrived at a good place to set up camp and stopped there for the night. Jacob found a stone to rest his head against and lay down to sleep.
12 As he slept, he dreamed of a stairway that reached from the earth up to heaven. And he saw the angels of God going up and down the stairway.
13 At the top of the stairway stood the Lord, and he said, “I am the Lord, the God of your grandfather Abraham, and the God of your father, Isaac. The ground you are lying on belongs to you. I am giving it to you and your descendants.
14 Your descendants will be as numerous as the dust of the earth! They will spread out in all directions—to the west and the east, to the north and the south. And all the families of the earth will be blessed through you and your descendants.
15 What’s more, I am with you, and I will protect you wherever you go. One day I will bring you back to this land. I will not leave you until I have finished giving you everything I have promised you.”
16 Then Jacob awoke from his sleep and said, “Surely the Lord is in this place, and I wasn’t even aware of it!”
17 But he was also afraid and said, “What an awesome place this is! It is none other than the house of God, the very gateway to heaven!”
18 The next morning Jacob got up very early. He took the stone he had rested his head against, and he set it upright as a memorial pillar. Then he poured olive oil over it.
19 He named that place Bethel (which means “house of God”), although the name of the nearby village was Luz.
In November 1971, the rock band Led Zeppelin released the song “Stairway to Heaven.” It probably wasn’t intended to give a Christian message, but its lyrics ring true with the Bible:
And she’s buying a stairway to heaven.
When she gets there she knows, if the stores are all closed.
With a word she can get what she came for.
Ooh, ooh, and she’s buying a stairway to heaven.
(Click Here for more about this song)
The 1970s… things were a mess! Our soldiers were in Vietnam, and some buglers were in the Watergate hotel. We were unsure of where to go. We didn’t trust our leaders. We were trying to figure things out for ourselves (“to each his own”). We were trying to find heaven on our own terms, thinking that we could earn our way into God’s graces, not trusting that God gives His graces away!
We tried to find that stairway to heaven by defining God in our own terms. But we couldn’t find it.
In 1971 there was a search for spiritual truth much like there is today. Perhaps, this song has captivated countless millions of people of all ages throughout the world for 44 years because we human beings are- without exception- seeking a Stairway to heaven.
And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him. Hebrews 11:6
Jacob: A Man on the Run…
A few years after Led Zeppelin released “Stairway to Heaven,” Paul McCartney released “Band on the Run.” Thousands of years ago, Jacob was a man on the run. Much like us, he had tried to do things his own way, even stealing his brother’s birthright. And now he was on the run, fearing that his brother would kill him. Jacob listened to the culture, to the popular, to those who deceived him. Jacob lied and deceived others.
He was trying to build his own stairway to heaven and happiness. But all the things he did didn’t get him the “stairway to heaven.” Instead it got him a rock for a pillow and put him on the run. He had to be angry, depressed; constantly covering up one lie with another.
Jacob: Called by God’s Prevenient Grace
But out of the blue; even while sleeping on a rock for a pillow, God burst through and appears to Jacob.
Notice that the Biblical description of this Ladder shows that it is not simply a way to get to heaven. Verse 12 of our passage tells us that angels of God were “going up and down the stairway.” God isn’t just standing on the top of the stairway yelling to Jacob, “Ok, come on up!” This isn’t simply a porthole for us to get to heaven; it’s an active two-way escalator where God and humans interact with each other!
Is there any doubt that God led Jacob to that time and place? Even though Jacob was messing things up, God comes down to tell him that He will keep His promises. Jacob was running, but God was always there. God remained in Jacob’s life, but he didn’t know it.
“Surely the Lord is in this place, and I wasn’t even aware of it!”
God was here and I almost missed it! But God told me that He would stand by me and empower me so that His promises could be kept.
Then suddenly- God made Himself known to you and you saw that, indeed, God was right there with you all along ready to forgive, to assist, and to love you!
And then you think like Jacob, “Surely the Lord was in this place and I was not aware of it.”
Jesus- Emmanuel (God with us) has promised “I am with you.. I will not leave you…” and this is a promise we can all bank on!
Us: Trying to Build Our Own Stairway to Heaven?
In contemporary cultures, there seems to be a trend that all faith systems will eventually lead to the God of heaven. If you or I were asked by someone seeking God who believes that all religions are pretty much the same, would we be able to explain the major differences between Christianity and other faiths? Here are a couple of verses to consider…
1 Peter 3:15 Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have.
Colossians 4:6 Let your conversation be always full of grace, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how to answer everyone.
- People assume (and human logic dictates) that all religions have nearly the same moral teachings and ideals. There might be different names for God, practices and expressions of the faith, but it is the same God.
- They assume that while religions may travel different roads, they all lead to the same God.
And yet, here’s just a bit of what the bible says…
There’s only one way.
God: He Comes Down to Us on His Stairway!
John 1:51 says something pretty astonishing when considering Jacob’s Ladder:
“I tell you the truth, you shall see heaven open, and the angels of God ascending and descending on the Son of Man.”
Jesus said this to Nathaniel. But like this ladder in Jacob’s vision, Jesus says that we will experience “angels of God ascending and descending ON THE SON OF MAN! The “stairway to” (and from heaven) isn’t a thing. It’s not some golden ladder. The Stairway to Heaven is Jesus! Jesus is the Way to Heaven. Jesus is the Door to Heaven.
And yet, it’s a two way escalator. Angels are going up and down. On the mount of Transfiguration, Peter, James, and John were invited to see a glimpse of Jesus in His glory, talking with Moses and Elijah! But they couldn’t stay on the Mountain. They had to come down and go into service. (Matthew 17:1-8).
Through Christ, we can see the Glory of God. And we can also be refreshed and recharged in order to go into His service.
Jacob wasn’t expecting God. He was in the middle of a desert, after all! But out of the blue, God shows up. God is wherever we are. You don’t have to be in a special building or in a special frame of mind. God is with us always. In John 16, Jesus tells us that the Holy Spirit is always present to lead us into Truth.
Escalators: They can be Scary!
The turning point for Mays occurred when his manager, Leo Durocher, found him crying in the dugout after yet another miserable performance at the plate. The coach put his arm around Mays and said, “What’s the matter, son?” Mays said, “I can’t hit up here, I belong in the minor leagues.” Durocher said this to Willie Mays: “As long as I’m manager of the Giants, you’ll be my center fielder.”
We know how this story turned out; Willie Mays turned out to be one of the game’s legends. Fortunately there was someone there to encourage him and tell him, “I am behind you, this will work out.”
We also face times in our life when we are discouraged and despairing because our future seems so uncertain.
Like Willie Mays, we need a word of encouragement. We need to know that the “coach” is behind us. We need to know that things will work out. The good news (the Gospel!), is that God meets these needs!
In Jesus, God became a man and came down that escalator. In His mercy, God broke through the desert of our humanity and entered our lives.
Jacob’s Ladder- that “Stairway to Heaven” appears in our own deserts too. Not only can we go up and look towards God, but like the angels in Jacob’s vision, God comes down to us. Jesus is God’s stairway to and from heaven. Look to Him. Don’t invent your own stairway to heaven. Jesus is THE Way, THE Truth, and THE life. Dare to step on the Escalator, and God will take you beyond your fears, doubts and uncertainties.
Quiz Time!
As you reflect on what you’ve just heard/read, give this quiz a try. If you don’t understand an answer (or if you disagree with the “correct” answer, post a comment)…
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