Now, if you will, let us go to the Lord in prayer one more time as we tend to God's Word this morning. Before we read, hear God's Word read and preached, let us lift up to God a prayer of illumination. Let us go to Him in prayer. Lord, we are thankful that you have revealed to us the way of salvation Most chiefly through our Savior Jesus Christ and that all of Holy Scripture from Genesis to Revelation points us to our Savior Jesus Christ and to the gospel that we Believe and hold fast to we pray now Lord that your spirit would accompany your word that it would work effectually in our hearts that we might receive it in faith and that we would Not only hear and listen and receive but would respond in a way that Causes us to walk in a manner worthy of the calling to which we have been called We lift these things up to you in the name of Christ our Savior Amen You will please stand for the reading of God's word from Genesis chapter 28 verses 10 through 22 or breaking for the moment for our series in Leviticus primarily because there's some background information here in Genesis 28 that will be useful to us as we continue Leviticus chapter 9 and so We will look at this passage as sort of background to our series in Leviticus, especially to what we find with the priests in chapter 9. Our text this morning then is Genesis 28 verses 10 through 22. Hear now God's word. Jacob left Beersheba and went toward Haran. And he came to a certain place and stayed there that night, because the sun had set. Taking one of the stones of the place, he put it under his head and lay down in that place to sleep. And he dreamed. And behold, there was a ladder set up on earth, and the top of it reached to heaven. And behold, the angels of God were ascending and descending on it. And behold, the Lord stood above it, and said, I am the Lord, the God of Abraham, your father, and the God of Isaac. The land on which you lie, I will give to you and to your offspring. Your offspring shall be like the dust of the earth, and you shall spread abroad to the west and to the east and to the north and to the south. And in you and your offspring shall all the families of the earth be blessed. Behold, I am with you. and will keep you wherever you go and will bring you back to this land where I will not leave you until I have done what I have promised you. Then Jacob awoke from his sleep and said, surely the Lord is in this place. And I did not know it. And 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. So early in the morning Jacob took the stone that he had put under his head and set it up for a pillar and poured oil on the top of it. He called the name of that place Bethel. But the name of the city was loose at the first. Then Jacob made a vow, saying, If God will be with me and will keep me in the way that I go and will give me bread to eat and clothing to wear so that I come again to my father's house in peace, then the Lord shall be my God. And this stone, which I have set up for a pillar, shall be God's house. And of all that you give me, I will give a full tenth. to you. The grass withers and the flower fades, but the word of the Lord endures forever. You may be seated. Here in Genesis 28, 10 through 22, the Lord shows Jacob a vision And in this vision, he shows him the way to ascend to the highest heavens to dwell with God forever. Now, if you go back to the very beginning of creation, when the first man, Adam, sinned against God, all of humanity fell into an estate of sin and misery. And sinful man cannot dwell with God in heaven. For God is a holy God. And therefore, God promised that he would send another man, another Adam, to redeem the sins of many. And so after man's fall into sin, the only way to enter into heaven would be by grace through faith in this Redeemer. Well, sadly, many throughout the Bible attempted and still today attempt to enter into heaven by their own works. And this, of course, displeases God because it is contrary to the gospel, the good news of the only way into heaven. And a great example of this comes earlier in the book of Genesis, earlier than our present chapter. when mankind attempted to build the Tower of Babel in Genesis chapter 11. That tower or that ziggurat was like a stair stepped temple that was meant to ascend upwards to heaven. The builders of that tower were rebelliously trying to ascend up to heaven by their own works, by the works of their own hands. They were not seeking to enter by grace through faith. Well, these several chapters later, God is now showing Jacob the proper way to ascend up to heaven. Meredith Klein, a former professor at Westminster Theological Seminary, and several others, he writes that Jacob's dream episode was designed as a counterpart to Babel. The angel traversed stair ascent set down on the earth, its top in the heavens was God's true provision, answering to the debacle of Babel's staircase tower, which has sailed in vain. to lift its head into the heavens." And so we might say then, along with Klein, that chapter 28 is indeed the counterpart to the Tower of Babel in Genesis 11. Now before we move too far into our passage, it's really appropriate to have some background. Much has happened between Genesis chapter 11 and 28. And it's important to note that the Tower of Babel, that at the Tower of Babel, God scattered all of the people who were attempting to build it. But equally important was what happens directly after that chapter. After Genesis 11 and in chapter 12, God calls out from those scattered nations one man, Abram, who would become, of course, Abraham. And it was to Him that God promised that He would make Him into a great nation that would be a blessing to all the families of the earth. And so God cursed the Babylites. He scattered them throughout the earth. And from those scattered, He calls one man to establish His covenant of grace with. And it was through that man's offspring that all the nations of the world would be blessed. Well, how would that happen? How would all the nations be blessed through Abraham? Well, it was through that man's offspring that would come the Redeemer, the Christ, who would bless all the nations of the world. Now, God, of course, fulfilled His promise to Abraham, eventually that singular offspring was Christ himself. But the first offspring born to Abraham was Isaac. He was the child of promise. God had promised Abraham an offspring. It began with Isaac. And then God made similar promises to Isaac. As he grew, he too would be made into a great nation. And the Lord would give him a land to possess. for this nation, and through this nation all of the nations of the earth would be blessed." So Abraham had Isaac, but Isaac also had sons. Isaac had two sons, Esau and Jacob, the Jacob from our passage this morning. These two sons of Isaac were twins, and Esau was the firstborn, and Jacob was the younger Now, there are a couple of significant episodes that are worth mentioning between these two brothers. The first concerns their birth narrative. We're told that Esau was the firstborn and that when Jacob was born directly after his brother, he was grasping at his heel. Grasping at the heel of his brother. And thus he was named Jacob, which literally means heel grasper. or also could be translated supplanter. He was a supplanter. The definition of a supplanter is someone or something taking the place of another as through force or through scheming or through strategy. Now, the naming of Jacob is significant as it relates to two particular episodes between these two brothers. And it's going to be very pertinent to our passage this morning. You see, Jacob schemed to get both Esau's birthright and his blessing. He plotted to get his brother's birthright by selling to him a single meal of stew. After his brother was exhausted from laboring out in the fields and he sold him this stew in exchange for his birthright. And then you will likely remember the time that Jacob and his mother tricked Isaac, his father, when he was about to give out the blessing to the older son Esau. Isaac had told his son Esau to hunt down some game and to prepare it for him so that he could eat and then he would give Esau the blessing. So while Esau was out hunting for the game, Jacob retrieved goats from their own field, gave them to his mother, who prepared this meal for Isaac. And then Jacob wore the skins of those animals to trick his nearly blind father into thinking that he was Esau, because Esau was a hairy man. And so by all of the scheming, Jacob received both the blessing and then later the birthright from his father. So truly Jacob's name described him well. He was indeed a supplanter for his brother even said of him. Is he not rightly named Jacob? For he has cheated me these two times. He took away my birthright, and behold, now he has taken away my blessing." And so just before our passage this morning, we find Rebekah, Jacob's mother, sending him away because his brother Esau had planned to kill him. And so both Isaac and Rebekah His parents send him away to Rebecca's brother's house, Laban's house in Haran. And it is on the journey to his uncle Laban's house that we find Jacob in our text this morning. And so after all this, what we find, if you'll notice, is that the covenant blessings would now come through Jacob and not through Esau. But No sooner had Jacob received the blessing from his father would he have to turn and leave his home for fear of his own life. One commentator spoke of this and said, No sooner are the people of God brought within the bond of the covenant than persecution arises. Not only did He faced persecution, but he also endured much suffering. Jacob, now the heir of the promises of God, travels away from the promised land. You might think, well, here he is, the blessings of the covenant. He receives the blessings of the covenant, and now he can dwell securely in the land that's promised to him. But that's not what happened. Instead, he has to Leave almost like an exile, leaving the land in fear of his own life. All alone. And with nowhere to lay his head at night, but upon a stone. And it takes Jacob many long years to get back to the promised land. And to find any type of success in life. Esau, on the other hand, if you read the story, if you read the account, the historical account of him, you find out that Esau does very well for himself. He has many offspring and from him comes a whole nation. He's very successful and possesses many things. On this note, John Calvin writes, let the reader diligently observe that while he who was blessed by God is cast into exile, occasion of glorying was given to the reprobate Esau. Who was left in the possession of everything, let us not then be disturbed if at any time the wicked sound their triumphs as having gained their wishes while we are oppressed. Beloved, do not think that because you struggle in this life, that because you suffer at times in this life, that the Lord's blessing is not upon you. We know that oftentimes the wicked prosper. And the righteous are oppressed and suffer. Jesus himself says, Blessed are the poor, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are those who hunger now, for they shall be satisfied. Blessed are those who weep now, for they shall laugh. Blessed are those who are hated, excluded, reviled on account of the Son of Man, for their reward is great in heaven. Jesus then goes on to speak curses upon those who are rich, full, who are full now, who laugh now and are spoken well of now. For their end will be to hunger, to mourn and to weep. Luke 6 20 and following. You see the wicked receive their reward in this life. While the Christian receives his reward, his reward lay up for Him is laid up for Him in heaven. And so do not let suffering in this life distract you from the blessings that are yours in the life to come, as well as the many spiritual blessings that are yours even now. Now, although we should expect suffering in this life, Do not think for a moment that the Lord leaves us to ourselves in the midst of this suffering. Jacob may be on the run all alone and with only a stone for a pillow, but as he sleeps, the Lord reveals to Jacob that he is most certainly present with him and that he will be present with him throughout his life. As Jacob lay asleep upon the rock, the Lord gave him a vision in a dream, which brings us to the image of the ladder set up on earth, but whose top was in the heavens. We're told that angels ascended and descended on it, and that at the top of it was the Lord himself. See, this vision was showing Jacob the true way into the heavenly abode. The stair-stepped tower to Babel was an attempt to gain heaven by human works. But what Jacob saw in his dream was the stair-stepped ladder of redemption, a way into the highest heavens, which was provided by God himself, not by the hands of mere men. And this is pointed out in the text when the Lord standing at the top of the ladder proclaims the promises of the covenant to Jacob. He says that Jacob's descendants would be as numerous as the dust of the ground and through his offspring, all the families of the earth would be blessed. And this, of course, is again the proclamation. It's a proclamation in seed form of the gospel itself. For through Jacob's offspring came the Messiah, and it is only in the Messiah that the blessings of salvation and heaven come to the world. Now, this latter then is a type and shadow of the Messiah himself. Jesus is the way for sinners to enter into heaven and to dwell with God forever. He shed His blood on the cross, receiving the punishment that sinners deserve, so that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but has eternal life in heaven. Jesus is the way. He is the gate into heaven itself. Now, perhaps if you think, well, maybe Jesus as this ladder, that this ladder symbolically pointing to Christ is a bit of a stretch. And then take note of Jesus's own words to his disciple Nathanael in John chapter one, verse 51, when he tells him, truly, truly, I say to you, you will see heaven opened. And the angels of God ascending and descending on the Son of Man. Angels ascending and descending upon me, the Son of Man. You see, he was alluding back to Genesis 28 and the vision that Jacob had. And he was saying that that vision that Jacob had was pointing to me. the Messiah, I am the way I am, the only way that one can enter into heaven itself. And so if Christ be the latter, then God descends to us in the person of Christ. And through him, all of the benefits of saving grace come to us. And the means also by which we are able to ascend up to heaven to be with him. You see, beloved, how the ladder in Jacob's dream is the counterpart to the false gospel at Babel. The Lord was not showing Jacob a way that he could enter into heaven by his own works. But a way into heaven that would be opened by the future Messiah, a way into heaven that would only come by grace through faith in the Son of Man, Jesus Christ. Interestingly, Jacob up to this point had acted very much like the Babylites. He had attempted to receive the blessing by his own human efforts. And that's abundantly evident by all of his scheming and plotting up to this point in his life. Again, Meredith Klein writes, The earlier Jacob is the younger supplanter who grasped at the blessings by deceptive stratagems. In this eye-opening vision, however, Jacob was set in a new direction, henceforth to seek the kingdom through reliance not on himself, but on Yahweh, gracious God of the covenant promises. Jacob clearly understood, at least on some level, the meaning of the vision because when he awoke he said, how awesome is this place? This is none other than the house of God and this is the gate of heaven. Not only this, but he also took the very stone that he had slept upon and poured oil upon it. We know what oil stands for throughout the Our series in Leviticus, it's meant to consecrate and so he was consecrating this rock, consecrating it as a pillar to the Lord and naming that place Bethel, which means house of God. It had become a sacred place where the Lord was to be worshiped during this old covenant period. Jacob worshiped the Lord there that day by making a vow, in fact, to serve him and to give him a tithe or a tenth of all that the Lord had promised to give to him. Now, it's important to realize that this was not some type of bargaining technique by Jacob. It was not a give me this and I will give you that. Jacob was vowing or promising to demonstrate his gratitude to the Lord by serving and giving back to him all that the Lord was promising to give to him. The Lord, you see, does not need any of our offerings. He does not need anything that we might offer to give to him in a vow. He is the creator of all and is in need of nothing. And so we can never bargain with the Lord. The Lord had made promises to Jacob and so he merely vows to give by way of gratitude what the Lord had already promised to give to him. It was a way of giving back to the Lord and recognizing that what he had was given to him by the Lord. So he would show to the Lord his gratitude for what he was giving to him. Notice that Jacob only asked for two things. First, he asked for what the Lord had already promised, namely to be with him and to bring him back to the land. And secondly, he asked for the necessities of this life. Which were needed if the promises were to be fulfilled. Namely, He asked for food and clothing. Beloved, all of our petitions to God in prayer are based upon or ought to be based upon God's promises to provide for our needs. And so rather than being a bargaining strategy, Jacob's vow is a, it's really a declaration of faith. And here is the turning point in Jacob's life where he begins to depend upon the Lord for his needs rather than depending on his own strategies and efforts and his own human works. Isn't it peculiar how it is often in our most lonely or most persecuted or most afflicted times that the Lord increases our faith independence upon him. You see how this worked in the life of Jacob? Our passage describes one of Jacob's greatest times of suffering. Yet in his suffering, he learns to trust God and not himself. One commentator spoke of Jacob stating, perhaps never one apparently more forlorn and friendless when he lay down. Perhaps never one more blessed before he rose up. So true of Jacob in this passage. But notice that Jacob's suffering doesn't come to an end at the end of this passage. He's still in exile outside of the promised land, and his safety will continue to be in jeopardy for quite some time as he stays on the run from his brother. His dependence upon the Lord did not relieve him of his suffering. Friends of God, understand that it is our suffering that God often uses for our sanctification, for our growth and holiness in our lives. And so know then that our suffering is for our good. And what is more, Our Lord is present with us in the midst of that suffering. Like Jacob, we are wanderers on this earth, stranded from our father's house. He was outside of the promised land for a time, but the Lord would bring him back. So we wander outside of our heavenly abode for a time. But the Lord has provided a way back for us. Jesus Christ. And so, as one commentator wrote, let us pray thus. Precious Jesus, be thou with me and keep me in the way that I go and give me food and raiment convenient for me. Fill my soul with the bread of life and clothe me with the garment of thy salvation. Then thou be indeed the Lord my God, and I shall be thine in an everlasting covenant not to be broken. To God be all praise and glory, now and forevermore. Amen. Let's pray. Heavenly Father, we thank you for our needs being met through Christ Jesus, our Lord. Lord, all people everywhere ought to give you praise for you provide for the needs, the earthly needs of many. Lord, you caused the rain to fall and the sun to shine upon the righteous and the unrighteous. But, O Lord, may we be those with ultimate gratitude For you have provided for us beyond this in Jesus Christ. Your church, O God, your people, your elect, not by any work of their own, but by the work of Christ, have received the blessings of eternal life. May we be those who are grateful. May we not be those who turn back when suffering comes. But Lord, may our roots run deep. Lord, may we grow and produce much fruit as your spirit works in us that we might give you glory. We pray this in Jesus' name, amen.