Amid Our Struggle, God Promises His Presence (Genesis 28:10-22)
Our church had undergone a lot of hardships of late. Illness, death, and other things have been seen far too frequently for our liking of late. Our individual lives have seen a lot of hardships. And this text meets us right there.
Jacob is a man who is not a fan of living out in the wilderness. He has been forced to do so because his brother wants to kill him. And on this journey that is forced upon him for protection, he is to also go and find a wife. He has been sent away from the safety of his family and home and is sleeping under the stars.
And here, God gives him glorious promises and encouragement for the difficult days ahead. And it’s a word that we need to hear as well. Amid our struggle, God promises His presence.
God Promises To Be With Us For Eternity
Jacob was in the wilderness alone, he was travelling toward Haran, which is nearby Padan Aram (Genesis 28:2). But this travel was not simply travel. Jacob was out in the wilderness alone and escaping for his life. The incredibly sinful ordeal from last week led him to escape for his life in the wilderness. His brother wanted to kill him and so his mother tried to get him to leave, but ended up convincing her husband to send him away to find a wife.
This is no small ordeal for Jacob. The child who was a home body is out in the wilderness sleeping under the stars because home is now dangerous. So he took the stone and laid it under his head for a pillow and went to sleep. And as he did so the Lord appeared to him in a dream.
Jacob saw a ladder that was on earth and the top of it reached into heaven. God was on top of this ladder and angels were ascending and descending upon the ladder (Genesis 28:12-13). There are many things to say about this ladder and we will say more about it today, but the imagery does remind us of something. God made many promises to Abraham and his offspring and Jacob is the child through whom these promises would come. Another way of saying this is that out of all the people in the world, God chose Abraham and his offspring. And Jacob is the child through whom these promises would come.
The child through whom this promise would come was struggling in the wilderness. So, God gave him the promises all over again as a way of strengthening him on his way (Genesis 28:13-14). These are promises with future fulfillment. God announced who He was and promised to give him the land and to give him offspring as multitudinous as the sand on the seashore. That is a lot of offspring and is the same promise that had been given to Abraham.
I want you to notice, as I have said repeatedly, these future promises given to Jacob are ours in Christ.
“Now the promises were made to Abraham and to his offspring. It does not say, “And to offsprings,” referring to many, but referring to one, “And to your offspring,” who is Christ.” (Galatians 3:16 ESV)
And so, as we look at Galatians 3, we understand that these promises were not just given to Jacob or the physical people that came from Jacob. These promises were ultimately given to Jesus through Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. And as we read the text we see that all those who are in Christ receive these promises.
The Law was given after the promises were given to help us see that we need a Savior. The Law is there to help us see our need for God’s grace and mercy. We have broken God’s Law and have earned for ourself His justice and wrath. The Law was given to show us our own sinfulness and need to trust in Jesus.
“Why then the law? It was added because of transgressions, until the offspring should come to whom the promise had been made, and it was put in place through angels by an intermediary. Now an intermediary implies more than one, but God is one. Is the law then contrary to the promises of God? Certainly not! For if a law had been given that could give life, then righteousness would indeed be by the law. But the Scripture imprisoned everything under sin, so that the promise by faith in Jesus Christ might be given to those who believe. Now before faith came, we were held captive under the law, imprisoned until the coming faith would be revealed. So then, the law was our guardian until Christ came, in order that we might be justified by faith.” (Galatians 3:19-24 ESV)
And so, by faith, we take hold of these promises given to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob that are ultimately fulfilled in Jesus Christ.
“But now that faith has come, we are no longer under a guardian, for in Christ Jesus you are all sons of God, through faith. For as many of you as were baptized into Christ have put on Christ. There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is no male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus. And if you are Christ’s, then you are Abraham’s offspring, heirs according to promise.” (Galatians 3:25-29)
This means that those who turn from ruling their own lives and entrust their selves to Christ are, by faith, made heirs of the promises given to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.
God the Son took on human flesh and dwelt among us. He was born of a woman, one of the offspring of Abraham. And He being completely God and completely man, the perfect Godman lived a perfect life and died on the cross paying the punishment for sin. He fulfilled the Law of God completely and did on the cross. All those who turn from ruling their own life and entrust their selves to Him are brought near to God by faith. They are made partakers of these glorious promises and brought into God’s family. And they will be with Him forever.
This is for you to hear and know right now. All those place their faith in the promise, the fulfilment of which is Jesus Christ, are brought near to God and made part of God’s family. And they will be with Him for all eternity. These glorious promises are ours in Christ.
And you may be thinking right now that the land promises just don’t fit what I am saying. But I am here to tell you that they do.
The land promises did not simply remain the boundaries of Israel. They expanded to be worldwide throughout the Scriptures.
In Isaiah 65:17-25 we have the beautiful future fulfillment as something much bigger than the land of Israel. The New Heavens and New Earth, which is oftentimes discussed as the home of believers for all eternity, is first discussed here.
“”For behold, I create new heavens and a new earth, and the former things shall not be remembered or come into mind. But be glad and rejoice forever in that which I create; for behold, I create Jerusalem to be a joy, and her people to be a gladness. I will rejoice in Jerusalem and be glad in my people; no more shall be heard in it the sound of weeping and the cry of distress. No more shall there be in it an infant who lives but a few days, or an old man who does not fill out his days, for the young man shall die a hundred years old, and the sinner a hundred years old shall be accursed. They shall build houses and inhabit them; they shall plant vineyards and eat their fruit. They shall not build and another inhabit; they shall not plant and another eat; for like the days of a tree shall the days of my people be, and my chosen shall long enjoy the work of their hands. They shall not labor in vain or bear children for calamity, for they shall be the offspring of the blessed of the LORD, and their descendants with them. Before they call I will answer; while they are yet speaking I will hear. The wolf and the lamb shall graze together; the lion shall eat straw like the ox, and dust shall be the serpent’s food. They shall not hurt or destroy in all my holy mountain,” says the LORD.” (Isaiah 65:17-25 ESV)
And Micah moves us to see this expansion as well.
“It shall come to pass in the latter days that the mountain of the house of the LORD shall be established as the highest of the mountains, and it shall be lifted up above the hills; and peoples shall flow to it, and many nations shall come, and say: “Come, let us go up to the mountain of the LORD, to the house of the God of Jacob, that he may teach us his ways and that we may walk in his paths.” For out of Zion shall go forth the law, and the word of the LORD from Jerusalem. He shall judge between many peoples, and shall decide disputes for strong nations far away; and they shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruning hooks; nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war anymore; but they shall sit every man under his vine and under his fig tree, and no one shall make them afraid, for the mouth of the LORD of hosts has spoken. For all the peoples walk each in the name of its god, but we will walk in the name of the LORD our God forever and ever.” (Micah 4:1-5 ESV)
What does this mean?
Well, Paul helps us quite plainly when he says that God promised the offspring of Abraham the entire world.
“For the promise to Abraham and his offspring that he would be heir of the world did not come through the law but through the righteousness of faith.” (Romans 4:13 ESV)
God promised the land of Israel to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. But this land did not remain the sum total of the land promised. It was still part of the promise, but as time went by God revealed that He would give more to His people. The entire world would be the people of God’s inheritance. And Paul sums this up simply by saying that Abraham and his offspring would inherit “the world”.
This means that there is coming a day when the entire world will be filled with the glory of the Lord. That is the time we call the New Heavens and New Earth. Heaven is not the end for the believer. Even those who are in Heaven now, look forward to the day when Jesus returns and the whole world is filled with the glory of the Lord.
And God will be with us from now and throughout all eternity, just as was promised to Jacob here. We are God’s people. We are part of Abraham’s offspring by faith. And so, we are promised that forever God will be with us.
What did Jesus promise us at the end of the Great Commission?
He promised that He would be with us, “even to the end of the age.” (Matthew 28:20 ESV). So, we cry out with Paul,
“For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.” (Romans 8:38-39 ESV)
And this is all ours in Christ.
This brings me to one last thing of note about the connection of these promises to Jesus. Philip quickly believed in Jesus and told Nathanael about Him. But Nathanael did not immediately believe. Jesus revealed to Nathanael His power and Nathanael believed. Notice what Jesus said here,
“Nathanael answered him, “Rabbi, you are the Son of God! You are the King of Israel!” Jesus answered him, “Because I said to you, ‘I saw you under the fig tree,’ do you believe? You will see greater things than these.” And he said to 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.”” (John 1:49-51 ESV)
Jesus is using the image of this text today, with he angels ascending and descending not upon Jacob but upon Himself. Jesus is informing Nathanael that He is the New Israel. Or, a better way of saying it is that Jesus is the fulfillment of everything promised to Israel and that a relationship with God is to be found in no one but Jesus Christ.
Remember the context. This message is delivered to Jacob while he is running for his life in the wilderness. This message of grace is to help him get through his suffering.
It is the same for us. This is grace that empowers us for the days ahead. We can face the struggles and uncertainties of today because of the eternal life given to us.
“For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing with the glory that is to be revealed to us.” (Romans 8:18 ESV)
How is it that Christians can endure the suffering that has often marked our existence? How did we survive the intense persecutions of Rome? How did Protestants survive the persecutions of Catholics round Europe? How do Christians survive today in places like China and many places in Africa that are incredibly hostile to their very existence?
It is faith in God’s future grace toward us in eternal life that makes us able to face the uncertainties of life.
The sufferings of this life are as nothing in comparison to the life to come. Sickness, death, persecution, famine are as nothing to the glory that is to be revealed. It is God’s grace to us in His eternal salvation that carries us through.
But these blessings are not for everyone. These blessings are only ours in Christ. He is the way, the truth, and the life and no one comes to the Father but through Him. It is only through Him that these blessings flow to us.
Through Jesus Christ, those who trust in Him, are brought into God’s family and given these wonderful promises. There is no other way to be brought to God but by faith in Jesus Christ. Eternal life can be found nowhere else.
God Promises His Presence Now
God’s presence is not strictly something we have in the life to come. God promises His presence now. Remember what Jacob’s dream is. The Lord appeared to him as he slept with a rock as his pillow. The Lord was above the ladder and angels were ascending and descending from Heaven to Earth.
This is a picture of God sending His angels to care for Jacob. Even at this time of hardship for Jacob, as he is running for his life, God is with him. The descending angels were ministering to Jacob and the ascending angels were returning to Heaven.
And to this picture is added the promise from God that He will be with Jacob.
“Behold, I am with you and will keep you wherever you go, and will bring you back to this land. For I will not leave you until I have done what I have promised you.” (Genesis 28:15 ESV)
God’s care for him, and for us, is not just in the future. God is with us always. Again, when did Jesus say that he would be with us, right now and always “even to the end of the age.”
The hymn we sang, “Nearer My God, To Thee” expresses both ideas quite plainly with words of our text today. Verse 2, 3, and 4 are straight from Genesis 28. And the message is clear, whether it be in life or in death God is with us. God is not just with us when we die and in eternity. He is with us both now and forevermore.
It is not easy, sometimes, to remember that God is currently watching over us and caring for us. I find it easy to forget this when life become difficult. I find that I have to repeat it to myself a lot, or else I won’t remember. I’m thick and sometimes it takes a whole lot of talking to myself.
When you are sick and things are just hard, it is easy to forget that God is currently watching over you.
When people, family, and friends treat you poorly, it is easy to forget that God is currently watching over you.
When persecution arises, it is easy to forget that God is currently watching over you.
But we must remember. And we should be strengthened by this fact. God is caring for you and watching over you, not only in the future, but now as well.
This Is Cause For Worship (Genesis 28:18-22)
Jacob wakes up, not just refreshed but overwhelmed with gratitude to the Lord. And so, he poured oil upon that stone that his head lay on while he had this dream and made it a place of remembrance and worship to the Lord.
If God is faithful to him, then Jacob pledges he will be faithful to the Lord. And because he believes the Lord will be faithful to him, he worships the Lord and pledges a tithe to the Lord. He worshipped and pledged 10% of all he had to the Lord.
God’s love and care for us is cause for worship. Part of his worship is giving out of what he has. We do this every week and before the offering plate passes by, I attempt to show that this is what we are to do. The Lord is gracious and kind to us and we respond by honoring Him, worshiping Him, obeying Him, giving thanks to Him, and giving to Him. Notice where all this worship comes from for Jacob, out of a heart of gratitude and thankfulness because of the Lord’s care for him.
“The point is this: whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and whoever sows bountifully will also reap bountifully. Each one must give as he has decided in his heart, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver.” (2 Corinthians 9:6-7 ESV)
God has given to us eternal life. We have been saved from God’s wrath and justice. Oughtn’t we to be filled with gratitude and respond as Jacob did with worship both in our actions and with our giving? Should not our hearts overflow with worship? Should not our checkbooks match that reality?
The fact of the matter is that Jacob sets before us an example of how we are to live as God’s people. God loves and cares for us and we respond to that with worship, which includes giving.
I know that life is hard right now. We have felt that squeeze as prices have gone up. It felt as if, suddenly, we could no longer afford certain things and so we had to quit purchasing those things. But that does not change the reality of our lives.
God has saved us and will be with us for all eternity. He loves us and cares for us now and forevermore. And we respond to that with worship and giving. Let us imitate Jacob, in this instance, with our lives.
Conclusion
This year has been hard for a lot of folks in this congregation. And as I studied this text and thought through preaching it, I felt it was something we needed to hear and take home with us. God loves and cares for us, even when it doesn’t seem to be the case. And when we understand that message, our sorrow eventually turns to worship.
R. Dwain Minor