|
Genesis 28: 10–19
|
|
May the words of my mouth and the meditations of our hearts be
acceptable to you, O Lord our strength and our redeemer. Amen.
|
|
Genesis is a book of beginnings 8211; telling us the beginning of
God’s Creation and the beginning of God’s dealings with us,
his people. Maybe that’s why I like the story of Jacob that
we get in our first lesson this morning, because it tells the story
of “God with us” in such a vivid way.
|
|
You see, Jacob was hardly a stellar individual, perfect in all his
ways. No. He was a conniver, a schemer, always trying to
outwit people – especially his twin brother Esau. In fact,
Jacob’s very name means ‘grasper’, one who grasps
or grabs. So, he was always trying to get or grasp
more – more than his twin brother Esau had, more than his father
Isaac was ready to give him. He was worse, in other
words – more competitive, more cut–throat — than any
of us have been on our very worst days. And one day, after
he’d pushed things way too far, tricking Isaac to get the
blessing that rightfully belonged to his older brother, Esau was
finally ready to kill him, and Jacob had to flee for his
life. That day, he took off in such a hurry, such a rush he
didn’t even have time to pack up a bedroll. So, at sundown,
when he arrived at Luz and darkness was already falling, Jacob simply
lay down on the ground, using a smooth stone as a pillow. And he
fell asleep.
|
|
Yet, despite that terrible, horrible, no good, very bad beginning of
a day, that night God appeared to this miscreant in a dream. In
his dream, Jacob saw a ladder, ascending all the way up to
heaven. And on that ladder, there were angels, beautiful
angels with rainbow wings and golden slippers, ascending and
descending from heaven to earth and back upwards again.
|
|
But that wasn’t all to his dream. For in the dream God
spoke to Jacob, telling him that He was going to give the ground he
was lying on to him and to his offspring – a people God promised
would be as numerous as the dust of the earth. And finally, as
if all that weren’t enough, God assured Jacob he would stay
with them all, ensuring that his Presence would be with them forever,
protecting them wherever they went.
|
|
No wonder, when Jacob awoke, he exclaimed in holy awe, “God was
in this place, and I knew it not.” For heaven had touched
earth – and not just earth, but this particular flawed
individual. Jacob was astonished that a holy God would visit
him, would seek him out, would promise to bless him, miscreant that
he was. He was amazed at God’s mercy. No wonder he
then set that stone he had used as a pillow all night upright – as
a kind of memorial to mark the spot where the ladder’s feet had
touched the ground. No wonder he then anointed that stone with
oil to consecrate the place as holy. Indeed, on that very spot,
which Jacob then named Beth–el, “House of God,” he
and his descendants would later build an altar – a place where
many could worship this generous God. For in this place this
young man who up to this point had cared only for himself, had
suddenly learned he was not alone. No – he was accompanied,
he was embraced, he was held in love by Almighty God.
|
|
So, no wonder, when you and I were children, adults taught us to
sing, “We are climbing Jacob’s ladder”. For
Jacob’s story is our story too. Just like Jacob, little
by little we all learn that God loves us, God is with us, and God
promises never to forsake us. Just like Jacob, we learn there
are ways we can reach up, climb up to God – and God can reach
down to us. And just like Jacob we learn that God doesn’t
love us because of who we are. God loves us because of who
God is. And that part leads us to the end of my story this morning.
|
|
This week, as I searched for music for this morning’s service,
I found an English folk song in our hymnal that’s all about
this story of Jacob’s ladder. We will sing that song as
our offertory this morning. So, if you will, I’d like
you to turn to it now. It’s in your Hymnal, Hymn number 453.
|
The first verse, you see, tells the story we’ve just read in our
first lesson.
As Jacob with travel was weary one day, at night on a stone for
a pillow he lay:
He saw in a vision a ladder so high, that its foot was on earth
and its top in the sky;
then the refrain:
Alleluia to Jesus, who died on the tree and has raised up a
ladder of mercy for me,
And has raised up a ladder of mercy for me.
|
|
Suddenly, as I read those words and sang them, I realized that the
story of Jacob’s ladder is not simply a historical story we
read in the Bible or a charming myth we teach to our
children. It’s the story of our own relationship to
God – by the mercies of Jesus’ sacrifice on the cross for
us all. For we too, no less than Jacob, have gotten away with
plenty. So, we too — even if we’ve never actually
seen a ladder in a dream, as Jacob did — need to ascend to God
on a ladder of mercy. But our ladder of mercy, our way to
Almighty God, is Jesus Christ himself who died on that tree to
give us all access to Almighty God. By grace, the unmerited
favor of God, he welcomes us as we ascend. Why does he do
it? Well, we are his children, and he cares for us more
than we know.
|
|
Now some of you might now be wondering, “How can she say such
things? What proof does she have that this fairy tale
story is true for us?” Well, I don’t have a
stone, anointed with oil and pointing upward to heaven to show you,
as Jacob had to remind him of God’s promises. But I do
have proof of God’s presence with us – just as He promised
He would be with His children forever. And that proof is the
feeling you get as you walk into this sanctuary. Everyone feels
it when they walk in here – the same sense Jacob had when he
cried out – “God is in this place – and I knew it
not.” For in this place too, heaven touches
earth. And we are changed. We are transformed.
|
|
Come. Let us continue to worship Him in holy awe. Let us
ascend together to those regions of light where He, the source
of our lives, awaits us.
|
Amen.
|
