Sermon - Trinity XIX 2021 - Genesis 28:10-17

Jacob's Ladder, Tintoretto, 1578

“And Jacob dreamed, and behold, there was a ladder set up on the earth, and the top of it reached to heaven. And behold, the angels of God were ascending and descending on it!... 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, and this is the gate of heaven.”

According to Rock and Roll, there’s a highway to hell and a stairway to heaven. I suppose that’s kinda Biblical, because Jesus says: “Enter through the narrow gate; for the gate is wide and the way is broad that leads to destruction, and there are many who enter through it. For the gate is narrow and the way is constricted that leads to life, and there are few who find it.” Thus, a highway to hell and a narrow stairway to heaven.

But where are those places? Where’s the highway to hell and where’s the stairway to heaven? Where are the holy places in your life? What’s sacred in your life? For many people nothing is sacred anymore, nothing is holy. Many people consider the stairway to heaven, the holy places in their life, difficult to find. But the only reason the stairway is hard to find is because people look for it in all the wrong places. It’s actually very simple to find the stairway to heaven, after all Jesus is the Gate of Heaven, Jesus is the stairway. But that’s not always obvious.

It wasn’t always obvious to the patriarch Jacob either. The context for Jacob’s dream is a well-known story, I’m sure, but let’s jog our memories just to be safe. Jacob was the son of Isaac who was the son of Abraham. Isaac’s wife Rebekah was barren, but Isaac prayed to God for children and God granted his prayer. Twin brothers were born, Esau the elder and Jacob the younger, born clinging to Esau’s heel. God said that Jacob would receive the blessing, but Isaac loved Esau more. Since Rebekah loved Jacob more and remembered what God had said, she orchestrated the deception by which Jacob would trick Isaac into stealing Esau’s blessing. As you might expect, Esau was extremely angry, so much so that he wanted to kill his brother. So Isaac and Rebekah commanded Jacob to flee from his brother.

That’s the context of Jacob’s dream. He was on the lam, fleeing from his murderously angry brother for stealing the blessing which God had destined him to have. Here he stopped for the night, in the middle of the wilderness, with a rock for a pillow. After this you know what happens, he reaches his uncle Laban, falls in love with Rachel, and Laban makes him for seven years in order to marry her. After seven years Laban tricks Jacob by having him marry his other daughter Leah, so Jacob has to work another seven years in order to marry Rachel. Then when Jacob finally tries to leave, Laban attempts to cheat him again. Later, Jacob’s favorite son Joseph gets sold into slavery by his brothers and Jacob is left thinking his son had been eaten by wild beasts. Then at the end of Jacob’s life there’s a terrible drought and they’re stuck living in Egypt. 

Yet in the midst of that wild ride, God gave Jacob a dream and a promise to comfort him throughout his life, regardless of where he was or what difficulty he was experiencing. God said, “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.” What comforting words Jacob heard when he must have felt so alone and abandoned: God is with him and God will keep watch over him wherever he goes. 

God even promised to bring Jacob home again. At the end of Jacob’s life, “he drew up his feet into the bed and breathed his last and was gathered to his people.” Jacob’s sons returned Jacob’s body to the same tomb where Isaac and Abraham lay, but more than that, He was gathered home to be with God and his people in heaven.

This all has such a powerful application for us today! Think about it, what was so special about Bethel, the place where Jacob had his dream? Why was this a holy place? It’s not like there was a literal stairway to heaven there that could be climbed. It wasn’t necessarily the most comfortable nor safe lodging around. Nevertheless, when Jacob awoke, he said, “Surely the Lord is in this place, and I did not know it. How awesome is this place! This is none other than the house of God, and this is the gate of heaven.” So what made that place so holy? Because it was there that God spoke to him. 

The places where God speaks to His people and promises them grace and every blessing, that is what marks the house of God and the gate of heaven, that is the holy place. In response to having this dream and hearing God’s voice, Jacob built a pillar there and anointed it with oil, naming it Bethel, the house of God. It was a holy place because God spoke to him there. Thus, the places where God speaks to us are holy!

The dream that Jacob saw, that was a figurative representation of Jesus. When Jesus came He said to one of His followers: “Truly, truly, I say to you, you will see heaven opened, and the angels of God ascending and descending on the Son of Man.” And what happened? “When Jesus was baptized, immediately he went up from the water, and behold, the heavens were opened to him, and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and coming to rest on him.” Jesus is the stairway to heaven!

Throughout Jesus’ ministry we can see that He is the stairway to heaven. Everywhere He goes He is comforting people by speaking to them and being present with them. Wherever Jesus goes He is bringing heaven to the people around Him! This is why when a paralytic is brought to Him, He says “Take heart, my son; your sins are forgiven.” Jesus speaks with the voice and authority of God because He is God! Jesus is the ladder to heaven! Jesus is the holy place!

So again, where are the holy places in your life? What’s sacred in your life? Where do you set up a pillar like Jacob, where’s your temple? One of them is right here. This church is a holy place, this is none other than the house of God! Why? Because Jesus is here! You heard this morning that you are to take heart because your sins are forgiven! The same voice, the same authority has spoken to you here in this place! Jesus is present upon this altar! The fountain of youth is right here in this little wooden stand! It’s good to bow and reverence the altar, it’s good to walk and not run in here, it’s good to maintain this room as sacred and holy because this is the house of God, this is where God speaks to us and Jesus comes to us.

The reason that Christians have built physical churches is because it’s worth remembering the spot where God speaks to us. God is real, even though Jacob just had a dream he still built a physical monument to remind himself that God really spoke to Him and that God will physically gather him to paradise on the last day. Likewise, we build churches because God is real; we may not be able to see Him, so we build something physical which we can see to help us remember and understand that God will really take us bodily to Himself in paradise. How awesome is this place! This is the house of God! This is the gate of heaven!

Similarly, another holy place for the Christian is in the home. Our homes should be places where God’s Word is read from the Bible and therefore our homes are holy places. Our homes should bear the marks of holiness instead of profanity. If Christianity were illegal, would there be enough evidence in your home to arrest you? If your religion is based upon the pillars set up in your home, who is your god? Do you worship family, the TV, your favorite sport, your country, your favorite drink or food? Or is it Christ? Let’s make our homes a holy place, a place of eternal comfort and joy, by making them a place where God’s word is heard.

After your church and your home, remember that everywhere you go God goes with you. Like Jacob, even when your life is a mess, God is there with you. Even when you’re surrounded by the profane, when you’re in the wilderness sleeping on a rock, God is present as you carry His Word with you in your memory. For you, dear Christian, everywhere you go is sacred and holy because the Lord shall not forsake you. In the end, He promises to carry you to Himself in paradise. You know the way to heaven, Jesus is the stairway, and at last the angels will descend from heaven to carry you home.