Genesis 28-32

Okay, so, I have gotten fairly behind. I had a lofty goal, to read the Bible all in one year, and blog DAILY about my experiences and thoughts in God's word. Well, I've failed a bit. I'm about a month behind. But, If I continue to read 4 chapters a day I will be able to accomplish my goal. This is not an impossible feat. I must be diligent. I simply must be. 

Now, I am getting back on that "pony" with a quick post over my last reading. From 24-31. Now, alot happens here. We learn that Jacob is a decietful little bugger, and has well earned his name "heel grabber." Jacob is a sinner. He's a liar, and a bit of a thief, and that's for sure. But God has still chosen him for His purposes. One portion of scripture that I find very beautiful is where Jacob falls asleep, and he has a dream.

¹² And he dreamed that there was a ladder set up on the earth, the top of it reaching to heaven; and the angels of God were ascending and descending on it. ¹³ And the Lord stood beside him 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; ¹⁴ and 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 all the families of the earth shall be blessed  in you and in your offspring. ¹⁵ Know that 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.” ¹⁶ Then Jacob woke from his sleep and said, “Surely the Lord is in this place—and I did not know it!” ¹⁷ 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.” - Genesis 28:12-17

This is the place where God calls Jacob into covenant on a very official level. The promised Messiah is going to come through him. In fact, all of the Jews are going to come through him. But that is obvious. Everybody knows about Yahweh being the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. What people may not know is the connection between Jesus and Bethel. 

“Very truly, I tell you, you will see heaven opened and the angels of God ascending and descending upon the Son of Man.” - John 1:51.

Notice the two underlined portions in Genesis and John 1. Jesus is claiming to be that ladder. Jesus is claiming to be the mediator between God and men. He is claiming to be the house of God, (Bethel) and the Gate of Heaven. This is indeed a bold claim for him to make. It is certain that Jesus did not believe Himself to be just any man. No. He saw himself as being present when God blessed Jacob. Jesus is our ladder to God.

Though there are many other things to take away from this portion of scripture, what is really important to take away are these two things. 1) That Jesus claims to be the only way to God. He does this by quoting a passage of scripture about a ladder between heaven and earth. And 2) that nothing a man can ever do can separate himself from God's loving call. God called This imperfect man, Jacob. And Jacob, even after he was called, committed many sins. He was still a thief, a liar, and a conman. But God would not allow him to slip too far away. In the next chapter, we see how God gets Jacob's attention.
Among many important things, Jacob gets married, twice, and this causes a lot of competition between Jacob's two wives. He was conned, in the same way that he conned others. Perhaps this is God's means of justice.