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One of the blessings of the maturation process in the Kingdom is that you move on to greater and better things. The writer in Hebrews says it this way, “Therefore let us go on and get past the elementary stage in the teachings and doctrine of Christ (the Messiah), advancing steadily toward the completeness and perfection that belong to spiritual maturity (Heb 6:1 Amp).” Let’s look into the life of Jacob, where for the next twenty years he’s about to be turned upside down, inside out, stretched to the limits, overturned, and reformatted for the glory of God.
Jacob understood and valued the God of his father, Isaac, and his grandfather, Abraham more than his twin brother, Esau. He knew that in his position as the younger brother, Esau (who came out first) stood in line to receive the inheritance of the firstborn which included the rights to become the next family leader and the blessing of God. Jacob coveted that position and once he saw an opportunity, seized upon it to take it away from Esau. One might suspect the Father to be upset with Jacob but look at His heart/view of Jacob – the liar/trickster/deceiver, “As it is written, Jacob have I loved, but Esau have I hated (held in relative disregard in comparison with My feeling for Jacob) (Rom 9:13 Amp). Why did God feel that way towards Esau? Because he despised his birthright position as being the firstborn and thought little of his relationship with the God of his father and grandfather. Esau was such a disappointment to both God and his parents (they had a problem with his choice of women). Still Isaac favored Esau while Rebekah favored Jacob. If you think little of the things of God, He won’t think very much of you.
While God did not overlook Jacob’s flawed character, He admired his love and respect for Him. God would become his God. Not just the God of Abraham and the God of Isaac, but now the GOD of JACOB! God knew Jacob needed some work on his personal life and He knew just who to send him to – UNCLE LABAN! God will use someone just like you to develop character in you. As stated earlier, the next twenty years of Jacob’s life were about to be turned upside down…but it was for a good cause – to develop character and prepare him for God’s plan as the father of the twelve tribes of “Israel” – his new name for a new man processed by the Hands of God. It began with a dream…
“And he dreamed that there was a ladder set up on the earth, and the top of it reached to heaven; and the angels of God were ascending and descending on it (Gen 28:12 Amp)!” Jesus reveals the ladder in John 1:51, “Then He said to him, I assure you, most solemnly I tell you all, you shall see heaven opened, and the angels of God ascending and descending upon the Son of Man!” Here we have Jacob, escaping the wrath of his brother Esau for taking his birthright and blessing, heading towards Padan Aram to find a wife from his mother’s country, and God gives him a revelation of Jesus, the connection between heaven and earth. That one ladder represents one way – Jesus. Heaven communicates to earth and earth communicates to heaven through Jesus. That’s the right way, that’s God’s only way. This includes our interaction with angels. Jesus is the Divine Connector. He is Jacob’s Ladder.
God deals with us in steps and successions. When Jacob awoke from the dream he knew that God had been there with him but he had no idea that He was going to show up there. He just wanted a night’s rest. This was the beginning of Jacob’s personal encounter and relationship with God. To be cont…
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