Daily Devotions based the Sermon from February 28, 2021
THIS WEEK: Lead Me to the Cross…See the Ladder…Find God & His Promises!
Don’t you wish you wrote down all your dreams? Sometimes you wake up and the dream is so vivid that you remember details, but if you don’t write it down, you quickly forget.
While many dreams are nothing memorable, there might be a few you remember to this day.
On occasion God would use a dream to communicate with his people. One such dream was a ladder Jacob saw with angels ascending and descending from the throne of God. Along with the vivid imagery, came equally poignant words from God.
Genesis 28:10 Jacob left Beersheba and set out for Haran. 11 When he reached a certain place, he stopped for the night because the sun had set. Taking one of the stones there, he put it under his head and lay down to sleep. 12 He had a dream in which he saw a stairway resting on the earth, with its top reaching to heaven, and the angels of God were ascending and descending on it. 13 There above it stood the Lord, and he said: “I am the Lord, the God of your father Abraham and the God of Isaac. I will give you and your descendants the land on which you are lying. 14 Your descendants will be like the dust of the earth, and you will spread out to the west and to the east, to the north and to the south. All peoples on earth will be blessed through you and your offspring. 15 I am with you and will watch over you wherever you go, and I will bring you back to this land. I will not leave you until I have done what I have promised you.”
16 When Jacob awoke from his sleep, he thought, “Surely the Lord is in this place, and I was not aware of it.” 17 He was afraid and said, “How awesome is this place! This is none other than the house of God; this is the gate of heaven.”
What an amazing dream. Jacob was right, “How awesome is this place! This is none other than the house of God!” Jacob would not forget this dream.
Neither should we. God reveals some amazing realities of who he is. What makes the Lord unique among all other gods.
- God comes TO us, even when we run FROM him.
So often we try to find God, reach out for God, try to get into God’s favor on our own effort. We can spend a lifetime trying to build OUR ladder to heaven. Jacob was on the run. But God came TO him. He does the same for you.
- God is PRESENT, even when we think he is ABSENT.
Jacob said, “Surely the Lord is in this place, and I was not aware of it.” Ever felt the same? Or perhaps asked, “God where are you?” Our perception at times is that God is absent. God is not a god that is far off, but one that is near and accessible.
- God is FAITHFUL, even when we are UNFAITHFUL.
God could have condemned Jacob for his trickery and deception, yet he comes to him to reaffirm his promises to Jacob. God shows his faithfulness to his unfaithful people.
These three qualities God reveals to Jacob are not just for Jacob, they are for you too. In fact if you are looking for three ways to explain why the God of the Bible is unique among all other gods, this is a pretty good list!
Apply: Which of these three attributes of God is most meaningful to you?
Prayer: Lord thank you for being OUR God who comes to us, is always present and always faithful. AMEN.
Read the rest of the week for seven promises God shows to Jacob and to us!