Is Jacobs blessing of earthly descendents a result of faith?
Where God extends his blessing of faith onto those he knows will accept it, and
reveals himself to them, they in turn “see” the stairway to heaven. You see,
the stairs always exist, it’s just a matter of who can see them. So with the
blessing of sight, Jacob “has faith”.
Read Genesis 28:10-22
How does he practice faith in this moment?
We see that after he wakes up he pours oil on his pillow
rock and renames the place where God met him, Bethel. He is impacted in his
dream so significantly that he has to outwardly represent what happened.
Further, he is spurred to move. Jacob claims, “If God will be
with me and will watch over me on this journey I am taking and will give me
food to eat and clothes to wear so that I return safely to my father’s household, then the Lord will be my God and this stone
that I have set up as a pillar will be God’s house.” (Genesis 28)
Now, Jacob had not set out before after
being inspired in the presence of the Lord. But his skeptic remark seems to
prove his humanity. Yes, he acted in faith by moving on what God called him to,
but why did he say “IF”? God blatantly
promises to Jacob that he will “watch over him wherever he goes, and bring him
back to this land. I will not leave him until I have done what I have promised him.”
But Jacob doesn’t whole heartedly abandon his net, at least not without some question.
Maybe Jacob isn’t testing God when he says “if”.
Maybe it’s not some kind of ultimatum. Like, “I will only follow you God if you
make sure no one steals this robe, oh, and I’m not sure if you’re aware but I like
to eat three meals a day. You got that?”
Jacob understood God’s promise, it was
clear. God even drives home is fidelity when he says “I will not leave you
until I have done what I have promised”. Two promises in one sentence? How
could Jacob doubt?
When he said “IF God will be with me” what
he means is, “by all means”. As if to say, God just promised to protect me, and
if God is protecting me then, heck yeah, I will do whatever he wants.
“If God is for us who can be against us?”
Responding with Jacob like faith requires a
wild, get-up-and-go type attitude. I mean, the man slept on a rock and got up
the next day ready to build God’s kingdom. Jacob-like faith is one that looks
at the promises that God makes, and says “Hey, if this is true, then I’m
trusting in it”. One that sees those brilliant stairs and shouts “how awesome
is this place!” One that sees the stairs and yearns for their hidden glory to
be disclosed to the blind.
Jacobs reaction illustrates an ideal human
faith; a faith of action, movement, “sold-outedness”, self sacrificing, full
reliance on God.
See the stairs and be inspired.
