Genesis, Message 25: The dream of Bethel

Crystallization-Study of Genesis, Message 25:

"The dream of Bethel"

 

God had a purpose for Jacob, which was for him to be the seed or the heir. Jacob also had a purpose for his own life, which was to be number one. It was not wrong to have his own purpose. But it was not pleasing to God that he used his own natural ability and his own clever scheme to accomplish his own purpose (Genesis 27). As a result, Jacob had to escape from his brother, leave his family, and became a lonesome wanderer.

  

Christ is the pillow Stone and pillar Stone for God's house.

¹⁰ Now Jacob went out from Beersheba and went toward Haran.
¹¹ So he came to a certain place and stayed there all night, because the sun had set. And he took one of the stones of that place and put it at his head, and he lay down in that place to sleep. (Genesis 28:10-11 NKJV)

Here in Genesis 28, Jacob could not use his natural ability anymore. He used to live in a warm family and be much loved by his parents. The soft comfortable pillow on which he used to put his head was no more. He was a lonely man and a hopeless wanderer. When he felt tired and sleepy, instead of putting his head on a soft comfortable man-made pillow, he had to use the God-made stone pillow, upon which he could rest. And this very stone in fact represents Christ. 

This is a common experience that most, if not all, believers can testify, is it not? Many times under God's sovereign arrangement, they are allowed by God to experience hopelessness, restlessness, tiredness and loneliness. They cannot trust in their own natural ability any more. And in those very moments they turn to the Lord for help, put their trust in Him, and find true rest upon the stone Pillow, Jesus Christ. Praise The Lord that we as a believer can always find rest in Him. 

¹⁸ Then Jacob rose early in the morning, and took the stone that he had put at his head, set it up as a pillar, and poured oil on top of it.
¹⁹ And he called the name of that place Bethel; but the name of that city had been Luz previously. (Genesis 28:18-19 NKJV)

If we follow the story, we would see that the stone pillow under Jacob's head was progressively becoming stone pillar for God's house (the meaning of "Bethel").

This implies that Christ is not only our Pillow. He is also the Pillar for God's house. The Centre of this story is that God was looking for a house. And he eventually built up the Church, having Christ as the foundation stone upon which the Church is built (Matthew 16:18), the cornerstone that joins us together (Ephesians 2:19-22) and the top stone that finishes God's building process (Zechariah 4:7).

The stone signifies not only Christ, but also all transformed believers. Man is made of clay. Just as no one would build a proper house out of clay, God would not use man as clay to build His house either. For using us, He first needs to transform us into a precious stone, as he did for Peter when He called him.

And he brought him to Jesus. Now when Jesus looked at him, He said, "You are Simon the son of Jonah. You shall be called Cephas" (which is translated, A Stone). (John 1:42 NKJV)

We therefore would be a stone pillow that other people can come and find rest, and also a stone pillar, being built up together with Christ and other saints to become God's house. Ultimately, this house shall become a city, the New Jerusalem, in which God and man live together happily ever after, as clearly described in the book of Revelation. 

Christ is the Ladder joining us to God and God to us.

Then he dreamed, and behold, a ladder was set up on the earth, and its top reached to heaven; and there the angels of God were ascending and descending on it. (Genesis 28:22 NKJV)

In that night, God appeared to Jacob in a dream, revealing His wonderful plan for mankind. That night was the first time in Jacob's life that he had experienced God.

Like Jacob, many of us may have had the same experience of loneliness and hopelessness. God might allow that to happen because we too much relied upon our own natural ability, which hindered us from allowing God's purpose to be fulfilled in our life. Not until our natural ability was put to an end could we dream God's dream.

In Jacob's dream, the ladder did not come down from the heaven. It was there already, but he only had not seen it until his closed eyes were opened. And interestingly, the angels did not descend first, and then ascend.

⁴⁵ Philip found Nathanael and said to him, "We have found Him of whom Moses in the law, and also the prophets, wrote --- Jesus of Nazareth, the son of Joseph."
⁴⁶ And Nathanael said to him, "Can anything good come out of Nazareth?" Philip said to him, "Come and see."
⁴⁷ Jesus saw Nathanael coming toward Him, and said of him, "Behold, an Israelite indeed, in whom is no deceit!"
⁴⁸ Nathanael said to Him, "How do You know me?" Jesus answered and said to him, "Before Philip called you, when you were under the fig tree, I saw you."
⁴⁹ Nathanael answered and said to Him, "Rabbi, You are the Son of God! You are the King of Israel!"
⁵⁰ Jesus answered and said to him, "Because I said to you, 'I saw you under the fig tree,' do you believe? You will see greater things than these."
⁵¹ And He said to him, "Most assuredly, I say to you, hereafter you shall see heaven open, and the angels of God ascending and descending upon the Son of Man." (John 1:45-51 NKJV)

A few thousand years later, Nathanael was under a fig tree when Philip came to invite him to come to Jesus. Even though Nathanael was a bit sceptical, he followed Philip anyway. And when he met Jesus, he must be very shocked. Jesus knew him very well even though they had not met before. And Jesus knew not only where he was before he came, but also who he was and what he was reading.

According to the teaching of Jewish religious teachers or Rabbis, the best place in the world to meditate and study the Scriptures is under a fig tree. Nathanael was probably a seeking one, meditating and reading the Scriptures there.

It was very likely that he was reading Genesis 28. This can be deduced from Jesus's saying that Nathanael was "an Israelite indeed, in whom is no deceit!" (John 1:47) And we all know that before being transformed, Jacob, from whom the nation of Israel originated, was the one full of deceit. That is a big contrast, is that not? If it was true, Jesus probably knew that Nathaneal could never understand when he read about Jacob's dream at Bethel. He therefore showed him one of the greatest revelation in the bible concerning Himself. Jacob's dream at Bethel was not just a fancy dream. It was about the Ladder. And the Ladder could refer to nothing else but Christ Himself as the Son of Man who brought the heaven (God) to earth (man) and joined earth (man) to the heaven (God).

Jesus said to him, "I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me. (John 14:6 NKJV)

The dream of Jacob at Bethel was therefore one of the most obvious prophecy regarding Christ. Its significance was confirmed by clear explanation of Jesus in John 1:51.

Christ is here already among us, but we cannot see Him until our closed eyes are opened. And the ascending and descending of the angel represent our experience when we first met Christ. We were brought to the heaven and the heaven was brought to us as soon as we received Him to our life. God and us became one through the work of Christ on the cross. It is likely that the angels then brought the good news to the heaven when one received Christ as their Saviour, and also recruited more angels to the earth to advance God's work on earth.

It is also noteworthy that Jesus revealed Himself as the Son of man here. It is perhaps His most favourite title that He used in His 3-year ministry on earth. He humbly identified Himself as a man, and also confirmed that He was the promised Messiah (Daniel 7:13). He used this title at least 80 times in the Gospels.

John 1:1, Jesus is revealed as God. He is 100% God. His divinity is for imparting His divine life to us.

But here at the end of the same chapter, He is revealed as the Son of Man. He is also 100% man. And His humanity is for God's building.

Praise the Lord that we have the Son of God who became our life and the Son of Man for the building up of God's house.

 

Thirayost Nimmanon (Tony)

 

Further reading

• The Holy Word for Morning Revival: Crystallization-Study of Genesis, week 25.
• Life study of Genesis, messages 68, 69 and 72.
• Life study of John, message 4.
• http://jaymack.net/genesis-commentary/Hd-The-Promise-Confirmed-to-Jacob-at-Bethel.asp