Sunset Road Baptist Church Sermon Notes: January 21, 2007 - God’s Con: "The Dream"

Sunday, January 21, 2007

January 21, 2007 - God’s Con: "The Dream"

By: Rev. Steve Bass

Scripture Meditation: Genesis 28:10-22

INTRODUCTORY REMARKS

Let’s face it:

Despite all the benefits and insights it provides
21st century science has an ability to suck all the mystery and romance out of life

Take dreaming for an example

According to scientists...

You dream because of alternating currents of electricity flowing through your brain while you sleep
Evidently these surges of electricity helps your brain process information- and store it away in memory

Which- if I remember correctly- is important stuff-

But come on- it IS kind of boring
I mean where’s Walt Disney when you need him? THERE was a guy who understood dreams!

The people of the Bible had a strong belief in the power of dreams

They saw dreams as mystical things- filled with meaning and mystery
They believed that God often spoke to His people- and revealed the future- through dreams

Read what the Bible says in Judges 7:13-15
Do you see what I'm getting at?

Gideon understood this man’s dream to be a direct revelation from God
He acted on the dream- and won a great victory over the Midianite army

The reason I bring all of this up is because this morning we're continuing our sermon series on the life of Jacob

Specifically we're going to focus on a dream that became the foundation of Jacob’s faith
Please read Genesis 28

Let me give you a little background about today’s message

JACOB IS FORCED TO FLEE

If you remember-

Last week we learned how Jacob-

Manipulated his brother Esau into forfeiting his birthright
And then- with his mother’s help- conned his father Isaac into giving him the blessing intended for Esau

Well... in the words of Eddie Murphy- Jacob’s actions had consequences and repercussions

Genesis 27:30-38

Esau was crushed when he learned what Jacob had done

His birthright was already gone- but that was mostly about money
But his father’s blessing was infinitely more valuable because it involved the covenant God had established with Esau’s grandfather Abraham
Because of Jacob’s deception:

He would be the special recipient of God’s love and grace
And Esau would always be on the outside looking in

Suffice it to say- Jacob’s con artistry made Esau a very bitter man

And in his rage he made a decision
Read Genesis 27:41

Now I'm not advocating murdering your brother

But come on- you gotta feel some sympathy for Esau
I know... / But Esau...

The Bible says all of this was a part of God’s eternal plan
Must have felt like he'd been hosed!

Through no fault of his own
he'd lost everything

Would have made me mad too!

Well anyway, Rebekah learns of Esau’s plan

Even though she was Esau’s mother too- Jacob had ALWAYS been her favorite
And she wasn't about to let her older son hurt her golden child

So she did two things:

First- she told Jacob to ‘get out of town’ until Esau’s fury subdued
Then- to cover her tracks- she encouraged Isaac to send Jacob back to the land of their ancestors to find a wife

Now look at what it says in Genesis 28:1-4
Essentially- this is the same blessing Isaac gave Jacob in chapter 27

Except this time there had been no deception- this was a free-will decision on Isaac’s part
Once again- he’s given Jacob the ‘keys to the kingdom’

The covenant promises God had made to his father Abraham- and then to Isaac himself
Now belonged to Jacob and his descendents

Now this tells us something important about Isaac- and his understanding of the Will of God

See- if it would have been up to him-

Esau would have been the child of the promise
Esau was his firstborn- and his favorite son

But Isaac knew it wasn't up to him to decide whom God would bless

Just as God had freely chosen Abraham and then Isaac- He had now chosen Jacob
And Isaac knew he had to submit to God’s Will- PERIOD!

You know- that’s one of the toughest things you can do as a Christian

See:

Sometimes your hopes and dreams in life
aren't in line with God’s plans and purposes for your life

When that becomes clear- the way it became clear to Isaac- you've got to make a choice:

You can get angry with God- and rebel against His Will
Or you can trust and believe God- and submit to His Will

And here’s want you need to understand:

When you submit to God’s Will- in spite of the way you might be feel
God will always...

Honor your effort- and pour out His blessings in your life!
GAY-RON-TEED!

JACOB’S STATE OF MIND

With all that in mind- let’s get back to Jacob

With his father’s blessing- Jacob sets off for Haran
Read Genesis 28:10-11

You know, if this had been Esau... / But this is Jacob...

Sleeping under the stars with a rock as your pillow wouldn't have been a big deal

The Bible says Esau was an outdoorsman
He thrived in this kind of environment

The soft, ‘stay-at-home’ ‘Momma’s boy’

He’s not used to living like this
And so as he tried to go to sleep that night- Jacob’s mind must have been churning

On the one hand he had achieved his goal.

Through deception he had gained:

His brother’s birthright
And his father’s blessing

For better or worse- HE was now the child of promise

On the other hand- look where it got him

He was a long way from home-

Headed towards a place he'd never been-
Hoping to find an uncle he'd never met

At that moment Jacob must have been more frightened and lonely than he'd ever been

Folks- that’s a picture of what sin does in your life

Sin may bring you some short-term pleasure and satisfaction
But you always wind up where Jacob was:

Miserable and frightened
Lost and lonely
Feeling totally cut-off from the love of God

And let me tell you something: That’s NEVER a good place to be!

THE DREAM

Now let’s look at Jacob’s dream

Genesis 28:12

I want you to notice what you just read here:

Verse 12 says the angels were ascending and descending the ladder that reached from earth to heaven

Instead of the angels coming to Earth with God’s message- and then going back to heaven
The angels are ascending- or going up to heaven- and then returning to back to Earth

Now you might be thinking: So what? Angels are moving between heaven and Earth. What difference does the direction they're traveling make?

Well here’s where you have to go back to Jacob’s state of mind:

He’s out there in the middle of nowhere
Feeling terribly alone and afraid

But what he sees in this dream reminds him that he’s NOT alone

That God knows EXACTLY where he is
And what’s more: God’s angels are with him- offering Jacob their protection and care

Genesis 28:13

You know it’s interesting: Jacob had grown up in a home where the name of the Lord was known

All his life he'd been taught that Yahweh- or Jehovah- was the one true and living God
But here God personally introduces Himself to Jacob

I am the God your grandfather Abraham knew and worshiped
I am the God your father Isaac knows and worships
And I want to be the God YOU know and worship

You know- a lot of people go through life trying to be spiritually dependent on someone else’s credentials

My grandmother was a strong Christian lady- my parents taught me about Jesus from the day I was born
With all that going for me- I MUST be saved

Here’s where you need to remember what the Bible says:

When it comes to your salvation- you can't depend on someone else’s faith
The only way to be saved is to make a personal decision to receive Jesus as YOUR Savior and Lord

Romans 14:12 says: So then, each of us will give an account of himself to God.

In other words: Family connections can't help you
Someday you'll have to stand before God- and the only thing that will save you is to be able to say: I trusted Jesus Christ as my personal Savior and Lord

The promise God makes with Jacob is virtually identical to the one he'd made with Abraham and Isaac. The promise involved four things:

The promise of a country to call home
The promise of a great posterity
The promise to be a blessing to all the nations on Earth. This meant God’s only begotten son would be one of Jacob’s descendents.
And finally- the promise of God’s undying love and presence. Powerful stuff!

But here’s the thing: Abraham, Isaac and Jacob never saw these promises fulfilled in their lifetimes

The promise of a home land?

Abraham and Isaac were still living a nomadic existence when they died
Jacob died in exile in Egypt

How about the promise of a great posterity? Look at the facts:

Abraham fathered only three children
Isaac had two kids- Jacob and Esau
Now Jacob did pretty well for himself: He wound up with 12 sons and a daughter

Which is a big family by any stretch of the imagination
But hardly a mighty nation

As far as the promise of being a blessing to the nations went- Jesus wouldn't be born for nearly 2000 years
The only promise that was fulfilled in their lifetimes was the unending love and presence of God in their lives

But here’s the thing:

The fact they didn't see all of these promises come true in their lifetimes didn't shake the faith these men had.
Please read Hebrews 11:1-2, Hebrews 11:6, and Hebrews 11:8-16

Here’s the point the Bible is making: Faith...

Sees beyond the present circumstances and situations you may be facing in life
And places its absolute trust and confidence in the promises of God!

THE NEXT MORNING

Read Genesis 28:16-17
Jacob was a man of great faith- but he wasn't much of a theologian

One of the fundamental truths about God is His omnipresence

This means He’s in all places at all times
That He can't be confined to a particular location- even if it’s a place of worship

But Jacob’s dream was so powerful he thought he'd found the magical place where heaven and Earth intersected

This assumption reflects Jacob’s understanding of holy places

In those days people believed there were certain places where heaven and Earth literally came together
Places were you could worship God with special power- and be particularly close to Him

That sounds odd to our ears, but some religious people still believe that

For-

Orthodox Jews the Western Wall of the Temple Mount is that place
Muslims the city of Mecca- and the rock of the Kaballah- is the holy place

The one location on Earth where you can draw closest to God

Now as Christians we know it doesn't work that way

Because the Holy Spirit dwells within you-

And He dwells within you if you know Jesus Christ as your personal Savior and Lord
You can be as close to God here in Charlotte, North Carolina

As you'd be if you were standing at the entrance to the Garden Tomb in Jerusalem

Read what Jesus says in John 4:23-24
When Jacob built his pillar of rocks at Bethel he was honoring and worshiping God

But he'd kind of missed God’s point
God was trying to tell him: Jacob- I'm going to be with you no matter where you go- or what you do in this life

Read how David puts it in the 139th Psalm

CONCLUSION

Before Stephanie left for Africa I was more than a little bit nervous

I mean that’s my daughter 8,000 miles from home- that’s a LONG way
Let me put it like this:

If Stephanie were in Beijing China right now
she'd be 400 miles closer to Charlotte than she is in Southern Africa

But here’s the thing that brings me comfort

While I can't be there with her- God is!

He’s watching over her. He’s protecting her
He will be with her come-what-may

And as much as I love my daughter-

I know God loves her even more!
And I KNOW- beyond a shadow of a doubt- that He will never- no not EVER!- fail or forsake her

That’s the promise God...

Made to Jacob
Has made to Stephanie
And that’s the promise God has made to YOU!

Folks-

If you're...

Facing a time of struggle and uncertainty in your life
Feeling lonely and frightened
Dealing with crises that seem to pile one on top of the other

I want you to read what the Bible says in 1 Chronicles 28:20

Listen to these words- absorb them
And then take them with you no matter where you may go in life

"Be strong and courageous... Do not be afraid or discouraged, for the LORD God... is with you."

Let us pray

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