In Genesis 28, Isaac tells Jacob that he is not to marry one of the daughters in Canaan, and instead, he is to marry one of Laban's, Jacob's mother's brother, daughters. Isaac gave Jacob his blessing, and he went on his way to Padanaram to see Laban. Esau, Jacob's brother, was upset because Isaac had blessed Jacob instead of him, and he went unto Ishmael and took to wife his daughter. After traveling for some time, Jacob decided to stop and rest. He found a place to stay all night, and he used a stone as a pillow. Once asleep, God came to him in a dream. There was a ladder that set upon the Earth, and it reached all the way unto Heaven. Jacob saw the angels of God climbing up and down the ladder, and the Lord stood at the top of it. The Lord spoke unto Jacob saying, "I am the Lord God of Abraham thy father, and the God of Isaac: the land whereon thou liest, to thee will I give it, and to thy seed; And thy seed shall be as the dust of the earth, and thou shalt spread abroad to the west, and to the east, and to the north, and to the south: and in thee and in thy seed shall all the families of the earth be blessed. And, behold, I am with thee, and will keep thee in all places whither thou goest, and will bring thee again into this land; for I will not leave thee, until I have done that which I have spoken to thee of."
Once Jacob woke, he knew that the Lord had been in his presence. He was afraid because of the great power the Lord had. Jacob set up the stone that he had used as a pillow and poured oil on it as a representation of the Lord's work. Jacob named the place that the Lord had visited him, Bethel. Jacob then made a vow to God that if God will be with him, feed him, and cloth him, so that he could go back home to his father in peace, due to his brother's anger, he would give a tenth of his wage to God.
Jacob was a great man of God, therefore, He blessed him with many things of the Earth. Isaac saw great potential in Jacob, so he sent him to marry someone that he thought would be worthy of him. When we put our faith in God and worship him, people will see those things, and see us in a Godly manner, and God will also bless us for those works. We don't do God's work to show off to the world, but instead, to be an influence to them, and try our best to be an example of God.
When the Lord came to Jacob in a dream, God had a purpose. God showed Jacob the great connection between the Earth and Heaven. It represented that God could always be reached with prayer, and that God could always reach His people that are on Earth. God told Jacob that He would give him and his following generations the land that he was on, and that He would always be with him. This piece of land was given unto Jacob because God saw that he was true and faithful. As a saved person, it is our duty to follow God and do His work, but God will still bless us, even though we don't deserve it.
Jacob woke up like I think any of us would if the Lord had just visited our dreams, terrified. The Lord's power can be scary because He is all powerful, and we depend on Him for our every breath. Jacob remembered the great vow that God gave unto him, and he praised God by setting up the stone and blessing it as a representation of the Lord with oil. He then vowed to give God a tenth of his wages if He would help him. This is what we would call tithing today, which is giving 10% of our salaries unto God through church offerings.
It is such a blessing to know that God can reach us at any point in time. Even though we are separated from God physically, He can always ascend down the ladder from Heaven unto our hearts here on Earth. God doesn't ignore the work that we do for Him. He sees everything that we do for Him, and he will always remember us when He is sending blessings unto His people. If we are to vow our lives to God, we can be a great influence to those around us, and do our best to make God proud of us. He is never but a ladder's distance away.
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