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Spiritual RenewalBy
Patricia Dailey, | |
And Jacob went
out from And he lighted
upon a certain place, because the
sun was set; and put them
for his pillows, Genesis
28:10,11 |
| Here in this passage of Scripture we see where Jacob had left home
to go to his uncle Laban’s in Genesis 27:41–45 And Esau hated Jacob because of the blessing
wherewith his father blessed him: and Esau said in his heart, The days of mourning for my father are at hand; then will I
slay my brother Jacob. And these words of Esau her elder son were
told to Rebekah: and she sent and called Jacob her younger son, and said unto
him, Behold, thy brother Esau, as touching thee, doth comfort himself, purposing
to kill thee. Now therefore, my son, obey my voice; and
arise, flee thou to Laban my brother to Haran; and tarry
with him a few days, until thy brother’s fury turn away; until thy brother’s anger
turn away from thee, and he forget that which thou hast done to him: then I will
send, and fetch thee from thence: why should I be deprived also of you both in
one day? When Esau came back to his father, he found that Jacob had received
the blessing that was to be his! Jacob
and his mother had done a very deceitful thing in deceiving Isaac that Jacob might
get Esau’s blessing and be ruler over the household after his father’s death.
Esau was very upset and angry. He
determined that after his father passed away he would go out and do his brother
in. Rebekah learned of this, and sought to protect Jacob’s life. She went to Isaac and told him she was concerned
that Jacob not find a wife of the daughters of the land.
Genesis 28:1,2 And Isaac called Jacob, and blessed him,
and charged him, and said unto him, Thou shalt not take a wife of the daughters
of We want to look, now, at what took place in Jacob’s life as he journeyed
to Padanaram, for there is a lesson here for us: Jacob took some stones for pillows, and lay down to sleep. Stones for pillows? That would certainly be an uncomfortable place
to lay one’s head. You’d wake up with a
stiff neck if you ever did get to sleep. But, somehow or the other, Jacob merely lay
down (with his head on those stones for pillows) and went sound asleep. Evidently, those stones didn’t bother him in
the least. Personally, I don’t believe I could go to sleep with my head on stones:
but, then again, maybe I could. Who knows
what we can do if the Lord is in it. The Lord may have made those stones seem very
soft to Jacob, who knows? Anyway, while he was asleep there on the ground Jacob had a dream: Genesis 28:12 And he dreamed, and behold
a ladder set up on the earth, and the top of it reached to heaven: and behold
the angels of God ascending and descending on it. Yes, Jacob had a dream from God that night – and He also had a renewal
of God’s promises of blessing: Genesis 28:13–15 And, behold, the Lord stood above it, and
said, 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. A TIME OF RENEWAL We need to have a time of renewal, a time when we can be alone with
nothing to distract us – where we don’t even have our phone on. It seems when we want to get alone to pray our phone begins to ring
and ring and ring. But, we need to ignore
it, and not let anything distract us from seeking the Lord for a spiritual renewal
with Him. There comes a time when everyone of God’s children need that special
time alone with God, a time where they can have a refreshing on their soul. Genesis 28:16–22 And Jacob awaked out of his sleep, and he
said, Surely the Lord is in this place; and I knew it
not. And he was afraid, and said, How dreadful is this place!
this is none other but the house of God, and this
is the gate of heaven. And Jacob rose up early in the morning, and
took the stone that he had put for his pillows, and set it up for a pillar, and
poured oil upon the top of it. and he called the name of that place And Jacob vowed a vow, saying, If God will
be with me, and will keep me in this way that I go, and will give me bread to
eat, and raiment to put on, so that I come again to my father’s house in peace;
then shall the Lord be my God: and this stone, which I have set for a pillar,
shall be God’s house: and of all that Thou shalt give me I will surely give the
tenth unto Thee. Sometimes we just have to stop, slow down – instead of just continuing
to keeping pushing forward: with this on our agenda, and that on our agenda; where
we have to get this done, and we have to get that done; we just
keep going, going, going. Yes, we need
to slow down to get a fresh touch of God on our soul. Jacob lied. After what he
had done he certainly needed something from God. Yes, Jacob lied. His father was old. His eyes were dim so he couldn’t see – and Jacob
and his mother deceived him. Rebekah took
the skins of goats and put them on Jacob’s neck and on his hands – because his
brother, Esau, was a hairy man, while Jacob was a smooth skinned man.
Isaac said, Come here. (Now,
those were fresh skins that Jacob had put on, and Isaac could smell their freshness).
He reached out and felt Jacob’s hands; and, because they were hairy, thought
Esau was before him. Jacob deceived his own father, and got the blessing:
but God had his hand on this, even though Jacob used deceit to bring it about.
The ladder Jacob saw in the dream was set up on the earth, and the
top reached up to heaven. We want to look
at this ladder to see what lesson we can learn from it: A LESSON IN THE
LADDER This ladder has a lesson for us in drawing closer to Jesus. It was a ladder of communication between heaven
and earth: And Jesus is a ladder of communication for us, uniting heaven and earth:
John 17:21 That they all may be one; as Thou, Father,
art in Me, and I in Thee, that they also may be one in Us: that the world may
believe that Thou hast sent Me. We thank God that, through Christ, God and man can be one in Him.
John 1:51 And He saith unto him, Verily, verily, I
say unto you, Hereafter ye shall see heaven open, and
the angels of God ascending and descending upon the Son of man. Nathanael was speaking with Jesus, and Jesus told him that he would
see the angels of God ascending and descending upon Him. And in Jacob’s dream, he saw the angels of God ascending and descending
on that ladder. We want to look at this
to see what we can find that will help us as we draw aside to seek out a refreshing
on our souls. THE FIRST COVENANT Under the law, in the first covenant, we see where there were ordinances
of divine service that the Levitical priesthood followed.
They had an external standard. There
was no power there to enable anyone to overcome sin.
If they broke one point of the law, they were guilty of all. We want to talk, here, about the tabernacle under the first covenant:
The tabernacle was a tent which could be moved from place to place
as the children of Now, that tabernacle was made by divine ordinance, yet it was worldly: Hebrews 9:1 Then verily the first covenant had also ordinances
of divine service, and a worldly sanctuary. The way the tabernacle was made, it was divided up into several inner
tabernacles. The first was called the sanctuary: Hebrews 9:2 For there was a tabernacle made; the first,
wherein was the candlestick, and the table, and the showbread; which is called
the sanctuary. This tabernacle was separated from the inner tabernacle by a veil.
Behind this veil was the Holiest of Holies: Hebrews 9:3–5 And after the second veil, the tabernacle
which is called the Holiest of all; which had the golden censer, and the ark of
the covenant overlaid round about with gold, wherein was the golden pot that had
manna, and Aaron’s rod that budded, and the tables of the covenant; and over it
the cherubims of glory shadowing the mercyseat; of which we cannot now speak particularly. The priests would go in daily to offer sacrifices in the first tabernacle,
many times the same sacrifice over and over. But these sacrifices could not remove their
sins: Hebrews 10:1–4 For the law having a shadow of good things
to come, and not the very image of the things, can never with those sacrifices
which they offered year by year continually make the comers thereunto perfect.
For then would they not have ceased to be offered?
because that the worshippers once purged should
have had no more conscience of sins. But
in those sacrifices there is a remembrance again made of sins every year.
For it is not possible that the blood of bulls and of goats should take
away sins. The high priest had to go in once a year into the Holiest of holies
to offer a sacrifice to atone for the sins of the people, and for his own sins: Hebrews 9:6,7 Now when these things were thus ordained,
the priests went always into the first tabernacle, accomplishing the service of
God. But into the second went the high
priest alone once every year, not without blood, which he offered for himself,
and for the errors of the people YEAR AFTER YEAR The high priest had to take a blood sacrifice with him to apply to
the mercy seat – for himself, and for the sins of the people. So, no matter how hard they tried, they could not keep the law.
They couldn’t walk away from that sacrifice knowing that their sins were
forgiven and taken away. They had to wait for a year: and once a year,
every year, it was the same thing over and over. The mercyseat was where the high priest
would sprinkle the blood for an atonement once a year
– but there was still a conscience of sin. Though
their sins were forgiven, they were not removed. Hebrews 9:14 How much more shall the blood of Christ,
who through the eternal Spirit offered Himself without spot to God, purge your
conscience from dead works to serve the living God? THE NEW COVENANT
– THE FINAL OFFERING Today we can come to Jesus not only to have our sins forgiven but
also to be set free from sin. All of our
sins are removed – see
Psalm 103:12. This doesn’t mean that we could never sin again. Along life’s journey we may find that we have
slipped into sin, and have to come to the Lord for forgiveness and cleansing;
asking Him for the victory over that sin. I John 2:1,2 My little children, these things write I unto you, that ye sin not.
And if any man sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the
righteous: and He is the propitiation for our sins: and not for ours only, but
also for the sins of the whole world. I John 1:9 If we confess our sins, He is faithful and
just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. There is that promise to us that we can come to Jesus and find both
forgiveness and cleansing from sin. We
don’t want to sin, but if we do happen to sin (though I’m not encouraging anyone
to sin just because they know Jesus will forgive them) the Scripture shows that
there is victory for us. Proverbs 28:13 He that covereth
his sins shall not prosper: but whoso confesseth and forsaketh
them shall have mercy. We have to have true repentance before we find the mercy to be forgiven.
Sin needs to be put away, forsaken – not to just go ahead and do it again.
Now, we saw in Hebrews that under the first covenant they offered
a sacrifice each year for their sins – yet found no victory over sin. But, thanks be unto
God, Jesus came to offer the final blood sacrifice: the Lamb of God, who takes
away the sin of the world – see John 1:29 Jesus lay down His life, offering it up as a sacrifice for our sins.
He doesn’t have to go back to the cross every year to make another sacrifice.
His Blood was shed for the remission of our sins – once and for all.
Hebrews 9:25,26 Nor yet that He should offer Himself often,
as the high priest entereth into the holy place every
year with blood of others; for then must He often have suffered since the foundation
of the world: but now once in the end of the world hath He appeared to put away
sin by the sacrifice of Himself. Jesus is also called our High Priest. When He went to offer a sacrifice for our sins,
He laid down His very life so that we could have our sins forgiven and removed.
His Blood was shed for the remission of sin.
No longer does that Old Covenant stand, where there was the necessity of
a yearly sacrifice for the forgiveness of sins.
When Jesus gave up the ghost and died, the veil in the temple – where the
high priest would enter each year with the blood sacrifice – that veil was torn
from top to bottom. We can now come boldly to the throne of grace through Christ – see Hebrews 4:16. John 14:6 Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth,
and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by Me. ONLY ONE WAY People say there are many ways to God. Absolutely not! according to God’s
Holy Word. Know that there is only one
way, and Jesus Christ is that way. The
Scriptures are plain to tell us this, and we don’t have to be deceived by what
others say. If you’ve been brainwashed to believe there are many ways, that is absolutely not true. Know from these Scriptures that there is just
one way: Jesus is THE way, the ONLY way. When the veil in the temple was rent from top to bottom, the way
was made for us to come boldly to Him to find mercy and grace to help in time
of need. We don’t have to have anything
to hinder us from approaching the Lord. We
can come boldly to His throne, through Jesus Christ our mediator.
And we can find a spiritual renewal just like Jacob did when he stepped
aside, and was alone with the Lord. We don’t have to have a priest nor a minister to go in our place.
We don’t have to give anybody an offering or sacrifice, but can come straight
to God through Jesus Christ. I Timothy 2:5 For there is one God, and one mediator between
God and men, the man Christ Jesus SPIRITUAL REFRESHING John 14:13,14 And whatsoever ye shall ask in My name, that will I do, that the Father may be glorified in
the Son. If ye shall ask any thing in My name, I will do it. So we ask the Father in Jesus’ Name – not through some dead person,
nor through some idol or image. And what
we ask in His Name, that will He do, that the Father may be glorified in Him.
Jesus followed this up by saying, If
you love Me, keep My commandments – verse 15. If we don’t keep His commandments, He won’t
answer our prayer. But, when we are loving
Him and keeping His commandments, we can pray in His name and He will answer.
He will give us what we asked for. Before we ask, though, we should be sure that we truly love Him and
are keeping His commandments. We can’t
expect anything from the Lord if we don’t love Him with all our heart, soul, mind,
and strength – with all that’s within us. Psalm 66:18 If I regard iniquity in my heart, the Lord
will not hear me You can pray, and pray: but if you’re not loving God and keeping
His commandments, your prayers will be just a bunch of hot air. Some are like a conveyor belt: they have to keep running and running
and running and running. How important it is just to slow down. We can go through all the motions of what we
should be doing as Christians; but if our soul feels dry, and we feel the need
for a fresh touch of God on our soul, we need to stop and seek it out. But we each have to see this for ourselves. If we don’t, we may find ourselves doing things
that are displeasing to God. I John 3:21,22
Beloved, if our heart condemn us not, then
have we confidence toward God. And whatsoever
we ask, we receive of Him, because we keep His commandments, and do those things
that are pleasing in His sight. Every once in awhile, we need a renewal,
a fresh touch of God on our souls. Glory to God! It will make a difference – in our lives, and
in the church – if we will draw aside, forgetting about everything else, and seek
God for that fresh touch on our soul. Do you believe it? I believe
it. Begin to think about this message.
It should be sweet to your soul because it is the Word of God. We busy ourselves too much with things that are trivial, things that
are not really necessary. We have to see
the need ourselves – that need to slow down and give time to the Lord. You might spend several hours. You
might spend a whole day. I don’t know how
long it may take for you: but whatever it takes is worthwhile – if you’re going
to find that renewal, that fresh touch on your soul, that refreshing.
Just cry out to God, asking Him for a new touch on your soul.
It will do you well if you listen to what the Lord is saying. What would take place in the house of God if God’s people would say,
Lord, this is what You are calling us to do: Yes,
Lord, to Your will, and to Your way. It might mean less shopping. Maybe
less visiting. I don’t know.
But I do know this: we each need a fresh touch of God on our souls in these
days. We want to see God really move in
the church and in our lives. When we come
to church God is looking for hungry souls, not souls that are hungering to be
entertained, but souls that are hungering after Him. Psalm 27:8 When Thou saidst,
Seek ye My face; my heart said unto Thee, Thy face, Lord,
will I seek. |