This sermon did not get preached. I was asked by one church to supply and then they realized they did not need a supply for July 23, 2017. At the time I had already written the sermon. So perhaps 3 years from now when the lectionary comes up again, I will have an opportunity to preach.
A Night as Bright as Day
Psalm 139 asks the
question:
Where can I go
from your spirit?
Or where can I flee from your presence?
Or where can I flee from your presence?
you and me,
that God is with us!
the night is as bright as the day,
for darkness is as light to you.
for darkness is as light to you.
for God’s light shines even there.
and is on the run from big brother Esau.
God knows Jacob.
Let us review all Jacob
has done:
He has deceived his father Isaac,
stolen his brother Esau’s birthright and blessing,
and has been encouraged to go on the run by his mother.
leading the family,
and having his inheritance,
Jacob is on the run, homeless and alone.
But not alone… God is
inescapable.
however, Jacob does not go seeking God.
God comes to Jacob.
and feelings we encounter when we sleep.
I know mine can bring
out unexpected emotions.
being chased or being lost,
being at an old job or being late for a current one,
searching for an object or trying to pack something up.
Sometime you and I
awake from a dream with…
tears in our eyes,
a new idea or an understanding,
a realization or an answer to a prayer.
Dreams can be gifts.
the dream itself,
the fact that Jacob is dreaming, is not the important
point.
Yes, God communicates through many different ways
and dreams are one of those ways,
but the focus should not be the how,
but what is being said, being promised.
The angels,
the ladder to heaven are all background,
God appearing to Jacob and what is said is the focus.
Jacob encounters God, not
by any action Jacob takes;
God reaches out to Jacob.
God does not abandon Jacob or
withdraw the covenant made with Jacob’s family
through Abraham
because of Jacob’s less than honorable
conduct.
Instead God comes to
Jacob in the dream.
God is there!
God addresses all of Jacob’s anxieties he carries in his heart.
Jacob is homeless and lonely;
Jacob is homeless and lonely;
he will possess land and have numerous offspring.
Jacob is estranged from his family;
Jacob is estranged from his family;
he will not only have a family but
will be the source of blessings
for all families.
Jacob is on the run,
Jacob is on the run,
from his family and
from the consequences of his actions
but he cannot run from God.
Jacob caries uncertainty of his tenuous status in the eyes of God.
Jacob caries uncertainty of his tenuous status in the eyes of God.
Yet there is assurance that God will be with him.
"You know when I sit down and when I rise
up;
you discern
my thoughts from far away."
"You search out my path and my lying down, and are acquainted with all my ways."
"You search out my path and my lying down, and are acquainted with all my ways."
"Where can I go from your spirit?
Or
where can I flee from your presence?"
God is inescapable.
We do not hide from God,
you and I
are always in the presence of God.
In verses 13-15 in Genesis,
God gives to Jacob an unconditional promise
which includes 8 things:
-land
-land
“the land on which you lie I will give to you
and to your offspring;”
-many descendants
-many descendants
“and your offspring shall be like the dust of
the earth,”
-generations spread throughout the land
-generations spread throughout the land
“and you shall spread abroad to the west and
to the east and to the north and to the south;”
-extension of blessings to others through him
-extension of blessings to others through him
“and all
the families of the earth shall be blessed in you and in your
offspring.”
-God’s presence
-God’s presence
“Know
that I am with you”
“and will keep you wherever you go,”
-homecoming
-homecoming
“and will bring you back to this land;”
-not leaving.
-not leaving.
“for I will not leave you until I have
done what I have promised you.”
This is God’s unconditional promise to Jacob.
This is God’s unconditional promise to Jacob.
God is not asking
something of Jacob.
God is not putting
restrictions or requirements on this promise.
God made this merciful and gracious
action toward Jacob.
God spoke to Jacob!
Our brokenness is taken
by God
and with unconditional love, promises are given.
Even when you and I feel separated from God, that is us,
because God is always with us.
‘Know
that I am with you and will keep you wherever you go.’
When Jacob awakens from
the dream,
the scripture says he was afraid,
but he was also in awe, he was amazed and joyous.
“Surely the Lord is in this place—and I did not know it!”
God was there!
God can be counted on to
be faithful.
Jacob need no
longer wonder about God.
God is a promise keeper
and Jacob must be also.
What might you and
I carry with us from this scripture?
The obvious answer is to
know we are always
in the presence of God; we cannot hide.
No escaping,
no running,
no hiding in shadows.
It is the light of God
that shines into the dark corners;
the light that makes the night as bright as day.
That light that came
into being
in the form of a savior: Christ Jesus.
A light that shines
through us
as we do the work inspired within us
by the Holy Spirit.
It is an ever present
message of hope.
God was with Jacob.
God is with you and me.
Wherever we go, whatever
the situation,
God is there!
God does not
abandon us,
desert us,
or leave us.
God is there!Through loneliness, despair, illness, challenges, and trials
–God is there!
God knows us!
God loves us!
You and I are always in God’s presence!
always within the light.
Amazement and joy and
hope,
those same feelings Jacob had
when he awoke from his dream at Bethel.
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