Genesis 28:17 – 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.

A month or so ago (can’t remember exactly!) I did a blog on Jacob’s ladder. The story is found in Genesis 28. We saw that Jacob’s ladder is a picture of the Lord Jesus Christ. All steps required to go to heaven are encapsulated in the Lord Christ Jesus. 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. Jacob’s ladder is not showing us that we must work our way to heaven, rather it is pointing to Jesus, our Saviour, who did the work, and all that is required of us is to believe him and accept him as our personal way to heaven. The Bible says in Genesis 28 that the Lord stood above the ladder. What a sight this must have been! And Jacob saw it as he slept, representing the helplessness of man. Man is incapable of saving himself. Unsaved man is dead in trespasses and sins, hopelessly alienated from God. Under condemnation, with hell awaiting him once he draws his last breath. But God has provided hope, and a way, and it is God’s way. God’s way is exclusive, but available to all. We come to God by his way, we do not come to him as we please. God provided this way to us while we were helpless, hopeless, we can never do anything to earn or merit or justify our salvation. It is his love, his mercy, his faith, his grace, his righteousness. Romans 5:8 – But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. Ephesians 2:4-7 –But God, who is rich in mercy, for his great love wherewith he loved us, Even when we were dead in sins, hath quickened us together with Christ, (by grace ye are saved;) And hath raised us up together, and made us sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus: That in the ages to come he might shew the exceeding riches of his grace in his kindness toward us through Christ Jesus.

When Jacob saw the ladder, he said, How dreadful is this place! And it is a dreadful place, because what we do with the Lord Jesus Christ in our short life time will determine our eternal destiny. This is the seriousness of salvation. It is a dreadful issue! We can toy with salvation, we can put it off, delay it, defer it. We might not even see a need to be saved in the first place. We might be confident in ourselves, our capabilities, our religion, our good works, our efforts, our thing that we are doing that makes us uniquely deserving and favored! We might be satisfied with what this life has to offer. Maybe you are doing well, maybe you are set in this life. But there will come a day when you will die. When things go wrong. When Satan pulls the rug from beneath your feet. All his promises, all the world gives, is vanity and lies. Salvation is infinitely important than being successful and happy in this life. When your uncertain riches depart, when your health fails, when your friends forsake you. When your confidences perish. How dreadful is this place for you? You are without excuse, God has revealed himself to you through nature, through your conscience, through law, through his word, through his Spirit. All of humanity is without excuse, Jesus has given everyone a chance. A more than fair chance. The Bible says that God is not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance. If you go to hell, it is because you chose to go there, you made the choice, and you deserve what you got. Don’t blame God, and you won’t in hell, because he is the only righteous and true Judge, and he has the power to execute and enact his right to judge humanity.

Jesus is the gate to heaven. The Lord stood above the ladder. Noone sneaks in to heaven. If you are not coming to heaven on the merit of the shed blood of the Lord Jesus Christ you will not be accepted. On the night of the Passover, the angel slew all the firstborn of families who did not have blood on their doorposts. Is it Jesus’ blood that is covering you, and his blood alone? Your works will not satisfy the holy wrath and judgement of God. There will be noone undeserving in heaven. Matthew 22:11-13 – And when the king came in to see the guests, he saw there a man which had not on a wedding garment: And he saith unto him, Friend, how camest thou in hither not having a wedding garment? And he was speechless. Then said the king to the servants, Bind him hand and foot, and take him away, and cast him into outer darkness, there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth. Trust Jesus, have faith in him, have faith that he is the way, the truth, and the life. The house of God is built around this fact. Jesus is the way. Any church that is not exalting Jesus Christ is not a true house of God, but a fake. Jesus said in John 12:32 – And I, if I be lifted up from the earth, will draw all men unto me. It is all about Jesus Christ. His glory. His honor. His grace. His mercy. His love. His faith towards us. We are unfaithful to Jesus but he is always faithful to us. The Bible is all about Jesus Christ, from start to finish. It builds our faith in our Messiah, our Saviour, our Redeemer, our Shepherd, our High Priest, our King, our Lord. It builds faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. It builds faith in God. What will you do with the message of Jacob’s ladder? It is a dreadful place, and as the Word of God is sharper than any two edged sword, so the gospel rejected or accepted will determine your destiny. Your life, your choice, but of eternal consequence. I have made my choice, you make yours.

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