#DailyDevotion Jesus Is Jacob’s Ladder
February 6th
Read John 1:35–51
Joh 1:49-51 Nathanael answered him, “Rabbi, you are the Son of God! You are the King of Israel!” (50) Jesus answered him, “Because I said to you, ‘I saw you under the fig tree,’ do you believe? You will see greater things than these.” (51) And he said to him, “Truly, truly, I say to you, you will see heaven opened, and the angels of God ascending and descending on the Son of Man.”
Jesus is the Son of God. Jesus is the King of Israel. And yet he is still more. Still more? Indeed Jesus is telling us something about himself when he says, “you will see heaven opened, and the angels of God ascending and descending on the Son of Man.” Where else have I seen this? Where have you seen this? Gen 28:12-16 “And he[Jacob] dreamed, and behold, there was a ladder set up on the earth, and the top of it reached to heaven. And behold, the angels of God were ascending and descending on it! (13) And behold, the LORD stood above it and said, ‘I am the LORD, the God of Abraham your father and the God of Isaac. The land on which you lie I will give to you and to your offspring. (14) Your offspring shall be like the dust of the earth, and you shall spread abroad to the west and to the east and to the north and to the south, and in you and your offspring shall all the families of the earth be blessed. (15) Behold, I am with you and will keep you wherever you go, and will bring you back to this land. For I will not leave you until I have done what I have promised you.’ (16) Then Jacob awoke from his sleep and said, ‘Surely the LORD is in this place, and I did not know it.’” 17 And he was afraid and said, “How awesome is this place! This is none other than the house of God, and this is the gate of heaven.”
Jesus is the Ladder to heaven. He himself has told us he is the way to heaven. Jesus has told us he is the gate through which the sheep enter. Allah is not the way, Mohamed is not the way. Buddha is not the way. The wind is not the way. Jesus is the only way to heaven. Jesus is also the Lord who made this promise to Jacob and Jesus is the descendant of Jacob according to his flesh. Now John the Baptist points this out to us when he says in verse 36 “and he looked at Jesus as he walked by and said, ‘Behold, the Lamb of God!’”
When we are in the presence of Jesus at the Lord’s Supper or when we gather together in his name, we can with Jacob confess, “How awesome is this place! This is none other than the house of God, and this is the gate of heaven.” For Jesus is there, as he has promised. Jesus is there as the ladder to heaven. The gates of heaven are open wide to us who place our faith in the Lamb of God who takes away our sin. The place is truly awesome and we should be in awe as our God the Creator of the Universe, of everything that is seen and unseen has deigned to come to us and we with us with his gracious presence. He is there not to harm but to do us good. Jesus is there to transport us to the heavenly places where we partake of his goodness and mercy. And as he made a covenant with Jacob, he recalls the covenant of grace he has made with us.
Lord Jesus, grant us such faith in your new covenant that we may be transported on you as our ladder to the heavenly places now and at the hour of our death. Amen.