The Changing Altar
Today, we want to continue on our series on altars. And then today, we want to talk about the changing alter the changing alter. This is the altar of Jacob. Jacob had a very complicated life. And for a few minutes, this morning, I want you to listen with me. Now, you can try to turn back and forth to some of these passages mini of the modesty will be in the Book of Genesis, but I want to give you a kind of a principal of Jacob's life. And when Jacob finally built, His first altar. I want you to understand the circumstances surrounding it. The other three names that we always put together, Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, and we just preached about the five Ultras of Abraham. And, of course, I his last one with Isaac, on the altar, we always talked about Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, but Jacob was the slowest. One to catch on to the enormity of the promise. God had given to this family. Jacob wanted to be his own man. In reality, Jacob was rebellious. But God knows how to fix that.
Now, if you in your deepest, heart are rebellious this morning. Towards God in his word, none of us would admit to it. But in your deepest heart, let me say this. God always gives space to repent. And God would much rather, you get your heart right then him have to take over.
But God can fix Rebellion. One way or another. Now 1 illustrate the difference between Abraham, Isaac and Jacob this morning and let's pray, we're going to jump right into it. Lord, I love you. I thank you for all that. You've done. God, thank you for the Christ, honoring music that we've heard this today. And Lord, I pray. You bless the preaching of your word. This is the most important part of worship is your word. Lord. There is no worship without your word. So Lord, I pray that you would bless us as we look and glean and learn Jesus name. We pray. Amen. Number one. This morning. I want you to see that God spoke to Abraham and he built an altar. I want to remind you of this passage down the screen for you. Genesis 12-7 in the Lord appeared unto Abraham we talk. That's how it always starts got initiate and the Lord appeared unto Abraham and said unto thy seed will I give this land and their builded? He and alter unto the Lord God instigated the contacts. Got communicated with Abraham and Abraham responded with an altar and altar was the way that man. Communicated back to God number to God spake Isaac. And he built an altar Genesis 26. Look at verse 24 on the screens if you need it, and the Lord appeared unto him, the same night and said, I am the god of Abraham die, father, fear, not for I am with thee, and will blessed. And multiply thy seed for my servant Abraham sake and he builded an altar there and call upon the name of the Lord. God initiated contact. God communicated. Isaac responded. He built an altar, which began a relationship. It wasn't just one-sided. War, god, king. Spoke God communicated. The altar was Isaac's way of communicating back to God. Number three, God spoke to Jacob. And he built a pillar,
My God speaks to Abraham me building launcher. God, spoke to Isaac and he built an altar. but when God spoke to Jacob, he built a pillar. So what do you mean? But let's look at this Genesis. 28 vs to be on the screen for U-verse 10 and Jacob went out from Beersheba and went towards her on and he dreamed and behold a ladder setup on the earth and the top of it reach to Heaven, you've heard of Jacob's Ladder. This is a dream that got a new, she ate it and Jacob's life. And in this dream there was literally a ladder that went from Earth to Heaven. I noticed is the top of it reached to heaven and behold the angels of God ascending and descending on it. They were going up and down the ladder and I know what you're thinking that's bad pizza, but this was initiated from God. Now, if you have this dream, you did, you say something wrong, I'm okay? But this God gave to Jacob God speaks differently in 2023. He's giving us his word. God doesn't have to speak to us through dreams. He's giving us his word. God doesn't. Just two prophets anymore, he's giving us his word.
Make sure we all are on the same page about that. So God gives this dream and this is an interesting dream. I want you to notice first in this dream, God promised him provision. Not notice verse 13 of this passage, we just read an 11-12. Listen John promised and behold the Lord stood above it, this ladder. And said, I am the Lord God of Abraham by father, and the god of Isaac. Got got a bicycle. He's a character. So God says, I am your grandfather's. God, I'm your father's got The land where on the Elias to thee. Will I give it? and to thy seed, he never said, I'm your God.
He wanted to be.
God promised him Provisions, he said the Lander on. I'm going to give it to, you know, the second Lee God promised him Prosperity verses 14. And I see Shelby is the dust of the earth and thou shalt spread abroad to the west, to the east, to the north, to the South and envy and in thy seed shall all the families of the earth, be blessed. So he promised him provision. I'm going to give you the land, he promised him Prosperity. I'm going to bless your family noticed, Thursday. God promised him protection. We give us fifteen and behold I am with thee. And will keep thee. That means protect. I will keep thee in all places. Whither, thou goest. How about you? Jacob was blessed to have that promise, especially the life of Jacob live, everybody wanted to kill him. Esau wanted to kill his follow, all wanted to kill and I'm sure one of his wives wanted to kill him.
I'm sure the mailman wanted to kill him. Everybody wanted to kill Jake to see if manipulated and schemed and deceive everybody. What you notice a 15 God, also promised his presence? I will not leave the everybody else had Everybody had left. Jacob and Jacob had left everybody. God says, I will not leave thee until I have done that which I have spoken to thee of God, promised and provision for sparity protection, presents. but when God initiated this communication with Jacob, Little did Jacob. Know God was initiating. A plan to change. Jacob.
Jacob had always manipulated in skiing. Jacob, Pittman self-absorbed. Long enough. So God comes to him in a dream, a ladder going from Earth to Heaven, Angels coming down and going up on this ladder and God at the top of it says, I'm going to give you provision. I'm going to give your Prosperity. I'm going to give you protection. I'm going to give you my presents. What does Jacob do Abraham when God came to him? He built an altar Isaac, when God came to him, Isaac built an altar. Now, first time, God comes to Jacob. Notice number one, I want you to see Jacob celebrated the place. Look at verse 16 and Jacob awake out of his sleep and said, surely the Lord is in this place. And I knew it not and he was afraid and said, how Dreadful is this place? There is none. Other, but the house of God, and this is the Gate of Heaven. He celebrated the place notice. Secondly, Jacob constructed a pillar Verse 18 and Jacob Arose. 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 on it. He was not an altar, man. He was a pillar man. What in the world was that mean when when God came to Jacob, Jacob, build an altar. So he could communicate back to God when God, communicated with Isaac, Isaac built an altar. So he could communicate back to God and altar of sacrifice and Altra surrender at Altra submission. And you remember, the other messages we have been preaching on this, but God shows up to talk to Jacob. Jacob forms, no back to God. He just sits up a pillar.
What is a pillar will? Jacob did not respond like Abraham and Isaac did by building an altar. You see, an alternative place of sacrifice, a place of submission, a place of Revelation ship, a pillar was a memorial that marked the spot where something amazing that happened.
Jacob was a pillar man, not and not an Ultraman. Jacob was quite impressed with the dream. Jacob was impressed with the fact that I'm going to be prosperous, I'm going to get this land, I have God's protection. I'm always going to have God's presence. And instead of trying to communicate back to God out of humility and submission, He just puts this big marker to let everyone know. What I'm going to be given.
I want you to notice, thirdly. Jacob never changed. As a person.
Gun shows up to Jacob and Jacob never changed. God communicates with Jacob Pacheco. Never communicated back. There was no Contrition. There was no humility. There was no prayer. You don't find anywhere. Jacob praying there was no calling on the name of the Lord as there. Had been with Abraham and Isaac there was no sacrifice there was no altar, there was no relationship. There was just a memorial so that everybody would see Jacob.
number for, Jacob demanded conditions for God to perform. Now he goes further.
In response to District Genesis 28 verse 29. You got to read this, don't lose me cuz I'm almost done 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 Raymond to put on, so that I can come again to my father's house and then shall the Lord be my God.
You see he was the god of Abraham. He was the god of Isaac but he wasn't Jacob, God yet. Because Jacob said, if you do this for me, then I'll make you my God, I put up a big pillar. Let everybody know that I'm getting this land. But I'm getting the provision and I'm getting the prosperity but I've got your presence that's that you're going to give me protection. I'm putting up this marker but I will tell you what as long as you fulfill all that. As long as you do that for me, then I'll let you be my God selfish. can one man be
Abraham and Isaac response was worship. Jacobs response was filled with conditions.
If you do this for me,
In other words, God, if you prove yourself to me, then I will let you be my guy, the hold on, don't be too critical to Jacob because we do the exact same thing. We set up our little, our little pillars. Do we have the pillar of church membership? We have the pillar of going forward in an invitation we have the pillar of saying the right things, we have the pillar of a token offering here and there, just so that we can say, we've done something just so we can acknowledge that that God knows me that, I know him and and that I'm a Christian and fat, but we get mad when God's blessings don't show up like we think they should and we get upset. If Don doesn't fix a problem, like we think he should when we want him to fix it. we have set up our pillars, but we have not erected in the altars
Pillars are all about us. Alters are all about him.
Even though Jacobs heart was not right.
God will bless him because he had promised it to his grandpa. God will bless him because he had promised it to his dad. But God had a plan. For this Rebel.
Plan that would bring him to his knees.
A plan that would leave him with a limp the rest of his life.
Jacob would experience 20 years of Trials and problems. Not hearing from God again.
He would be cheated of time, he would be cheated of money. He would even be cheated and wives.
He got to the point that he feared for his life, from his uncle Laban and he feared for his own life because of his own brother, Esau God brings all these troubles to a climax. And he saw his on Jacobs Trail and he's about to catch him. Years earlier, taking pets tree had cheated, he saw out of a Birthright and he saw said then I will wait until Dad is dead. But when dad died, I'm coming after you and Dad had died.
Jacob was afraid. He was more afraid than he's ever been. And the night before Esau caught up with him. Jacob does something. That you listen Jacob, just something he had never done. Up until this point. He pray.
Genesis chapter 32, we see number 5, Jacob, crumbles. When he finally praise, Genesis 32 verse 9, the horses will be on the screen for you and Jacob said, Oh god of My Father, Abraham.
God of my father, Isaac. your grandpa is gone and your dad's gone. The Lord would send them to me. Returning to that country like injured, and I will deal well with thee.
I am not worthy. Of the least of all the Mercies. Jacob, finally crumbles. When he prays.
Jacob said, I'm not worthy of your mercy. I'm not worthy of your truth, notice, which now has showed it to thy servant for, with my staff. I passed over this Jordan and now and become two bands. Deliver me. I pray thee. From the hand of my brother from the hands of Esau, for I feared him less. You will come, and, smite, me and the mother with the children. Downtown stead, I will surely, do the good and make thy seed as the sand of the sea.
That night, he pondered what the morning might bring.
And he went to bed.
And finally, call back to God.
And when he went to bed little, did he know?
The Bible says, a man came to him in the middle of the night. Many believe it was divine encounter from the preincarnate Jesus Christ. I don't, you know I have my own opinions about this and all that. And they begin to wrestle. Jacob had wrestled his entire life. Taking the cheetah, didn't schemed and manipulated. And as he wrestled with this, man from heaven, we believe was probably Jesus Christ. He would not let him go, and he became desperate and he said, I'm not going to let you go, unless you bless me. Remember everything Abraham had he got from God, everything. Isaac had he got from Dad, but everything. Jacob had he had gotten from manipulation and deception, but he didn't have one thing that Grandpa had and that Dad had had all he had fangs and he had possession and even had a Birthright that he had cheated his brother and he had these wives that he had all. He had all those things, but he did not have God's blessing. And you can have everything there is and young people. You look at it, you can have the person, you thought you've always wanted and you can have the things you thought you've always wanted and you can do what you want to do. But you are going to have one thing that you'll never have and that's God's blessing. And all those things that you get, can't take the place. God blessing, you
Jacob says God. I'm not going to let you go. Until you bless me. God, does bless Jacob. Touched the hollow of this time. And the next day when Jacob met his brother, Esau be angry and bloodshed that he had feared didn't happen instead. God had worked on Esau, and he saw was overjoyed to see his brother. Jacob leaves, his brother and heads for the city of shechem. Any stops outside of that City for the first time in his life? Number 6, and this is the last one Jacob changes when faith became personal.
You're the god of my grandpa and you're the god of my dad. And they had your blessing.
She's not the mic. You have been this thing that I expected to do everything for me, you have been my grocery store. You've been my teller at the bank. You've been my doctor of diseases. That's what God becomes to us. If we're not careful.
He says, but I want you to be my God.
In fact, Jacob changes so much that God changed his name.
He changed his name from Jacob to Israel because now God was his God.
In the 33:19 want you to see it before we go. And he meaning, Jacob bought a parcel of land of a field. Where he had spread his tent at the hand of the children of a second's father. For a hundred pieces of money. And he erected there first time in his life. And alter. Already have been through in his life. What a messy and make. Finally builds in Ultra this pillar man. Became an altar.
Where his life had always been about him.
Now had become about him. Now look what he calls it.
He built there, an altar and called it. Elahi Israel. Not first reading. You might think, what? What are you saying here? You call the alter, the god of Elohim?
llo, he the god of Israel.
You would say, well, he is saying here that God is the god of the mighty nation of Israel but you'd be wrong. There was no nation of Israel at this point, this tree.
He was saying this Alters dedicated. To the god of me.
The guy that used to be Jacob, that's now Israel. I'm putting up this alter because he was the god of Grandpa when he was the god of Dad.
But he is now. The god of me.
I grew up listening to preaching every night of my life, live in an Airstream travel trailer. You've heard the story.
So, I went to college, I had been in hundreds and literally thousands of churches.
met pastors pastors, wives pastors kids, Some wonderful, some absolutely ridiculous.
I'm at Christians. Some great, some not so great. Quit. Judging your God on Christians.
It's amazing when you have a favorite sports team, when I get one jerk, you don't drop the team.
You make excuses for the guy. But some other team, get some now you're on them.
Listen, my dad preach. I learned Doctrine. I learned information. I learned. Biblical principle. I learn stories. I thought I was homeschooled all the way up, so my senior year of high school and may not sit with my mom, and this wasn't like how you could just, I had to do everything right? Then I had to follow every jot and Tittle of a curriculum man. I learned about God, I learned this, I learned that I learned that
but when you get off on your own, can you leave that little shelter and you leave that place that you always complain about because it's so hard. And they don't understand. They don't really understand me.
You get off on your own, you are faced with the reality. May God might be there.
What is your god?
Just because you said pillars up everywhere. Does it mean is your god?
I wonder if we talked about Alters today. I wonder if maybe some of us oughta. Build an altar in our life right now.
You are the god of me.
The changing of.
Lord, I love you and I thank you for all that. You've done and I give you praise.
But we set up our little pillars all over the place. There's no Walter. No sacrifice, no cross, no Contrition, no humility. Oh boy. We've set up our pillars.
So we probably humble ourselves and break ourselves.
Say God, you are the god of me. You're not the guy that gives you're not just a guy that provides you're not just the guy that protects your not just a God, that gives the provision and and all the things that you have promised. You're not just the god of those things. You are the god of me.
Well now, We're totally different. Now we're talkin about something that's very, very different.
What I pray that you would work in Hearts. Our heads are down, their eyes are closed. I want to ask you to stand all over the building. I do want to encourage you be here today just because Mom was saved and dad was saved and Grandma was saved just cuz they went to church doesn't mean you're on your way to heaven. He's got to become your God. You've got to be your savior. Different. If you do not know that you're saying, we'd love to show you today, right? Where you stand.
If you realize, I'm not saved. Dear friend. It's a matter of you understanding that. You can't save yourself that you're a sinner and believing that Jesus did, he died on the cross for you? And then it's a matter of you. Simply believing putting your faith and trust in him in what he's done for you. Right? Where you said, you can say, Lord, I'm a sinner and I know it and I believe you died for me and I'm asking you today to save me.
I wonder sometimes if we consider God just something we set up pillars about only made a promise to me. Yeah. He's going to he's going to provide. He's going to give me provision is going to protect. I'm going to have his presence. Yeah. But is he your God? Are you home before you is there sacrifice?
Pennsylvania eyes are closed, you come join us. If you need to today Make an altar out of the altar. You can make an ALT right, if your seat.
Can only be blessed. and have peace and sweet rest, when you yield him your body, So Lord, I love you today. Thank you for our people. Or I'm already excited about the service tonight. What an encouragement. The singing is. And that's what we want. Just want our folks to be encouraged.
Lord, we love you. Are you bless us for every person that is visiting with us today? I pray that they'll feel welcomed and loved cuz we really do appreciate their being here. God, I pray that you and bless your word as we have preached it in Jesus name. We pray all God's people said, amen.
