Back to Bethel

Introduction

Well, good morning!

If you have a Bible — and I hope that you do — go ahead and open it up with me to Genesis chapter 35.

Now if you were with us last week, you’ll remember… things ended on a pretty somber note, right? Genesis 34 was dark — one of the most disturbing chapters in the book of Genesis. There was sin, silence, vengeance, compromise. We watched Jacob’s family fall just apart under the weight of their own choices. It was chaos. It was heartbreak. And if you noticed, God’s name was never mentioned once in that entire chapter. Not once.

There was no prayer, no altar, no worship — just compromise that led to corruption, and corruption that led to chaos. It was one of those moments in Scripture where you feel the absence of God’s presence. Like the spiritual lights went out in Jacob’s home.

And yet — when we turn the page to chapter 35, something incredible happens. The silence breaks. The darkness lifts. And for the first time in what feels like forever, we hear the voice of God again.

Just look at verse 1. “Then God said to Jacob, ‘Arise, go up to Bethel and dwell there.’”

After everything that’s happened — after the moral collapse, after the violence, after Jacob’s failure as a leader — God speaks again. And what He says isn’t judgment. It’s mercy. He doesn’t say, “Jacob, I’m done with you.” He doesn’t say, “You’ve gone too far this time.” He says, “Arise. Go up. Come home.”

It’s as if God’s saying, “Jacob, I haven’t changed. My promise still stands. My grace, its still greater than your failure.”

And that’s where we find ourselves this morning — at a place called Bethel.

Now if that name sounds familiar, it should. Bethel was the very first place Jacob encountered God — all the way back in Genesis 28. Hopefully you remember that. Jacob was running from his brother Esau, scared, exhausted, alone. He laid his head on a rock, and God met him there in a dream — there was a ladder reaching up to heaven, angels ascending and descending, and the Lord standing above it saying, “I’m with you. I won’t leave you until I’ve done what I promised.”

That was Bethel — the house of God. It was the place where grace first found him.

But somewhere along the way, Jacob drifted. Life got busy. He settled down. He stopped leading. He let small compromises creep in. And before long, the man who once built an altar to God was now living surrounded by idols, and silence, and sin.

And yet here comes God — not to erase him, but to restore him. “Jacob, arise. Go up to Bethel.” In other words — “Come back to the place where you first met Me.”

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Can I just tell you something this morning? — that’s exactly how God works. When you and I wander, He calls us back. When we grow cold, He draws near. When we’ve made a mess of things in our life, He whispers, “Come home.”

And maybe that’s where some of us are today. You’ve been living in your own Shechem — close enough to look spiritual, but far enough to be comfortable. You’ve been drifting, distracted, distant. But the fact that you’re here this morning, opening God’s Word, means He’s not done with you yet.

He’s calling you back. Back to worship. Back to obedience. Back to intimacy with Him.

And that’s what Genesis 35 is all about — the God who calls His people back home.

And so, here’s what we’re gonna see in this passage this morning (our main idea if you would): When we wander, God graciously calls us back to Himself so that He might restore us and reaffirm His promises.

This morning, if you’re taking notes, we’re gonna walk through four points in this text — The Call to Return, the Call to Repent, the Call to Remember, and finally, the God who Renews.

Because when you come back to Bethel — when you come back to the God of grace — He doesn’t just restore what’s broken; He reminds you who you really are.

And so, with that, let’s stand together for the reading of God’s Word — Genesis 35, beginning in verse 1. It says this:

Genesis 35:1–15 ESV

God said to Jacob, “Arise, go up to Bethel and dwell there. Make an altar there to the God who appeared to you when you fled from your brother Esau.” So Jacob said to his household and to all who were with him, “Put away the foreign gods that are among you and purify yourselves and change your garments. Then let us arise and go up to Bethel, so that I may make there an altar to the God who answers me in the day of my distress and has been with me wherever I have gone.” So they gave to Jacob all the foreign gods that they had, and the rings that were in their ears. Jacob hid them under the terebinth (Tera-binth) tree that was near Shechem. And as they journeyed, a terror from God fell upon the cities that were around them, so that they did not pursue the sons of Jacob. And Jacob came to Luz (Loots) (that is, Bethel), which is in the land of Canaan, he and all the people who were with him, and there he built an altar and called the place El-bethel, because there God had revealed himself to him when he fled from his brother. And Deborah, Rebekah’s nurse, died, and she was buried under an oak below Bethel. So he called its name Allon-bacuth (Allon-Bac-Cth) God appeared to Jacob again, when he came from Paddan-aram, and blessed him. And God said to him, “Your name is Jacob; no longer shall your name be called Jacob, but Israel shall be your name.” So he called his name Israel. And God said to him, “I am God Almighty: be fruitful and multiply. A nation and a company of nations shall come from you, and kings shall come from your own body. The land that I gave to Abraham and Isaac I will give to you, and I will give the land to your offspring after you.” Then God went up from him in the place where he had spoken with him. And Jacob set up a pillar in the place where he had spoken with him, a pillar of stone. He poured out a drink offering on it and poured oil on it. So Jacob called the name of the place where God had spoken with him Bethel.

Thank you, you can be seated.

[Prayer]

Again, our four points this morning…1.) The Call to Return, 2.) The Call to Repent, 3.) The Call to Remember, and 4.) The God Who Renews.

Let’s jump into this first point together.

I. The Call to Return (v. 1)

The call to return.

Look with me again at verse 1:

“Then God said to Jacob, ‘Arise, go up to Bethel and dwell there, and make an altar there to the God who appeared to you when you fled from your brother Esau.’”

Now stop right there.

That one verse — it’s packed. Because it’s not just a command; it’s an invitation. God’s calling Jacob back to the place where grace first met him. Back to Bethel — back to worship, back to surrender, back to His presence.

And notice something: God doesn’t start with rebuke here. He starts with restoration. He doesn’t say, “Jacob, look at what you’ve done.” He says, “Arise, go up.”…Again, in other words — “Get up, Jacob. It’s time to come home.”

You see, Jacob’s been living in Shechem — a place of compromise, a place of comfort, confusion. His family’s fractured, his leadership’s been silent, his worship’s gone cold. Chapter 34 ended with shame. But God isn’t finished with him. The covenant hasn’t been canceled. The grace that met Jacob years ago at Bethel, its still pursuing him now.

And that’s the mercy of God on full display.

As Thomas Watson said, “The same hand that wounds us for sin, heals us by grace.”

God could’ve left Jacob right where he was. But instead, He calls him up. “Arise, go up to Bethel.” That’s the language of repentance — get up from where you’ve been stuck and come back to Me.

And guys, that’s exactly what God does with us. When we wander, He doesn’t discard us — He disciplines us to draw us back.

Hebrews 12 says, “For the Lord disciplines the one He loves.”

That discipline, its not rejection; it’s redirection.

William Philip, he said this, “Grace never leaves us where it finds us; it always lifts us back to where we belong.”

And that’s what’s happening right here. God’s grace is lifting Jacob back to Bethel.

And don’t miss this either — God says, “Make an altar there to the God who appeared to you.”

In other words, “Jacob, remember who I am and remember who you were when I met you.” It’s a call to return and a call to remember (We’ll talk about the latter in just a moment).

Jacob’s life, its been marked by running — running from Esau, running from Laban, running from his own mess. But this time, God says, “Stop running. Go back.” Back to the place where you stopped hearing My voice. Back to the altar you abandoned. Back to the God who hasn’t abandoned you.

You see, repentance isn’t just turning from sin; it’s turning toward God. It’s a return to relationship, a return to worship.

And let me just say this — this isn’t about “recommitting yourself to Jesus.” I actually hate that phrase. You don’t “recommit” what you never accomplished in the first place. This isn’t about you trying harder; it’s about you returning to what God’s already promised you.

This isn’t you saying, “Okay, I’ll do better this time.” It’s God saying, “I’m still faithful to the covenant I made with you.”

And so, you don’t recommit — you return. You return to His promises. You return to His Word. You return to His grace that never stopped chasing you.

As Charles Spurgeon said, “When you can’t trace His hand, trust His heart — and when you’ve wandered far, remember the way home is always open.”

Jacob didn’t earn this call. He didn’t seek God; God sought him. And that’s the story of the Gospel, isn’t it?

Romans 2 says it’s “the kindness of God that leads us to repentance.”

The same God who found Jacob in the wilderness, its the same God who comes after us when we’ve drifted.

And maybe that’s you this morning. Again, maybe you’ve been living in your own Shechem — spiritually dry, distant from God, just going through the motions. You’ve got the appearance of stability, but the altar’s been torn down. You’re managing sin instead of confessing it. You’re surviving instead of worshiping.

And yet — God still calls you: “Arise, go up to Bethel.” He’s saying, “Come back. Leave the place of compromise, return to the place of communion.”

You see, the call to return, its not a call to earn God’s favor; it’s a response to grace already given. This isn’t God saying, “Do better.” It’s God saying, “Come closer.”

“When God calls us, it’s not to crush us under guilt, but to raise us up in grace.” (John Calvin)

And so, the question for us this morning: What Bethel have you left behind? Like where did you stop walking closely with God? When did worship become routine instead of real?

Because until you return to that place — until you get back to the altar, everything else stays out of order.

God’s saying to some of us right now, “Get up. Leave Shechem. Come home.” You’ve wandered long enough. You’ve lived distant long enough. It’s time to return.

And listen — when you do that, you’ll find that the same God who met you at Bethel, the first time, He’s still there waiting for you this time.

That’s the call to return.

II. The Call to Repent (vv. 2-5)

Point number 2…the call to repent.

Its not enough to just return…there has to be a genuine repentance.

Look with me again at verses 2 through 4:

“So Jacob said to his household and to all who were with him, ‘Put away the foreign gods that are among you and purify yourselves and change your garments. Then let us arise and go up to Bethel, so that I may make there an altar to the God who answers me in the day of my distress and has been with me wherever I have gone.’ So they gave to Jacob all the foreign gods that they had, and the rings that were in their ears. Jacob hid them under the terebinth tree that was near Shechem.”

Now, this is huge. Because what we’re seeing right here — this isn’t Jacob just packing up his tents for a road trip. This is a man leading his family in repentance.

You see, once God calls Jacob to return, Jacob turns around and he calls his household to repent. And those two things — returning and repenting — they always go together. You can’t come back to Bethel without laying something down at Shechem.

Repentance isn’t about relocation; it’s about transformation. It’s not just “getting out” of the wrong place — it’s letting God get the wrong things out of you.

Notice the verbs in the text here: Put away… purify yourselves… change your garments. That’s not casual language — that’s covenant language. It’s a picture of cleansing, of renewal.

God’s call, it always demands a response. Grace doesn’t just forgive us — it forms us.

William Philip, he said this, “Grace isn’t sentimental softness; it’s divine surgery. It cuts away what can’t live so that what’s truly alive may remain.”

That’s what we see here.

Jacob tells his household to put away the idols…But listen, you have to wonder — where did those idols come from to begin with?

If you remember, back in chapter 31, when Jacob fled from Laban, Rachel secretly stole her father’s household gods. You guys remember that? They had been buried in the tents ever since…So here’s the picture: these idols had traveled with them for years. They had lived among them, they carried them, they tolerated them. But now — God says, “Enough.”

And guys, I want you to hear me on this — that’s the same moment we all have to face. Because for many of us, we’ve allowed idols to travel with us as well. They may not be wooden statues, but they’re just as dangerous — idols of comfort, idols of control, of pleasure, reputation. They’ve been tucked away in the tent of our hearts. We carry them, we protect them, we excuse them.

But when God calls you back to Bethel, He always calls you to bury something in Shechem.

That’s repentance. It’s not just crying over your sin — it’s cutting ties with it altogether.

Jacob says, “Put ‘em away.” That means destroy them, bury them, be done with them.

And then he says, “Purify yourselves, change your garments.” In other words — “Don’t just remove what’s wrong; renew what’s right.” We’re seeing an external cleansing that symbolizes an internal renewal. It’s a picture of what Paul says in Ephesians 4: “Put off the old self… and put on the new self, created after the likeness of God.”

Listen — so oftentimes, we treat repentance like it’s damage control. We mess up, we feel bad, we say “sorry,” and then we move on like everything’s fine. But repentance isn’t about apologizing; it’s about realigning.

It’s not just saying, “God, forgive me,” as though forgiveness is something you have to earn again. No — if you belong to Christ, your forgiveness was settled at the cross. Jesus dealt with your sin fully — past, present, and future.

So repentance isn’t about getting forgiven; it’s about walking in the forgiveness you already have. It’s about turning your life back in line with the God who saved you.

Repentance, in other words, is a total reorientation — a turning of the heart, and mind, and will back toward God.

John Calvin said, “Repentance isn’t merely the start of the Christian life; it is the Christian life.” In other words, the believer never outgrows repentance — he lives in it. It’s his lifestyle.

And what’s beautiful here is that Jacob doesn’t just repent personally — he leads his family in it. He doesn’t say, “Do what I say.” He says, “Come with me.”

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Verse 3 — “Then let us arise and go up to Bethel.”

That’s spiritual leadership. He’s not just cleaning up his own tent — he’s shepherding his household back to God.

Men, listen — this is where a lot of us need to wake up. We say we want revival in our homes, but we’re not willing to lead repentance in our homes. We want our kids to follow God, but we’re still holding on to idols in our own tents.

You can’t lead your family to Bethel if you’re still clinging to Shechem.

Maybe that means it’s time to delete something off your phone. Maybe that means ending a relationship that’s pulling you away from holiness. Maybe that means cutting off entertainment that desensitizes your soul.

Maybe it’s admitting you were wrong.

Whatever it is — you can’t take it with you to Bethel.

Repentance always costs something — but it always leads to renewal.

Notice in verse 4 — after they bring their idols, Jacob buries them under the oak near Shechem. I love that. It’s not just symbolic — it’s prophetic. That tree becomes a tomb for everything that doesn’t belong to God.

Jacob doesn’t store the idols — he buries them. He doesn’t pack ‘em just in case — he gets rid of ‘em for good.

That’s what repentance looks like. You don’t manage sin; you kill it.

Romans 8:13 — “If by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body, you will live.”

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And so let me just ask you this morning — what do you need to bury today? What’s God been calling you to put away, but you’ve just been carrying it along because it feels too costly to let go of?

Listen to me — until you bury your idols, you’ll never build your altar. There’s no Bethel without a burial in Shechem.

And maybe that’s the most merciful thing God could do for you — to bring you to a place where you finally have to choose.

William Philip said it this way: “Grace calls us home, but repentance clears the way.”

Jacob says, “Let’s go up to Bethel.”…And listen, when they leave, they’re lighter — the weight of their idols is gone, the stench of Shechem is behind them, and now they can worship freely again.

You see, real repentance doesn’t leave you burdened; it leaves you clean. Psalm 32 says, “Blessed is the one whose transgression is forgiven, whose sin is covered.” That’s not guilt — that’s grace.

And that’s what God’s calling us to — not to wallow in shame, but to walk in freedom.

And so again, the question isn’t “Have you felt bad about your sin?” — the question is, Have you buried it?

Because until the idols are under the tree, you can’t go up to Bethel.

III. The Call to Remember (vv. 6-8)

Point number 3…the call to remember.

Look again at verses 6 through 8:

“And Jacob came to Luz (that is, Bethel), which is in the land of Canaan, he and all the people who were with him, and there he built an altar and called the place El-bethel, because there God had revealed himself to him when he fled from his brother. And Deborah, Rebekah’s nurse, died, and she was buried under an oak below Bethel. So he called its name Allon-bacuth.”(Allon-Bac-Cth)

Now, don’t rush past that — there’s a lot happening here. Jacob finally arrives where God told him to go — to Bethel — and the very first thing he does is build an altar (We’ve seen this time and time again). But notice what he calls it: El-bethel. That means “God of the house of God.” In other words, Jacob isn’t just remembering a place here — he’s remembering a Person.

This is Jacob looking back and saying, “This isn’t about the location — this is about the Lord.” Bethel by itself was just geography. But El-bethel — that’s theology. It’s not about the stone pillar or the memory; it’s about the God who met him there.

You see, that’s the essence of true remembrance — not nostalgia, but worship. Jacob’s not reminiscing about his past; he’s realigning his heart to the God who’s never failed him.

And guys, we need that same call to remember today — because spiritual forgetfulness, its one of the greatest dangers to our faith. Over and over again in Scripture, God tells His people, “Remember.”

“Remember the Lord your God, for it is He who gives you power” (Deut. 8:18). “Remember your Creator in the days of your youth” (Eccl. 12:1). “Do this in remembrance of Me” (Luke 22:19).

Why? Because when we forget who God is and what He’s done, we inevitably drift back to who we used to be. That’s what happened to Jacob. He forgot. Bethel had become a faint memory, an old testimony.

Listen, when we stop remembering God’s faithfulness, sin starts looking reasonable again. Spiritual amnesia always leads to moral compromise.

Charles Spurgeon said, “We forget God because we forget ourselves to be nothing without Him.” That’s exactly what Jacob had been living — self-sufficient, self-reliant, spiritually distracted. But when he gets back to Bethel, the memories flood in — the ladder, the promise, the presence of God. And that remembrance, it revives his worship.

Church, that’s what needs to happen to many of us this morning. We need to remember what God’s done for us — not just in theory, but personally.

Remember where He found you. Remember how far He’s brought you. Remember the prayers He’s answered, the sins He’s forgiven, the grace He’s poured out again and again and again.

Because here’s the truth — forgetting grace always leads to grumbling; remembering grace always leads to gratitude.

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Notice in verse 8, we get what feels like an interruption: “And Deborah, Rebekah’s nurse, died, and she was buried under an oak below Bethel. So he called its name Allon-bacuth,” (Allon-Bac-Cth) which means “the oak of weeping.”

Why’s that in here? Because remembrance isn’t just about rejoicing — it’s also about reality. This moment at Bethel isn’t sentimental. It’s sacred. It’s costly. Jacob remembers God’s faithfulness even as he buries someone he loves.

And that’s real life, isn’t it?

Sometimes remembering God’s goodness happens through tears. Sometimes coming back to Bethel means facing losses we didn’t expect. But even there — under the oak of weeping — Jacob worships. He’s learning that God’s presence doesn’t erase pain; it redeems it. That even in seasons of sorrow, the God of Bethel, He’s still faithful.

You see, remembrance anchors you when life shakes you.

Psalm 77:11 — “I will remember the deeds of the Lord; yes, I will remember your wonders of old.” The psalmist is saying, “When I can’t see what God’s doing right now, I’ll remember what He’s already done.”

And some of us need to do that today. You’ve been so focused on what’s wrong in your life that you’ve forgotten who’s been right beside you the whole time. You’ve been consumed by what’s next and you’ve stopped thanking Him for what’s past. You’ve forgotten Bethel — forgotten the altar moments, the answered prayers, the undeserved mercies.

Let me put it this way: If you’ve lost your worship, it’s probably because you’ve lost your memory.

When was the last time you stopped and rehearsed the faithfulness of God? When was the last time you told your kids or your spouse, “Here’s what God did for us back then — and here’s why we can trust Him right now”?

Martyn Lloyd-Jones once said, “Our greatest trouble as Christians is that we listen to ourselves instead of preaching to ourselves.” In other words, we forget what we know to be true. We listen to our doubts instead of reminding our hearts of God’s track record.

So preach to yourself today: He’s still the God who met you at Bethel. He’s still the God who heard you in your distress. He’s still the God who never left you, even when you wandered off.

And maybe — like Jacob — it’s time for you to build an altar again. Not a monument to what you’ve done, but a reminder of who He is.

Maybe that means writing down the ways He’s answered prayers (We’ve talked about that recently). Maybe it means testifying to someone about His faithfulness. Maybe it means coming back to the table of the Lord with gratitude instead of guilt.

Because when you remember rightly, you worship deeply.

The call to remember isn’t emotional — it’s sanctifying. It realigns our hearts to the God who’s been faithful in every chapter of our life, even the dark ones.

And so let me just challenge you this morning — stop living like God hasn’t come through. Stop acting like He hasn’t been faithful. You’ve got altars in your past that prove otherwise. Go back, remember, worship the God of Bethel — El-bethel — the God of the house of God.

Because until you remember who He is, you’ll forget who you are.

IV. The God Who Renews (vv. 9-15)

Point number 4…the God who renews.

Look at this last section again with me. Starting in verse 9:

“God appeared to Jacob again, when he came from Paddan-aram, and blessed him. And God said to him, ‘Your name is Jacob; no longer shall your name be called Jacob, but Israel shall be your name.’ So he called his name Israel. And God said to him, ‘I am God Almighty: be fruitful and multiply. A nation and a company of nations shall come from you, and kings shall come from your own body. The land that I gave to Abraham and Isaac I will give to you, and I will give the land to your offspring after you.’ Then God went up from him in the place where he had spoken with him. And Jacob set up a pillar in the place where he had spoken with him, a pillar of stone. He poured out a drink offering on it and poured oil on it. So Jacob called the name of the place where God had spoken with him Bethel.”

Now, this is incredible — because what we’re witnessing here, its not just Jacob returning to God, but God renewing His covenant with Jacob.

Notice how verse 9 begins: “God appeared to Jacob again.”

That phrase, its rich with grace. God didn’t have to appear again. Jacob didn’t deserve another encounter. But the God who calls us to return and repent, He’s also the God who delights to renew what’s been broken.

This is the mercy of God on full display — not a new promise, but a reaffirmed one. God’s not giving Jacob something different; He’s reestablishing what’s always been true this whole time.

Here’s the thing — renewal always follows repentance. Jacob buried his idols at Shechem, he built his altar at Bethel, and now God meets him again. Grace meets the heart that’s been humbled.

Verse 10 — “Your name is Jacob; no longer shall your name be called Jacob, but Israel shall be your name.”

Now remember, God already said that back in Genesis 32, when Jacob wrestled with Him at Peniel. But here, God repeats it. Why? Because Jacob had gone back to living like “Jacob” again — the deceiver, the self-reliant one.

And listen, isn’t that just like us? God changes us, He renames us, He redeems us — and yet we so easily slip back into the old identity He’s already delivered us from.

And so God graciously reminds him: “You’re Israel. You belong to Me.”

That’s renewal. It’s God restoring the truth of who you are in light of who He is. And sometimes, the most merciful thing God can do for us is repeat Himself.

Maybe that’s what He’s doing for some of you this morning — repeating what He’s already told you, but you forgot.

“You’re forgiven.” “You're Mine.” “The promise still stands.”

Listen, God doesn’t grow tired of reminding His children of His covenant love.

As Sinclair Ferguson said, “The Christian life is not about making new discoveries of truth, but about continually rediscovering the old ones.”

That’s what’s happening here — Jacob’s rediscovering the faithfulness of God.

And notice how God reveals Himself in verse 11 — “I am God Almighty.” In Hebrew, El Shaddai (El-Shal-Die) That’s the same name God used when He spoke to Abraham in Genesis 17. It’s the name that emphasizes His sufficiency — His power to fulfill every promise, His ability to supply every need. So in other words, God’s reminding Jacob: “What I started with Abraham, I’ll continue through you. My strength, not yours, that’s what’ll carry this covenant forward.”

And guys, that’s the same truth for us today. Renewal doesn’t come from trying harder or doing better. It comes from remembering that the God who called you, He’s El Shaddai (El-Shal-Die) - more than enough.

When you’re weak, He’s sufficient. When you’re faithless, He remains faithful. When you’ve run out of strength, He’s just getting started.

You see, renewal isn’t the result of self-effort; it’s the overflow of divine encounter…God renews His promise. Jacob responds with worship.

Verses 14 and 15 — “Jacob set up a pillar… he poured out a drink offering and oil on it… and he called the place Bethel.”

This is full-circle redemption. The same man who built an altar at Bethel years ago, he now rebuilds another one — not as a fugitive running in fear, but as a worshiper standing in grace.

And I love that Jacob pours out a drink offering. That’s the first time we see that phrase in Scripture. It’s symbolic of total surrender — he’s not holding anything back. He’s saying, “Lord, everything I have, everything I am, belongs to You.”

And that’s what renewal looks like — worship that’s costly, worship that’s wholehearted, worship overflowing with gratitude. Jacob isn’t the same man who came limping out of Shechem; he’s standing renewed in the presence of God.

And church, that’s what God wants to do in us. He doesn’t just want you to return and repent — He wants to renew you. He wants to remind you of who you are in Christ.

2 Corinthians 5:17 — “If anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come.” That’s not a one-time truth — it’s a daily reality. God renews us again and again and again by His grace.

But let me press this a little deeper — because here’s where we often miss it: We want the renewal without the returning. We want the blessing without the burying. We want Bethel without the altar.

And it doesn’t work that way. Renewal comes on the other side of obedience. We can’t experience the God who renews if we’re still clinging to the gods that ruin.

And so here’s a question for us — has your relationship with God grown stale because you’ve stopped returning to the altar? Are you asking for renewal but refusing repentance? Because if you want fresh grace, you’ve got to come back to the place where grace first met you.

Spurgeon said, “The same grace that saved you is the grace that must sustain you.” That’s what Jacob’s discovering here — the God who first met him in his weakness is the same God who meets him now in his renewal.

And notice one final thing — after God speaks, “He went up from him.” That means His presence lifted, but His promise remained. Jacob doesn’t need another vision or another dream to trust God; he has the covenant Word. And so he sets up a pillar, not to capture the moment, but to mark the faithfulness of God.

That’s what true renewal produces — not emotional highs, but enduring faith.

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And so here’s what all this means for us this morning: when God brings you back to Bethel — when you’ve returned, repented, remembered — the God who renews meets you there with grace that restores, that renames, that reaffirms His promises over your life.

And that’s exactly what we see in Jacob. The story that began with compromise now ends with covenant. The man who drifted from God, he’s now dwelling in His presence again. The silence that fell in chapter 34, its been broken by the voice of God in chapter 35.

Because that’s who our God is — the God who calls, who cleanses, who restores, who renews.

And that brings us to where we’ll close this morning…

Closing

Listen, Jacob’s story isn’t just history — it’s a roadmap of grace.

In this passage, we’ve seen the call to return, the call to repent, the call to remember, the God who renews…Put simply — God calls you back…and when you come He cleanses you, He reminds you of His faithfulness, He renews what sin tried to destroy.

Jacob left Bethel as a deceiver, but he returned as a worshiper.

Listen, we’re all Jacobs if we’re honest, right? Every single one of us, we’ve had a “Shechem season” — a time when we’ve drifted from obedience, when we’ve allowed idols to settle quietly in the corners of our hearts, when our worship’s grown cold, when our walk’s grown weary.

But praise God — the story never end there. The same God who called Jacob back, He’s the same God calling us, as believers, home today.

Maybe this morning He’s whispering, “Arise, go up to Bethel.”

Guys, some of us, we’ve been camped in Shechem for far too long. You’ve gotten comfortable — close enough to look spiritual, but far enough to stay safe. You can’t stay there. Shechem, its gonna drain you, its gonna distract you, eventually it’ll destroy you.

Come back to the altar where grace first met you.

But listen, if you’ve never come to Him at all — this is your invitation. The cross is your Bethel. That’s where grace meets sinners. Romans 10:9 says, “If you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved.” And so don’t wait, don’t wait for the right day…don’t wait for the right moment — come home for the first time today. Come into grace. Come into forgiveness. Come to the cross where Jesus bore the judgment you deserve so that you could have the mercy you could never earn.

And listen, when you do that, you’ll find what Jacob found — not wrath, but welcome…not distance, but delight. Because that’s who our God is — the God who restores, who renames, who renews.

Come to Bethel this morning!

.…

Would you bow your head and close your eyes with me?

The praise team’s gonna play…I want you take this time, respond to the Word of God, to the Spirit of God. And if you need someone, we’ll have some men at the front…I’ll be in the back. You take this time, come to Bethel.

[Prayer]