3 outstanding nights in the life of Jacob — Stanley Wells

He lighted upon a certain place and tarried there all night. Verse 12, he dreamed and behold a ladder sat up on the earth and the top of it reached to heaven. Verse 15, behold I am with thee and will keep thee in all places whither thou goest and will bring thee again into this land for I will not leave thee.

Verse 16, Jacob awaked out of his sleep and he said surely the Lord is in this place and I knew it not. How dreadful, verse 17, is this place, this is none other but the house of God, this is the gate of heaven.

Verse 19, he called the name of that place Bethel. Verse 21, here's what he's saying to God. Verse 21, so that I come again to my father's house in peace then the Lord, then shall the Lord be my God. Now notice that scripture.

Jacob's Night at Penuel: Wrestling Until Daybreak

Chapter 32, please. Genesis chapter 32 for the next reading. We're looking at night scenes. Verse 21, so went the present over before him and himself lodged that night in the company. He's about to meet Esau.

And he rose up that night and took his two wives and his two women servants and so on. Verse 24, Jacob was left alone and there wrestled a man with him until the breaking of the day. Verse 26, he said let me go for the day breaketh.

Here's Jacob. I will not let thee go except thou bless me. Verse 27, he said unto him, what is thy name? He said, Jacob. Verse 28, thy name shall be called no more Jacob but Israel for as a prince hast thou power with God and with men and hast prevailed.

Notice verse 30. And Jacob called the name of the place Penuel for I have seen God face to face and my life is preserved. Look at the next verse. He passed over Penuel, the sun rose upon him. Chapter 46 now please for the closing reference.

Genesis chapter 46. I hope you know the history of these chapters. Look at verse number 2. Genesis 46 and 2. God spake unto Israel in the visions of the night. And he said, Jacob, Jacob. And he said, here am I.

And he said, I am God, the God of thy father. Fear not to go down into Egypt for I will there make of thee a great nation. Now the Lord will bless what our brother has told us as we continue. And I want to pick up on something our brother McCulloch told you.

Three Outstanding Nights in Jacob's Life

We have reached a serious stage in our contemporary society. We really don't realize what's happening in our world. The very fundamentals of Christianity in certain areas are being attacked. We're coming to the close of assembly testimony in this great age.

One of these days the last soul will be gathered in. The Lord Jesus Christ will come. We will be at home. That song that we sang there, that verse 4, someone changed some of those words there. You know, heaven is my fatherland.

Heaven will be home. Now we're on our way. And so I believe that we need to address vital truths that we hold dearly and reiterate another time our responsibilities in this world. I want to illustrate these truths from the nights in Jacob's experience.

Now it might not be the interpretation, but at least it will bear application. I want to think of the night he spent in Bethel. That's chapter 28. And then the night he spent in Pinho, chapter 32. And the night he spent in Beersheba.

Now I didn't read the verse, but it's right there, chapter 46. Many things could be said about Jacob in threes. Now I won't go over a lot of them, but I'll suggest one or two simple ideas. His history can be summed up in his life in three countries, the land of Canaan, the land of Mesopotamia, and the land of Egypt.

Here's a wee simple thing maybe you've never noticed, maybe you have. He had 17 outstanding years in the early part of his life after he was married and had Joseph and so on. But if you read the record, he had 17 outstanding years in the land of Goshen at the end of his life.

And if the record is right, 147 years in this life, that's Jacob. He's one of three, for example, that passed over a brook. There's Jacob, there's David, and there's the Lord Jesus Christ. Here's another thing.

I was thinking this morning early, there were three outstanding women in his life, his mother, Rebecca, his wife, Leah, his other wife, Rachel. The handmaids are not mentioned, for example, in Ruth chapter 4 in the genealogy.

I think that's very significant. And so here are some of the vital truths that we need to learn this morning by way of illustration from the history of this man, Jacob. Number one, his conversion. That's chapter 28 of Genesis.

There it's focused on a ladder, as we'll see. The next light that's outstanding is the night of restoration. He's on his way back to Bethel, chapter 32. And there are tremendous truths showing that we need to learn this great truth after salvation.

We need restoration. You might think we're doing well, maybe. All of us to whatever degree need the great truth of restoration on our way to heaven. Chapter 46 is another night. It's a night of direction.

The dear man is confused, as we'll see. And the God of heaven gives him a direct message. Get down into the land of Egypt, and so on. I'll summarize it. The night of salvation. The circumstances that he went through as a man approximately 78 years of age are amazing.

They culminated in one night that likely he never forgot. As far as you and I are concerned, as we're moving toward the rapture of the church, very, very soon the great truth of salvation in its completed sense will take place.

Now is our salvation nearer than when we believed. No wonder just pause a minute. Must have been a tremendous moment when likely Jacob embraced his father and mother for the last time. If the record is correct, and it is, he never saw his mother again.

He said goodbye. It was a weary walk that day until he arrived in Bethel. You know the story. He lay down to sleep, and he had a dream, and he saw the ladder, the word is staircase, set up on earth to heaven.

Conversion Through the Ladder at Bethel

The link between earth and heaven. Now I'm going to make a suggestion to you. Putting all the things together, the Lord is really telling Jacob, now Jacob, you bought the birthright, and you stole the blessing, and God had likely purposes of grace for him, and he wanted the right thing, but he went about it the wrong way.

He said there's only one way that you'll ever be in heaven, and that's through the ladder. And without getting into all the details, he woke up, and he realized God was talking to him. See his bottom line?

The Lord will be my God. It's not recorded before that time in his experience, and it likely illustrates the moment when that spiritual transaction took place in early days of divine revelation, when a spiritual relationship was formed between Jacob and the God of heaven.

He's in heaven today. How do you know? Ye shall see Isaac and Jacob, and Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, and the kingdom of God, and all the prophets, and so on. That's the Lord talking. For sure, it fits in my mind that this is the time he was saved by the grace of God.

Now let's make an application. It could be that in this audience today there are more than one unbeliever, and you need salvation if ever you're going to be in heaven. And the only way that it'll happen is through the person and work of the Lord Jesus Christ.

See the ladder? Isn't that what we sing? There's a ladder to heaven for me. It's Jesus, my Savior, who died on the tree. He's the ladder to heaven for me. Now that's 1 Timothy chapter 2. There is one mediator between God and man, the man Christ Jesus, himself a man who gave himself a ransom for all.

Now I want to suggest to this audience that that all is without exception. We're hearing from our platforms these days in some quarters that it's a limited offer to the elect only. The Bible don't teach that.

Some of these beloved brethren, I hope you're not here today, but you could be. Whatever you think of that verse, for example, in this theme on 1 John chapter 2 verse 2, the Lord Jesus Christ, he's our propitiation.

Believers, but not for us only, but for the sins of the whole world, and propitiation is on the divine side, the infinite value of the sacrifice of Christ. Whoever you are here today, young or old or whoever you may be, if you have learned your need and you have repented of your sin, you can take the Lord Jesus Christ as Savior here and now as Jacob did.

No wonder it says, I didn't read it, but in chapter 29, he lifted up his feet and he went with purpose in his life. And from here on out, he's a changed man. How do we know all of us that we're saved?

Well, it's our manner of life. We could have the greatest story that ever was heard, but there needs to be a change in every soul that's saved by the grace of God. Let me just give you another suggestion.

Let's suppose you and I had the privilege of talking to Jacob after the Bethel experience, the night with God. Jacob, are you saved? Absolutely. Was there a time when you were saved? Yeah, at night. Was there a place where you were saved?

Yeah, Bethel. Was there a manner how you were saved? Yeah, through the vision of the ladder, the staircase that brought me in spiritual appreciation for the God of heaven. He's in heaven and I'm on earth.

Dear brethren, across our world today, there are those and they don't believe that this is a New Testament conversion. It's only for the apostolic age. That's nonsense. Every one of us saved by the grace of God, we have a place where, we have a time when, and we have a manner how we were one for heaven.

Thank God. I could take you to the very spot. Almost 58 years ago as a young fellow, when I passed from death onto life, and in some measure have lived to prove the reality of our sins forgiven. Now let's move on.

Restoration Through Jacob's Struggle at Penuel

You see, life sometimes makes us, brings us to strange things. I'll summarize it. See this dear man saved now. Spent 20 years at least with Uncle Laban. I tell you, he met his match. And to cut a long story short, it would seem that Jacob was losing ground spiritually and God told him one day, get back to Bethel.

That's where we read there, chapter 32, he's on his way back. And he's going to meet his brother Esau that he had sinned against. His greatest need at this point is to be restored to a real sense of the divine presence in his soul and heart and life.

Now we get to the very point. It says here that all of the different things that he did, he passed over the brook, Jaybuck, emptied out. That's in chapter 32. His family, his spouses, his all are to the one side.

It's a dark night. And Jacob is left alone. Now here are the steps historically that he took that would restore the dear man back to the knowledge and appreciation and enjoyment of divine things. Now you know the story.

The heavenly messenger maybe is a Christophanes, a Theophanes. I know some of our brethren don't accept that. But many is very like it. The Lord Jesus Christ moving in a past dispensation in an angelic form where he conveys a message to an individual on earth.

If you don't accept that, I'll be happy to listen to you after the meetings over. He struggled all night. And he's asking the heavenly messengers going home. The night is almost over. And the man, Jacob, is still struggling.

And you see, he was taken there and under his thigh. He could no longer walk. He could no longer struggle. All he could do was cling. You know what he says? I will not let thee go, that's his plea, until thou bless me.

Here's his blessing. The heavenly messenger said to him, Jacob, what's your name? For the first time, he's now a believer. I'm Jacob. Memory lane likely kicks in. Over 20 years previous in the tent home in Canaan.

His father asked him a question. Who are you, my son? He says, I'm Esau, your firstborn. And the father, as you all know, his eyes were dim, but he wasn't as slow as you think. He says, the voice is Jacob's.

The hands are Esau's. God overruled the new circumstances. But here the man is honest. He tells his heart to the very point to the heavenly messenger. Here's his blessing. He's no longer now the sub planter, the schemer, the deceiver.

He's now a prince with God and with men. Israel is his name. He was restored to the God of heaven. Must have been a tremendous moment for him. When the dark night of vacillating is over and the bright day of being in touch with God has dawned.

I want to ask you something. Do you believe we need to be restored? I would say absolutely. As families, as assemblies, as individuals. I'll just take a minute, tell you a story from another world. Not this part of the world.

A dear man, I sat with him not too long ago, a beloved brother. He was an elder in the assembly. He had a wife and family. He was a very successful businessman. But through adverse circumstances he got away from God.

He left the assembly. He left his wife. He left his parents. He left his children. And he got away from God. For years. I told him himself. He sat there. The tears run down his face. He said, Stan, I was with my buddies on this occasion.

And I went into this restaurant to eat a meal. And as soon as I got through the door, I saw a big mirror on the wall. And on the top of it, it said, in English, he restoreth my soul. He said to the boys, I'm going home.

Yes, I'm 23. He got down on his knees before his God. And he just poured out his heart. And he was honest. He got restored fully to his wife and family and the assembly. I wish you heard him worshiping.

Draw the tears from his stone. My dear brethren, and I'm included, does none of us know how far we can get away from God? Oh, could we get restored today at this conference and get close to the God of heaven?

Somebody says, well, that might not happen to me. It's okay for somebody else. Remember Galatians 6. Ye that are spiritual, restore such an one in the spirit of meekness, considering thyself. Here's a man overtaken, and a trespass is the word.

Lest thy also be tempted. God help us today. None of us are at home yet. We have shared in former years with others. And there weren't teenagers. And today, they're far away from God. Oh, we need restoration.

Please notice, he restoreth. Ongoing. The man that wrote it knew all about it. David himself. Here's another need that we need to get thinking about for a minute or two. Salvation. The night of salvation.

The night of restoration. And the night of direction. You've likely come to this conference, and before you came, you likely in your own self asked the Lord for direction. Whatever the circumstances may be, the principle applies.

Now watch. One day, Jacob's sons took that coat of many colors. You know the story, dipped in blood. And they came home, and they asked their father, Jacob, is this your son's coat or no? And you all have bet it.

Facetious rascals. And the father said, yes, it's my son's coat. An evil beast has devoured him. He's dead. Moved forward a number of years. And one day at Beersheba, there's wagons from Egypt laden with food and all the rest of it.

The boys said to their father, see these wagons. Do you know who sent them? Joseph. The man's confused. He thought he was dead. He needed direction. What happened that night? Well, God talked to him. Jacob, Joseph is alive.

Must have been a tremendous moment when the father and the son embraced each other in Egypt. Chapter 48, whenever Jacob's dying. I said to Joseph, God has been kind to me. I'm looking into your eyes, son, and your own posterity.

The two boys, Manasseh and Ephraim. You see, there might be somebody here today, and you're confused in your thinking, and you need direction. I hope you'll get it today as the conference unfolds. Jacob thought his boy was dead.

But he's now the mighty administrator of Egypt. Here's an application. Romans chapter 8. All things work together for good. Now, I understand the interpretation. I'm making an application. For them that love God, they are called according to his purpose.

Anybody here confused? And you're getting wrong signals. Let me just very quickly go down this point here. See, in the Old Testament, direction was given physically. The cloud by day, the pillar of fire by night, the shekinah glory, the same one directed the nation.

Individually, Gideon, the fleece. These are all physical things. They got the mind of God. The urim and the thummim of the high priest and the ephod give direction. Nobody spoke. Give direction for the high priest and for the nation.

See, when it comes to the New Testament, he that willeth to know the will of God, they'll know the teaching whether it's of God or of man. You want direction today? Get to the Bible. The Holy Spirit of God, with an ungrieved spirit that we have in our being, will direct us to what you need to do.

It might not be the interpretation of the passage. It might be in your local reading or whatever, but the Spirit of God will direct you in the confusion of life. This is the way. Walk ye in it. And so there's all kinds of other things could be said, but I'll leave it with you.

Salvation, Restoration, and Direction for Believers

Here's three great needs in 2015, illustrated by the three knights outstanding in the life of Jacob. Summarizes his history. The great need, a night of salvation, a night of restoration, and a night of direction.

I've said enough. On the way to heaven, you need direction. God help us to live for him. Thank you very much.