The Ladder, a Type of Christ.

"Jacob dreamed, and behold a ladder was set up on the earth, and the top of it reached to heaven: and behold, the angels of God ascending and descending on it" (Gen. 28:12). And Jesus said: "Verily, verily, I say unto you, hereafter ye shall see heaven open, and the angels of God ascending and descending upon the Son of Man " (John i:5i). Christ Jesus is the true ladder. Through Him all blessings descend, through Him our petitions ascend; "one mediator between God and Man."

Jacob was a wanderer from home, surrounded by danger, and full of trouble. He was fleeing from Esau because he had provoked him to anger. God had a plan; Jacob tried to work it out and as a result became an outcast from home. Man is a wanderer from God, because he chose to believe satan's lie rather than God's truth; the result was separation from God because of sin. As Jacob was on his way to Laban, he slept and God communicated with Jacob in the vision of the ladder. Man in this wilderness of sin has had the revelation of Jesus Christ.

The ladder was revealed to Jacob. "He dreamed, and behold, a ladder set up on the earth, and the top of it reached to heaven: and behold, the angels of God ascending and descending on it" (Gen. 28:12). Christ was revealed to man. "He took upon Him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men." (Phil. 2:7); "He came unto His own " (Jno. 1:11); "God sent Him to be the propitiation for our sins " (I Jno. 4:10). He lived and walked and taught among men. The disciples "Saw and heard Him and declared Him unto men."

The ladder was set up on the earth, connecting earth with heaven, indicating that there was a way open from God to man. In the dream, Jacob saw the ladder "set up on the earth and reaching into heaven: and behold, the angels of God ascending and descending on it. And, behold, the Lord stood above it, and said: "I am the Lord God of Abraham, thy father, and of Isaac: the land whereon thou liest, to thee will I give it and thy seed" (Gen. 28:12, 13). Christ took human form and dwelt upon earth, making a way of communication between God and man, "having consecrated a new and living way." (Heb. 10:19, 20). "He was made in the likeness of men." "He is the one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus, who gave Himself a ransom for all " (I Tim. 2:5, 6). He lived and moved and had His being upon earth. He has ascended into heaven. He is the only mediator between God and men. "I am the way, * * * * no man cometh unto the Father but by Me" (Jno. 14:6). Adam's sin had cut off communication between God and men. Christ restored it by the "new and living way " (Heb. 10:19, 20).

The ladder was near the place where Jacob slept. "Jacob lighted upon a certain place, and tarried there all night, * * * and lay down to sleep. And He dreamed, and, behold, a ladder set up on the earth " (Gen. 28:11, 12). Christ is near to every man. He is not for a select few, but for all. "The Son of Man is come to seek and to save the lost " (Luke 19:10). The whosoever is for all. "Whosoever will, let him take the water of life freely" (Rev. 22:17). "Look unto Me, and be ye saved," is the Savior's invitation.

"That grand word whosoever
Is freely sounding still;
Whosoever will may come."

Jacob was trying to work out his own plan apart from God, and the result was confusion. God had said, "The elder shall serve the younger" (Gen. 25:23), and Jacob did not trust God to bring about his own plans. His mother helped him to deceive Isaac, the father, so that he would receive the blessing rather than Esau. As a result, Jacob had to flee for his life (Gen. 27:6-33). God would have worked out his own plan in His way had Jacob trusted Him. Man seeks to scale heaven by his own doings, and can only fail. Man says, "My good life will count toward my salvation." God says, "Not of works, lest any man should boast" (Eph. 2:9). Man says, "My keeping the law is my salvation." God says, "The law is not made for a righteous man, but for the lawless and disobedient, for the ungodly and for sinners" (I Tim. 1:9). The law is our school master to lead us to Christ (Gal. 3:24). God saves "not according to our works, but according to His own purpose and grace, which was given us in Christ Jesus before the world began" (II Tim. 1:9). Man's works do not count for, salvation, but "by grace are ye saved through faith." The ladder was the only means of communication between God and Jacob. Jacob saw the ladder, the angels, "And, behold, the Lord stood above it, and said, I am the Lord God of Abraham, thy father, and the God of Isaac: the land whereon thou liest, to thee will I give it, and to thy seed; * * * and, behold, I am with thee, and will keep thee m all places whither thou goest, and will bring thee again into this land; for I will not leave thee, until I have done that which I have spoken to thee of" (Gen. 28:12-15). As God stood above the ladder. He spoke His message to Jacob. Christ is the only mediator between God and man (I Tim. 2:5) He is the true ladder. "No man cometh unto the Father but by Me." "There is none other name under heaven given among men, wherby we must be, saved" (Acts 4:12). Through Christ all spiritual blessings descend. "He that spared not His own son, but delivered Him up for us all, how shall He not with Him freely give us all things" (Rom. 8:32). Through Him our prayers ascend. "Whatsoever ye shall ask in my name, that will I do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son" (Jno. 14:13). Through Him is access to the Father. "For, through Him we have access by one spirit unto the Father" (Eph. 2:18). "I am the Way/' "One mediator between God and men."

"I've found the precious Christ of God!
My heart doth sing for joy;
And sing I must, for Christ I have,
A saving Christ have I."