Volume 3 3rd Trailhead – 1st Trail – 2nd Track – 1st Checkpoint

We are now at the checkpoint of Genesis 28:12-19.  The verse is set in the context of Jacob’s dreaming of a ladder to heaven as is recorded in Genesis 28:10-22.

We have earlier seen that “Bethel” refers to the physical Body of Christ; the temple of God in the Old Testament and the Church in the New Testament.  Jacob called it “the gateway to heaven”.   It immediately brings to mind John 14:6 and Acts 4:12.   In John 14:6, Jesus said that “No one comes to the Father but through Me” and in Acts 4:12, it is stated that “God has provided the world no alternative for salvation except through Christ Jesus”.

With all that said, the nub of Genesis 28:12-19 is:

“The House of God is the gateway to heaven”.

From the context passage, we see the significance of the tithe.  It is to signify gratitude and dependence on God.  In Genesis 28:20-21, Jacob vowed to tithe since God promised to bless and provide for him.  The word “if” means “since” as in a done deal, just as in Romans 8:31 where it says that “If God is for us, who can be against us?” Jacob took God at His word when He promised to be with him to keep watch over him and bring him back to the Promised Land.