Jacobs Ladder
A Homily for the 9th Sunday in Trinitytide
Genesis 28:10-end; Ps. 144; 1 Cor. 10:1-end; St. Luke 15:11-end.
The Rev. Michael K. Templin, Assisting
Today, we come to an important teaching from St. Paul on the sacraments in the Old Testament and how they then, just as they are now, are connected to Christ, for some grace and for others punishment. St. Paul begins instructing the Church that he does not want them to be ignorant of a profound theological argument he is trying to make. If you are familiar with 1st Corinthians, then you probably realize that there were certain issues in the community, especially concerning misused sexuality and idol worship by members of the Corinthian Church. Moreover, St. Paul is also addressing the lack of unity in the church - he speaks of a unity in baptism in 1 Cor 1:13, and unity in the cross of Christ in the first chapter, unity in the Spirit in chapter 2, how Holy Matrimony signifies a unity in Christ that is disordered by incest in chapter 5, and how sexuality should properly be ordered by either marriage or chastity in chapter 7. So when we get to this chapter, it is obvious that St. Paul would argue for a sacramental unity of the Church and warn them not to continue into apostasy like Israel had. To put it simply, “don’t be ignorant brethren - the people of God have been in this situation before and it did not turn out well!”
In Vs. 1-5 Paul says, "Our fathers, were all under the cloud, and all passed through the sea; and were all baptized unto Moses in the cloud and in the sea; and did all eat the same spiritual meat; and did all drink the same spiritual drink; for they drank of a spiritual Rock that followed them: and the Rock was Christ. Howbeit with most of them God was not well pleased."
See, for the Apostle, there is nothing good that can come out of the sacraments of Baptism and Communion, unless you go forth from them and lead a holy life. This is not to negate or denigrate the efficacy of the sacraments. The church teaches that baptism is for the remission of sins and the giving of the Holy Spirit. Peter teaches that “baptism now saves us.” Likewise, the Eucharist is a “participation in the body and blood of Christ," and it is for the “remission of our sins.” We’re instructed by Jesus in John’s Gospel, “we must eat and drink Christ to have his life in us.” The sacraments are of the utmost importance - they unite us to Christ.
But, remember that Israel was united with Christ through the Red Sea baptism and by drinking of the Rock and by eating of the Manna, the Quail, and the Passover - but many rebelled after they were united, many worshipped idols, many grumbled against the Lord’s anointed. Thus, their sacraments became harmful, rather than helpful - it would have been better for them to not be united with God, rather than united with God yet apostate. So, St. Paul is instructing the church to be repentant, to be in union with God, to be sexually pure if unmarried, to have a sexually fulfilling relationship in marriage so meet the needs of their spouses, and to stop suing each other - because they have been sacramentalized - they are in Christ. The judgment for Christian apostasy is more severe than the judgment for paganism. Is this not the example throughout the entire Old Testament?
Thus, for St. Paul, the church must avoid the same fate of the wilderness generation; they must exercise repentance and holiness, or they not only will be cast out of the kingdom spiritually, but it will bring death upon them as well - just look at the warning for receiving Holy Communion improperly...sickness and death. Listen to the warning:
“But with many of them God was not well pleased: for they were overthrown in the wilderness. Now these things were our examples, to the intent we should not lust after evil things, as they also lusted. Neither be ye idolaters, as were some of them; as it is written, The people sat down to eat and drink, and rose up to play. Neither let us commit fornication, as some of them committed, and fell in one day three and twenty thousand. Neither let us tempt Christ, as some of them also tempted, and were destroyed of serpents. Neither murmur ye, as some of them also murmured, and were destroyed of the destroyer.”
God will judge his people; therefore, we must be holy and live like those who are called out from the world. If you’re backbiting your brothers in Christ, stop. If you’re living in adultery or fornication or addicted to pornography, stop and be chaste or stop and get married. If you're living in Idol worship - whether religious or secular - stop and repent. If you are constantly complaining and criticising people, especially those in the church, stop and hold your tongue. We are called to live the holiness that is imparted to us in Baptism and Communion. If Christ professes that we become his in the sacraments and yet, we live like we belong to world, we are acting just like those who saw firsthand the miracles and deliverance of God in the Exodus and yet, instead of being strengthened in the faith, return to the old gods, flesh pots, and slavery...their reward was death in the wilderness and missing out on the promised land.
In our Old Testament lesson today from Genesis 28, we read the familiar story of Jacob’s ladder. In this passage, there is a reaffirmation of the covenant God had made with Abraham, and there is the promise of God’s continual provision, closely connected with the Exodus language we see St. Paul employing in our Epistle this morning and in the Prodigal Son story from the Gospel. But I’d like to examine the ladder that Jacob saw in the light of our Epistle Lesson today. In John 1, with the calling of Nathaniel, we observe:
“Nathanael said to Him, “How do You know me?” Jesus answered and said to him, “Before Philip called you, when you were under the fig tree, I saw you.” Nathanael answered and said to Him, “Rabbi, You are the Son of God! You are the King of Israel!” Jesus answered and said to him, “Because I said to you, ‘I saw you under the fig tree,’ do you believe? You will see greater things than these.” And He said to him, “Most assuredly, I say to you, hereafter[o] you shall see heaven open, and the angels of God ascending and descending upon the Son of Man.”
In St. Nathanael’s proclamation that Jesus is the King of Israel and the Son of God, we see Jesus drop a massive exegetical key: “I say to you, hereafter you shall see heaven open, and the angels of God ascending and descending upon the Son of Man.” You see, the ladder in Jacob’s dream and the Gate of Heaven was Christ Jesus himself - he is the link that brings earth to heaven and heaven to earth. In our Epistle, we are faced with the sacraments, particularly the Holy Baptism and the Eucharist. Now the Exodus generation received them as prefigurements, but we, as the Church, in the full light of Christ. The reformer, John Calvin, notes that as Jesus is the ladder to heaven, the Sacraments are the rungs of the ladder, in which, by faith in receiving them, we ascend Christ Jesus into the heavenly places.
Therefore those who have been Baptized into Christ Jesus have mounted the ladder, each time we participate in the Sacrament of the Covenant renewal, the Holy Eucharist, we are united with each other in Christ, and we climb the ladder. Remember the warning - confess your sins - and by faith in Christ come to the Blessed Sacrament and enter into the heavenly places with Christ, his saints, and his angels. Amen.
