We are still in chapter 28 of Genesis, and we find our word for today is used for the first time in the Bible. It is also a name which as we have seen has more meaning to it than we usually realize. בֵּית־אֵל Bethel. It is used 72 times in the Old Testament. It is actually a compound word made up of two words. בֵּית which the word for house and אֵל God. This is how Jacob describes why he named it this way. Genesis 28:18-19 So early in the morning Jacob took the stone that he had put under his head and set it up for a pillar and poured oil on the top of it. He called the name of that place בֵּית־אֵל Bethel, but the name of the city was Luz at the first. This was the morning after Jacob woke up from his dream where you recall he made this realization. Genesis 28:16-17 Then Jacob awoke from his sleep and said, “Surely the Lord is in this place, and I did not know it.” And he was afraid and said, “How awesome is this place! This is none other than the בֵּ֣ית house of אֱלֹהִ֔ים God, and this is the gate of heaven.” Notice these four descriptions from Jacob about what he had experienced: the LORD or יְהוָ֔ה is in this place, how awesome is this place (literally how fearful), house of God and gate of heaven. God was making a strong connection with Jacob one that he would always have with him throughout his life. But like all of us we need to be reminded of these big, powerful, moving experiences with God because they don’t happen every day.
It is interesting when Jacob looks back on this event he explains it this way. Genesis 35:3 Then come, let us go up to בֵּית־אֵל Bethel, where I will build an altar to God, who answered me in the day of my distress and who has been with me wherever I have gone.” This was an important event in Jacob’s life and relationship with God. And what is really amazing is the fact that God is the one who initiates Jacob to go back and remember. Genesis 35:1 Then God said to Jacob, “Go up to בֵּית־אֵל Bethel and settle there, and build an altar there to God, who appeared to you when you were fleeing from your brother Esau.” God knows that we need reminding of all the things He does for us. This is a constant theme throughout the Bible that God uses symbols, monuments, and his written word to remind us of his great love for us and all he has done for us. Here are a few examples. Exodus 20:8, 11 Remember the Sabbath day by keeping it holy...For in six days the Lord made the heavens and the earth, the sea, and all that is in them, but he rested on the seventh day. Therefore the Lord blessed the Sabbath day and made it holy. We can always remember the very fact of ourselves and everything we experience in this life coming from our God who loves us and made everything for us. Here is another example Exodus 12:25-27 When your children ask you, ‘What does this ceremony mean to you?’ then tell them, ‘It is the Passover sacrifice to the Lord, who passed over the houses of the Israelites in Egypt and spared our homes when he struck down the Egyptians.’” And another example: Joshua 4:6-7 In the future, when your children ask you, “What do these stones mean?” tell them that the flow of the Jordan was cut off before the ark of the covenant of the Lord. When it crossed the Jordan, the waters of the Jordan were cut off. These stones are to be a memorial to the people of Israel forever.
We will look at more of these as we travel through the Bible. I’ll close with this great reminder. Luke 22:19 And he took bread, gave thanks and broke it, and gave it to them, saying, “This is my body given for you; do this in remembrance of me.” This is a great way to remember the salvation that God provided for us through his Son Jesus Christ. When we gather with others who believe in Christ and share in the Lord’s supper or communion, we remember not only what Jesus did for us but that powerful connection we have with God who is with us and lives in us through his Spirit.
