Full Circle



Genesis 35:1-15
1God said to Jacob, “Arise, go up to Bethel and dwell there. Make an altar there to the God who appeared to you when you fled from your brother Esau.”
2So Jacob said to his household and to all who were with him, “Put away the foreign gods that are among you and purify yourselves and change your garments.
3Then let us arise and go up to Bethel, so that I may make there an altar to the God who answers me in the day of my distress and has been with me wherever I have gone.”
4So they gave to Jacob all the foreign gods that they had, and the rings that were in their ears. Jacob hid them under the terebinth tree that was near Shechem.
5And as they journeyed, a terror from God fell upon the cities that were around them, so that they did not pursue the sons of Jacob.
6And Jacob came to Luz (that is, Bethel), which is in the land of Canaan, he and all the people who were with him,
7and there he built an altar and called the place El-bethel, because there God had revealed himself to him when he fled from his brother.
8And Deborah, Rebekah’s nurse, died, and she was buried under an oak below Bethel. So he called its name Allon-bacuth.
9God appeared to Jacob again, when he came from Paddan-aram, and blessed him.
10And God said to him, “Your name is Jacob; no longer shall your name be called Jacob, but Israel shall be your name.” So he called his name Israel.
11And God said to him, “I am God Almighty: be fruitful and multiply. A nation and a company of nations shall come from you, and kings shall come from your own body.
12The land that I gave to Abraham and Isaac I will give to you, and I will give the land to your offspring after you.”
13Then God went up from him in the place where he had spoken with him.
14And Jacob set up a pillar in the place where he had spoken with him, a pillar of stone. He poured out a drink offering on it and poured oil on it.
15So Jacob called the name of the place where God had spoken with him Bethel.

Jacob’s journey away from his homeland, away from The Promised Land, is over. He has gone out into the world, been granted wives, children, and wealth by God and now returns home. He has been welcomed rather than slaughtered by Esau and God’s promises are about to bear great fruit. Upon his return, God meets with him again and repeats the covenant to Jacob (now Israel) that He made with Abraham. Jacob will see the nation of God’s people rising out of his own sons. It is time to get serious about his devotion to God alone. In that vein Jacob demands that all of the idols his family members have brought with them from the north be destroyed. He gathers all of them together and buries them. This is now a one-god family; the worship the True God alone who will no longer tolerate their idolatry. Where does God tell Jacob to settle his family? He directs Jacob back to the location where God first came to Jacob in a dream, where the angels of the Lord were ascending and descending a ladder (stairs) to God. Jacob has come full circle.
This morning I read an article about Malcolm Gladwell. He is a writer and thinker responsible for several books and articles over the years. While he was raised in a Mennonite home, he had wandered from the faith and didn’t really practice any type of faith. But in writing his latest book (David and Goliath) he realized he was missing out on something that was indeed important and precious. As a result, he has returned to the faith of his childhood and is quite happy to have done so. He has come full circle.
(If you would like to see a presentation that he did about David and Goliath, click this link - http://www.ted.com/malcolm gladwell)
Many of have wandered from the faith. There always seems to be something better out there that needs investigation or that piques our interest. We take the time to entertain our “household idols.” For each of us those idols are different. Maybe it’s a TV show or a sports team. While these are not necessarily bad things some folks do tend to become obsessed by them and that is never good. Because we are so easily diverted it is a good idea to regular examine our lives and see if we have picked up an idol or two. Maybe it’s time bury something under a tree in forest because God rightfully demands our full attention and full devotion. Maybe it’s time to come full circle – again.

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