The promise continues with Jacob and the family tree continues. God speaks to him in a dream and allows him to see a ladder reaching up to heaven with the angels of God going up and down. What a sight that must have been!
I really appreciate where Ann goes from here, equating our lives to a ladder and feeling the weight of trying to climb up the rungs alone and failing miserably. That may be how it seems sometimes but the truth is that Christ came down one to get you. (68) and goes on to quote John 1:51 where Jesus explains this.
This is another chapter I've done a lot of underlining to! Jesus doesn't show you the steps to get to heaven - Jesus is the steps to heaven.
Jesus doesn't merely come down to show you the way up - Jesus comes down to make Himself into the Way to carry you up.
Jesus doesn't ultimately give you a how-to, because Christianity is ultimately about Who - to.
Every religion, every program, every self-help book is about steps you have to take. Jesus is the only One who becomes the step - to take you. (69)
I also appreciated Elisabeth Elliot's quote and it made me think of the opposite which also seems like profanity - why do we make such a big deal out of that which is meaningless? Why do we spend so much energy and attention to the fleeting and trivial?
The only ladder over you is Love - and Love came down.(70) Which then brings to mind a Christmas song from Jars of Clay - Love Came Down at Christmas.
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What??? No other comments on this chapter? This one was AWESOME! Maybe no comments because it was just that good - no one had anything to add?
The lines Rachel highlighted were some of my favorites as well - about how Jesus doesn't show us the steps... He IS the steps, and he carries us up.
The line that expresses a lot of how I feel in this over-commercialized time leading up to Christmas is on page 69: "Why profane his coming with fleshly performances, frantic pushing, futile preoccupations?"
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