Return To Bethel

by Charles Laws

In Genesis 35, God told Jacob to go up to Bethel and settle there. At the time, Jacob lived in the land of Canaan and was surrounded by the Canaanites, who were enemies. God instructed Jacob to have the people give him all their foreign gods, and he buried them under an oak tree. The terror of God fell upon all the people who surrounded them, and no one followed them. When they got to Bethel, God appeared to Jacob again and blessed him. In verse 10, we read, “Your name is Jacob, but you will no longer be called Jacob; Your name will be Israel. So He named him Israel.”

The land that God had given to Abraham and Isaac was now given to Jacob (Israel). God promised him that he would be a father to a great nation. As we know, that nation today is called Israel, and its inhabitants are called Israelites. In verse 15, we read, “Jacob named the place where God had talked to him Bethel.”

In about every city, there is a church named “Bethel.” The church, not only the ones named Bethel, is a place where we can meet with God and be changed. False gods must be left behind either before we get to Bethel or after we get there! Also, Bethel is a place where we, and consequently the church, can and must be changed. What are some of the changes that must happen and are changing in the lives of Christians and the church today?

In the past, we, as a church and as a nation, have been divided by race and national origin. We, as individuals and as a church, have not loved people of other races and national origins. It is time to plant churches for people of Hispanic and other origins, or in larger churches provide for a translator so that these people can participate in the worship of God with us! Jesus said, “Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself.”

We have looked upon the drug addict and the alcoholic with a “better than thou” attitude. The church must set up programs to rehabilitate these people. We must answer the question, “What causes a person to turn to drugs and/ or alcohol?” We must work to get government at all levels more involved in these issues. Heroin addiction is now sweeping our nation! Piles of syringes are found in parks, in wooded areas, and in other areas where addicts congregate. Incarceration in jails and prisons is not the answer: perhaps except for the dealers.

Finally, we must realize that any given denomination cannot solve the problems discussed above and others that we face working alone. It is going to take all of us working together! We are members of the church of God first and a denomination next. We must break down barriers that exist between denominations and work together to solve the problems that exist in our country.

We, as a church and as individuals, must return to Bethel and allow God to change us again.

About The Author Charles Laws, Retired Assoc. Prof. of Mathematics, CLSCC. He holds B.A. and M.A. degrees from the University of Tennessee. He enjoys chess, writing, walking, and music.