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Now it came to pass after these things that God tested Abraham, and said to him, “Abraham!” And he said, “Here I am.” Then He said, “Take now your son, your only son Isaac, whom you love, and go to the land of Moriah, and offer him there as a burnt offering on one of the mountains of which I shall tell you.” So Abraham rose early in the morning and saddled his donkey, and took two of his young men with him, and Isaac his son; and he split the wood for the burnt offering, and arose and went to the place of which God had told him. Then on the third day Abraham lifted his eyes and saw the place afar off. And Abraham said to his young men, “Stay here with the donkey; the lad and I will go yonder and worship, and we will come back to you.” So Abraham took the wood of the burnt offering and laid it on Isaac his son; and he took the fire in his hand and a knife, and the two of them went together. But Isaac spoke to Abraham his father and said, “My father!” And he said, “Here I am, my son.” Then he said, “Look, the fire and the wood, but where is the lamb for a burnt offering?” And Abraham said, “My son, God will provide for Himself the lamb for a burnt offering.” So the two of them went together. Then they came to the place of which God had told him. And Abraham built an altar there and placed the wood in order; and he bound Isaac his son and laid him on the altar, upon the wood. And Abraham stretched out his hand and took the knife to slay his son. But the Angel of the LORD called to him from heaven and said, “Abraham, Abraham!” So he said, “Here I am.” And He said, “Do not lay your hand on the lad, or do anything to him; for now I know that you fear God, since you have not withheld your son, your only son, from Me.” Then Abraham lifted his eyes and looked, and there behind him was a ram caught in a thicket by its horns. So Abraham went and took the ram, and offered it up for a burnt offering instead of his son. And Abraham called the name of the place, The–Lord–Will–Provide; as it is said to this day, “In the Mount of the Lord it shall be provided.”(Genesis 22:1–15)
There are some people that we can trust in and others we can't. Some people we can rely on to help us, and others are unreliable. Some people are faithful in what they say and do, and others are undependable.
God, our Father, is someone whom we can trust in all the time. He is faithful. He will always keep His promises. He is upright and just. He is merciful, kind, and loving.
We will learn today that God always keeps His promises. He especially kept the promise to send a Savior from sin, death, and the devil. Even though we may go through trial and tribulation, God is one whom we can trust in. We are to cling to His Word. After all, He is our Shepherd, our refuge and strength, and our one and only Savior.
In our Old Testament reading for today, we learn that God tested Abraham's faith. God said, “Take now your son, your only son Isaac, whom you love, and go to the land of Moriah, and offer him there as a burnt offering on one of the mountains of which I shall tell you.”
Abraham waited 25 years for a son, and now, God tells him to kill him? This doesn't make sense. God promised that the Savior will come from the line of Isaac. How can this be if Isaac is to be sacrificed on an altar?
What do you do when life doesn't make sense? What do you do when there is no apparent purpose in what is happening? What do you do when life doesn't go your way? What do you do when your faith is challenged? What do you do when things come crashing down upon you? Do you patiently bear the afflictions that God sends you or do you curse Him? Do you worry instead of trusting in God? Do you complain about people and work? Do you love the things that God gives more than you love Him? Do you love son or daughter or more than God Himself?
You see, all of these questions get at the heart of the first commandment. God says, “You shall have no other gods.” What does this mean? “We should fear, love, and trust in God above all things.” God wants us to trust in Him alone, even if life doesn't make sense. We are to love Him with all of our heart, with all of our soul, and with all of our mind.
Unfortunately, we break the first commandment more than any other commandment. Our sinful nature wants to trust in the things that God created rather than the creator. Our sinful nature wants to worship people and things rather than in God Himself. Our sinful nature wants to complain when things don't go our way rather than to trust in God. “Lord, have mercy upon us. Lord, help us to see our sin and bring us to repentance. Lord, where is the Lamb as a sacrifice for our sin?”
In our text for today, Abraham was put to the test to see if he loved God more than his son, to see if Abraham trusted in God and in His promises. We don't see any rebellion from Abraham. Our text simply says that Abraham got up early in the morning. He took Isaac and several servants and left for Moriah. When they reached the area, Abraham left his servants behind to watch their belongings. Abraham and Isaac continued up the mountain, with the wood on Isaac's back. Then Isaac said, “Father, the fire and wood are here, but where is the lamb for the burnt offering?” (v. 7). And Abraham said, “My son, God will provide for Himself the lamb for a burnt offering.”
When they got to the place, Abraham built an altar there and arranged the wood. I imagine that Abraham would have said something like this, “Son, sit down and let me say a few things. Many years ago, God made a promise that your mother and I would have a son. From this descendant will come many people as many as the stars in the sky and the sand on the sea shore. From the lineage of this son will come the promised Savior. Your mother and I waited eleven years for a son, but there was none. We then doubted God and His promises and Ishmael came along through Hagar. We waited another 15 years, and then, you, Isaac, came along. You are our miracle child — a gift from God. You came to us, even though Sarah and I were of an old age. You are the one from whom many people will be born. From your line, the promised Savior will be born. But Isaac, I have some disturbing news to tell you. I don't understand it myself, but God commanded that I sacrifice you as a burnt offering on this mountain. I know it doesn't make sense, but if God said it, we must do what He says. I have learned to trust in Him and in His many promises. Isaac, I believe that if you were to die and be reduced to ashes, God will raise you up again. I even told the servants that we would return to them.”
Nowhere in our text is Isaac disobedient, but he too has faith in God's Word and faith in the resurrection of the body. Abraham, then, bound his son and laid him on the altar on top of the wood. He raised his knife ready to slay his son — ready to come down with the knife — when he heard a noise. The Angel of the Lord said, “Abraham, Abraham. Do not lay a hand on the boy. Do not do anything to him. Now I know that you fear God, because you have not withheld from me your son, your only son.”
Our story has a happy ending. Abraham saw a ram caught by its horns in the thicket. He went over and took the ram and sacrificed it as a burnt offering instead of his son Isaac.
Isaac lived that day and went on in life to marry and father children. Sure enough, from Abraham's descendants, the promised Savior was born of the virgin Mary. God kept his promise to send a Savior.
We need to ask Isaac's question, “Where is the Lamb for us?” Where is the sacrifice for us poor miserable sinners? Who will take away God's wrath against our sin of thought, word, and deed? Who will be worthy enough to make the payment for our sin? Our good works cannot appease the wrath of God. A thousand promises won't be able to pay the debt we owe God.
“Heavenly Father, where is the lamb for a burnt offering in our place?” Surprisingly, the lamb for a burnt offering in our place is the Heavenly Father's Son, His only Son, the Son whom He loves. Jesus becomes the sacrificial substitute for our sin. Jesus is the one perfect final offering. No other sacrifice for sin needs to be made. Jesus is worthy to be the lamb.
We who stand on this side of the cross see a lot of similarities between Isaac and Jesus. Just as Isaac was a miracle child, so also Jesus was conceived by the Holy Spirit and was born of a virgin without the aid of a man. Just as Isaac was a child loved by his father, so also Jesus was loved by His heavenly Father. Just as Isaac carried his own wood for the sacrifice, so also Jesus carried the wood of the cross for His own sacrifice. Just as Isaac was obedient to his father — we hear no word of rebellion from Isaac — so also Jesus was obedient to his heavenly Father's will to sacrifice Himself for the sin of the whole world. Just as Isaac laid down on wood and was bound, so also Jesus willingly laid down on the cross and was bound and crucified.
But there is one big difference. Isaac was set free, whereas Jesus died. In this sense, we are like Isaac. We were supposed to be sacrificed, but Jesus died in our place. Just as the ram took the place of Isaac, so Jesus took our place upon the cross. Jesus is the lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world. Jesus came to give His life as a ransom for you and me.
The ram who died for Isaac did so unwillingly — his horns being caught in the thicket — but Jesus died for you and me willingly. “He was led as a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before its shearers is silent, so He opened not His mouth” (Isaiah 53:7). On the cross Jesus cried out, “My God, My God, why have you forsaken me?”
Jesus was burned by the anger of God's wrath and not you. Jesus was scorched by the flames of hell and not you. Jesus was cursed by God and not you. Because of Christ's righteous sacrifice, God's anger against you is cooled. God provided for Himself not a ram or oxen for the burnt offering, but His only begotten Son.
Abraham believed that, if slain, he son would rise from the dead. This is exactly what happened with Jesus. He died, but on the third day, He rose from the dead.
Dearly beloved, because of Christ's death and resurrection, there is the forgiveness of sin, and there is now peace with God the Father. God once told Abraham that through the coming Savior all nations will be blessed. You are blessed because of the death and resurrection of Christ. In Him is life and salvation.
Abraham was suppose to offer up his son on Mount Moriah, but where do we go? We do not go to Jerusalem or to the cross, but here is where God's grace and mercy are found. Here is where God feeds us at His altar. Here is where we offer God our praise and thanksgiving for his goodness.
So, in the midst of suffering, trial, and tribulation, cling to God's Word and to His many promises.
Romans 8:28 says that all things will work out together for good to those who love Him to those who are called according to His purpose. He says in Hebrews 13:5, “Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you.” He says in Isaiah 43, “Fear not for…I will be with you.” He says in Psalm 50:15, “Call upon Me in the day of trouble and I will deliver you.” Jesus Himself says, “Lo, I am with you always even to the end of the age.” Even on your last day, through faith in Jesus, God promises to deliver you from death and bring you into His everlasting kingdom.
These are promises you can trust in. These are promises you can rely on. Our heavenly Father will always be faithful. Amen.
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