Those are some pretty prophetic words from Abraham to his son Isaac. At the time, I am sure Abraham was not thinking of Jesus but of the terrible command that the sheep he was to use for the burnt offering was none other than his son Isaac. In this passage from Genesis 22:1-19, God commanded Abraham to slaughter his only son Isaac as an offering to him. Abraham was very obedient.
This is one of my favorite Bible stories. Oh how I wish I had the faith of Abraham. He came so close to plunging his knife right into Isaac before the Lord’s Messenger stopped him. The Lord’s Messenger praised Abraham for his devotion to God. Then the Lord’s Messenger called again from heaven, “I swear by myself, declares the LORD, that because you acted as you did in not withholding from me your beloved son, I will bless you abundantly and make your descendants as countless as the stars of the sky and the sands of the seashore; your descendants shall take possession of the gates of their enemies, and in your descendants all the nations of the earth shall find blessing—all this because you obeyed my command.” We have come to know Abraham as our “Spiritual” father.
Could we today even put ourselves in Abraham’s shoes and contemplate what me might do in a similar situation? Faith and obedience are great gifts from God. The times and customs were so different. There were pagan practices of offering up human sacrifices to gods. So maybe to Abraham, he truly believed that this was what Our Father truly wanted from him. I am very pleased that it worked out as it did. It still leaves me to reflect, what areas in my life is God calling me to faith and obedience? Am I listening? Am I ignoring? Am I too comfortable where I am at today? I have lots to ponder.
One interesting point I would like to conclude with. Isaac was the sheep to be sacrificed as a burnt offering. Jesus was the Lamb of God who was sacrificed as an offering for us. Isaac carried the wood for the sacrifice on his shoulder. Jesus carried the wood of the cross on His shoulder. Isaac was tied up on top of the wood to be slaughtered. Jesus was nailed to the wood of the cross. God saved Issac from death. Jesus saved us. Praise be to God!
Seeking To Reflect Jesus 