“Lord, what are You asking me to do? Take my son, my only son, the one whom I love, and sacrifice him? I’ve waited for a son, this son, Isaac, for over 25 years! I love him more than anything. More than life itself! Take me, I’m old, broken down, ready to die. Don’t take my son. He’s so young, so full of life, so willing to help me and learn from me. He is the one You promised to me! More than that, You promised that through him You would make my descendents as numerous as the stars in the sky and the dust of the ground. You wouldn’t break that promise would You?
“No, I know You would never break your covenant with me… after all, You promised I would have a son in my old age with my wife that everyone said would never have children. After all, she’s almost as old as I am. Neither of us should have been able to have this child, but here he is, a miracle, another promise fulfilled by You, my God. So why would YOU want this child to die? Was it something I did? When You said “Go,” I went! I left most of my family in the land of my forefathers and followed Your guiding until You said stop. You told me that this would be my land and the land of my descendents. And I believed You! I still do.
“Not that I’m perfect. I’ve made a bunch of mistakes. We all do. But a couple of mine were REALLY big. I’m always taking matters into my own hands, and to be honest, that’s what I wanted to do as we were coming up this mountain. Every time we passed one of my flocks of sheep I wanted to grab the best one to bring along up here, kind of like a backup plan to sacrificing my son. But my plans always fail. I must trust in You.
“Isaac knew something was not quite right. Walking up the mountain he noticed that we had everything for a sacrifice except the lamb. I told him that You would provide the lamb of sacrifice… and You did… You provided my son, my only son, Isaac, whom I love. O Lord, How could You ask me to sacrifice my son? Do You know what that feels like? I trusted in You. No, I DO trust in You… still. Even in the midst of something I cannot understand…”
God did know what it was like to send His Son to be sacrificed, because that is what He was planning to do! God provided a lamb of sacrifice for Abraham to offer instead of his son, Isaac. But God did not provide a substitute for His Son, His only Son, whom He loved, Jesus. His own Son was sacrificed on a cross, shedding His own blood so that we could be forgiven – forgiven for the times when we loved others and ourselves more than we loved Him; forgiven when we try to take matters into our own hands instead of trusting in Him; forgiven when we blame God in the midst of our difficult times of life. Through Christ’s sacrifice on the cross, we are forgiven. Our relationship with the Father has been restored. We are strengthened by the power of His Spirit to live each day by faith in our Lord. What amazing lessons we can learn from God’s chosen people.