Genesis 22:1-18
Verse 13 Abraham looked up and there in a thicket he saw a ram caught by its horns. He went over and took the ram and sacrificed it as a burnt offering instead of his son.
We mentioned yesterday how Isaac’s birth didn’t end the lessons Abraham had to learn from God and so we fast forward in his life to the time Abraham was tested regarding his faith. Isaac would have been an older child at this point. No longer a toddler because he was able to leave his mother to be with his father for a few days.
The Lord told Abraham to sacrifice his son as a burnt offering. This seems like it would have greatly startled Abraham since he knew Isaac was the promised son who would make a great nation for Abraham. But no matter how much it may have rattled the man, he got up early the next morning and took the steps of obedience.
For two days the servants carried the needed elements for the sacrifice and followed Abraham and Isaac on their journey. On the third day, Abraham looked up and saw the place he knew God wanted him to go. So taking the needed resources from the servants, Abraham and Isaac headed off to the mountain the Lord had indicated. Part of the test happened as the father and son walked together. Isaac wanted to know where the lamb was for the sacrifice. An honest question from a boy and yet a question the father himself wish he knew the answer to.
Even as Abraham told his son the Lord would provide, he was probably pleading with the Lord silently to provide a lamb. As they got set up and still no lamb had shown up, both of them were beginning to wonder when God was going to step in with the needed provision. When the altar had been prepared, Abraham must have started to feel very uneasy, but he continued to obey. He bound Isaac and laid him on the altar. Isaac must have been pretty confused and scared by now but he didn’t seem to put up a fuss.
Only as the knife was raised above the boy did God intervene. Oh how relieved Abraham must have been to see the ram in the thicket. Notice how the ram was caught by his horns. This is significant because it meant the sacrifice would be without blemish because it wasn’t its flesh or legs that were caught up. God had provided and Abraham had learned a valuable lesson about keeping God in the number one place of his life.
Making It Personal
When have you had something try to take up more of your heart than God? How did God try to remove it? Were you able to put it back in its proper place or had to get rid of it altogether?
Making It Personal Kids
When has something started to become more important to you than God? Did you feel bad about starting to like it more than you did the Lord? How can you make sure nothing comes between You and Him?
Closing Prayer
Father, we confess we don’t always keep You in the first place in our lives. Convict us and help us identify things before they become a problem in our lives. In Jesus’ name, amen.
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