He reached out
his hand and took the knife to slay his son (Genesis 22:10).
The account of Abraham’s near sacrifice of his son on Mount
Moriah is dear to Christians, Jews and Muslims alike… with some significant
differences in the Muslim telling. Although
the Quran does not give the child’s name, most Muslim accounts state it was
Ishmael that Abraham took to the mountain, not Isaac.
Do you notice the parallel between Abraham’s willingness to
sacrifice his only son borne to him by Sarah, and God’s willingness to sacrifice his
only begotten Son?
With his hand grasping the knife, do you think Abraham
breathed a sigh of relief when he was restrained from killing Isaac and the ram
was provided to take his place? In reading the crucifixion account, do you
think a person of Jewish tradition – if that person could put aside his
worldview long enough to imagine that Jesus might have been God’s Son
– would have noticed the parallel? As
the Son was readied for sacrifice, what would be that reader’s expectation?
Perhaps as the hammer arced (or arcked – awkward) through the air to connect
with the nail and pierce Christ’s hand and feet, would the Jewish reader expect
God to make a substitution? A perfect lamb in place of his Son?
But no substitution was made. Christ was the substitution.
Worthy is the
Lamb, who was slain (Revelation 5:12).
TODAY’S MEDITATION
Can you thank God today for
providing a Lamb to take your place?
My first thought is that God did provide a lamb (Jesus Christ) for me on the cross of Calvary. I know that for my wife and I there have been many times that we were financially strapped and it was either pay tithe or get groceries for the house. My wife and I chose to pay tithe to later find a side job for me to do which would pay well and only take a day to complete. There has been other time when we have had people call us and want to give us tickets to some place like Disney or Sea World. Just the other week we received in the mail a letter with tickets to Disney and 200 dollars from a former teenager that we had in our youth group who now works there who just wanted to thank us for the many prayers and counsel we gave to her. God always provided when we are obedient to His Word.
ReplyDeleteMy first thought is that God did provide a lamb (Jesus Christ) for me on the cross of Calvary. I know that for my wife and I there have been many times that we were financially strapped and it was either pay tithe or get groceries for the house. My wife and I chose to pay tithe to later find a side job for me to do which would pay well and only take a day to complete. There has been other time when we have had people call us and want to give us tickets to some place like Disney or Sea World. Just the other week we received in the mail a letter with tickets to Disney and 200 dollars from a former teenager that we had in our youth group who now works there who just wanted to thank us for the many prayers and counsel we gave to her. God always provided when we are obedient to His Word.
ReplyDelete