PASTOR'S MESSAGE

 

   

Sacrificial Love

Genesis 22:1-18

             “My life has not been an easy one,” the man told his new friend.  “I’ve been widowed three times.  The first two wives died of eating poisoned mushrooms.  The third, poor thing, passed away as a result of a concussion.”    “A concussion, you say?” asked the new friend.  “How did that happen?”    “A very sad case,” sighed the widower.  “I couldn’t get her to eat the mushrooms.”

            Although that’s a bit morbid, it bears a striking resemblance to our text for today.  How anyone could even dream of killing a loved one is beyond our comprehension.  And yet, that is exactly what God asked Abraham to do to his one and only beloved son, Isaac.  In our text, we are told that God was testing Abraham. It’s a Hebrew word for trying out new weapons and armor to see if they’re strong enough to withstand the rigors of battle.  Certainly that’s an appropriate description of what God periodically does to His people.  He tests us to see if we will fight off the devil and stay true to Him alone.  Keep in mind, God does not tempt us.  As James says:  “GOD TEMPTS NO ONE TO SIN.”  Rather, He tests us to strengthen our faith and to draw us closer to Him.

            Well, that’s precisely what God was doing with Abraham, when He asked him to sacrifice his only son, Isaac.  This was the ultimate sacrifice for Abraham, because it meant the loss, not only of his dear sweet child, but also the loss of the covenant – the promise that through Isaac God would give him as many descendants as the stars in the sky, and one of them would be the Messiah, the Savior of the world.  Nevertheless, in spite of the tremendous pressure, Abraham passed the test.  Of course, that wasn’t Abraham’s doing, it was God’s working.  It was only by the power of the Holy Spirit, that he passed the test.  By the power of the Spirit he didn’t doubt God’s Word, or question God’s purpose, He didn’t mistrust God’s love and power to make things turn out right.

            The question is:  is that the way you and I always respond when God puts us to the test?  When a crushing blow like failure or rejection hits us; when we lose our job or get in financial straits; when sickness or old age get us down; when we lose a friend or loved one; when stress and anxiety threaten to overwhelm us – do we unquestioningly trust God’s love and power to help us?  Or do we doubt His Word and question His purposes?  Unfortunately, too often we do the latter.   Instead of being faithful to God’s request, we have a tendency to do only the things that we want.  Instead of carrying out the requirements of God’s Word, but we have a tendency to obey only when it’s convenient.  Instead of holding nothing back, but we have a tendency to give only what’s leftover.

            For that reason, we deserve to be lashed down to a stone altar just like Isaac was – only in this case it’s the altar of God’s everlasting judgment.  We have been tied up tightly with the cords of our own iniquity, bound up in our guilt and shame, so that we can’t escape.  And the flashing blade of God’s justice, the knife of His judgment is hanging above our jugular, just waiting to fall.  But the miracle of the Gospel is that, as with Isaac, so also with you and me – the fatal blow has never fallen.  And it never will either, so long as we cling to Jesus Christ in faith.  You see, in our text Isaac is actually a type – a representation or symbol of Jesus our Savior. 

            Note the similarities:  Isaac was the only-begotten son of Abraham.  Likewise, Jesus is the only-begotten Son of God.  Isaac himself carried the wood for the burnt offering – a word that literally means: ‘holocaust,’ a whole burn offering totally dedicated to God.  Jesus Himself carried the wood of His cross, and gave Himself as the total offering to pay for all our sins.  Isaac went forward without a whimper of protest or a wail of refusal.  Jesus also went willingly because of His unconditional love for you and me.  Last of all, Isaac was offered up as a sacrifice, and the site of his sacrifice, Mount Moriah is the traditional site of Solomon’s temple, not far from where Jesus died as the final sacrifice.  And therein lies the difference.  Jesus’ sacrifice was complete, whereas Isaac’s sacrifice was never finished.  He was spared and a ram took his place as his substitute, just as Jesus served as our substitute, so that you and I might be spared.  Jesus made complete atonement for all of our sins.  And that word atonement  means:  ‘to cover up.’  Jesus completely covered up our faults and buried them for good, when He was sealed in the tomb.  In other words, God the Father is the ultimate example of sacrificial love, because He gave up His only Son to pay for our sins and save us from death and hell!

            When Fyodor Dostoyevsky, the Russian novelist, was a young man, he fell into disfavor with the Communist leaders because of his political philosophies.  He was arrested, condemned as a spy, and sentenced to death along with seven others.  He was brought before a firing squad, given the last rites of the church, and forced to stand for a full hour, not knowing at what moment the bullet would end his life.  In the end, all of the eight prisoners were set free, but each of them, as you can well imagine, suffered severe shock trauma, and two of them even went insane.  After that nerve-shattering experience, Dostoeyevsky said that he felt like one who had been through death and come back to life again!

            Without a doubt, that is how young Isaac must’ve felt, when Abraham untied him from the altar and slaughtered the ram instead.  Isaac was born all over again that very day!  You might say that Isaac was resurrected from the dead.  Certainly that’s what the heart and core of Abraham’s faith was all about.  That’s what he meant, when he told the servants:  “STAY HERE WITH THE DONKEY, WHILE I AND THE BOY GO OVER THERE.  WE WILL WORSHIP AND THEN WE WILL COME BACK TO YOU.”  Abraham was not using a subtle deception to trick the servants.  He honestly believed that although God might slay Isaac, He would then raise him from the dead, so that the promised covenant of salvation could be fulfilled. 

            Now the reason we know that’s what Abraham believed, is because in Hebrews 11:19 we are told:  “ABRAHAM REASONED THAT GOD COULD RAISE THE DEAD, AND FIGURATIVELY SPEAKING, HE DID RECEIVE ISAAC BACK FROM DEATH!”  As a matter of fact, that word receive actually means:  ‘to carry away.’  Kind of like a fireman, rushing into a burning building, picking up a child, cradling it in his arms and carrying it back to safety.  That is what Abraham did to Isaac.  But more importantly, that is what God has done for you and me.  He has carried us away from the flames of everlasting judgment, which we should have received.  He has made us alive again to live eternally in heaven.  He has forgiven all our sins so that, like Isaac, we have been born all over again.  And all because of the death and resurrection of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

            You see, that’s the final sense in which Isaac is a type of Christ.  Just as Isaac came back from death so to speak, Jesus really did come back from death to give us victory.  That’s what Jesus Himself was talking about in John 8:56, when He said:  “YOUR FATHER ABRAHAM REJOICED TO SEE MY DAY; AND HE DID SEE IT AND WAS GLAD.”  Abraham saw the foreshadowing of Jesus’ resurrection in his own son’s rescue, and he most certainly did rejoice.  Likewise, you and I can rejoice, because in Jesus’ death and resurrection, we too have died to sin and risen to new life. 

            Not only that, but we can actually laugh for joy.  You see, in Hebrew the name Isaac means:  ‘he will laugh!’  And now, because Jesus confronted death and conquered it, you and I can literally laugh in the face of death.  In the face of all our worries and cares, our fears and failures, our problems and setbacks, we can laugh for joy, because in the power of Christ’s death and resurrection we can confront them and conquer them all!

            It was a beautiful day for snow-mobiling.  Fresh snow had fallen the night before; yet the weather was warm enough to enjoy being outside.  Several snowmobiles had been left idling beside a lake.  Suddenly a desperate shout was heard above the low grumble of the motors:  “Hey!  Look out!”  All eyes turned in the direction of the shout.  Benjamin, a three-year-old boy, had crawled onto the seat of one of the idling snowmobiles and accidentally set it in motion.  It was traveling in a path directly towards the lake.  Everyone began running after the machine.  Yet, somehow they knew they would never be able to reach the boy and the snowmobile before they plunged over the 30 foot embankment into the icy water.  But then, as if from out of nowhere, Jim appeared.  Apparently he had been standing near the snowmobile.  With one desperate lunge he dove for the boy, hoping to pull him from certain death.  Unfortunately, he missed.  However, all of a sudden the snowmobile jerked to a stop.  When Jim jumped for Benjamin, his hand must’ve hit the ‘kill’ switch and shut off the machine.  It came to rest only a few feet from the edge of the embankment.  Sad to say, Jim didn’t move from the spot where he had fallen.  He died instantly as a result of a severe skull fracture.  But his love for Benjamin was so great, that he gave his life to rescue the boy!

            Dear friends, that story gives us just a small picture of the kind of sacrificial love that God has for you and me.  Just as Jim sacrificed his life, so that Benjamin would be safe, so also God sacrificed His own Son, so that you and I could be saved from sin, death and hell.  We too were headed for certain death and eternal damnation.  But Jesus gave His life on the cross, so that we can have eternal life.  He died so that when we die we can be with Him in heaven.  And all of that is a free gift to us, with no strings attached.  May that move us, then, to sacrifice our lives in praise and service to Him.  For Jesus’ sake.  Amen.   

                                                                                               

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