Bible Talks

Genesis 22:7-247And Isaac spake unto Abraham his father, and said, My father: and he said, Here am I, my son. And he said, Behold the fire and the wood: but where is the lamb for a burnt offering? 8And Abraham said, My son, God will provide himself a lamb for a burnt offering: so they went both of them together. 9And they came to the place which God had told him of; and Abraham built an altar there, and laid the wood in order, and bound Isaac his son, and laid him on the altar upon the wood. 10And Abraham stretched forth his hand, and took the knife to slay his son. 11And the angel of the Lord called unto him out of heaven, and said, Abraham, Abraham: and he said, Here am I. 12And he said, Lay not thine hand upon the lad, neither do thou any thing unto him: for now I know that thou fearest God, seeing thou hast not withheld thy son, thine only son from me. 13And Abraham lifted up his eyes, and looked, and behold behind him a ram caught in a thicket by his horns: and Abraham went and took the ram, and offered him up for a burnt offering in the stead of his son. 14And Abraham called the name of that place Jehovah-jireh: as it is said to this day, In the mount of the Lord it shall be seen. 15And the angel of the Lord called unto Abraham out of heaven the second time, 16And said, By myself have I sworn, saith the Lord, for because thou hast done this thing, and hast not withheld thy son, thine only son: 17That in blessing I will bless thee, and in multiplying I will multiply thy seed as the stars of the heaven, and as the sand which is upon the sea shore; and thy seed shall possess the gate of his enemies; 18And in thy seed shall all the nations of the earth be blessed; because thou hast obeyed my voice. 19So Abraham returned unto his young men, and they rose up and went together to Beer-sheba; and Abraham dwelt at Beer-sheba. 20And it came to pass after these things, that it was told Abraham, saying, Behold, Milcah, she hath also born children unto thy brother Nahor; 21Huz his firstborn, and Buz his brother, and Kemuel the father of Aram, 22And Chesed, and Hazo, and Pildash, and Jidlaph, and Bethuel. 23And Bethuel begat Rebekah: these eight Milcah did bear to Nahor, Abraham's brother. 24And his concubine, whose name was Reumah, she bare also Tebah, and Gaham, and Thahash, and Maachah. (Genesis 22:7‑24)
WHILE Abraham and Isaac were travelling on together, Isaac asked a question. He saw that his father had the fire and the knife, and he himself was carrying the wood, but he asked, “Where is the Lamb for a burnt offering?” How this question must have touched Abraham’s heart, but his faith was unshaken as his beautiful reply shows us. He said, “My son, God will provide himself a lamb for a burnt offering.” Isaac accepted the answer in perfect confidence, and they both went on quietly together. Surely this would remind us of the garden of Gethsemane. There we hear God’s Son saying, “O My Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from Me nevertheless not as I will, but as Thou wilt?” Matt. 26:3939And he went a little further, and fell on his face, and prayed, saying, O my Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me: nevertheless not as I will, but as thou wilt. (Matthew 26:39). If that cup of judgment had passed front Him, we would have all been lost eternally. He only could hear it for us, and so in obedience to His Father’s will He took that cup which we had filled with our sins, and drank it to the last dark drop. He bore all the judgment for those who believe, and there is none left for us because He said, “It is FINISHED.” If the reader of these lines is unsaved, why not bow before Him now, and thank Him for the work of redemption He has finished for you?
At lost Abraham and Isaac came to the place of which God had told them. Abraham built the altar, set the wood in order, and bound Isaac his son upon it. Then with unfaltering faith he took the knife to slay his son, but just at that moment God called to him from heaven saying, “Abraham, Abraham, ... .Lay not thine hand upon the lad, neither do thou anything unto him: for now I know that thou fearest God, seeing thou hast not withheld thy son, thine only son from Me.” God was faithful and made a Way of escape for Abraham in the temptation. (see 1 Cor. 10:1313There hath no temptation taken you but such as is common to man: but God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able; but will with the temptation also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear it. (1 Corinthians 10:13).)
The knife did. not fall on Isaac, for a substitute was provided. Yes, there was a rain near which Abraham took and offered up in the stead of his son. Every type falls short of the perfection of the work of Christ, for there was no substitute to take His place. He was the Substitute Himself, and the sword did fall upon Him, He was the Lamb of God’s own providing, and He could not escape as Isaac did, or we would be lost eternally, No one else could be a sacrifice for sin but He, and so He died that we might live.
Abraham then called the place “Jehovah-Jireh”, which means, “The Lord will provide.” It was in this very place (Mount Moriah) that Solomon’s temple was built. This shows us that the ground of all worship is always and only founded upon the finished work of Christ, which Abraham’s sacrifice typified. The only right way of coming into the presence of God is given us. in Hebrews 10:19,19Having therefore, brethren, boldness to enter into the holiest by the blood of Jesus, (Hebrews 10:19) “Having therefore, brethren, boldness to enter into the holiest by the blood of Jesus.”
God appeared to Abraham the second time making the promise that, “In thy seed shall all the nations of the earth be blessed.” This word, “thy seed” refers to Christ through whom all nations will receive blessing. In the old testament God dealt particularly with Israel, but since the work of redemption is completed, the gospel can be preached to “Whosoever will.” After this Abraham returned to Beer-sheba (the well of the oath). Now we too can “Draw water out of the wells of salvation.” Isaiah 12:33Therefore with joy shall ye draw water out of the wells of salvation. (Isaiah 12:3) for all our blessings come to us through Christ.
Messages of the Love of God 1/4/1948