The
Seventh Sunday after Trinity.
The
Collect.
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L
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ORD of all power and might, who art the author and giver of all good things;
Graft in our hearts the love of thy Name, increase in us true religion, nourish
us with all goodness, and of thy great mercy keep us in the same; through Jesus
Christ our Lord. Amen.
1 And it came to pass after these things, that God did tempt
Abraham, and said unto him, Abraham: and he said, Behold, here I am. 2 And
he said, Take now thy son, thine only son Isaac, whom thou lovest, and get thee
into the land of Moriah; and offer him there for a burnt offering upon one of
the mountains which I will tell thee of. 3 And Abraham rose up
early in the morning, and saddled his ass, and took two of his young men with
him, and Isaac his son, and clave the wood for the burnt offering, and rose up,
and went unto the place of which God had told him. 4 Then on the
third day Abraham lifted up his eyes, and saw the place afar off. 5 And
Abraham said unto his young men, Abide ye here with the ass; and I and the lad
will go yonder and worship, and come again to you. 6 And Abraham
took the wood of the burnt offering, and laid it upon Isaac his son; and he
took the fire in his hand, and a knife; and they went both of them together. 7 And
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? 8 And Abraham said, My son, God will provide
himself a lamb for a burnt offering: so they went both of them together. 9 And
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. 10 And Abraham stretched forth his hand, and
took the knife to slay his son. 11 And the angel of the Lord called
unto him out of heaven, and said, Abraham, Abraham: and he said, Here am I. 12 And
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. 13 And 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. 14 And Abraham called the name of that place
Jehovahjireh: as it is said to this day, In the mount of the Lord it shall be
seen. 15 And the angel of the Lord called unto Abraham out of
heaven the second time, 16 And 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: 17 That 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; 18 And in thy seed shall all the nations of the earth be
blessed; because thou hast obeyed my voice. (Gen 22:1-18)
There is a Scarlet Thread of Blood Sacrifice
(as Dr. W.A Criswell has rightly spoken) that runs from the Fall of Adam in
Genesis to the events of Good Friday two thousand years ago. You will recall
that the first death on earth occurred immediately after Adam's disobedience
eastward in the Garden at Eden. Unto Adam also and to his wife did the
Lord God make coats of skins, and clothed them. (Gen 3:21)
The animal (most likely a lamb) from which these skins were taken, foreshadows
that coming bloody sacrifice of the Lamb of God as a covering for our nakedness
in sins and trespasses. Abel, the first prophet, also died in giving an
acceptable sacrifice of a lamb. The Pascal Lamb of the First Passover
significantly typified, in imperfect form, that perfect sacrifice of our own
Passover – the crucifixion of Christ as a propitiation for our sins.
To the harlot, Rahab, it was spoken: "Thou
shalt bind this line of scarlet thread in the window" (Joshua
2:18) It was not by her righteousness or good works that a harlot named Rahab
was saved to become the mother of Boaz, and thus a great grandmother to David
and presumed ancestor to Christ, but faith prompted by grace that saved her.
In our text today, we have one of the most
complete and perfect foreshadowing's of the sacrifice of Christ given in the
Old Testament – the voyage of Abraham to Mt. Moriah with the intention of
obeying God by sacrificing his only beloved son. Abraham, in type, prefigures
God the Father who will, indeed, sacrifice His own only Begotten and
well-beloved Son in the fullness of time. Isaac is a type of Christ upon whose
shoulders were laid the burden of the sins of the world as a wooden cross at
Calvary. The Mountain at Moriah happens to be the very same upon which the Temple
stands as well as Calvary – or very near to it and in the same range. Please
consider the great faith of Abraham expressed in these lines as he is commanded
to sacrifice his only son. Consider, too, the great truth that God intends to
impart to us who believe.
1 And it came to pass after these
things, that God did tempt Abraham, and said unto him, Abraham: and he said,
Behold, here I am. 2 And he said, Take now thy son, thine only son Isaac,
whom thou lovest, and get thee into the land of Moriah; and offer him there for
a burnt offering upon one of the mountains which I will tell thee of. 3 And
Abraham rose up early in the morning, and saddled his ass, and took two of his
young men with him, and Isaac his son, and clave the wood for the burnt offering,
and rose up, and went unto the place of which God had told him.
It surely DID `come to pass' for it was
decided upon in the Councils of Heaven long before the world, and all its
creatures, was ever created. We know not the date for this momentous decision
for there are no calendars in Heaven. The Great I AM is an eternal Present!
God tempts no man to sin! This reference to
the tempting of Abraham means that God was testing the faith of Abraham. He
could not have chosen a better subject for the trial. That the trial of
your faith, being much more precious than of gold that perisheth, though it be
tried with fire, might be found unto praise and honour and glory at the
appearing of Jesus Christ (1 Peter 1:7) Ah, yes, at the appearing of
Jesus Christ! Your father Abraham rejoiced to
see my day: and he saw it, and was glad (John 8:56) True and
living faith is always rewarded in its glorious fulfillment.
God, who promised Abraham multitudes of sons
and daughters, has tarried in giving even one son until Abraham and Sarah are
advanced in years – beyond the age of childbearing. But the promises of God are
certain in their accomplishment. Even as we speak, the rolls of multitudes of
sons and daughters of Abraham are being increased as the children of the
promised Seed are added moment by moment. Imagine Abraham's relief and
contentment at finally having received a son from the Lord – clearly given by
the miracle of Promise and not by the normal process of childbearing. Just what
Abraham was doing at the moment that the voice of God spoke to him on that
fateful day we are not told. But, whatever it was, Abraham dropped all other
pursuits and listened to God – always!
God spoke crushing words to Abraham: Take
now thy son, thine only son Isaac, whom thou lovest, and get thee into
the land of Moriah; and offer him there for a burnt offering upon one of the
mountains which I will tell thee of. That was all! This son
was so much comparable, in circumstance, with Jesus. He was an only son of miraculous
birth (like Christ); he was well-beloved of his father (like Christ); and he
was to be offered up on Moriah (like Christ – carrying the means of his own
death). So how did Abraham respond to this seemingly tragic news?
3 And Abraham rose
up early in the morning, and saddled his ass, and took two of his young men
with him, and Isaac his son, and clave the wood for the burnt offering, and
rose up, and went unto the place of which God had told him. Abraham
immediately obeyed God – and COMPLETELY! He never offered a word of questioning
doubt. He simply obeyed! He prepared and carried with him the means required to
complete the command of God. Abraham, by faith, ALWAYS obeyed God. By
faith Abraham, when he was called to go out into a place which he should after
receive for an inheritance, obeyed; and he went out, not knowing whither he
went. By faith he sojourned in the land of promise, as in a strange country,
dwelling in tabernacles with Isaac and Jacob, the heirs with him of the same
promise (Heb 11:8-9) May God, by grace, grant us a like faith of
Abraham.
4 Then on the
third day Abraham lifted up his eyes, and saw the place afar off On
the third day, Christ rose from the Tomb. On this, the third day, would Isaac
be redeemed from the terrible prospects of death by a substitute sacrifice.
5 And Abraham said unto his
young men, Abide ye here with the ass; and I and the lad will go yonder and
worship, and come again to you. If you have your Bibles open,
please read with deep understanding the great faith demonstrated in this verse.
Abraham tells the young men with him that he and Isaac will go yonder and
worship and "come again to you!" What profound faith!
Abraham loved God. He KNEW the nature of God – that He was loving and kind. He
did not know by what means, but surely he believed that by SOME means, Isaac
would be restored whole to him. Obedience to God, too, is always an act of
worship.
6 And Abraham took
the wood of the burnt offering, and laid it upon Isaac his son; and he
took the fire in his hand, and a knife; and they went both of them together.
God the Father laid the sins of the world upon the shoulders of His only
Begotten Son in the form of a wooden cross which He bare. Now, Abraham does the
same. Isaac climbed the mountain of his own presumed sacrifice bearing, in
type, those sins. But Isaac would not be required of God to pay that penalty –
nor COULD he. There remained only One who could pay that terrible price for us –
the Lord Jesus Christ! Both climbed up the slopes of Moriah!
7 And 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? In the innocence of his youth, Isaac never
questioned any motive of his father, but he did ask a reasonable question
arising from factual observation – where is the Lamb? He did not know that the
true Lamb was yet with His Father in Heaven.
8 And Abraham
said, My son, God will provide himself a lamb for a burnt offering: so they
went both of them together. Here we read one of the most profound
prophecies in the Old Testament: "God will provide Himself a Lamb"……and
He did! God provided that Lamb in the form of His only Begotten Son!
9 And 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. 10 And Abraham stretched forth his hand, and took the knife
to slay his son. Abraham hesitated not in performing all things
requisite for the sacrifice of his beloved son, Isaac. It might be observed
here that anything placed on an altar is then dedicated fully to God. Isaac,
though not sacrificed, and all his progeny in faith, are dedicated to the
service of God. Are you, friends? Now, with a heart full of sorrow, Abraham
raises the knife for the terrible offering to God – even Isaac his son.
11 And the angel
of the Lord called unto him out of heaven, and said, Abraham, Abraham:
and he said, Here am I. 12 And 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 It is good that Abraham was accustomed, by faith, to hear the
voice of the Lord for this hearing saved his son from certain death. God is
well pleased with Abraham's evidence of faith. God discovered that Abraham
would hold nothing back from His Lord and His God. It is perhaps true that the
trial and test of Abraham was intended to benefit us, the believers of the
Promise, even more than Abraham. Abraham's faith was fixed on God, and God KNEW
it! So God provides the faith of Abraham as an example of that faith that must
lie in the hearts of all who believe.
13 And 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. This ram is a substitute
type of that promised Lamb of God – in this case a substitute for Isaac, but
there would be no such substitute for that Lamb of God which would come in the
fullness of time. The thorn bush was placed upon the fair and innocent brow of
our Lord at Calvary.
14 And Abraham
called the name of that place Jehovahjireh: as it is said to this day,
In the mount of the Lord it shall be seen Yes, the name is
symbolic to Mt. Moriah at which the "Lord will see to it"
(the sacrifice).
15 And the angel
of the Lord called unto Abraham out of heaven the second time
If we are keen to hear the voice of the Lord, He will never cease to speak to
us. 16 And 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 In other words, "Abraham, because you have not
held even your only beloved son from me, I know that your heart if filled to
the brim with love and faith of me."
17 That 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. This is a far
greater promise than natural descent will allow. It is a promise filled in
miraculous and persevering faith of the saints. God will bring numbers untold
into the family of Abraham, far more by faith than by natural bloodlines. Only
those who are of the family of faith in the Promised Seed shall be called the
children of Abraham and not those of the natural bloodline. It is not who we
are, but in WHOM we place our trust! This is the measure of the Church of
Abraham and the Gospel to which he subscribed while the Promise was held in
waiting.
18 And
in thy seed shall all the nations of the earth be blessed; because thou hast
obeyed my voice Those nations whose faith and institutions are
centered on God shall never suffer the ravages of war and desolation. How shall
our own nation fare as we cast aside, day by day, every vestige of that abiding
faith that made us a most cherished nation among the nations of the earth? If
America can be saved, that salvation shall not occur through political
measures. It is the common heart of America that must be turned back to her God
and Benefactor. If America can now be retrieved from sure ruin, it must happen
one heart at a time. AMEN
