WHAT'S ON YOUR ALTAR? PART 3

    In this blog I again ask you a personal question. In part 2 I write about the altar itself and in part 1 I established that Jesus was the sacrifice made for the sins of the world. Again I ask the same question but with a different meaning. Again, I am focusing on Abraham. Abraham acted on faith. By any measure, it was, and still is, a huge gesture of faith. There are many publications and sermons written about this. You can find the account in Genesis 22:1-19.

God tested Abraham. However, as a man, Abraham was willing to sacrifice his most prized treasure, his son Isaac. What brought Abraham to this point? Isaac represented the promise of God. Today, I want to ask you, what or who is your most prized treasure? Are you willing to sacrifice your treasure to God if He asks? What can you put on your personal altar? Perhaps it is a relationship with a spouse.

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. Genesis 22:2

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. Genesis 22:6

This test was never required again. It is the only time God has asked anyone to sacrifice a child. At that time sacrificing children was common, just as abortion is common in some countries. The account of Abraham is a foreshadowing of the sacrifice of Jesus Christ. Jesus was the sacrificial lamb slain for the sins of the world.

There are similarities to consider. God was willing to sacrifice His only Son, Jesus, just as Abraham was willing to sacrifice his son Isaac. Take a look at the comparison below.

Obedience means a lot to God. It should be important to us as well. Obedience is better than sacrifice. 

And Samuel said, “Hath the Lord as great delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices as in obeying the voice of the Lord? Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice, and to hearken than the fat of rams. 1 Samuel 15:22

Abraham had learnt his lesson of disobedience. His sin with Hagar was punished. If we don't understand who our God is then we can be like Abraham and mistake the identity of the real promise. I will make a quick detour to explain this.

Sarah, Abraham's married wife was not Ishmael's birth mother. They substituted God's perfect will for a tradition. This was a situation contrived by humans and did not reflect God's character. God did not create this situation. If God makes you a promise, it is based on the terms He determines to be acceptable. God did not approve of the use of a handmaiden. 

God is able and therefore man's interference (both Abraham's and Sarah's) was due to doubt in God's ability to keep good on His promise. In short they are saying; God is not able. It is similar to slapping God in the face. Yet, despite this, because Ishmael is of the seed of Abraham, God has blessed and continues to bless the Ishmaelites.

  

Let us continue. Abraham was punished in the same place of the sin. The whole family had to be circumcised. Circumcision is practised to this day and is a memorial of Abraham's disobedience and distrust. God asks us to give complete submission and obedience.

At this point in his life Abraham's attitude is different. When God asks him to sacrifice his son as a burnt offering he complies fully. Abraham did not know that it was a test. He had to trust that God knew what a great sacrifice it would be for him. He had to believe that God will keep His promise to give him nations as descendants. When God speaks it is fixed.

And Abraham said, My son, God will provide himself a lamb for a burnt offering: so they went both of them together. Genesis 22:8

The reward was a covenant formed between God and Abraham and his lineage. 

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; And in thy seed shall all the nations of the earth be blessed; because thou hast obeyed my voice. Genesis 22:17-18

The sacrifice made by Jesus is a fulfilment of Isaac's near sacrifice. It ultimately fulfils the request made by Father God. God will not ask you anything that He is not able or willing to do Himself. He will even take the burden away from you as He did by providing Jesus in place of Isaac. Look at verse 8, God will provide himself a lamb for a burnt offering. Out of Abraham's mouth was the prophecy, it is in future tense and it says that God will do it Himself. 

In the King James Version (KJV), the Hebrew word 'Jehovahjireh' is used, it means 'The LORD will provide'. Compare Genesis 22:14 in the KJV to the Berean Standard Bible (BSB);

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.  (KJV)

And Abraham called that place The LORD Will Provide. So to this day it is said, “On the mountain of the LORD it will be provided.” (BSB)

The sacrifice and provision of God was so immensely important to the Jews, they changed the name of the location. It was once called 'Salem'. Shem called it 'Salem' but Abraham called it 'yireh'. The two names were combined to be 'yireh-salem' which eventually became Jerusalem.

When we face tests we build capacity. The testings are to see our obedience. God tests to build strength in us but the devil tests to weaken us and separate us from God. In direct comparison, the ministry of the cross is that of reconciliation with God. Separation occurred with the sin of disobedience in the garden of Eden.

Jesus was the ultimate sacrifice, rendering any animal sacrifice unnecessary. Sometimes we place obstacles in the way of our relationship with God. Jesus's sacrifice brought us back to God. Sometimes those obstacles are relationships or things we care about deeply. Can you give it up to God? Would you be content with God's solution or response? He prefers obedience.

I pray you have strength to be obedient to God in Jesus name.

Dear Heavenly Father,

I ask you to forgive my sins in knowledge or ignorance. Please forgive me. I accept Jesus as my Saviour. I ask that Jesus comes into my life as I live to be a witness for Him. Please change my life and make me into the person you want me to be. Guide me in these times so I can be used by you to help others in Jesus name I pray. Thank you Father.

 

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