When You Read This Passage What Grabs Your Attention?

​Gen. 22:5-8 - Abraham said to his young men, "Stay here with the donkey, and I and the lad will go over there; and we will worship and return to you." 6 Abraham took the wood of the burnt offering and laid it on Isaac his son, and he took in his hand the fire and the knife. So the two of them walked on together. 7 Isaac spoke to Abraham his father and said, "My father!" And he said, "Here I am, my son." And he said, "Behold, the fire and the wood, but where is the lamb for the burnt offering?" 8 Abraham said, "God will provide for Himself the lamb for the burnt offering, my son."   NASU 

• Four Verses Packed With Lessons 

As you get ready to enter in to the year 2024 I would like to share with you some lessons to increase your faith. The first lesson is the faith of Abraham. He said to his servants that He and Isaac "will go and worship", and he states very clearly "and we will return to you".
 
In Abe's mind he and Isaac were coming back after he sacrificed him. This is clearly written down in the book of Hebrews - Heb 11:17-19 - By faith Abraham, when he was tested, offered up Isaac, and he who had received the promises was offering up his only begotten son; it was he to whom it was said, "IN ISAAC YOUR DESCENDANTS SHALL BE CALLED."  He considered that God is able to raise people even from the dead, from which he also received him back as a type.
 
Abe believed God was able to raise people from the dead. What has your faith believed about God that sounds impossible? 

• The Wood On Isaac 

Abe placed the wood on Isaac. Reminds me of when they place the cross on Jesus and He had to carry it. Jn 19:17- They took Jesus, therefore, and He went out, bearing His own cross, to the place called the Place of a Skull, which is called in Hebrew, Golgotha.
 
Isaac was a type of Christ in that he carried his own wood to his sacrifice.
 
What are we carrying today that we shouldn't be? 

• The Two Of Them Walked Together 

Abe walked with Isaac as he drew near to the place the sacrifice would take place. When I contemplate on that passage my mind dwells on what Jesus said in the gospel of John 8:28-29 - Jesus said, "When you lift up the Son of Man, then you will know that I am He, and I do nothing on My own initiative, but I speak these things as the Father taught Me.  29 "And He who sent Me is with Me; He has not left Me alone, for I always do the things that are pleasing to Him."
 
Jesus makes it very clear He is referencing His crucifixion when He states -"When you lift up the Son of Man…" This is a direct reference to His crucifixion. We are able to see that Jesus is telling us He is going to be crucified but He will not be alone when this happens. For Isaac it was the same his father was with him the whole time.
 
Jesus was like Isaac He was on His way to being sacrificed yet He was not alone. Jesus' Father was with Him just as Abe was with Isaac. Another passage that very clearly informs us when Jesus is led to be crucified He will not be going it alone. In fact, it will be just the opposite His Father is with Him.
 
John 16:32- "Behold, an hour is coming, and has already come, for you to be scattered, each to his own home, and to leave Me alone ; and yet  I am not alone , because the Father is with Me. 
 
When we go through the trials of life I want you to know we are not going through it alone. 

• God Provided 

When Abraham was asked by Isaac where the sacrifice was Abe simply informs him that God will provide. Abraham said, "God will provide for Himself the lamb for the burnt offering, my son."
 
God will provide for us what it is we need when we feel like we are being sacrificed in this life. The thing we have to do is allow our faith to be influenced like the faith of Abraham.
 
We must never forget that God will provide.
 
Think About These:
 
Promises are only as dependable as the person who makes them. God has never broken one of His promises. I would say that makes Him very dependable.
 
Never be afraid to trust an unknown future to a known God.

Stay Pumped,
 
Gary A. Serago

​Minister of God's Word