WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:13.339 Now, we're going to turn to the book of Genesis, one last time in the life of Abraham, Genesis chapter 22, which is on page 22. 00:00:13.339 --> 00:00:26.100 And so we're going to read the first 19 verses, and then we're going to flick over, and I'm just going to read three verses from Hebrews chapter 11, and then we'll come back to Genesis 22 and think about it together. 00:00:27.019 --> 00:00:29.699 So let's hear God's word together. 00:00:30.899 --> 00:00:33.719 Sometime later, God tested Abraham. 00:00:34.359 --> 00:00:37.100 He said to him, Abraham, here I am, he replied. 00:00:37.100 --> 00:01:07.079 Then God said, 00:01:07.099 --> 00:01:10.280 Stay here with the donkey while I and the boy go over there. 00:01:10.640 --> 00:01:13.140 We will worship, and then we will come back to you. 00:01:14.339 --> 00:01:20.519 Abraham took the wood for the burnt offering and placed it on his son Isaac, and he himself carried the fire and the knife. 00:01:21.140 --> 00:01:25.639 As the two of them went on together, Isaac spoke up and said to his father Abraham, 00:01:25.919 --> 00:01:28.939 Father, yes, my son, Abraham replied. 00:01:29.459 --> 00:01:32.859 The fire and wood are here, Isaac said, but where is the lamb for the burnt offering? 00:01:33.760 --> 00:01:38.299 Abraham answered, God himself will provide the burnt offering, my son. 00:01:38.299 --> 00:01:40.739 And the two of them went on together. 00:01:40.739 --> 00:01:46.019 When they reached the place God had told him about, Abraham built an altar there and arranged the wood on it. 00:01:46.519 --> 00:01:49.439 He bound his son Isaac and laid him on the altar on top of the wood. 00:01:50.039 --> 00:01:53.140 Then he reached out his hand and took the knife to slay his son. 00:01:53.500 --> 00:01:57.619 But the angel of the Lord called out to him from heaven, Abraham, Abraham. 00:01:58.500 --> 00:01:59.539 Here I am, he replied. 00:02:00.280 --> 00:02:02.179 Do not lay a hand on the boy, he said. 00:02:02.280 --> 00:02:03.659 Do not do anything to him. 00:02:03.659 --> 00:02:09.740 Now I know that you fear God, because you have not withheld from me your son, your only son. 00:02:10.639 --> 00:02:14.479 Abraham looked up and there in a thicket he saw a ram caught by its horns. 00:02:14.879 --> 00:02:19.979 He went over and took the ram and sacrificed it as a burnt offering instead of his son. 00:02:20.800 --> 00:02:23.780 So Abraham called that place, the Lord will provide. 00:02:24.599 --> 00:02:29.340 And to this day it is said, on the mountain of the Lord it will be provided. 00:02:29.340 --> 00:02:33.340 The angel of the Lord called to Abraham from heaven a second time and said, 00:02:33.520 --> 00:02:40.240 I swear by myself, declares the Lord, that because you have done this and have not withheld your son, your only son, 00:02:40.680 --> 00:02:47.800 I will surely bless you and make your descendants as numerous as the stars in the sky and as the sand on the seashore. 00:02:48.180 --> 00:02:51.319 Your descendants will take possession of the cities of their enemies, 00:02:51.719 --> 00:02:57.420 and through your offspring all nations on earth will be blessed, because you have obeyed me. 00:02:57.419 --> 00:03:06.419 Then Abraham returned to his servants, and they set off together for Beersheba, and Abraham stayed in Beersheba. 00:03:07.279 --> 00:03:11.539 And then we can turn over to Hebrews 11. 00:03:12.179 --> 00:03:13.719 It's on page 1210. 00:03:14.039 --> 00:03:21.119 I'll read these three verses here from verse 17, as the author of the Hebrews reflects on this story. 00:03:21.120 --> 00:03:27.860 By faith, Abraham, when God tested him, offered Isaac as a sacrifice. 00:03:28.580 --> 00:03:33.300 He who had embraced the promises was about to sacrifice his one and only son, 00:03:33.420 --> 00:03:37.439 even though God had said to him, it is through Isaac that your offspring will be reckoned. 00:03:38.379 --> 00:03:43.020 Abraham reasoned that God could even raise the dead, 00:03:43.020 --> 00:03:49.960 and so in a manner of speaking, he did receive Isaac back from the dead. 00:03:50.980 --> 00:03:51.460 Amen. 00:03:51.719 --> 00:03:53.340 So we're going to be in Genesis 22, 00:03:54.480 --> 00:03:59.439 and I wonder what you make of this story. 00:04:00.920 --> 00:04:06.540 Thomas Jefferson was one of the early presidents of the United States when he was reading his Bible. 00:04:06.539 --> 00:04:10.719 When he came to a part of the Bible that he didn't really like the sound of, 00:04:10.759 --> 00:04:16.360 he would take a pair of scissors, and he would remove the passage that didn't fit. 00:04:17.539 --> 00:04:24.120 You and I, we might not do it literally, but in our thinking, we might want to take scissors to this story. 00:04:25.279 --> 00:04:28.279 Philosophers and thinkers have struggled with it over the years. 00:04:29.000 --> 00:04:31.379 Soren Kierkegaard, the Danish Christian philosopher, 00:04:31.759 --> 00:04:35.420 wrote a really interesting book called Fear and Trembling, 00:04:35.420 --> 00:04:38.620 and he really wrestles with what's going on here. 00:04:39.580 --> 00:04:42.939 Maybe a more popular philosopher, poet, Bob Dylan, 00:04:43.560 --> 00:04:45.319 Highway 61 revisited. 00:04:45.980 --> 00:04:49.580 He begins the song by talking about this story. 00:04:50.379 --> 00:04:52.800 If you remember, oh, God said to Abraham, kill me a son. 00:04:53.700 --> 00:04:56.139 Abe says, man, you must be putting me on. 00:04:56.639 --> 00:04:57.720 God says, no. 00:04:58.379 --> 00:05:00.180 Abe says, what? 00:05:00.180 --> 00:05:06.579 And that what might be where you and I are right now. 00:05:08.180 --> 00:05:12.660 Here is God speaking, and it sounds like he's calling for child sacrifice. 00:05:13.379 --> 00:05:15.480 And this is in God's holy book. 00:05:16.019 --> 00:05:18.019 If you've been here for the last few weeks, 00:05:18.379 --> 00:05:21.980 we've been saying in so many ways, God is personal, and God is good, 00:05:21.980 --> 00:05:24.920 and God keeps his promises, and God loves people, 00:05:25.020 --> 00:05:28.700 and God establishes relationship with people. 00:05:29.680 --> 00:05:31.020 What do we make of this story? 00:05:32.800 --> 00:05:35.220 Let me plead with you at the beginning 00:05:35.220 --> 00:05:37.720 to stick with me, 00:05:38.879 --> 00:05:40.379 to think through this with me, 00:05:40.460 --> 00:05:44.200 because genuinely, my hope and my prayer is that this could become 00:05:44.200 --> 00:05:47.200 one of your favorite chapters in the whole Bible. 00:05:47.199 --> 00:05:53.379 that this story has the capacity to change your whole life. 00:05:54.699 --> 00:05:57.539 To understand that, we need to maybe ask another big question, 00:05:57.659 --> 00:05:59.079 the big question of what is the Bible, 00:05:59.159 --> 00:06:00.839 and what story is the Bible telling? 00:06:02.639 --> 00:06:05.560 Maybe for many people, it's really easy to approach the Bible 00:06:05.560 --> 00:06:07.519 and think, well, it's a moral handbook. 00:06:08.560 --> 00:06:12.139 Maybe you've heard it spoken of as the maker's instruction manual. 00:06:13.219 --> 00:06:15.680 Well, if we take that approach to this chapter, 00:06:15.680 --> 00:06:17.720 we won't get the story at all. 00:06:18.340 --> 00:06:19.920 What's the moral of this tale? 00:06:20.000 --> 00:06:21.420 Should we go and do likewise? 00:06:23.079 --> 00:06:24.600 No, is the obvious answer. 00:06:25.060 --> 00:06:28.300 But if we read a chapter like this without knowing 00:06:28.300 --> 00:06:30.379 the bigger story, 00:06:31.680 --> 00:06:33.000 who the Bible is about, 00:06:33.180 --> 00:06:34.280 what story it's telling, 00:06:34.680 --> 00:06:36.939 we will come to certain sections 00:06:36.939 --> 00:06:39.420 and become really, really confused. 00:06:39.420 --> 00:06:43.080 It is vital with any story 00:06:43.080 --> 00:06:44.800 to understand 00:06:44.800 --> 00:06:47.800 what genre, what kind of story is this? 00:06:48.660 --> 00:06:50.860 And that informs how we should read it. 00:06:51.819 --> 00:06:53.600 And we need to know the whole story 00:06:53.600 --> 00:06:55.500 if we are to make sense of it. 00:06:57.000 --> 00:06:58.420 I really like Whodunit, 00:06:58.840 --> 00:07:00.560 Agatha Christie, I really enjoy. 00:07:01.259 --> 00:07:02.800 The ABC Murders, 00:07:03.439 --> 00:07:05.280 I borrowed it from the library 00:07:05.279 --> 00:07:08.119 and got as far as the last chapter 00:07:08.119 --> 00:07:09.359 before I had to return it. 00:07:11.159 --> 00:07:12.839 I got it on audiobook thinking, 00:07:13.000 --> 00:07:13.659 I know what I'll do. 00:07:13.939 --> 00:07:14.839 I'll catch up. 00:07:15.379 --> 00:07:17.319 I got as far as the second last chapter 00:07:17.319 --> 00:07:18.899 and I ran out of listening time. 00:07:20.119 --> 00:07:20.859 A Whodunit, 00:07:21.159 --> 00:07:22.159 where you don't know Whodunit, 00:07:22.719 --> 00:07:23.399 is pointless. 00:07:24.519 --> 00:07:26.119 You're left with no clue. 00:07:26.239 --> 00:07:28.539 There is no resolution to the tension. 00:07:29.239 --> 00:07:31.479 You need the end. 00:07:31.480 --> 00:07:33.819 You need to know the point 00:07:33.819 --> 00:07:36.000 that the whole story is driving towards. 00:07:36.879 --> 00:07:38.800 We need to be able to hear the story 00:07:38.800 --> 00:07:39.620 in the right way. 00:07:40.520 --> 00:07:42.460 Maybe you have heard the story 00:07:42.460 --> 00:07:45.640 of what happened when H.G. Wells' novel, 00:07:45.879 --> 00:07:47.060 The War of the Worlds, 00:07:47.500 --> 00:07:50.100 was first made into a radio serial. 00:07:51.379 --> 00:07:56.500 And the opening of that BBC radio production 00:07:56.500 --> 00:07:58.980 had a news report. 00:07:58.980 --> 00:07:59.980 Breaking news! 00:07:59.980 --> 00:08:02.819 Aliens have invaded the world! 00:08:03.100 --> 00:08:04.720 And people thought it was really happening. 00:08:05.360 --> 00:08:06.360 There were people panicking 00:08:06.360 --> 00:08:07.840 because they genuinely thought, 00:08:08.200 --> 00:08:10.360 we are being told that aliens have landed. 00:08:11.400 --> 00:08:13.400 If you hear the story in the wrong way, 00:08:13.480 --> 00:08:16.360 you draw the wrong conclusion. 00:08:17.620 --> 00:08:19.300 And the same is absolutely true 00:08:19.300 --> 00:08:22.180 when we come to a chapter like Genesis 22. 00:08:24.100 --> 00:08:25.420 What we need to do 00:08:25.420 --> 00:08:28.900 is first of all to let ourselves be guided 00:08:28.899 --> 00:08:31.679 by the first people who heard the story. 00:08:32.360 --> 00:08:33.939 So the first people that heard the story, 00:08:34.159 --> 00:08:36.639 it was the Israelites in the wilderness. 00:08:36.779 --> 00:08:38.019 They'd just been set free. 00:08:38.600 --> 00:08:40.100 God has acted to deliver them. 00:08:40.399 --> 00:08:40.959 And do you know what? 00:08:41.000 --> 00:08:42.620 They celebrated this story, 00:08:42.659 --> 00:08:43.819 and that should tell us something. 00:08:45.100 --> 00:08:45.879 They understood. 00:08:46.000 --> 00:08:48.459 This isn't a story about child sacrifice. 00:08:48.639 --> 00:08:50.720 This is actually a story that's telling us 00:08:50.720 --> 00:08:52.059 about God's love and mercy. 00:08:52.059 --> 00:08:54.899 They would be able to hear the story and say, 00:08:55.439 --> 00:08:57.479 I owe my entire existence 00:08:57.479 --> 00:09:00.299 to God keeping His promises 00:09:00.299 --> 00:09:02.419 through this promised child. 00:09:04.359 --> 00:09:06.799 With Genesis chapter 22, 00:09:07.799 --> 00:09:10.339 we are given a window into 00:09:10.339 --> 00:09:12.819 God's redeeming love. 00:09:12.820 --> 00:09:16.980 But only if we allow ourselves to see 00:09:16.980 --> 00:09:18.560 and to understand the whole story 00:09:18.560 --> 00:09:21.120 and to get to the end point of the story 00:09:21.120 --> 00:09:24.200 as it points us towards 00:09:24.200 --> 00:09:26.020 God's provision, 00:09:26.920 --> 00:09:28.060 God's grace, 00:09:28.700 --> 00:09:30.100 God keeping His promises, 00:09:30.660 --> 00:09:32.680 and that for us will take us all the way 00:09:32.680 --> 00:09:34.840 to the death and resurrection of the Lord Jesus. 00:09:36.580 --> 00:09:38.420 Because when we think about what is the Bible 00:09:38.419 --> 00:09:39.740 and how we should read it, 00:09:40.360 --> 00:09:42.299 the whole book in its entirety, 00:09:42.500 --> 00:09:43.839 in a sense, 00:09:43.899 --> 00:09:44.979 is God's biography. 00:09:45.819 --> 00:09:48.219 God is wanting to tell us something about Himself. 00:09:49.120 --> 00:09:52.639 And especially to tell us about His story of redemption. 00:09:53.979 --> 00:09:55.579 And so to think about the Holy Spirit. 00:09:55.939 --> 00:09:58.779 The Holy Spirit is inspiring people, 00:09:58.899 --> 00:09:59.919 inspired people, 00:10:00.259 --> 00:10:02.199 so that they would give testimony 00:10:02.199 --> 00:10:04.879 to the truth of Jesus, 00:10:05.639 --> 00:10:06.659 the Son of God, 00:10:06.659 --> 00:10:09.980 and His work of salvation. 00:10:11.000 --> 00:10:11.360 And you know, 00:10:11.419 --> 00:10:13.000 that's how Jesus read the Bible. 00:10:14.259 --> 00:10:16.579 Jesus would say to people in His day, 00:10:16.959 --> 00:10:17.799 all the scriptures, 00:10:17.980 --> 00:10:18.799 all the Old Testament, 00:10:19.240 --> 00:10:20.579 they testify about me. 00:10:21.740 --> 00:10:23.279 The first Easter Sunday, 00:10:23.639 --> 00:10:24.879 when He met some disciples 00:10:24.879 --> 00:10:26.620 that were confused and sad on the road, 00:10:26.679 --> 00:10:26.879 He said, 00:10:27.199 --> 00:10:28.399 how come you don't understand 00:10:28.399 --> 00:10:30.319 that I had to die and then rise again? 00:10:30.620 --> 00:10:31.539 And then He led them 00:10:31.539 --> 00:10:33.279 on an Old Testament Bible study, 00:10:33.679 --> 00:10:35.559 in which Jesus was the hero, 00:10:35.559 --> 00:10:36.659 the climax, 00:10:36.779 --> 00:10:39.019 the point of God's whole story. 00:10:40.159 --> 00:10:42.019 And so we come to Genesis 22, 00:10:42.119 --> 00:10:43.519 or any section of the Bible, 00:10:43.759 --> 00:10:45.859 we need to read it in the right way. 00:10:46.659 --> 00:10:49.919 Understanding this is telling us of God's work, 00:10:50.419 --> 00:10:51.959 and it's pointing us towards Jesus, 00:10:52.559 --> 00:10:53.099 the Savior. 00:10:53.100 --> 00:10:57.480 So I want us to be able to come away from this chapter 00:10:57.480 --> 00:10:59.420 able to praise God. 00:11:00.820 --> 00:11:03.019 Yes, there's a really difficult test, 00:11:03.519 --> 00:11:06.399 but there's also a wonderful God behind it 00:11:06.399 --> 00:11:09.200 that is a God of saving grace and mercy. 00:11:10.200 --> 00:11:11.540 And the way that we'll get there 00:11:11.539 --> 00:11:14.559 is if we're able to put away the scissors, 00:11:15.759 --> 00:11:18.719 and instead if we pull out our magnifying glasses, 00:11:19.559 --> 00:11:22.219 if we take a look at this text, 00:11:22.799 --> 00:11:25.839 and if we read it in light of where the story is heading, 00:11:26.559 --> 00:11:28.219 if we read it in light of Jesus. 00:11:29.559 --> 00:11:31.639 So we're going to walk through the story 00:11:31.639 --> 00:11:33.899 and then think about some of the lessons 00:11:33.899 --> 00:11:34.639 that it teaches us. 00:11:34.679 --> 00:11:36.759 So we begin in the first couple of verses 00:11:36.759 --> 00:11:39.600 with the test of faith. 00:11:40.679 --> 00:11:42.319 So if you've been here for the last month, 00:11:42.399 --> 00:11:44.480 we've been following Abraham's story now 00:11:44.480 --> 00:11:46.759 for 25 years. 00:11:47.519 --> 00:11:49.139 Over 25 years, actually. 00:11:49.259 --> 00:11:50.759 And we've seen these two themes 00:11:50.759 --> 00:11:52.519 intertwine at every point. 00:11:52.980 --> 00:11:55.299 Abraham is a man who lives by faith, 00:11:56.460 --> 00:12:00.620 and God is a God who is faithful to his promises, 00:12:00.620 --> 00:12:02.439 that he enters into a relationship 00:12:02.439 --> 00:12:05.159 and he's made a wonderful promise to Abraham. 00:12:05.159 --> 00:12:07.639 And that involved a son. 00:12:08.899 --> 00:12:11.079 When we pick up the story in Genesis 22, 00:12:11.259 --> 00:12:12.860 Abraham is now 100 years old. 00:12:13.959 --> 00:12:16.500 After 25 years of waiting, 00:12:17.039 --> 00:12:19.659 Abraham finally has his promised child. 00:12:20.519 --> 00:12:23.659 This one who would bring blessing to the nations. 00:12:23.819 --> 00:12:26.919 This one who would be the hope for the world. 00:12:30.419 --> 00:12:32.059 And then we come to verse 1. 00:12:32.059 --> 00:12:34.319 And sometime later, God tested Abraham. 00:12:35.159 --> 00:12:36.500 Take your son, 00:12:37.480 --> 00:12:38.579 your only son, 00:12:39.059 --> 00:12:40.079 whom you love, 00:12:41.120 --> 00:12:41.519 Isaac, 00:12:42.480 --> 00:12:44.079 and go to the region of Moriah 00:12:44.079 --> 00:12:45.579 and sacrifice him there. 00:12:46.379 --> 00:12:48.439 Do we feel the shock of what's going on? 00:12:49.360 --> 00:12:51.059 This chapter becomes the climax 00:12:51.059 --> 00:12:53.439 of Abraham's life of faith. 00:12:53.959 --> 00:12:55.860 Will he be obedient to God 00:12:55.860 --> 00:12:57.539 in this hardest of tests? 00:12:57.539 --> 00:13:02.599 We recognize that this is a really intense test of faith here, 00:13:02.659 --> 00:13:03.519 how it zooms in. 00:13:03.860 --> 00:13:04.899 Your only son, 00:13:04.980 --> 00:13:06.360 that son whom you love, 00:13:06.500 --> 00:13:07.399 it's Isaac. 00:13:09.000 --> 00:13:10.699 And it's an extreme test. 00:13:13.579 --> 00:13:14.980 Abraham's not the one who's going to suffer, 00:13:15.059 --> 00:13:15.959 it's going to be Isaac. 00:13:16.679 --> 00:13:17.759 And it's sacrifice, 00:13:17.980 --> 00:13:18.620 and it's death. 00:13:18.620 --> 00:13:20.820 And remember, 00:13:20.940 --> 00:13:22.679 Isaac is not just any old son. 00:13:23.840 --> 00:13:25.060 When Isaac was born, 00:13:25.120 --> 00:13:27.240 and Abraham held Isaac in his arms, 00:13:27.399 --> 00:13:30.379 he was holding the hope of salvation in his arms. 00:13:31.340 --> 00:13:32.279 Without Isaac, 00:13:32.399 --> 00:13:33.279 the promised child, 00:13:33.960 --> 00:13:35.120 there would be no Israel. 00:13:35.679 --> 00:13:36.840 And if there's no Israel, 00:13:36.940 --> 00:13:38.019 there will be no Jesus. 00:13:38.179 --> 00:13:39.080 And if there's no Jesus, 00:13:39.200 --> 00:13:40.139 there's no salvation. 00:13:40.279 --> 00:13:41.320 And if there's no salvation, 00:13:41.679 --> 00:13:42.779 there is no hope. 00:13:42.779 --> 00:13:47.100 God knows this. 00:13:49.259 --> 00:13:51.100 Abraham knows some of this. 00:13:53.079 --> 00:13:54.819 But we get to learn 00:13:54.819 --> 00:13:57.519 that God has a plan. 00:13:58.620 --> 00:14:01.279 And God's plan for saving the world 00:14:01.279 --> 00:14:05.519 will involve the sacrifice of a beloved son. 00:14:06.519 --> 00:14:08.220 And the place of death 00:14:08.220 --> 00:14:11.000 will be a mountaintop. 00:14:11.000 --> 00:14:15.000 This region of Moriah that's mentioned, 00:14:15.580 --> 00:14:17.559 by the time of 2 Chronicles 3, 00:14:17.659 --> 00:14:19.820 we discover this is going to be the site 00:14:19.820 --> 00:14:21.059 for Solomon's temple. 00:14:21.799 --> 00:14:24.220 This is going to be where Israel has to come 00:14:24.220 --> 00:14:27.460 to offer sacrifices to deal with their sin. 00:14:29.120 --> 00:14:31.559 And then we fast forward further centuries, 00:14:32.259 --> 00:14:34.159 it's in those same mountains 00:14:34.159 --> 00:14:36.100 that we found Mount Calvary. 00:14:36.100 --> 00:14:39.379 when another beloved son 00:14:39.379 --> 00:14:43.180 will go to the place of sacrificial death. 00:14:45.300 --> 00:14:47.060 Abraham's faith is tested. 00:14:48.259 --> 00:14:51.540 Faith will be tested by God 00:14:51.540 --> 00:14:55.259 in order to show his faithfulness 00:14:55.259 --> 00:14:57.000 when we come to an end of ourselves. 00:14:57.000 --> 00:15:00.679 The next mention of faith being tested, 00:15:01.559 --> 00:15:02.519 it's in the book of Exodus, 00:15:02.639 --> 00:15:04.279 when the people are in the wilderness 00:15:04.279 --> 00:15:05.399 and they're hungry 00:15:05.399 --> 00:15:07.000 and they begin grumbling. 00:15:07.120 --> 00:15:08.220 And the question there is, 00:15:08.559 --> 00:15:10.779 will they trust the God who rescued them 00:15:10.779 --> 00:15:12.059 to provide for them? 00:15:13.059 --> 00:15:15.820 Or will they look back to slavery in Egypt 00:15:15.820 --> 00:15:17.059 and all the food they could eat? 00:15:17.059 --> 00:15:21.379 When our faith is tested, 00:15:22.379 --> 00:15:24.179 and it will be tested as Christians, 00:15:24.739 --> 00:15:28.119 can we look beyond our circumstances? 00:15:28.899 --> 00:15:31.219 Can we raise our eyes? 00:15:31.839 --> 00:15:35.199 Can we appreciate God's faithfulness to us 00:15:35.199 --> 00:15:37.179 in giving us Jesus 00:15:37.179 --> 00:15:39.079 in his perfect life, 00:15:39.439 --> 00:15:40.399 in his death, 00:15:40.619 --> 00:15:42.079 and in his resurrection? 00:15:42.080 --> 00:15:46.500 Well, as the story continues 00:15:46.500 --> 00:15:48.000 in verses 3 to 10, 00:15:48.139 --> 00:15:51.680 we see the journey of faith. 00:15:53.480 --> 00:15:55.379 History records many difficult 00:15:55.379 --> 00:15:57.259 and dangerous journeys. 00:15:58.040 --> 00:15:59.360 I remember a few years ago now 00:15:59.360 --> 00:16:01.259 reading a book called The Long Walk, 00:16:01.759 --> 00:16:04.480 which recounted some prisoners 00:16:04.480 --> 00:16:07.740 escaping from a Siberian concentration camp 00:16:07.740 --> 00:16:10.140 and walking 4,000 miles 00:16:10.139 --> 00:16:12.059 to find freedom. 00:16:13.740 --> 00:16:16.379 I remember reading Shackleton's account 00:16:16.379 --> 00:16:18.279 of the endurance voyage. 00:16:19.179 --> 00:16:21.279 You're trying to reach Antarctica. 00:16:22.480 --> 00:16:24.019 Incredibly demanding, 00:16:24.500 --> 00:16:26.379 difficult, dangerous journeys. 00:16:28.639 --> 00:16:31.399 I'd be inclined to put Abraham's journey 00:16:31.399 --> 00:16:34.500 on the list of most difficult ones in history 00:16:34.500 --> 00:16:39.620 because of the intensity of this test. 00:16:40.139 --> 00:16:42.120 But this walk represents 00:16:42.120 --> 00:16:44.059 Abraham's long walk of faith. 00:16:45.080 --> 00:16:47.480 What can we say about Abraham's faith? 00:16:48.019 --> 00:16:49.139 First of all, verse 3, 00:16:49.259 --> 00:16:51.019 we see that faith obeys right away. 00:16:51.539 --> 00:16:52.720 Early the next morning, 00:16:53.179 --> 00:16:54.899 Abraham got up and loaded his donkey, 00:16:55.059 --> 00:16:57.439 took his servants and his son Isaac. 00:16:57.439 --> 00:16:58.879 He makes the preparation. 00:16:59.279 --> 00:17:00.559 This is something we've seen before. 00:17:00.639 --> 00:17:01.679 Back in Genesis 12, 00:17:02.179 --> 00:17:03.360 well, God has said it. 00:17:03.360 --> 00:17:06.000 God has called me. 00:17:06.400 --> 00:17:07.920 And I trust God. 00:17:08.319 --> 00:17:09.420 I will obey. 00:17:10.240 --> 00:17:11.360 End of story. 00:17:12.440 --> 00:17:14.740 It's the wonderful pattern of Abraham's life 00:17:14.740 --> 00:17:17.019 when we see these high points of faith. 00:17:18.019 --> 00:17:18.819 But then recognize, 00:17:19.000 --> 00:17:20.339 as well as faith obeying right away, 00:17:20.440 --> 00:17:23.000 he obeys day after day. 00:17:23.279 --> 00:17:24.700 Because this isn't a short journey. 00:17:25.140 --> 00:17:25.640 Verse 4, 00:17:25.640 --> 00:17:41.700 Now, can you imagine how painful 00:17:41.700 --> 00:17:44.660 and no doubt how prayerful 00:17:44.660 --> 00:17:47.059 those three days would have been? 00:17:49.180 --> 00:17:50.380 Until they reach the place 00:17:50.380 --> 00:17:52.019 where now they can see the mountain 00:17:52.019 --> 00:17:53.539 looming in the horizon 00:17:53.539 --> 00:17:55.519 and he turns to speak to the servants. 00:17:56.519 --> 00:17:58.440 I wonder what we make of what he says to the servants. 00:17:58.539 --> 00:17:59.620 So some people read it and say, 00:17:59.740 --> 00:18:01.000 well, here is Abraham, 00:18:01.400 --> 00:18:02.799 you know, telling a little white lie. 00:18:02.920 --> 00:18:04.640 He wants to protect the servants, perhaps. 00:18:04.720 --> 00:18:05.920 He certainly wants to protect Isaac. 00:18:05.920 --> 00:18:07.300 So he tells a little white lie. 00:18:09.220 --> 00:18:10.759 That's not what the Bible says 00:18:10.759 --> 00:18:12.080 about Abraham, is it? 00:18:12.519 --> 00:18:14.140 That's why we read Hebrews 11. 00:18:15.539 --> 00:18:17.620 How does the author of Hebrews understand it? 00:18:18.360 --> 00:18:20.160 It understands that Abraham trusts 00:18:20.160 --> 00:18:23.180 absolutely in God being faithful 00:18:23.180 --> 00:18:24.120 to his promise 00:18:24.120 --> 00:18:26.200 that even if his son dies, 00:18:26.360 --> 00:18:28.360 he will be raised from the dead. 00:18:29.279 --> 00:18:31.140 This is resurrection-shaped faith 00:18:31.140 --> 00:18:33.560 that God will keep his promise somehow. 00:18:35.920 --> 00:18:39.039 And then we see that faith obeys all the way 00:18:39.039 --> 00:18:41.259 from verse six onwards. 00:18:41.440 --> 00:18:42.480 Now they're at the mountain. 00:18:44.240 --> 00:18:45.640 Abraham takes the wood, 00:18:45.880 --> 00:18:47.080 places it on his son Isaac, 00:18:47.080 --> 00:18:49.480 and he himself carries the knife. 00:18:49.860 --> 00:18:51.700 His own son will be loaded up 00:18:51.700 --> 00:18:54.660 with the wood for the sacrifice. 00:18:55.160 --> 00:18:58.640 And then we get this poignant conversation 00:18:58.640 --> 00:19:00.000 in verses seven and eight. 00:19:00.720 --> 00:19:03.140 Father, yes, my son, 00:19:03.940 --> 00:19:04.980 the fire and wood are here, 00:19:04.980 --> 00:19:07.019 but where is the lamb for the burnt offering? 00:19:08.220 --> 00:19:09.759 To which Abraham replies, 00:19:09.940 --> 00:19:11.980 God himself will provide the lamb. 00:19:13.200 --> 00:19:16.000 God will provide the lamb. 00:19:16.579 --> 00:19:19.200 His faith does not waver. 00:19:19.779 --> 00:19:23.019 Somehow a substitute will be provided. 00:19:23.240 --> 00:19:25.620 Somehow God will act. 00:19:25.819 --> 00:19:27.579 A sacrifice will be made 00:19:27.579 --> 00:19:29.819 that everything will turn out okay. 00:19:30.640 --> 00:19:33.019 He doesn't see how God's going to do it, 00:19:33.019 --> 00:19:34.980 but still he believes. 00:19:37.539 --> 00:19:39.480 And then we get to the moment of truth. 00:19:40.740 --> 00:19:41.799 They're at the mountain. 00:19:41.920 --> 00:19:43.139 They're at the mountain top. 00:19:43.420 --> 00:19:44.039 Verse nine, 00:19:44.700 --> 00:19:45.799 Abraham built an altar 00:19:45.799 --> 00:19:46.920 and arranged the wood. 00:19:47.460 --> 00:19:48.599 He bound his son Isaac, 00:19:48.980 --> 00:19:51.319 and then he reached out his hand 00:19:51.319 --> 00:19:54.420 and took the knife to slay his son. 00:19:55.639 --> 00:19:57.720 Abraham, in preparing this altar, 00:19:57.819 --> 00:19:59.680 is preparing both a place of worship, 00:19:59.680 --> 00:20:02.640 but also a place of sacrifice. 00:20:02.640 --> 00:20:06.080 And he binds his most likely teenage son 00:20:06.080 --> 00:20:08.539 as if he was a sacrificial animal. 00:20:08.740 --> 00:20:10.860 And he raises the knife. 00:20:11.100 --> 00:20:12.460 And all the while, 00:20:13.420 --> 00:20:17.560 Abraham's faith is that Isaac will make it through. 00:20:17.880 --> 00:20:20.180 Either he will be spared from death 00:20:20.180 --> 00:20:23.460 or he will be raised beyond death 00:20:23.460 --> 00:20:28.100 because he knows God cannot fail 00:20:28.100 --> 00:20:30.240 to keep his promises. 00:20:33.080 --> 00:20:35.759 It's an example of extraordinary faith. 00:20:37.340 --> 00:20:38.060 And we need to remember, 00:20:38.220 --> 00:20:40.299 this isn't an isolated story. 00:20:42.060 --> 00:20:44.220 Abraham and God have a past. 00:20:44.220 --> 00:20:48.740 For 25 years and more, 00:20:49.200 --> 00:20:51.940 God has been speaking to Abraham personally. 00:20:52.299 --> 00:20:53.420 They have relationship. 00:20:54.620 --> 00:20:57.240 It was God who acted decisively 00:20:57.240 --> 00:20:58.680 to save Abraham 00:20:58.680 --> 00:21:01.059 when he was worshiping idols. 00:21:02.559 --> 00:21:05.079 It was God who committed himself 00:21:05.079 --> 00:21:07.000 to covenant promises 00:21:07.000 --> 00:21:09.079 and to keep those promises. 00:21:09.420 --> 00:21:11.980 And it was God who worked a miracle 00:21:11.980 --> 00:21:15.440 to give Isaac to Abraham and Sarah. 00:21:16.940 --> 00:21:19.740 We tell our kids wisely 00:21:19.740 --> 00:21:23.099 that it is not safe to trust a stranger. 00:21:24.860 --> 00:21:28.019 God is no stranger to Abraham. 00:21:28.019 --> 00:21:31.839 And so he clings to God 00:21:31.839 --> 00:21:33.759 and to God's promise. 00:21:33.759 --> 00:21:38.440 And when our faith is tested, 00:21:39.299 --> 00:21:43.440 we recognize that we too have God's word 00:21:43.440 --> 00:21:46.400 and we have God's presence 00:21:46.400 --> 00:21:48.819 and we have God's promises 00:21:48.819 --> 00:21:50.859 and we have an event 00:21:50.859 --> 00:21:52.240 that we look back to 00:21:52.240 --> 00:21:54.200 that reminds us that God does love us 00:21:54.200 --> 00:21:54.980 and he's faithful. 00:21:55.759 --> 00:21:57.740 We look to the cross of Jesus 00:21:57.740 --> 00:21:59.619 and to the empty tomb. 00:21:59.619 --> 00:22:03.279 Well, as Abraham 00:22:03.279 --> 00:22:05.479 has bound his son 00:22:05.479 --> 00:22:06.899 and he's raised the knife, 00:22:07.939 --> 00:22:11.399 this moment is preparing us 00:22:11.399 --> 00:22:13.119 for events that will take place 00:22:13.119 --> 00:22:14.419 2,000 years later 00:22:14.419 --> 00:22:17.079 of another beloved son 00:22:17.079 --> 00:22:19.199 who has carried the wood 00:22:19.199 --> 00:22:20.019 up a mountain 00:22:20.019 --> 00:22:21.459 for his own sacrifice. 00:22:22.419 --> 00:22:23.519 It speaks to us 00:22:23.519 --> 00:22:24.759 of a loving father 00:22:24.759 --> 00:22:27.919 willing to place his son there 00:22:27.920 --> 00:22:29.800 to keep a promise 00:22:29.800 --> 00:22:31.220 to save 00:22:31.220 --> 00:22:32.500 and to bless 00:22:32.500 --> 00:22:33.580 the world. 00:22:35.680 --> 00:22:36.920 I don't know if you're familiar 00:22:36.920 --> 00:22:38.880 with Glenn Scribner. 00:22:39.120 --> 00:22:40.060 He's a Bible teacher 00:22:40.060 --> 00:22:40.800 and writer 00:22:40.800 --> 00:22:41.940 and podcaster 00:22:41.940 --> 00:22:43.200 and he's got a YouTube channel. 00:22:43.880 --> 00:22:45.240 He has this great story 00:22:45.240 --> 00:22:46.180 of sharing 00:22:46.180 --> 00:22:48.000 Genesis 22 00:22:48.000 --> 00:22:49.560 with a group of teenagers. 00:22:50.440 --> 00:22:51.420 And so he's kind of building 00:22:51.420 --> 00:22:52.400 to kind of climax 00:22:52.400 --> 00:22:53.460 and he's saying to them 00:22:53.460 --> 00:22:54.440 something along these lines. 00:22:54.920 --> 00:22:55.100 You know, 00:22:55.180 --> 00:22:56.200 here is Isaac, 00:22:56.480 --> 00:22:57.660 the only beloved son, 00:22:57.660 --> 00:22:58.820 the hope of the world, 00:22:58.920 --> 00:23:00.420 the source of all blessing 00:23:00.420 --> 00:23:02.900 and he's trudging up the hill 00:23:02.900 --> 00:23:04.440 with wood on his back. 00:23:05.580 --> 00:23:06.900 Does that remind you of anything? 00:23:07.940 --> 00:23:09.460 He says it was on a hill 00:23:09.460 --> 00:23:11.080 near Jerusalem. 00:23:12.220 --> 00:23:13.560 Does that ring any bells? 00:23:14.300 --> 00:23:16.360 And he says he can vividly remember 00:23:16.360 --> 00:23:18.620 seeing in that group of teenagers 00:23:18.620 --> 00:23:21.960 one friend thumping the girl next to her 00:23:21.960 --> 00:23:23.420 because she couldn't contain herself. 00:23:23.500 --> 00:23:23.800 She was like, 00:23:23.980 --> 00:23:24.740 it's Jesus. 00:23:25.380 --> 00:23:26.740 It's totally Jesus. 00:23:26.740 --> 00:23:29.700 That's how we read the Bible 00:23:29.700 --> 00:23:31.180 and that's how we read this story 00:23:31.180 --> 00:23:33.099 because when we understand 00:23:33.099 --> 00:23:35.039 why the Bible is written, 00:23:35.980 --> 00:23:37.779 that God is giving testimony 00:23:37.779 --> 00:23:39.140 to his plan of redemption 00:23:39.140 --> 00:23:40.099 through his son, 00:23:41.460 --> 00:23:42.740 stories like this one, 00:23:43.579 --> 00:23:46.359 they don't need to be barriers to faith. 00:23:46.359 --> 00:23:48.619 Rather, 00:23:48.619 --> 00:23:50.119 it becomes a bridge to faith 00:23:50.119 --> 00:23:53.719 as we see that Abraham represents God the Father, 00:23:54.619 --> 00:23:55.979 Isaac represents Jesus, 00:23:56.119 --> 00:23:57.019 the Son of God. 00:23:57.759 --> 00:23:58.819 That stories like these 00:23:58.819 --> 00:24:00.000 can be a boost 00:24:00.000 --> 00:24:01.479 to our faith 00:24:01.479 --> 00:24:03.679 when we read them in the right way 00:24:03.679 --> 00:24:05.959 and understand that this is speaking of God's 00:24:05.959 --> 00:24:07.599 steadfast covenant love 00:24:07.599 --> 00:24:10.379 and his commitment to keep those promises. 00:24:10.380 --> 00:24:14.820 Well, let's come to the climax of our story 00:24:14.820 --> 00:24:16.740 where we see the provision 00:24:16.740 --> 00:24:20.020 and the promises for faith. 00:24:20.160 --> 00:24:22.920 So we've been following Abraham's story of faith. 00:24:23.580 --> 00:24:26.280 Over the years, there were ups and downs. 00:24:26.820 --> 00:24:29.320 He was fearful in Egypt and told lies. 00:24:30.280 --> 00:24:31.300 He questioned, 00:24:31.840 --> 00:24:33.320 would God ever send a child? 00:24:33.400 --> 00:24:35.640 And so he took matters into his own hands. 00:24:35.640 --> 00:24:37.840 But by chapter 22, 00:24:37.840 --> 00:24:41.660 we see this mature faith shining through. 00:24:44.740 --> 00:24:48.680 But as the knife is poised to fall, 00:24:50.060 --> 00:24:53.020 I wonder whether we're asking ourselves, 00:24:54.160 --> 00:24:57.580 well, was his faith in God really worth it? 00:24:58.520 --> 00:25:00.120 God asked him to do this. 00:25:02.560 --> 00:25:04.400 Just pause with me for a moment 00:25:04.400 --> 00:25:06.100 and pan forward. 00:25:06.220 --> 00:25:08.040 Earlier we read a little section of John 8. 00:25:08.519 --> 00:25:10.080 We could go further in John 8 00:25:10.080 --> 00:25:11.560 and we would discover this. 00:25:12.560 --> 00:25:13.400 Jesus said, 00:25:14.360 --> 00:25:18.320 Abraham rejoiced to see my day. 00:25:19.920 --> 00:25:22.740 Abraham saw it and was glad. 00:25:25.540 --> 00:25:26.800 On that day, 00:25:26.800 --> 00:25:28.560 on the Genesis 22 day, 00:25:29.000 --> 00:25:31.180 Abraham was given insights 00:25:31.180 --> 00:25:33.740 into the saving plan of God 00:25:33.740 --> 00:25:36.140 he hadn't had before that moment. 00:25:36.799 --> 00:25:38.579 He was given truths 00:25:38.579 --> 00:25:40.740 about God's plan of redemption 00:25:40.740 --> 00:25:43.319 that he saw in a new way 00:25:43.319 --> 00:25:44.400 and he would never forget. 00:25:45.539 --> 00:25:46.200 And wonderfully, 00:25:46.380 --> 00:25:47.920 because God includes it in the Bible, 00:25:48.319 --> 00:25:50.380 we too have front row seats 00:25:50.380 --> 00:25:52.079 to God's drama of redemption 00:25:52.079 --> 00:25:53.880 so we can learn the lessons too. 00:25:55.120 --> 00:25:56.120 So what can we learn? 00:25:56.980 --> 00:25:58.720 What can we learn about faith in God? 00:25:58.799 --> 00:25:59.940 Why faith is worth it? 00:25:59.940 --> 00:26:02.940 How can we say that this story, 00:26:03.460 --> 00:26:05.460 which begins in such darkness, 00:26:05.660 --> 00:26:07.440 is absolutely wonderful? 00:26:09.820 --> 00:26:11.900 Let's draw three lessons together. 00:26:12.580 --> 00:26:13.440 First of all, 00:26:14.440 --> 00:26:15.340 Abraham discovers 00:26:15.340 --> 00:26:18.299 that God will provide the lamb. 00:26:19.160 --> 00:26:20.640 So remember back in verse 8, 00:26:21.500 --> 00:26:22.279 Isaac asks, 00:26:22.400 --> 00:26:22.980 where's the lamb? 00:26:23.320 --> 00:26:25.500 God himself will provide the lamb. 00:26:25.500 --> 00:26:26.539 But did you notice 00:26:26.539 --> 00:26:28.660 which animal was provided? 00:26:29.700 --> 00:26:30.799 Look at verse 13. 00:26:32.460 --> 00:26:33.759 He saw a ram 00:26:33.759 --> 00:26:36.500 caught by its horns. 00:26:36.980 --> 00:26:38.759 We're still waiting for the lamb. 00:26:39.640 --> 00:26:41.220 And look at verse 14. 00:26:42.740 --> 00:26:44.440 Think about the name of this mountain 00:26:44.440 --> 00:26:45.359 that Abraham gives it. 00:26:45.440 --> 00:26:46.640 So Abraham called that place 00:26:46.640 --> 00:26:48.740 the Lord will provide, 00:26:48.859 --> 00:26:49.619 future tense. 00:26:49.819 --> 00:26:50.859 And to this day, 00:26:51.000 --> 00:26:52.279 on the mountain of the Lord, 00:26:52.380 --> 00:26:54.599 it will be provided. 00:26:54.599 --> 00:26:56.379 So there is this understanding 00:26:56.379 --> 00:26:56.980 from Abraham 00:26:56.980 --> 00:26:58.459 that there is still a lamb 00:26:58.459 --> 00:26:59.919 to be provided in the future. 00:27:00.000 --> 00:27:00.699 When is that? 00:27:02.119 --> 00:27:02.839 Well, it's in the coming 00:27:02.839 --> 00:27:03.740 of the Lord Jesus. 00:27:04.699 --> 00:27:05.759 And John the Baptist 00:27:05.759 --> 00:27:06.839 sees Jesus 00:27:06.839 --> 00:27:07.879 at the beginning of his ministry 00:27:07.879 --> 00:27:09.059 and describes him this way. 00:27:09.599 --> 00:27:10.899 Here is the lamb of God 00:27:10.899 --> 00:27:11.679 who takes away 00:27:11.679 --> 00:27:12.740 the sin of the world. 00:27:13.980 --> 00:27:14.939 This is Jesus 00:27:14.939 --> 00:27:16.000 who is prophesied 00:27:16.000 --> 00:27:17.500 later in Isaiah 53, 00:27:18.159 --> 00:27:19.379 the one who would be led 00:27:19.379 --> 00:27:20.759 like a lamb to the slaughter. 00:27:20.759 --> 00:27:23.799 That the Lord God 00:27:23.799 --> 00:27:26.039 would lay on Jesus the lamb 00:27:26.039 --> 00:27:27.299 the iniquity, 00:27:27.440 --> 00:27:28.379 the sin of us all 00:27:28.379 --> 00:27:29.579 so that by his wounds 00:27:29.579 --> 00:27:30.640 we might be healed. 00:27:32.180 --> 00:27:33.640 God provides 00:27:33.640 --> 00:27:35.099 the way of atonement, 00:27:35.220 --> 00:27:36.440 the way to put right 00:27:36.440 --> 00:27:37.200 the relationship 00:27:37.200 --> 00:27:38.720 between us and God. 00:27:40.160 --> 00:27:41.799 Sacrifice has to do with guilt, 00:27:42.279 --> 00:27:43.420 our sin against God 00:27:43.420 --> 00:27:45.059 that we cannot deal with. 00:27:45.339 --> 00:27:46.759 And the hope that's presented 00:27:46.759 --> 00:27:47.920 in Genesis 22 00:27:47.920 --> 00:27:49.480 is a day is coming 00:27:49.480 --> 00:27:50.880 when God would provide 00:27:50.880 --> 00:27:51.380 the lamb. 00:27:52.779 --> 00:27:53.440 And that lamb 00:27:53.440 --> 00:27:54.460 wouldn't just be an animal, 00:27:54.800 --> 00:27:56.340 it would be his own 00:27:56.340 --> 00:27:58.600 beloved son. 00:28:00.360 --> 00:28:02.880 On that first Good Friday 00:28:02.880 --> 00:28:04.180 we see Jesus, 00:28:04.360 --> 00:28:05.259 the son of God, 00:28:05.640 --> 00:28:08.720 he's carrying a wooden cross 00:28:08.720 --> 00:28:10.539 up Mount Calvary 00:28:10.539 --> 00:28:13.200 to the place of his sacrifice. 00:28:13.200 --> 00:28:16.500 And notice in the story 00:28:16.500 --> 00:28:17.819 of Abraham and Isaac, 00:28:19.240 --> 00:28:20.000 verse 11, 00:28:20.120 --> 00:28:21.080 the angel of the Lord 00:28:21.080 --> 00:28:22.799 cries out from heaven, 00:28:23.319 --> 00:28:24.180 Abraham, Abraham, 00:28:24.319 --> 00:28:25.480 do not lay a hand 00:28:25.480 --> 00:28:26.460 on the boy. 00:28:26.860 --> 00:28:28.019 This great cease 00:28:28.019 --> 00:28:29.759 and desist message 00:28:29.759 --> 00:28:31.180 booms from heaven. 00:28:34.140 --> 00:28:35.480 Abraham fears God. 00:28:36.819 --> 00:28:38.019 He lives with worship 00:28:38.019 --> 00:28:38.620 and obedience 00:28:38.620 --> 00:28:39.840 and his son is spared. 00:28:39.839 --> 00:28:42.879 But on Mount Calvary, 00:28:44.500 --> 00:28:46.279 when God's own son Jesus 00:28:46.279 --> 00:28:48.399 is nailed to the wood, 00:28:48.740 --> 00:28:50.079 to the place of sacrifice, 00:28:50.779 --> 00:28:52.319 there is no voice from heaven 00:28:52.319 --> 00:28:53.379 to stop the night. 00:28:54.259 --> 00:28:55.299 God's judgment 00:28:55.299 --> 00:28:57.339 falls on God 00:28:57.339 --> 00:28:59.439 in his beloved son 00:28:59.439 --> 00:29:01.879 so that we could be forgiven, 00:29:02.879 --> 00:29:04.240 so that God's promise 00:29:04.240 --> 00:29:05.019 would be kept, 00:29:05.539 --> 00:29:06.859 so that we can share 00:29:06.859 --> 00:29:08.079 the blessing of life 00:29:08.079 --> 00:29:08.799 with God. 00:29:09.699 --> 00:29:10.699 Genesis 22 00:29:10.699 --> 00:29:11.839 speaks to us 00:29:11.839 --> 00:29:14.619 of God's amazing love. 00:29:15.899 --> 00:29:17.019 Here's another lesson 00:29:17.019 --> 00:29:17.919 that Abraham discovered 00:29:17.919 --> 00:29:18.659 on that day. 00:29:20.139 --> 00:29:20.819 Relationship 00:29:20.819 --> 00:29:22.220 is restored 00:29:22.220 --> 00:29:24.319 by sacrifice. 00:29:26.000 --> 00:29:27.079 So when Abraham 00:29:27.079 --> 00:29:27.740 turns around 00:29:27.740 --> 00:29:28.799 and he sees the ram, 00:29:28.899 --> 00:29:29.519 he understands 00:29:29.519 --> 00:29:30.659 God has provided. 00:29:31.659 --> 00:29:32.439 And in providing 00:29:32.439 --> 00:29:33.259 that ram 00:29:33.259 --> 00:29:34.240 that is sacrificed 00:29:34.240 --> 00:29:35.599 instead of Isaac, 00:29:36.139 --> 00:29:37.279 a happy reunion 00:29:37.279 --> 00:29:38.019 is possible 00:29:38.019 --> 00:29:39.019 between Abraham 00:29:39.019 --> 00:29:39.680 and Isaac. 00:29:40.059 --> 00:29:41.220 The ram dies 00:29:41.220 --> 00:29:42.759 and Isaac doesn't. 00:29:45.039 --> 00:29:46.220 That same principle 00:29:46.220 --> 00:29:47.399 applies to the cross. 00:29:48.879 --> 00:29:49.839 Our sin, 00:29:50.920 --> 00:29:51.440 our guilt, 00:29:51.559 --> 00:29:51.940 our shame, 00:29:52.039 --> 00:29:53.160 it separates us 00:29:53.160 --> 00:29:53.720 from God, 00:29:54.079 --> 00:29:55.160 the life with God 00:29:55.160 --> 00:29:56.220 that we were made for. 00:29:56.960 --> 00:29:57.799 And the only way 00:29:57.799 --> 00:29:58.799 for that to be healed 00:29:58.799 --> 00:30:00.119 is if God himself 00:30:00.119 --> 00:30:01.799 provides a perfect sacrifice. 00:30:02.559 --> 00:30:03.639 And that's what he does 00:30:03.639 --> 00:30:04.599 in giving us Jesus. 00:30:05.359 --> 00:30:06.259 And when Jesus dies 00:30:06.259 --> 00:30:06.879 on the cross, 00:30:06.879 --> 00:30:08.000 that shows us 00:30:08.000 --> 00:30:09.099 both that God 00:30:09.099 --> 00:30:10.379 takes sin seriously, 00:30:10.559 --> 00:30:11.920 he does holy justice 00:30:11.920 --> 00:30:13.119 against sin, 00:30:14.119 --> 00:30:15.740 but at the same time 00:30:15.740 --> 00:30:16.379 it shows us 00:30:16.379 --> 00:30:18.240 God's loving mercy 00:30:18.240 --> 00:30:19.759 towards sinners 00:30:19.759 --> 00:30:21.579 because he freely 00:30:21.579 --> 00:30:22.839 gives his beloved son 00:30:22.839 --> 00:30:23.879 to be our substitute. 00:30:25.539 --> 00:30:27.059 And then just as Abraham, 00:30:27.200 --> 00:30:27.859 as it were, 00:30:28.359 --> 00:30:28.900 Hebrews 11, 00:30:29.200 --> 00:30:30.539 receives Isaac back 00:30:30.539 --> 00:30:31.180 from the dead, 00:30:31.180 --> 00:30:34.080 God the Father, 00:30:35.440 --> 00:30:36.740 three days after Calvary, 00:30:37.220 --> 00:30:38.759 we have resurrection 00:30:38.759 --> 00:30:41.060 and we see that Jesus 00:30:41.060 --> 00:30:42.960 is back from the dead. 00:30:43.360 --> 00:30:45.340 God receives his son Jesus 00:30:45.340 --> 00:30:46.519 to the glory of heaven. 00:30:46.820 --> 00:30:47.980 He is risen in victory 00:30:47.980 --> 00:30:49.100 on the third day. 00:30:49.220 --> 00:30:50.560 And because that's true, 00:30:51.860 --> 00:30:52.440 well, you and I, 00:30:52.620 --> 00:30:53.240 we can share 00:30:53.240 --> 00:30:54.940 in his resurrection life. 00:30:56.080 --> 00:30:57.120 Because that's true, 00:30:57.200 --> 00:30:58.840 we can enjoy eternal life 00:30:58.839 --> 00:30:59.500 with God. 00:30:59.779 --> 00:31:00.779 Because that's true, 00:31:00.839 --> 00:31:02.339 we can live every day 00:31:02.339 --> 00:31:04.319 knowing Jesus 00:31:04.319 --> 00:31:05.179 with us 00:31:05.179 --> 00:31:06.299 personally. 00:31:08.459 --> 00:31:08.980 Relationship 00:31:08.980 --> 00:31:09.659 restored 00:31:09.659 --> 00:31:10.720 by sacrifice. 00:31:12.059 --> 00:31:13.259 And here's a third lesson 00:31:13.259 --> 00:31:13.699 that Abraham 00:31:13.699 --> 00:31:14.299 would have learned 00:31:14.299 --> 00:31:15.099 on that day, 00:31:16.279 --> 00:31:18.059 that God's promise 00:31:18.059 --> 00:31:20.500 through the promised child, 00:31:21.879 --> 00:31:23.379 that promise holds true. 00:31:23.380 --> 00:31:25.880 Look at verse 16 to 18 00:31:25.880 --> 00:31:27.760 and see the focus 00:31:27.760 --> 00:31:28.880 on this son. 00:31:29.440 --> 00:31:30.500 I swear by myself, 00:31:30.600 --> 00:31:31.300 declares the Lord, 00:31:31.380 --> 00:31:32.360 that because you've done this 00:31:32.360 --> 00:31:33.640 and have not withheld your son, 00:31:33.720 --> 00:31:34.680 your only son, 00:31:35.360 --> 00:31:37.600 I will surely bless you. 00:31:38.400 --> 00:31:39.040 Verse 18, 00:31:39.120 --> 00:31:40.320 and through your offspring, 00:31:40.520 --> 00:31:41.340 through your seed, 00:31:41.620 --> 00:31:42.740 all nations on earth 00:31:42.740 --> 00:31:43.380 will be blessed. 00:31:44.480 --> 00:31:45.420 So once more, 00:31:45.520 --> 00:31:47.240 God's promise is restated 00:31:47.240 --> 00:31:48.920 and the promise focuses 00:31:48.920 --> 00:31:49.620 on Isaac, 00:31:49.740 --> 00:31:51.200 this beloved son. 00:31:51.200 --> 00:31:52.299 And because Abraham 00:31:52.299 --> 00:31:53.400 didn't hold him back, 00:31:53.720 --> 00:31:54.740 the world could have hope 00:31:54.740 --> 00:31:55.720 and be saved. 00:31:57.460 --> 00:31:58.759 On Mount Calvary, 00:32:00.200 --> 00:32:01.620 God didn't hold his son back. 00:32:02.600 --> 00:32:02.980 Jesus, 00:32:03.160 --> 00:32:04.039 the beloved son, 00:32:04.279 --> 00:32:06.000 the promised seed, 00:32:06.880 --> 00:32:07.660 he will die 00:32:07.660 --> 00:32:09.660 and then rise. 00:32:10.440 --> 00:32:12.380 So that by faith in Jesus, 00:32:13.340 --> 00:32:15.580 his great promise of blessing 00:32:15.580 --> 00:32:18.620 holds true in your life and mine. 00:32:18.619 --> 00:32:21.639 Genesis 22, 00:32:21.739 --> 00:32:22.179 in other words, 00:32:22.239 --> 00:32:23.959 has always been telling 00:32:23.959 --> 00:32:25.439 a bigger story, 00:32:25.899 --> 00:32:27.419 a wonderful story 00:32:27.419 --> 00:32:29.359 of God's redeeming love, 00:32:30.199 --> 00:32:32.219 of a father giving his beloved son 00:32:32.219 --> 00:32:33.659 to die to save us. 00:32:34.139 --> 00:32:35.299 And it is this God 00:32:35.299 --> 00:32:36.000 who says to us, 00:32:36.339 --> 00:32:37.639 you can trust me. 00:32:39.059 --> 00:32:40.759 And he invites each one of us 00:32:40.759 --> 00:32:41.919 to look at Jesus, 00:32:42.739 --> 00:32:44.159 the Lamb of God, 00:32:44.679 --> 00:32:46.079 who takes away 00:32:46.079 --> 00:32:48.079 the sin of the world. 00:32:48.619 --> 00:32:52.779 Let's pray together briefly 00:32:52.779 --> 00:32:53.879 and then the boys and girls 00:32:53.879 --> 00:32:55.679 will join us again. 00:32:56.979 --> 00:32:58.959 Our God and Father, 00:32:59.219 --> 00:33:00.179 we thank you 00:33:00.179 --> 00:33:00.819 that the Bible 00:33:00.819 --> 00:33:02.319 is your story, 00:33:03.679 --> 00:33:05.779 the story of your commitment 00:33:05.779 --> 00:33:08.359 to save a people 00:33:08.359 --> 00:33:09.139 for yourself, 00:33:09.679 --> 00:33:11.659 to deal with the problem 00:33:11.659 --> 00:33:13.059 of sin and guilt, 00:33:14.139 --> 00:33:15.039 to bring us 00:33:15.039 --> 00:33:17.500 to life with God 00:33:17.500 --> 00:33:19.200 through Jesus. 00:33:20.420 --> 00:33:21.440 And we thank you 00:33:21.440 --> 00:33:22.920 for lessons 00:33:22.920 --> 00:33:23.740 that Abraham 00:33:23.740 --> 00:33:24.940 was able to learn 00:33:24.940 --> 00:33:27.180 about your faithfulness 00:33:27.180 --> 00:33:28.059 and your love, 00:33:29.099 --> 00:33:30.659 even in this hardest 00:33:30.659 --> 00:33:32.799 of times 00:33:32.799 --> 00:33:33.480 of testing 00:33:33.480 --> 00:33:34.079 of his faith. 00:33:35.079 --> 00:33:35.399 Lord, 00:33:35.460 --> 00:33:36.200 when our faith 00:33:36.200 --> 00:33:36.920 is tested, 00:33:37.799 --> 00:33:38.819 help us to look 00:33:38.819 --> 00:33:39.440 beyond 00:33:39.440 --> 00:33:41.559 the circumstance 00:33:41.559 --> 00:33:43.220 to you 00:33:43.220 --> 00:33:43.960 as Father, 00:33:44.140 --> 00:33:44.660 to Jesus 00:33:44.660 --> 00:33:45.360 our Savior, 00:33:45.500 --> 00:33:46.420 to see that you 00:33:46.420 --> 00:33:47.559 have provided 00:33:47.559 --> 00:33:48.299 salvation. 00:33:50.100 --> 00:33:50.480 Lord, 00:33:50.580 --> 00:33:51.240 may we love 00:33:51.240 --> 00:33:51.960 this chapter 00:33:51.960 --> 00:33:52.580 because we 00:33:52.580 --> 00:33:54.640 see how it points 00:33:54.640 --> 00:33:55.059 us 00:33:55.059 --> 00:33:56.340 to Jesus 00:33:56.340 --> 00:33:57.480 and to the gospel 00:33:57.480 --> 00:33:59.360 and to the hope 00:33:59.360 --> 00:34:00.559 of life 00:34:00.559 --> 00:34:01.140 and blessing 00:34:01.140 --> 00:34:01.720 from you. 00:34:01.720 --> 00:34:03.299 and Lord, 00:34:03.360 --> 00:34:03.880 as we shortly 00:34:03.880 --> 00:34:04.400 turn 00:34:04.400 --> 00:34:05.880 to the Lord's 00:34:05.880 --> 00:34:06.200 Supper, 00:34:06.819 --> 00:34:07.860 as we see 00:34:07.860 --> 00:34:10.000 in the bread 00:34:10.000 --> 00:34:10.519 and the wine 00:34:10.519 --> 00:34:11.659 Jesus' commitment 00:34:11.659 --> 00:34:12.659 to save a people 00:34:12.659 --> 00:34:13.420 for himself, 00:34:14.220 --> 00:34:15.280 may you fill our hearts 00:34:15.280 --> 00:34:15.800 with a sense 00:34:15.800 --> 00:34:16.679 of thankfulness. 00:34:17.179 --> 00:34:18.679 We pray it in Jesus' name. 00:34:19.220 --> 00:34:19.619 Amen.