312 - The Foreshadowing of Abraham Offering Isaac#
312 - The Foreshadowing of Abraham Offering Isaac
(JP Text Group - Organized by the Little Prince of Heaven)
Genesis 22:6-14
Abraham took the wood for the burnt offering and placed it on his son Isaac, and he himself carried the fire and the knife. As the two of them went on together, Isaac spoke up and said to his father Abraham, “Father!” “Yes, my son?” Abraham replied. “The fire and wood are here,” Isaac said, “but where is the lamb for the burnt offering?” Abraham answered, “God himself will provide the lamb for the burnt offering, my son.” And the two of them went on together. When they reached the place God had told him about, Abraham built an altar there and arranged the wood on it. He bound his son Isaac and laid him on the altar, on top of the wood. Then he reached out his hand and took the knife to slay his son.
But the angel of the Lord called out to him from heaven, “Abraham! Abraham!” “Here I am,” he replied. “Do not lay a hand on the boy,” he said. “Do not do anything to him. Now I know that you fear God, because you have not withheld from me your son, your only son.” Abraham looked up and there in the thicket he saw a ram caught by its horns; he went over and took the ram and sacrificed it as a burnt offering instead of his son. So Abraham called that place “The Lord Will Provide.” And to this day it is said, “On the mountain of the Lord it will be provided.”
Let’s pray together
Heavenly Father, thank you and praise you! As we begin a new week, we come before you to receive your provision and word. Speak to each of us through your word, let us encounter the resurrected Jesus in the scriptures, and be renewed in strength through this word. Today, as we learn how Abraham loved his son Isaac, we understand how you love Jesus, and you will love us in the same way. Through this word, renew our thoughts and minds. Lead us in the following time, Holy Spirit help us, we pray in the name of our Lord Jesus. Amen!
The topic we are sharing is: The Foreshadowing of Abraham Offering Isaac
From our last sharing, we talked about many foreshadowings of Jesus in the Old Testament. Think about this story, it is about Isaac carrying the wood and walking towards Mount Moriah. Many people may not understand this story; why would God want to offer His own son as a burnt offering?
If one does not understand, someone might ask: Would you be willing to offer your son? Would you be willing to give up your possessions? Would you be willing to give everything?
Actually, this is where the problem lies; God’s intention is absolutely not this. Brothers and sisters, through today’s scripture, I will tell you what to understand from it. The entire passage of Genesis 22 is actually a story about the gospel of God’s son. It cannot be seen as what you should offer to God; what can you offer to God? Even if you give your possessions to God, can you exchange that for your life? No, you cannot. After reading the entire chapter 22, you will understand that God sent His only beloved son Jesus, who carried the heavy cross up to Golgotha, which is the same mountain, and He reached the highest peak, as is well known. He offered Himself for the sins of all humanity; this is a very beautiful picture, and you need to see this point through today’s text.
In Genesis 22:2, God said, “Take your son, your only son, whom you love—Isaac—and go to the region of Moriah. Sacrifice him there as a burnt offering.”
Did Abraham really love Isaac? Can you imagine how much he loved Isaac?
Today, many people do not have children when they are young, but suddenly have a son when they are old. Do you know how much they would love that child? I believe some of you have friends in this situation. If you had a child when you were young, you might not cherish them as much as when you have a child later in life. Was Abraham like that? Actually, Abraham’s descendants lacked a generation; this child should have called him grandfather, but there was no generation in between. He had a son at a hundred years old; how much did he love this son?
This is the content we want to meditate on this week. Think about how much Abraham loved Isaac. Would he be willing to give everything to Isaac? God said to offer your son to me; if it were possible to exchange, Abraham would rather offer himself on that altar than let his son die. This shows Abraham’s love for Isaac.
Did God know he loved Isaac? There are two adjectives in the two phrases: “your son, your only son.” If there were a bunch of sons, offering one would not be so painful; the problem is that this is the only one, isn’t it particularly cherished? It is mentioned again, “whom you love—Isaac.” This proves that Isaac had a good relationship with him, right? Very good. If a child is disobedient, we might say, “Let’s just offer him; he will have to be offered sooner or later.” But now this child is very obedient and very loved by Abraham. At this moment, God says to offer him to me; go to Mount Moriah and sacrifice him as a burnt offering.
Brothers and sisters, do you know what a burnt offering is? The first offering mentioned in Leviticus is the burnt offering. What does the burnt offering mean? Now I ask you a question: When God asked Abraham to offer a burnt offering, was there a law? Did people know about sin at that time? No, they did not, because there was no law.
First, you need to know one thing: a burnt offering is not specifically offered for sin atonement; it is definitely different from that. What exactly is a burnt offering? Is there a difference between a burnt offering and a sin offering? Today I will talk to you about this burnt offering. Some people just said that the burnt offering is cut into pieces and offered, as mentioned in Leviticus. Let’s see what the characteristics of the burnt offering are after God told Moses.
Leviticus 1:1-4
The Lord called to Moses from the tent of meeting and said, “Speak to the Israelites and say to them: ‘When any of you brings an offering to the Lord, bring as your offering an animal from either the herd or the flock. If the offering is a burnt offering from the herd, you are to offer a male without defect at the entrance to the tent of meeting, so that it will be accepted on your behalf. You are to lay your hand on the head of the burnt offering, and it will be accepted on your behalf to make atonement for you.”
When reading Leviticus, you may find that many offerings mention atonement; what is the specific difference? Today I will talk about the characteristics of the burnt offering. The first characteristic of the burnt offering is that the offering is a bull or a sheep, and the bull or sheep must be a perfect sacrifice without defect before God. When the burnt offering is presented before God, it achieves two results. The first is that the person offering it is accepted by God. The characteristic of the burnt offering is that when you offer this sacrifice, you are accepted by God because of this sacrifice. The second function is that it can atone for him.
Brothers and sisters, remember these two characteristics, and you will clearly understand what the characteristics of the burnt offering are. The sin offering and the burnt offering are actually different. The sin offering will not cause God to accept you just because you offer a sacrifice; it only allows you to be forgiven through this sacrifice. However, the characteristic of the burnt offering is that after you offer it, God begins to accept you because of this sacrifice. Do you see the difference? It is important to understand the true purpose of the burnt offering: to have those who seek God accepted by God. It actually refers to completely offering oneself before God, acknowledging that we belong to God, and unreservedly giving ourselves to God.
Now can you understand? Is Abraham offering Isaac for this purpose? God wants Abraham to completely offer his son before God; Jesus did the same by completely offering Himself before the Father. Have you ever thought about, according to the burnt offering regulations I just mentioned, when Jesus offered Himself, who was accepted? You were accepted by God. Amen! Now do you know why you are blessed? Because this sacrifice is without defect, when this sacrifice is presented before God and becomes a burnt offering, you are accepted by God. Amen! When Abel offered a burnt offering, the Bible mentions that the Lord accepted Abel and his offering, and also Noah; let’s look at Noah’s example.
Genesis 8:20-22
Then Noah built an altar to the Lord and, taking some of all the clean animals and clean birds, he sacrificed burnt offerings on it. The Lord smelled the pleasing aroma and said in his heart: “Never again will I curse the ground because of humans, even though every inclination of the human heart is evil from childhood. And never again will I destroy all living creatures, as I have done. As long as the earth endures, seedtime and harvest, cold and heat, summer and winter, day and night will never cease.”
Is there sin in this offering? In the sin offering, the hand must be laid on the sacrifice, and then all the sins are transferred to this sacrifice; this is the characteristic of the sin offering, right? Did God say that when the sin offering is burned on the altar, He smells the pleasing aroma? No, but the burnt offering does. The forms seem similar; both require laying on of hands, but when offering a burnt offering to God, God says, “Through this sacrifice, I accept you,” and I smell the pleasing aroma of the sacrifice. At that time, Noah offered a burnt offering to God, and the Lord smelled the pleasing aroma and then said, “I will not curse the ground because of humans.” Was Noah and his family accepted because of this sacrifice? This is the burnt offering.
Brothers and sisters, God establishes a connection with people through the burnt offering and blesses them. After Adam and his family sinned, didn’t human sin remain on them? God cannot connect directly with sin; there must first be a mediator to remove these things. How to do it? God said, “When you lay your hand on the sacrifice, this sacrifice is without sin; because of this sacrifice, I can bless you.” What I mean to say is that our God is full of love; He tries every means to bless you. Amen! Although you have many problems, when you are willing to come before God, He is willing to bless you, and He must satisfy His justice. You have problems; you may have defects, diseases… but this sacrifice is perfect, and God accepts you because of this sacrifice; this is the burnt offering. Amen!
Now do you understand why they must offer sacrifices? Why was Cain not accepted by God? There was something missing; it was not because of Cain’s sin, but because he had no sacrifice to connect him. His problem was exposed before God, and God could not directly bless him or accept him. Amen! When Abel offered this sacrifice, God not only accepted this sacrifice but also accepted Abel himself. In the scripture we just read, a particularly important word is mentioned: he is to lay his hand on the head of the burnt offering. Brothers and sisters, he is to lay his hand on the head of the burnt offering, and the burnt offering will be accepted to atone for him. There is a very important thing here called laying on of hands.
Let me ask you a question: After the law of Moses was given in the Old Testament, if a person is unclean, what happens when you lay your hand on him? You also become unclean. But there are many holy altars and holy items in the Bible, right? For example, the altar, the incense burner, etc. If you are unclean and touch this clean object, does this object become unclean? No, you become clean because of these holy objects. For example, the ashes of the red heifer; if you are unclean, the ashes of the red heifer can make you clean. Now I tell you that this burnt offering is related to you.
Just now, Leviticus 1:4 says, “He is to lay his hand on the head of the burnt offering.” When the person offering it brings the burnt offering before God, he must lay his hand on the head of his burnt offering. Do you know what this means? Whether it is a bull or a sheep… when these are brought to the entrance of the tent of meeting and given to the priest, he must perform an action called laying on of hands. Why do this? To transfer sin to it? Wrong. Just now I mentioned that the sin offering has this function, which is to transfer your sin to the sacrifice, but the burnt offering does not mention this. Why? You only need to remember one thing: you are to lay your hand on the head of the sacrifice. When you lay your hand on the sacrifice, a change occurs.
The laying on of hands in the Bible has several meanings: the first is union, the second is blessing, and the third is communication, which includes acknowledgment and acceptance. Today, in the burnt offering, laying on of hands signifies union. Do you remember? The sin offering is not union; the sin offering is transfer. Now he is clean; I lay my hand on him, and all my sins are transferred to him; he now becomes sin for me, and I am cleansed. But the burnt offering is union; union means you and the sacrifice become one. When God sees this sacrifice as perfect and clean, it is as if you are also holy and clean. In this case, God no longer sees your sin. Do you understand?
Before laying on of hands, you are you, and the sacrifice is still the sacrifice, but after you lay on hands, although it seems that you have only placed your hand on it, in God’s eyes, you have become one. Even later, when your hand is removed, and this sacrifice is placed on the altar and burned, you go home; it seems that you have separated, but in God’s eyes, you are still one. So this is a very important point: after laying on hands, the sacrifice is handed over to the priest. This shows us that he not only hands over the sacrifice to the priest but also the person offering the sacrifice is handed over to the priest. Amen!
Now think about this: if we were people under the Old Testament, bringing a bull to the priest and then offering a burnt offering, when we lay our hands on the burnt offering, because this burnt offering is very clean and without defect, it is accepted by God. You must confirm one thing: you are also accepted by God. Amen! We are one with this sacrifice. After laying on hands, this is our appearance before God.
Therefore, the sacrifice must be without defect; it must be burned on the altar, becoming a pleasing fire offering, accepted by God. This is the acceptance of this sacrifice; when God smells this pleasing aroma, He says, “I like it.” In fact, it also means that God is pleased with you. Amen! So every time the Bible mentions the burnt offering, God will say, “I smell this pleasing aroma.” This means that God acknowledges that He has accepted you. Hallelujah! Not only the sacrifice but also the other person who is one with the sacrifice.
When I talk about this, do you understand what I am saying? The five-in-one sacrifice is actually Jesus. When you acknowledge Jesus as your Lord, Jesus is actually the burnt offering presented before the Father. Jesus is accepted by God; this is something you all know very well. The Bible also says, “You are my beloved Son; with you I am well pleased.” But do you know that He is your burnt offering? If you know He is your burnt offering, you should believe this: I have also raised my hand before Jesus and said, “Lord! I am willing to give my life to you,” and I know that I am one with you in Christ. Our Heavenly Father loves Jesus so much, and He loves you just as much. This is the burnt offering. Do you understand?
In the past, did no one explain this burnt offering to you? Because when you read here, you might say, “What does this mean? Offering sacrifices every day, it’s either for sin or accepted by God; they all seem similar.” The difference is very significant, you know? In the Old Testament, if you were unclean, when you laid your hand on him, you became unclean. But the opposite happened when Jesus came; what happened to the unclean object after Jesus touched it? It became clean.
This is the burnt offering; it doesn’t matter if you are unclean; just ensure that the burnt offering you present is clean, and that is enough. As long as you touch that sacrifice, you will be clean. So God says, “This sacrifice atones for you; you have become one with it.” You must focus on that sacrifice; as long as you ensure that this sacrifice is accepted by God, is without defect, and meets God’s standards, that is enough. You lay your hand on it, and you are clean; you are accepted by God; you are blessed by God. Hallelujah!
So, in this sense, you must understand that Jesus is your burnt offering. Moreover, there is another reason: do you know that the burnt offering must be offered twice a day? Once in the morning and once in the evening, a burnt offering must be offered. Why doesn’t God say that the sin offering must be offered three times a day? There is none; the burnt offering must be offered twice a day, and during every festival, the burnt offering is almost offered together with other offerings. Why is that? The reason is very simple: because the burnt offering represents God’s righteousness. When you are united with God’s righteousness, God’s righteousness is upon you. God hopes that you remember His righteousness every day.
Now Jesus is your burnt offering; Jesus’ righteousness is upon you. Therefore, God hopes that you remember Jesus as your burnt offering morning and evening; He is accepted by God, and thus you are also accepted by God. You should remember this twice a day. Amen! God does not want you to remember your sins every day; He wants you to often remember His righteousness upon you. Hallelujah! This is why the burnt offering must be offered so many times.
The burnt offering is to be offered in the morning and evening, and when offering the burnt offering, God told them to prepare enough wood. The priests responsible for the offerings must be properly dressed and keep the fire on the altar burning at all times. The burnt offering occupies a very important position during all festivals. The continual burnt offering is mentioned in Leviticus, once in the morning and once in the evening, and each time a male lamb must be offered. Now you understand; let’s return to today’s text because this is too important. If you do not understand what the burnt offering is, you might think God is so cruel; that child is only a teenager, at such a lovely age, and He wants to put him on that altar to be killed. This way of thinking is incorrect.
Let me ask you a question: Do you understand the regulations of sacrifices in Leviticus? Did Isaac meet the standards of a burnt offering? No, Isaac had sin, so he could not be offered. But why did God want Abraham to do this? Abraham also knew that to offer a burnt offering, he had to choose a qualified lamb, but this time God did something very peculiar: “Offer your son as a burnt offering to me.” In fact, Abraham knew that this was something God had prepared; God wanted him to experience His greater grace and miracles. So Abraham knew that today he would experience God’s greater power, and in his heart, he thought that even if his son died, he would be resurrected. This was Abraham’s faith.
Genesis 22:6, Abraham took the wood for the burnt offering and placed it on his son Isaac, and he himself carried the fire and the knife. As the two of them went on together.
In the previous two shares, I mentioned that Jesus in the Old Testament is hidden. Look at this sentence; who foreshadows Jesus? Isaac, he carried the wood up the mountain. You should remember that Jesus also carried the wood up the mountain once; isn’t it exactly the same? The next sentence, Abraham carried the fire and the knife. What are the fire and the knife for? For judgment. When Jesus was hung on the cross, who was the judge? Our Heavenly Father. Now I want to tell you another thing: as the two of them went on together. We might think that when Jesus was carrying the cross up to Golgotha, none of the disciples were around; only a few women were following from a distance, not daring to get too close.
But at this moment, from Jesus’ perspective, who was with Him? The Father was with Him. Today I tell you that even if everyone in the world betrays you and wrongs you, remember one thing: the Father is with you; the Holy Spirit is with you. Even if everyone in the world falsely accuses you, the Father is with you. Hallelujah! You are not going downhill; you are going uphill.
Isaac is the offering, Abraham is the priest, and our Heavenly Father is the acceptor. Now imagine Abraham’s situation; at this moment, how reluctant he is to part with his beloved only son. The key is that this child is asking questions. Let’s look at Genesis 22:7, Isaac spoke up and said to his father Abraham, “Father!” “Yes, my son?” Abraham replied. “The fire and wood are here,” Isaac said, “but where is the lamb for the burnt offering?”
Brothers and sisters, now you can recall this scene. How reluctant Abraham was to part with this child. The son seems to not know that he is the offering, looking at his father with very innocent eyes and saying, “Father! The wood is ready, but where is the lamb?” They are going to offer a burnt offering. He has known since childhood how his father offers burnt offerings. At this moment, what is Abraham’s heart like? His heart is broken; perhaps this word cannot even describe the Father’s heart. He truly loves Jesus; this is His only beloved Son, yet He still let Him go. Brothers and sisters, you see, Abraham said, “The Lord will provide.”
Let’s look at verse 8, Abraham said, “God himself will provide the lamb for the burnt offering, my son.” And the two of them went on together.
Actually, do you know who the lamb refers to in Abraham’s words at this moment? Isaac. A father knows he is to offer his son as a burnt offering; how much pain must he endure to say this to his son? This is something we might not understand. When our Heavenly Father sent Jesus down, it was this kind of feeling: “Go into the world and offer yourself as a burnt offering for humanity.” But at this moment, Jesus said, “I am willing.” So when the son says he is willing, what is the father’s heart like? Especially reluctant. Abraham also explained to his son that the burnt offering is him, and so the two of them went on together. This is the last part of verse 8. When Abraham tells Isaac that the Lord will provide the lamb, he will immediately explain, “My son, you are actually the lamb for the burnt offering.”
Do you know that Isaac is a representative of obedience in the Bible? If Isaac knew that his father was going to kill him and offer him as a burnt offering, any son with a little disbelief or disobedience would refuse. However, the Bible does not mention that Isaac was unwilling; it immediately mentions that Abraham bound his son Isaac and laid him on the altar. You need to meditate on this process. At this moment, for the son, he only needs to believe his father; however, the one under the greatest pressure and reluctance is the father. For us, receiving the father’s blessing is taken for granted; the father is willing to give you everything, but he is even more unwilling to be separated from you.
Brothers and sisters, I want to say that Isaac completely entrusted himself to his father’s hands. Those who are obedient will surely be blessed. I hope every brother and sister will be obedient before God like Isaac. There are many spiritual predecessors in the Bible who were blessed. In life, throughout their lives, only Isaac faced almost no major storms. His only major storm was this one: when his father was to offer him as a burnt offering. At this moment, this child only needs to do one thing: “Father! Since this is God’s will, I am willing.” This would have ended it, but what is the father’s heart like? It is broken. Brothers and sisters, let’s look at when Abraham placed Isaac on the wood and reached out his hand to kill him.
Genesis 22:11-12
But the angel of the Lord called out to him from heaven, “Abraham! Abraham!” “Here I am,” he replied. “Do not lay a hand on the boy,” he said. “Do not do anything to him. Now I know that you fear God, because you have not withheld from me your son, your only son.”
What does this statement mean? Let me ask you a question: Did God want his son to be offered as a burnt offering? Was it offered? It was already offered. Later, the angel also said, “Do not lay a hand on this child,” because now I know you fear God, for you have not withheld your son, your only son, from me. This is a negative that brings a positive, right? God tells Abraham, “You have already offered your son to me.” This is rare. Amen! Then it mentions something I want to tell you: God did not want Isaac, but Abraham turned around and saw.
In Genesis 22:13, Abraham looked up and there in the thicket he saw a ram caught by its horns; he went over and took the ram and sacrificed it as a burnt offering instead of his son.
When I read this, I believe Abraham saw a vision. Do you know what this means? Here is Abraham’s son, but after the angel spoke to him, the angel should have let him see a vision. When he looked up, he might have seen that ram caught in the bushes. Do you know what Abraham saw? In the vision, he saw the scene of Jesus on the cross three thousand years later. Do you know what this means? Some might say, “You are just guessing.” Let’s look at a passage of scripture.
John 8:56-58
“Your father Abraham rejoiced at the thought of seeing my day; he saw it and was glad.” “You are not yet fifty years old,” they said to him, “and you have seen Abraham!” “Very truly I tell you,” Jesus answered, “before Abraham was born, I am!”
Abraham rejoiced at the thought of seeing my day; what day is that? It is actually today. When he placed his son Isaac on the wood, after the angel spoke to him, he saw that lamb. Let me ask you a question: Is that lamb a foreshadowing of Jesus? Yes, that’s right. So Abraham saw a vision, and now Jesus gives us the testimony that “Your father Abraham rejoiced at my day.” Today we say that Abraham looked up and saw Jesus.
You can imagine the ram’s horns entangled in the dense bushes; what Abraham saw was Jesus wearing a crown of thorns, right? Now He is nailed to the wood, becoming our sacrifice. So God did not want Isaac.
Then Abraham took that ram and offered it instead of his son, so later when Moses promulgated the law, God once said, “You shall redeem your firstborn son with a lamb,” which also means this. Brothers and sisters, why was Abraham so happy that day? Because he saw the cross on Mount Moriah, a vision about Jesus. He was very happy to see the day of this vision; in fact, he had already seen that God had offered His only beloved Son nailed to the cross. So he named that place “The Lord Will Provide.” Let’s look at
Genesis 22:13-14
Abraham looked up and there in the thicket he saw a ram caught by its horns; he went over and took the ram and sacrificed it as a burnt offering instead of his son. So Abraham called that place “The Lord Will Provide” (which means the Lord will provide), and to this day it is said, “On the mountain of the Lord it will be provided.”
Isn’t this clear to everyone? But today I want to tell you another meaning of this statement. When Abraham saw this ram, he knew that this ram died instead of his son. If this ram had not appeared, his son would have died. But now this ram has replaced his son. What Abraham saw was that the Son of God, Jesus, died instead of us. He saw this vision. Brothers and sisters, do you know that you are blessed? The Lord Will Provide; this statement in the original Greek also has another meaning: the Lord has seen.
Do you know what our Heavenly Father sees from above? He saw that Isaac had already been offered; He saw that ram, His only Son, Jesus, had also been offered. I have told you before that our God has no concept of time and space; He sees that when Abraham offers the sacrifice, He knows that His Son has also been offered. So it is the Lord who has seen. Many people only know that the Lord Will Provide means God will provide, but today I want to tell you another meaning: you must remember that the Lord has seen. Every time you mention the righteousness of Jesus upon you, you must remember the Lord Will Provide; God has seen. Amen!
Every time you pray in the name of the Lord Jesus, remember that God has seen. Do not say that God has not heard or does not know where He is. No, because of Jesus, He has seen; He has seen your suffering, heard your suffering, and will use His Son to replace your suffering. This is something we must understand today. Many people only say that God has provision, that God provides all kinds of abundant things for me, and they overinterpret the meaning of this statement. God has indeed provided His Son for us, but here the more important expression is that God has seen. He has seen that Jesus is already on the cross, has already become our sacrifice. Because of this burnt offering, those who believe in Jesus Christ, this sacrifice, are all accepted by God.
One of the heresies is called universal salvation theory. They say God is love. Are we not talking about God’s love now? God truly loves us. Some say God is love, so there is no hell in this world, and there is no punishment from God. God cannot punish you because God is love; He cannot let you go to hell. Is this correct? If God is such love, Jesus would not need to come; He would not need to become our burnt offering, which would not reflect God’s justice. Therefore, when listening to the word, you must have discernment. Many people like that kind of teaching because it sounds easy, but it does not conform to the Bible.
Let me tell you why the universal salvation theory is wrong. Because we must believe that we are sinners, we are sinners, and then we lay our hands on Jesus and unite with Him; our sins are transferred to Him. This is the sin offering. We are united with Jesus; His righteousness is upon us, and we are accepted by God. Only those who are willing to raise their hands and believe in Jesus can become one with Jesus; this is necessary. You cannot say, “I know the burnt offering has this effect, but I am unwilling to offer it.” If you do not believe in the efficacy of this burnt offering, it will not happen. Therefore, when you bring the sacrifice to the priest, you must lay your hand on it, which means you are united with the sacrifice.
Do you believe that you are united with Jesus, that you are one with Him? Then you must believe that God has seen. Today’s union is more accurately expressed because in the past, during the Old Testament, they laid their hands on the sacrifice and went back, thinking, “I have separated from the sacrifice.” But today, the Holy Spirit dwells in your heart, and you are absolutely one, forever one. You should confirm that God accepts you. This is a gift that our Heavenly Father desperately wants to give to the world: to offer His beloved Son as a burnt offering, as a sacrifice for us. God said to Abraham, “Now I know that you fear me, because you have not withheld your son, your only son, from me.”
Do you know why God said this? The reason God said this must be correctly understood, and you can confidently say before the Father, “Loving Father! Now I know you love me because you did not withhold your Son, your only Son, from me. You love your Son so much, yet you abandoned Him to die on the cross for me.” Do you understand? This is something we need to understand. I hope everyone will say this sentence with me, just insert Jesus into the sentence marked now, and make a declaration to the Father. Please place your hands on your chest and say with me: “Loving Father! Now I know you love me because you did not withhold your Son, your only Son, from me. You love your Son so much, yet you abandoned Him to die on the cross for me. I know you love me.” Hallelujah!
The cross is definitely not a decoration; it is to show you what the Father has done for you. That is real evidence. Amen! You need to immerse yourself in God’s love because to fulfill His justice, God must abandon His Son. In Isaiah 53, it says, “It was the Lord’s will to crush him.” Do you know what it means to be determined? No matter how you treat Him, even if you say, “I don’t believe you,” or “I hate you,” one day you will turn back. God says, “I have prepared a sacrifice for you.” This is called determination; no matter how people treat Him, no matter how they come and go, God says, “I have determined to crush my Son and give Him as a sacrifice for you.” Hallelujah!
Today, I have only talked about the burnt offering; the other offerings are equally important. God particularly wants you to remember the burnt offering, which you must remember twice a day. Amen! Jesus is your righteousness; He is your holiness. Hallelujah! Because the Father loves Jesus, and you are united with Jesus, the Father also loves you just as He loves Jesus. We may not be able to comprehend how much the Father loves Jesus, but at least you can understand how much Abraham loved Isaac. Amen! That feeling of reluctance is actually the Father’s reluctance towards you. To save you, He must fulfill His justice, so He let His beloved Son die for you. This is what we need to understand.
In the Old Testament, there are many shadows and foreshadowings of Jesus. When we understand this, we know that the Father loves us so much. So my dear friends, in this world, it may be impossible to understand how much the Father loves us unless you understand how much the Father loves Jesus. When we read the Bible, listen to the word, and meditate, we are constantly understanding how much God loves Jesus. Some say the Bible is written about Jesus; what does it have to do with me? If you understand how much the Father loves Jesus, you will know that God loves you just like He loves Jesus because you have laid your hands on Jesus, and you are one with Jesus. In our Heavenly Father’s eyes, you are an inseparable entity. Similarly, you should look at the people around you with this love and perspective: Are we one?
How much God loves Jesus is how much He loves the church. The church is not a building but a group of people redeemed by the precious blood of Jesus. Hallelujah! We are all loved by God. Do not forget that when Abraham offered Isaac, God stopped him. But when Jesus offered Himself as a sacrifice on the cross, God did not stop Him. Even more people said, “Come down! Aren’t you powerful? You saved so many people; if you come down from the cross, I will believe you.” Who understands the Father’s love? That is why I particularly like “The Passion of the Christ.” When Jesus was on the cross, a tear from the Father fell from heaven. I think in reality, the Father’s tears might be many; He truly did not want to part with this child, yet He redeemed us. That is because He wants to save you; this is the evidence of His love for you. Hallelujah!
If you hold this love in your heart, can you not forgive your brothers, your family when they make mistakes? No problem; in the face of this love, all disputes will disappear. Amen! The story of Abraham offering Isaac is just God’s love for us. This story shows us the painful suffering and heartbreak that the Father experienced. Therefore, the Father loves us; He paid a great price. Today, you are qualified to receive such abundant blessings from God. Amen! This blessing is definitely not cheap; it is the price of Jesus. Hallelujah! Thank you and praise the Lord!
So as the Father, offering His most precious beloved Son, Jesus Christ, to redeem us from sin, the only way to save us is to transfer all our sins to Jesus and let Jesus’ righteousness be upon us, making us one with Jesus. Jesus is that lamb; the lamb in the bushes is a trap set by God… whether we say it is a “trap” or a dilemma, and then let this lamb be inside, and this lamb willingly entered that “trap.” Do you understand? This is the Father’s love. The Father says, “I will set a ‘trap’ for you,” and His Son says, “I am willing to go in, for whom? For me.” They both know that the purpose of the Father setting this “trap” is to save us, and His Son says, “I am willing to enter that ‘trap’; I am also willing to die, also to save us.”
Whether it is the Father, the Son, or the Holy Spirit, they all love you. Hallelujah! Today, the Holy Spirit dwells in your heart, reminding you at all times how much Jesus loves you, how much the Father loves Jesus. When you understand this, you will know how much Jesus loves you. The triune God loves you so much. Every day, when you immerse yourself in this love, the people of this world cannot hurt you because in such abundant love from God, you are filled with joy and peace. Every time you see Jesus in the Bible, see His love, see His suffering and sacrifice, your heart will surely become fervent, just like the two disciples on the road to Emmaus, whose hearts burned when they heard Jesus explain. Amen!
I also hope that today’s words will help you. When you feel discouraged, anxious, wronged, or frustrated, let the love of Christ fill your heart, and your heart will become fervent. Hallelujah! I hope brothers and sisters will see these hidden Jesus in the Old Testament when reading the Bible, encounter Jesus in His words, and let His love fill your heart. I believe that when you understand this love of God, power will fill you, and you will find rest in His love. I will pray for you, so you will also experience a rest like that of the two disciples, just like I shared last time. The meaning of Emmaus is hot spring; these two disciples were soaking in the hot spring, and they would surely become fervent. When we continually understand the love of Jesus and the love of the Father, your hearts will also become fervent, and you will see Jesus in the Bible and experience His love in life. Hallelujah!
Let’s pray together
Heavenly Father, thank you and praise you, Lord! Thank you for leading us today through the story of Isaac, knowing that this is the price Jesus paid for us. When Abraham offered his son Isaac, the angel stopped him, but when we were sinful, the Father had already prepared Jesus to be offered for me. I know that I am one with Jesus in Christ; I understand what true unity means: it is I in Jesus, and Jesus in me; I am with Jesus, and His righteousness is upon me. How much the Father loves Jesus is how much He loves me. Thank you, Father! Thank you for letting me understand this love of the Father at the beginning of this new week, knowing that you love me so much. I am willing to live out this love in the world. Today I have received it. Father! Thank you and praise you! All glory be to you! I pray in the name of the Lord Jesus. Amen!