Abrahamic test
Gen. 22
1 And it came to pass after these things, that God did tempt
Abraham, and said unto him, Abraham: and he said, Behold, here I am.
2 And he said, Take now thy son, thine only son Isaac,
whom thou lovest, and get thee into the land of Moriah; and offer him there for
a burnt offering upon one of the mountains which I will tell thee of.
Why is God
tempting Abraham? Or is He? In the Hebrew (nis·sāh) means test or prove, which
is different from our modern understanding of the KJV translation of this word as
to “tempt”. This contrast of understanding is a refining or proving of Abraham,
which is for his benefit.
So what is
the test? Has not Abram or Abraham to this point not already proven himself
faithful in believing God? What does he yet have to learn about God or even
what does he have to learn about himself?
Why would a
loving God, after all of the struggle to receive the blessing of Isaac, through
Sarah in their old age, ask such a command to now sacrifice his son? This is
the son, through whom the covenant blessings would pass. Did God change His mind? I wonder what might
have passed through our minds had we been the ones in Abraham’s sandals?
In hind
sight, we see that all of this was to be a type and a shadow of things to come
in the Messiah. In this similitude, or likeness, we see the meaning behind sacrifice,
Passover, death and resurrection. This command to sacrifice Isaac acts as a
messianic prophecy of the true sacrifice that would be offered for the redemption
of our souls. This redemption was promised to Adam and Eve in the garden, after
their fall. In the garden, the first sacrifice was made by the Lord and coats
of skin were given to Adam and Eve as a covering. Christ’s sacrifice covers
each one of us. He is the true ram in the thicket, or the unspotted lamb. He is
the First and the Last. The true, great and last sacrifice.
Alma 34
10 For it is expedient that there should be a great and
last sacrifice; yea, not a sacrifice of man, neither of beast, neither of any
manner of fowl; for it shall not be a human sacrifice; but it must be an
infinite and eternal sacrifice.
In the beginning,
Abel offered up unto God the firstlings of his flock. In this similitude, the
lamb represents Christ as He is the firstborn and the only begotten of the
Father. He also represents the first fruits. In Israel, the appointed times,
the feasts and festivals, were all a type and shadow, pointing to the Messiah
that was to come to save the people. Just as He had saved them physically, time
and time again, He would come to redeem them spiritually.
Gen. 22
6 And Abraham took the wood of the burnt offering, and laid
it upon Isaac his son; and he took the fire in his hand, and a knife; and they
went both of them together.
7 And Isaac spake unto Abraham his father, and said, “My
father”, and he said, “Here am I, my son.” And Isaac said, “Behold the fire and
the wood: but where is the lamb for a burnt offering?”
8 And Abraham said, “My son, God will provide Himself a
lamb for a burnt offering”, so they went both of them together.
What did Abraham
believe then? He had confidence that God would provide Himself a lamb for a sacrifice.
The true sacrifice to come would be a male without blemish. (1 Pet 1:19) We
learn in John 8:56 that Abraham saw the day of the Lord and rejoiced taking
comfort in the fulfillment of the promised Messiah. Much later, John the
Baptist would then prophecy at Christ’s baptism, saying in John 1:29 “Behold
the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world.”
In the
wilderness of our affliction, (Jehovah-Jireh) “The Lord will provide”. For the Israelites,
many signs were shown pointing to the Messiah. In the wilderness, He provided
the manna from heaven. This was a type for Christ wherein He is the Bread of
Life. Christ is also our Rock. He was smitten for us that we might partake of
the Living Waters of Life. This was also done by Moses in the wilderness when
he smote the rock, water came out of it. The greatest of their symbols was the Passover
itself, wherein the firstborn was slain in all of Egypt, unless the places of
habitation were covered by the blood of the lamb, which represents the blood of
Christ that covers each one of us.
We also see,
through Abraham, the preparation of the wood and laying it upon Isaac his son,
a symbol of the tool of Christ’s death in the cross and the burden of it that
he carried. The fire that purges us of the
bad, and purifies the good. A knife that
kills the natural man, but pierces the hearts of the soul unto life,
represented by His Word.
The altar is
made from unhewn stones to show that no hand or tool was used to lay it, to
take any power unto ourselves. These like ourselves, must be living stones (1
Peter 2), in laying a foundation. They represent Israel, or rather, God’s people.
Christ represents the chief foundation stone, or rock of Israel, and also the sacrificial
lamb.
Gen. 22
15 ¶ And the angel of the Lord called unto Abraham out
of heaven the second time,
16 And said, By myself have I sworn, saith the Lord,
for because thou hast done this thing, and hast not withheld thy son, thine
only son:
17 That in blessing I will bless thee, and in
multiplying I will multiply thy seed as the stars of the heaven, and as the sand
which is upon the sea shore; and thy seed shall possess the gate of his
enemies;
18 And in thy seed shall all the nations of the earth
be blessed; because thou hast obeyed my voice.
Abraham had
the faith to obey, because he believed in the promises that God gave him about
his posterity through Isaac, that at this point, no matter what God would ask,
Abraham believed God would provide a way to fulfil His promise. But he had to
walk it out, in a great test of his faith!
Heb. 11
17 By faith Abraham, when he was tried, offered
up Isaac: and he that had received the promises offered up his only begotten
son,
18 Of whom it was said, that in Isaac shall thy seed be
called:
19 Accounting that God was able to raise him up, even
from the dead; from whence also he received him in a figure.
Abraham was
a follower of God. He sought the blessings of the former patriarchs, seeing
that the path of idolatry lead to death and not life. He was led in the
wilderness, blessed by the hand of Melchizedek, and shown a promised land by
God. He passed through trials in Egypt and displayed much patience with the
Lord when it appeared that he could not obtain the promise by natural means.
Yet beyond natural means the blessing of Isaac came.
We neither
receive nor obtain the blessings of God by natural means. In essence, it is
actually in putting off the natural man and yielding to God, by the voice of
His Spirit, that we can be born again spiritually, and be redeemed of the Lord,
because of the great sacrifice that He has made for all of us. We too must believe,
repent of our sins and have faith in the promises of the Lord. Each of our
lives must also be a living sacrifice in similitude of Christ, as we become
part of the fellowship of His suffering. We walk by the Spirit in faith,
looking forward unto our salvation, and eternal life in the presence of God,
which is our inheritance to receive.
Each one of
us must pass the tests and trials of faith, to allow God to refine us into who
He wants us to become. He does the work and provides the increase in us. He is
our Shepherd and we are His sheep. He is the Potter and we are the clay. We must be humble and malleable in His hands.
In this submission, we must offer up an individual sacrifice of a broken heart
and a contrite spirit. In this we deny ourselves, take up our personal crosses,
and follow Him.
Matthew 16
24 Then said Jesus unto His disciples, If any man will
come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow Me.
Matthew 11
28 Come unto Me,
all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.
29 Take My yoke upon you, and learn of Me; for I am meek
and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls.
30 For My yoke is easy, and My burden is light.
Omni
26 And now, my beloved brethren, I would that ye should
come unto Christ, who is the Holy One of Israel, and partake of His salvation,
and the power of His redemption. Yea, come unto Him, and offer your whole souls
as an offering unto Him, and continue in fasting and praying, and endure to the
end; and as the Lord liveth, ye will be saved.
2 Nephi 2
6 Wherefore, redemption cometh in and through the Holy Messiah;
for He is full of grace and truth.
7 Behold, He offereth Himself a sacrifice for sin, to
answer the ends of the law, unto all those who have a broken heart and a
contrite spirit; and unto none else can the ends of the law be answered.
As Abraham, we must follow the voice of the Good Shepherd in faith, and pass through the
gate to enter the path that leads to eternal life.
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