GENESIS: To Obey is Better Than Sacrifice; And God said to Abraham, “Do not lay your hand on the lad, or do anything to him; for now I know that you fear God, since you have not withheld your son, your only son, from Me.”

Now it came to pass after these things that God tested Abraham, and said to him, “Abraham!” And he said, “Here I am.” Then He said, “Take now your son, your only son Isaac, whom you love, and go to the land of Moriah, and offer him there as a burnt offering on one of the mountains of which I shall tell you.” (Genesis 22:1-2)

Wow, what a commandment by God! Isaac was not Abraham's only son. Hagar bore Abram a son; and Abram named his son, whom Hagar bore, Ishmael. Abram was eighty-six years old when Hagar bore Ishmael to Abram. (Genesis 16:15-16) The problem was Ishmael was not Abraham and Sarah, his wife's son; and God said, "...Sarah shall be her name. And I will bless her and also give you a son by her; then I will bless her, and she shall be a mother of nations; kings of peoples shall be from her. ... Sarah your wife shall bear you a son, and you shall call his name Isaac; I will establish My covenant with him for an everlasting covenant, and with his descendants after him.” (Genesis 17:15-16, 19)

So at the ages of 100 and 90, the Lord visited Sarah as He had said, and the Lord did for Sarah as He had spoken. For Sarah conceived and bore Abraham a son in his old age, at the set time of which God had spoken to him. And Abraham called the name of his son who was born to him—whom Sarah bore to him—Isaac. (Genesis 21:1-3) They finally had the child that they had wanted for all their life, and now God would ask Abraham to sacrifice him as a burnt offering.

The first time the scriptures referenced a burnt offering was after God delivered Noah and his wife and children and the animals from the flood.  When they came out of the ark, Noah built an altar to the Lord, and took of every clean animal and of every clean bird, and offered burnt offerings on the altar. And the Lord smelled a soothing aroma. (Genesis 8:20-21) This sacrifice God asked Abraham to make is a type of the sacrifice Christ Jesus would make; Therefore be imitators of God as dear children. And walk in love, as Christ also has loved us and given Himself for us, an offering and a sacrifice to God for a sweet-smelling aroma. (Ephesians 5:1-2)

The point God was making was that He didn't withhold anything from us, not even His only Son; and we are not to withhold anything from Him either.  Does God want us to kill our children to prove that we surrender everything to Him?  Of course not, which He will prove, because of Abraham's obedience. So Abraham rose early in the morning and saddled his donkey, and took two of his young men with him, and Isaac his son; and he split the wood for the burnt offering, and arose and went to the place of which God had told him. Then on the third day Abraham lifted his eyes and saw the place afar off. And Abraham said to his young men, “Stay here with the donkey; the lad and I will go yonder and worship, and we will come back to you.” (Genesis 22:2-5)

Abraham had no evidence to believe that we will come back to you, he and Isaac; but “Abraham believed God, and it was accounted to him for righteousness.” And he was called the friend of God. (James 2:23) He knew all the promises that God had made with him and the covenant that God had established with him, and that all of that was to be fulfilled through Isaac; so he God wasn't going to allow Isaac to die, but if He did, He would surely raise him from the dead. And that's the assurance we have in Christ Jesus, that the Spirit of Him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, He who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through His Spirit who dwells in you. (Romans 8:11) God raised Him from the dead. (Acts 13:30)

So Abraham took the wood of the burnt offering and laid it on Isaac his son; and he took the fire in his hand, and a knife, and the two of them went together. But Isaac spoke to Abraham his father and said, “My father!” And he said, “Here I am, my son.” Then he said, “Look, the fire and the wood, but where is the lamb for a burnt offering?” And Abraham said, “My son, God will provide for Himself the lamb for a burnt offering.” So the two of them went together. (Genesis 22:6-8) Yet again, Abraham the example of complete faith, hope and trust in God. Even when things don't appear as we would want, we have to stand on the promised of God, and not doubt.

Then they came to the place of which God had told him. And Abraham built an altar there and placed the wood in order; and he bound Isaac his son and laid him on the altar, upon the wood. And Abraham stretched out his hand and took the knife to slay his son. But the Angel of the Lord called to him from heaven and said, “Abraham, Abraham!” So he said, “Here I am.” And He said, “Do not lay your hand on the lad, or do anything to him; for now I know that you fear God, since you have not withheld your son, your only son, from Me.” (Genesis 22:9-12)

“Has the Lord as great delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices, as in obeying the voice of the Lord? Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice, and to heed than the fat of rams." (I Samuel 15:22) We have to obey God's Word, even the parts that are hard to accept.  God, He who called you is holy, you also be holy in all your conduct, because it is written, “Be holy, for I am holy.” (I Peter 1:15-16) The first step in us proving our desire to be holy and righteous before God is by being obedient to Him and His Word.

Once we do our part, God will fulfill His part, just as He did for Abraham. Then Abraham lifted his eyes and looked, and there behind him was a ram caught in a thicket by its horns. So Abraham went and took the ram, and offered it up for a burnt offering instead of his son. And Abraham called the name of the place, The-Lord-Will-Provide; as it is said to this day, “In the Mount of the Lord it shall be provided.” (Genesis 22:13-14)

Then the Angel of the Lord called to Abraham a second time out of heaven, and said: “By Myself I have sworn, says the Lord, because you have done this thing, and have not withheld your son, your only son— blessing I will bless you, and multiplying I will multiply your descendants as the stars of the heaven and as the sand which is on the seashore; and your descendants shall possess the gate of their enemies. In your seed all the nations of the earth shall be blessed, because you have obeyed My voice.” (Genesis 22:15-18)

God said, "In your seed...", not seeds. Now to Abraham and his Seed were the promises made. He does not say, “And to seeds,” as of many, but as of one, “And to your Seed,” who is Christ. And this I say, that the law, which was four hundred and thirty years later, cannot annul the covenant that was confirmed before by God in Christ, that it should make the promise of no effect. For if the inheritance is of the law, it is no longer of promise; but God gave it to Abraham by promise. (Galatinas 3:16-18) The point being, when God makes a promise, He keeps it; and it is not conditional upon man doing anything more than obeying Him. To obey is better than sacrifice! AMEN!