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The Ultimate Sacrifice

To save my son, He sent His own…

I have recently finished reading a Bible study on the book of Genesis. The creation of the world, man and woman – and following that the creation of families. One evening while I was bathing my son, I had thoughts of Sarah, Abraham and Isaac fill my mind. Specifically the account of Abraham taking Isaac to one of the mountains in the land of Moriah, to offer him as a sacrifice to God.  I wondered what those moments must have felt like.  The Bible doesn’t say if Sarah knew what God had commanded Abraham, but as a mother, I think about what it could’ve felt like for her. Her firstborn son. Her young boy.

As I kneel beside the bathtub, I take a moment to soak in the sight of my son splashing and giggling. The joy I feel and the love in my heart for this child is unexplainable. It burns so deep that I am brought to tears. I begin praying over him, thankful for Jesus’ finished work on the cross. Overjoyed that I would never have to face what Abraham and Sarah did. You see, Abraham was instructed to bound his son Isaac and lay him on top of a wooden altar. But then God in His love for Abraham, for us all, provided another way. 

This is where it gets so real. God stopped Abraham from sacrificing his firstborn son.  Instead, God provided a ram to be used as an offering. Then hundreds of years later, the time came for God to lay His only Son on the wooden altar as the ultimate sacrifice for the sin of the word. There was no other way, God saw it through to the end.  For God so loved us all that He finished what He had started.

The love. The Ultimate Sacrifice. To save my son, He sent His own.

As a parent, I imagine the relief and the joy that Abraham felt as He heard God’s voice saying, “Do not lay a hand on the boy.”  There is no account of this in scripture, but imagine Sarah’s elation when she saw her husband and her son returning home. I am ever grateful to God for what He did for me, my family, humanity.  The only question now is, how do we respond to this?

 (Read more about the account of Abraham, Isaac and Sarah in Genesis 22)

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To know Him, and be known by Him.

In the quiet, in the stillness
I know that You are God
In the secret of Your presence
I know there I am restored…….
In the chaos, in confusion
I know You’re sovereign still
In the moment of my weakness
You give me grace to do Your will
(lyrics: Hillsong)

It has been a long time since I had the opportunity to put my fingers to a keyboard and note some of my thoughts. I am sitting in my son’s playroom as I write this. The backdoor is open and a light breeze, accompanying this unusually warm autumn day, is allowing the scent of Jasmine from the neighbour’s garden and the rustling leaves of a nearby tree to tease my senses. 

I am feeling relaxed, probably as a result of the long hot bath, I got to enjoy this morning. During my soak, I had time to up on my devotional reading (I was a few days behind); listen to (part of) a podcast and I was able to just be still for a while and let my mind focus on God. 

In the busyness of family life, I often find that it can be difficult to find time to be still and connect with God. My first thought is, “I barely get time for myself!”. But the truth is that if time for me is more valuable than time with God, then I have my priorities all wrong.  The daily inconsistencies of parenting rattle me – it’s still something that I am still getting used to. At times I find myself acting in ways that aren’t Christ-like and ‘set apart’. As a result, I am made more aware of the need for Jesus’ forgiveness and grace in my life. I have been challenged regarding my intentionality in time spent with God. You see, I don’t need more of me – I need more of Jesus in me.

My goal: reading, listening to or hearing the spoken Word and being in a regular posture of prayer. It is easy? NO! Do I get it right all the time? NO! But I have had a revelation and it has propelled me to change. The hard truth is that we have not been called to a relationship of convenience with God. Think about it, God deserves nothing less than our utmost devotion – regardless of the cost.  The Bible says “we need to deny ourselves, pick up our cross and follow Jesus” (Luke 9:23).  Therefore our walk with Jesus requires effort, it requires action – it requires sacrifice because as Christ-followers our deepest desire must be to know Him and be known by Him.

So my aim is to say no to more me-time, and yes to more of Him.