But Where is the Lamb for the Burnt Offering?
So often I contend with God. There always seems to be something of which I refuse to relinquish control. I don’t fully trust Jesus with my whole heart and my whole life. And of late, I seem to be reminded of this fact quite often. How can God expect me to follow Him when I have no clue where He’s leading me? And how can I trust Him if my fearful suspicions are making me feel as if I’m going the wrong way, and that I might be left with nothing when all is said and done?
In Genesis 22, the story of Abraham’s offering of Isaac is told. When I read this story, I am hit hard with my unbelief. Abraham obeyed God when God told him to offer up his only son, the promised Isaac, as a sacrifice of worship. He was to murder the most precious gift that he’d ever been given. And his hopes of being the ‘father of many nations’ would die along with his only son. But what a miraculous turn the story takes! Abraham’s hand was stayed by the angel of the Lord, his hope was restored, and another suitable offering was provided. Because Abraham did not withhold his only son from the Lord, the promise was reaffirmed and magnified. “I will greatly multiply your seed as the stars of the heavens and as the sand which is on the seashore; and your seed shall possess the gate of their enemies.” Gen. 22:17
The slave-ship captain-turned Anglican clergyman, John Newton, offered us his own meditation on this passage of scripture. He sees Abraham’s response to God in verse 14, “Abraham called the name of that place ‘The LORD Will Provide,’” and writes this:
Though troubles assail and dangers affright,
Though friends should all fail and foes all unite;
Yet one thing secures us, whatever betide,
The scripture assures us, the Lord will provideThe birds without barn or storehouse are fed,
From them let us learn to trust for our bread:
His saints, what is fitting, shall ne’er be denied,
So long as it’s written, the Lord will provide.
We may, like the ships, by tempest be tossed
On perilous deeps, but cannot be lost.
Though Satan enrages the wind and the tide,
The promise engages, the Lord will provide.His call we obey, like Abram of old,
Not knowing our way, but faith makes us bold;
For though we are strangers we have a good Guide,
And trust in all dangers, the Lord will provide.
When Satan appears to stop up our path,
And fill us with fears, we triumph by faith;
He cannot take from us, though oft he has tried,
This heart-cheering promise, the Lord will provide.
He tells us we’re weak, our hope is in vain,
The good that we seek we ne’er shall obtain,
But when such suggestions our spirits have plied,
This answers all questions, the Lord will provide.
No strength of our own, or goodness we claim,
Yet since we have known the Savior’s great name;
In this our strong tower for safety we hide,
The Lord is our power, the Lord will provide.
When life sinks apace and death is in view,
This word of his grace shall comfort us through:
No fearing or doubting with Christ on our side,
We hope to die shouting the Lord will provide.
This text has been such a help to me and I hope that it can be to you as well. We, like Abraham, are asked to obey our Father’s leading in what can appear to be a difficult circumstance. Many times our hearts and minds become filled with disbelief in God’s plan. And like Newton when he penned this hymn text, we are given opportunity to trust Him as Abraham did and see the awesome way He will provide for us. His promises never fail.