Genesis 22:2 – He said, “Take 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.”
Do you see Jesus here?
Is it mere happenstance that the very first mention of love in the Bible is found in the midst of selfless, God honoring, obedient worship & sacrifice.
When you read the full account you will notice that Isaac was grown, and certainly capable of refusing such a fatal request from his dad. He was willing and able to carry the wood for the sacrifice upon his own shoulders, up the mountain to die. He shows no resistance to the will of his father.
The predominant message here is how Abraham not only loved Isaac, but more importantly, loved and trusted God more. He loved unto sacrifice. He loved enough to do whatever He commanded him. As it turned out, God’s plan was never to see Isaac killed, for that would have ended the lineage of Christ. His intention from eternity was to send His only Son, Jesus, a sinless sacrifice to crush death, and rein as King over all Kings. This story served not only as a picture of true love, trust, and obedience, but as a perfect foreshadowing of the greatest act of love the world would ever know.
For you and me? This too is our model for love. If you love, you will sacrifice. If you love, you will obey. When you love God more than all things, you will forsake all for His cause, trusting His plan, and seeing His sovereign hand work for your ultimate good.
Know this! God’s display of love is supreme! The laying down of His Sons innocent life on behalf of guilty sinners. The willingness of the Father to give His only Son. The unhesitating obedience of the Son to His Fathers will. All these with a purpose to make us, once enemies, His friends forever.
“Greater love has no one than this, than to lay down His life for His friends.”
Joel Littlefield 
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