"Abraham was the father of Isaac," - Matthew 1:2a

The child of promise, the one that Abraham and Sarah had longed for, finally arrived, the one through whom their family would continue to grow. Abraham and Sarah had tried to go about things in their own way and failed, but God showed himself faithful by providing a son through Sarah. Isaac is famous for the story of his birth. He was the son of promise, born when his dad was 100 years old and his mom was 90 years old. He was a miracle! 

So, what’s so great about Isaac? 

Isaac is also famous for his experience on Mt. Moriah. Here, the Lord tested Abraham asking him to sacrifice his only son. Abraham obediently laid Isaac upon the altar as a willing sacrifice, but God provided a substitute sacrifice instead. The innocent ram was killed on the altar so that Isaac could live (Gen. 21-22). This whole event points us to the coming of Christ, as we later see something similar take place on the cross - Jesus becoming the sacrificial lamb for our sin! Jesus was the True Son we needed because we could not get to God on our own. He is the one who was truly sacrificed in our place as our substitute, so that we can be reconciled to God.

Three similarities between Isaac and Jesus

• Isaac and Jesus Were Only Begotten Sons

    Genesis 22:2 God said to Abraham, “Your son, your only son.” He repeated these words two more times. 

• Isaac and Jesus Were Loved by Their Fathers

    The first time the word love occurs in the New Testament also describes a Father’s love for a Son. God’s words at Jesus’ baptism echo His words to Abraham: “This is My Son, whom I love” (Matthew 3:17 NIV). The parallel verses in (Mark 1:11 and Luke 3:22) are also the first time the word love is used in each gospel account. As Isaac was the object of his father’s love toward the beginning of the Old Testament, Jesus was the object of His Father’s love toward the beginning of the New Testament.

• Isaac and Jesus Trusted Their Fathers

   Why was Isaac submissive to Abraham? The simple answer is he trusted his father. The same was true with Jesus. Just like Isaac put his life in his Father’s hands, Jesus put His life in His Father’s hands on the cross until His last breath. 

Oftentimes with the story of Isaac, we ask the question, "what kind of God would ask a father to sacrifice his son? Is this the kind of God that we are called to love, follow, and worship?" But our God is also the God who tells Abraham to stop and who later offers His own son Jesus as the ultimate sacrifice for us!  This is what our God has done for us.  Instead of making us pay the price for our own redemption, God accomplishes it through Jesus on the cross! God does it for us! God does what we cannot do for ourselves! God made a way for us to Him through His son Jesus!  Thanks be to God!