In the ancient Near East child sacrifice was common. Ancient people saw this as the greatest thing you could give to the gods; it was seen as the highest of offerings. It is clear from the Scriptures that God detests child sacrifice more than any other form of idolatry (Leviticus 18:21; Deuteronomy 12:31 & 18:10). So why does God ask this of Abraham? Given the prevalence of this practice in Abraham’s world, by asking for his son as a burnt offering (22:2), God was speaking a language of commitment that Abraham understood. The point, however, is that God wanted to clearly demonstrate that, while this level of commitment was needed, child sacrifice was not. He wanted to show Abraham that this is not necessary because God himself had provided a sacrificial lamb, Jesus Christ, his own beloved son. This is why God sent Abraham on that three-day journey to that specific place in Moriah. That place was the mountain where the temple would be built and where God would provide sacrifices for the sins of his people. It is also the mountain on which Jesus Christ would be sacrificed, for the sins of the world. Christ’s sacrifice is what made Abraham’s blessing possible. God wanted Abraham to enact this so that he would see just how great God’s sacrifice for him would be. To be clear, God did not practice child sacrifice by giving Jesus, for it was God himself who was in Christ paying for the sins of the world. There is nothing left for us to do now than simply to receive what God has done for us.
Dedicate yourself and all you have to God.
Read Genesis 22
