Hey Gang, I have been blessed to hear tapes by Ray Vander Laan who paints panoramic descriptive pictures in his teaching of the Word. Listening to his presentation opens a whole new awareness of what is truly being said in the Bible. For you see, I have been a reader of the Word for many years, but I was a superficial reader or surface reader. I was not a ‘connector of the dots.
God recently blessed me – my Bride bringing a book by Lois Tverberg titled Walking in the Dust of Rabbi Jesus -into my life that has begun to open doors in my study that have laid buried all these years. And I want you to know this new direction in my study has blessed my sox off.
The author, who attended a series of sessions and trips, under the teaching of Ray Vander Laan, said it was like drinking from a fire hose. I certainly agree with that description. But let me give you an example of how looking beneath the surface of the words and digging reveals how the culture, the history, the language, and even the geography of that moment set the table for what was written.
In the morning Scripture we have the story of Abraham’s command by God to take Isaac, his only son to Mt Moriah and sacrifice him to the Lord. It is a very familiar story that we tend to read over and move on.
For all of my Christian walk and study of the Word, I just assumed that Isaac was a small child. As a matter of fact, I did not question the picture of Isaac as a young child carrying sticks under hi, in one of my Bibles. But think about that for a minute. In verse two we read that Abraham rose early in the morning, saddled his donkey, took two of his young men with him and went to the place that God told him to go.
I believe it is safe to assume that the two Lads and perhaps even the donkey were carriers of the needed wood for the sacrifice. Keep in mind that Abraham was not preparing to roast a prime rib roast, which, in itself takes more than a few pieces of wood. To offer a sacrifice to the Lord did not mean offering a seared or very well roasted body but rather reduced to ashes which required a very hot fire for a prolonged period of time.
Again, keep in mind Abraham was more than one hundred years old when Isaac was born. The story tells us, “He (Abraham) carried the fire in one hand and a knife in the other. (verse 6). We are not told how the wood got from the debarkation where the donkey and the boys were left behind, point to the mountain. So I believe one can assume that Isaac was he bearer of the wood for the sacrifice.
When I envisioned that it was Isaac who toted he heavy wood, the story took on a totally different tone for me. Now, I no longer see that the story is just about Abraham’s unshakeable faith in God; but it also shows me that Isaac had to be a willing and obedient participant in his pending sacrifice.
Willing and obedient to submit to his father’s will! Once again, I challenge you to think about this story and see it as a foretelling of another hill outside of Jerusalem where our Lord willingly and obediently carried His cross (wood) and laid down His life that all who believe in Him could be freed from the bondage of sin. Did He have to? No, “He could have called down ten thousand angels, but He choose to die for you and me”. (Psalm 91)
Blessings,
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