Grace, mercy, and peace to you from God our Father, and from our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, amen. The text for the sermon is the Gospel, which was read earlier.

Have you ever asked yourself just how important you are? It stands to reason that if you’re important, then special treatment should be shown to you. It might mean receiving special benefits or perks for who you are or what you’ve done. You should receive something for being important, and it stands to reason that the more important you are, the better the perks should be. Should you not receive your benefits and perks for being important, then someone has failed to recognize just how important you are.

As we see in Mark’s Gospel, we read of an encounter between James and John, two of Jesus’ disciples, and Jesus Himself. The disciples begin this encounter by making a request of Jesus: “Teacher, we want you to do for us whatever we ask of you.” We would speak of the mere audacity of going to Jesus and making such a request like this. They haven’t even made the request but they want Jesus to do whatever they ask. Just moments before this, our Lord had described His coming passion in greater detail than before, and yet the disciples still did not understand. They believed Him to be the Messiah but had ears only for the glory connected with being the Messiah, not for the suffering of the Messiah.

In some respects, this exchange was surprising and in others, not so surprising. As part of Jesus’ inner circle, it was surprising that James and John would make such a request like this. Being so close to Jesus as they were, they should have known better. If there were any of the Twelve who should have known better, these were the two. We see that James and John are present with Jesus in some of the most intimate moments of His ministry. However, these two are just like everyone else: sinful. Their human heart won out and they saw themselves as being more important than any of the other disciples. It was for this reason that they thought that they could make any request of Jesus and that He would do it. Their request showed that they believed that Jesus could give them anything they might ask for, and not only could Jesus grant their request, but they believed He would do it. The fact that they first asked Jesus to assure them He would hints that they suspected that Jesus might not approve of their request.

When we look at their request, we wonder how could such thoughts of grandiose glory come to them. But really, is it all that surprising? If they truly are the inner circle of Jesus’ disciples, wouldn’t He grant to them whatever they asked? In looking at His initial response to them, “What do you want me to do for you?,” it’s almost as if Jesus is humoring them to an extent. He wants to see where they are going, just what exactly do they think they are worthy of asking Him for. They jump at Jesus’ invitation and they ask Him for just one thing: “Grant us to sit, one at your right hand and one at your left, in your glory.” In other words, they wanted to be rulers with Jesus or have some sort of special authority. Basically, they were asking to be number one and number two in Jesus’ kingdom.

Do you see the error of their request? Jesus is the teacher, the master, their Lord, the Christ, the Son of God. James and John should be ready to receive from Jesus, not demand of Him. How could they even think they were worthy of such a request! But before you start chastising James and John, ask yourself this question: have you made a request like them?

When we pray to our heavenly Father, do we come to Him as humble children going to the Father, or do we go in like gangbusters, making requests and demands of God, telling what we want rather than asking Him for what we need and what is God-pleasing? God is the giver of all that is good, but we treat Him as a vending machine, inserting our demands and expecting God to spit out whatever we ask of Him.

Jesus rightfully answers James and John and all of us when He says, “You do not know what you are asking.” The Son of God did not take on the flesh of man in order to become the big boss. The Son of God came to give us what we needed, not what we want. What we needed more than anything is to be forgiven of all of our sins. Anything else that you could think of wanting is only secondary to the forgiveness that God so willingly gives to us, His beloved children.

We may think our wants are God-pleasing, that they are exactly what we need. However, because of our sinful nature, our wants are rarely what we need. James and John thought they knew what was best for them. They thought that since they were so “important” among Jesus’ disciples, they deserved special treatment. When Jesus heard their request, He acknowledged that they didn’t know what it was they were asking. The fact is that most people don’t know what these two brothers were requesting from Jesus.

The problem is with the word “glory.” When we use the word “glory” in its earthly context, we generally mean the power and authority that Jesus meant when He spoke of this world. James and John were probably thinking of this earthly glory. They were operating on the principle that the coming Messiah would restore Jerusalem to its true state and rule over a renewed Israel.

However, there is more to Jesus’ glory than power and authority. His glory would be revealed on the cross when He gave His life for you when He said, “It is finished.” His glory would be revealed on that first Easter morning when the angel told the women, “Do not be alarmed. You seek Jesus of Nazareth, who was crucified. He has risen.” His glory is seen as He wins salvation for us upon the cross. As Jesus was walking the road to Jerusalem with His disciples, He began to tell them what was to happen to Him. He was telling them how He would bring glory to God by earning salvation for us with His suffering, death, and resurrection.

All too often like James and John, we think that glory is about power, authority, and control. We want that kind of glory. We want to be important. We want honor. We want to be number one. Jesus tells us that the truly great are those who serve, but we are not interested in serving; we want to be served. We aren’t interested in doing things Jesus’ way. We want our way. We want what we want when we want it. We want and we demand, just like James and John.

Instead of glory that lasts only for the here and now, Jesus comes for a different kind of glory. He came to rescue us from this world of sin by submitting to death on a cross. He has a special honor and glory because of the suffering He has faced. For you, He offers salvation, so that you may have glory – glory in His eternal kingdom. In the name of Jesus, amen. Now the peace of God that passes all understanding, keep your hearts and minds through faith in Christ Jesus, amen.

Grace, mercy, and peace to you from God our Father, and from our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, amen. The text for the sermon is the Gospel, which was read earlier.

Love is a wonderful thing. It is something that we eagerly desire. We want to be loved by our parents, our spouse, our children, our coworkers; in short, we want to be loved by everyone. Love is probably the one thing that we most desire above all things. Not only do we desire to receive it, we desire to give it in return. Regardless of the love that we give or receive, it fails to compare to the love that God the Father has shown to us.

If you have never heard anything from the Bible or are Bible illiterate and know nothing about the Bible, there are a few things that everyone has heard and probably even know. They are Psalm 23 and John 3:16. Psalm 23 is that great well-known passage often read at funerals. John 3:16 is that verse that we all have heard and know: “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.” These are more than just words that you have heard before. This is truly the Gospel in a nutshell. God loved the world He had created, even though the crown of that creation had gone bad and ruined it all. Our sins did not stop God from loving us. The sins of Adam and Eve, the sins of David and Judas, even the sins of you, God knew them all. What is more incredible is that even knowing our sins, God did not withhold His love. He loved the world and excluded no one.

Love like this is difficult for us to understand, even impossible to understand. Even if we are not capable of understanding it, we need to know about it. This is not love that we have for one another. While we have a single word for “love,” there are three different words for “love” in Greek. This love that is described by John is a special kind of love; it is that “agape” love. It is more than a feeling, it is a resolve. This is not the love shown by man, but the love that is shown by God. It is love in its truest and intimate sense, the love that only comes from God the Father to His children.

God’s love brought results. He offered the ultimate sacrifice for the world that He had created and for the world that He loved. He gave His one and only Son. God gave Jesus Christ as the necessary sacrifice for the world’s sins, for your sins.

Jesus repeats what God’s gift truly meant: “…whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.” Faith saves, but not just any faith or faith in anything; it is faith in the Son of God, who was given as our sacrifice that saves.

Those who believe in Jesus Christ shall not perish. Yes, they will die a physical death, but they live eternally with Christ. What comfort that is in knowing that because of Christ, on account of what Christ has done for you, you shall receive everlasting life. The best part of all this: you didn’t do anything! You didn’t have to work for it, you didn’t have to earn it; you simply received it.

But here is how that happened. It had to happen at the expense of Jesus. That is what Jesus said: “As Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, so must the Son of Man be lifted up, that whoever believes in him may have eternal life.” Salvation lies only in Jesus Christ and in no one or nothing else. The snake was lifted up on a pole; Jesus was to be lifted up on a cross. Everyone who looked in faith at the snake was healed from the bite of deadly snakes. Everyone who would look in faith at Jesus would be saved from the bite of eternal death and have eternal life. This is the life that begins with the new birth by the Spirit. This is the life that comes only through Jesus Christ for your sins.

Here was God, revealed in His triune majesty. God the Father loved the undeserving world so much that He sent His Son to save it. God the Son, present here in the person of Jesus, came to fulfill the Father’s will and win eternal life for all people. Jesus’ death on the cross wasn’t meant for a select few. It wasn’t meant for a maximum number of people. His death on the cross was meant for everyone, hence His word, “whoever.” Everyone may receive this wonderful gift of everlasting life in Jesus Christ, for Christ came to die for the sins of the entire world. Christ came to die for your sins.

God’s love lifted His Son on the cross, and by His love, He lifts us from death to life. To lift us up, God lifted up His Son. Lifted up on the cross, the Father gave his Son as the greatest act of love for His creation. Here was a creation, made in the image of God: perfect, holy, and without sin. Creation did not retain that image for long and God was not content watching His creation suffer the effects of sin: death and eternal separation from Him. To restore creation, the Second Person of the Trinity, conceived by the Holy Spirit, born of the Virgin Mary, took on human flesh in order to do what we could not: live a sinless life in our place.

There is good reason that all of this was done and Jesus Himself says why: “For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him.” It was done in order to save it; it was done for you. Whoever believes in the Son of God is not condemned. Sin loses all power to damn us. Sin loses all power to damn you because Christ has died for you. But not only has He died for you, He also rose again for you. Again, the reason that all of this was done is because of the agape love that God has for His creation.

This great agape love that God has is echoed in St. Paul’s words to the Ephesians in our Epistle. He writes, “And you were dead in the trespasses and sins in which you once walked…. But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ….”

“God so loved the world,” says Jesus. He doesn’t love the world because we are somehow loveable. That would be bad news for you, because His love for you would change depending on how loveable you were that day. No, God loves the world because of who He is: He is by nature loving. His is not a cheap, emotional feeling that comes and goes; no, this love of God is a desire to serve, and to serve no matter what the cost. Remember, born in sin, the only option and outcome for us was death; so the Lord in His love launched His plan to give us life.

Give is exactly what God did. He didn’t leverage His Son or offer Him as part of a deal. He gave His Son as a free gift, no strings attached; this is how great God’s love is, that He would save sinners at no cost to them. When He gave His Son, He gave Him up to death on the cross. This is the world’s salvation. As we have said: Because of our sin, the only option for us was death. So God, in His love, gave His only-begotten Son to die our death for us. Sinners sin, so Christ died. That’s how much God loves the world: He’s freely given His Son to die for the sins of the world. Once again, this shows how great the Father’s love for sinners is.

“For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.” He has done this for you, out of the great agape love that He has for His creation. In Jesus’ name, amen. Now the peace of God that passes all understanding, keep your hearts and minds through faith in Christ Jesus, amen.

Grace, mercy, and peace to you from God our Father, and from our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, amen. The text for the sermon is the Epistles, which was read earlier.

Are you a smart person? Do you possess lots of wisdom? Before you are too quick to answer, listen again to St. Paul’s words: “I will destroy the wisdom of the wise, and the discernment of the discerning I will thwart.” The wisdom of the world is not the glorious treasure that some believe it to be. All we need to do is look at the Greeks of old. Their wisdom would lead them to hell. They were “perishing” in their wisdom. They were so sure they knew what God was like and how to deal with Him. They were so confident that they had the answers to the problems of sin and guilt that they automatically rejected what God had to say about their salvation through the cross of Christ. To them, in their wisdom, salvation through the cross of Christ was “foolishness.” It was the silliest thing they had ever heard. And they were perishing because they thought the cross of Christ was foolishness.

Unfortunately, times have not changed that much. The cross is still folly today for many. For those who view the cross this way, the cross becomes a sign of offense rather than a sign of salvation. After all, the cross is often viewed as just another means of salvation among many. When it comes to salvation, today we’re told that salvation can be found in Jesus, in ourselves, in our works, in another person or another thing, in a series of steps, or by any number of other ways. However, true salvation lies only in Jesus Christ and what was accomplished for us on the cross. That is what Paul says: “But to us who are being saved it is the power of God.” By knowing and believing that the cross of Christ is true wisdom, we are saved.

When we look at what St. Paul writes, we see one thing at the heart of this text: bragging. The people of the day were bragging about their wisdom and what that meant for them. Their salvation was based on their wisdom and what they knew or thought that they knew. Paul knew his audience as he penned these thoughts in today’s text. The inhabitants of Corinth, a notorious ancient city, were worldly-wise and thought of themselves as being sophisticated, at least by the standards of their times. For the Greek philosopher, wisdom was one of life’s most coveted goals and was diligently pursued. But Paul wished to show how vain and shallow such wisdom could be.

Perhaps nowhere do we see the surprising and table-turning values of God more graphically displayed than at the cross. For Jew and Greek alike, the cross was a scandalous offense. It was a sign of torture, a sign of persecution. How could anyone take seriously a God who would send His Son not only to die but to die such a demeaning and despicable death? As Paul accurately notes, such talk of the cross is folly to those who seek signs and wisdom. But to those who are being saved, it is the power of God unto salvation.

Yet, not everyone has heard the preaching of the cross, and not everyone who has heard the preaching of the cross has believed it. This is why the cross is offensive. The cross is offensive because the Gospel is offensive. More literally, the preaching of the cross is scandalous. It is a message that kills the unbeliever. We lift high the cross in our preaching and teaching. It is not merely the cross we lift high, but we lift high the message of the cross: we lift high the Gospel for all to hear. We proclaim the Gospel for all people to hear, that all people at all times and in all places would confess the Name of Jesus Christ into all eternity.

Even today, the cross is still a scandalous offense to many. It is scandalous because of who people think that Jesus is and what it is He has, or in some instances, not done. Some non-Christian faiths will say that Jesus was just a prophet, a mere man who led a good life, a good example for us to follow. Some Christian denominations will say that Jesus only accomplished salvation so much for you and that you need to do something to earn salvation the rest of the way. For the non-Christian, Jesus and Christianity are seen as just another self-help method, no different than what you could find in any other self-help book. They demand to be convinced by evidence that falls within the parameters of their own experience. For them, they set up themselves as the arbiters off truth. However, the truth is not found in the word of man, but in the Word of God.

That is why wisdom fails when it comes to God and His Word, or at least earthly wisdom. Man so desperately wants to have all questions about God and Scripture answered. Try as we might, no wisdom on this earth will be able to answer those questions. God has granted to us all that He would have us know. Having answers to all the unanswered questions of Scripture, while nice, is not necessary. What is necessary is knowing Christ alone as the means for salvation.

For Paul, there needed to be a great distinction between wisdom according to worldly standards and wisdom according to God’s standards. We take great pride in boasting about our earthly and worldly wisdom. We boast about our jobs, our families, and most of all, ourselves. As Christians in the Church, we do the same thing. We boast of having the best pastor, the best church, the best choir, the best theology; in short, the best everything that the church has to offer. We boast on how we are the best officer in the congregation, on our church attendance or how much we give to the church. We boast about ourselves and how good we are and what we have done, as if it means anything in the end.

Regardless of what we have done and how great we might be, there is nothing worthy of our boasting of ourselves. Listen to what Paul says: “God chose what is low and despised in the world, even things that are not, to bring to nothing things that are, so that no human being might boast in the presence of God.” You see, there is nothing worthy of us to boast about. If there is anything worthy of boasting about, it is Jesus, for it is Jesus Christ, who by His life, death, and resurrection won for us salvation. We look to the cross, for there Jesus won for us the forgiveness of sins. Jesus paid the entire debt of your sins. Your slate has been wiped clean by the blood of Jesus. Your heavenly Father sees you through His only-begotten Son’s blood and declares you righteous for Jesus’ sake, for the very life He gave on the cross.

For some, the cross is folly and foolish. But for us, we are saved by the cross. There can be nothing more worthy than this. We preach Christ crucified because we can – because the Lord has given us the privilege of declaring His praises. We preach Christ – crucified because, even though it’s foolishness to the unbeliever, it is the power and wisdom of God for salvation to all those who believe. We preach Christ – crucified and risen for our salvation – because He was cursed by God in our place; because He died for our enslavement to sin; and because He suffered the cross for our crimes. In Jesus’ name, amen. Now the peace of God that passes all understanding, keep your hearts and minds through faith in Christ Jesus, amen.

Grace, mercy, and peace to you from God our Father, and from our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, amen. The text for the sermon is the Gospel, which was read earlier.

During all the time spent in Caesarea Philippi, Jesus continued to instruct His disciples. The time now came for a test. How well had they learned what He sought to teach them? It is only a two-question test; however the questions are important questions.

The first question can easily be answered wrong by the disciples and won’t cause them to fail the test. The question is this: “Who do people say that I am?” The answers of the people varied. Some said Jesus was John the Baptist, others Elijah, and still others said He was one of the prophets. They all had one thing in common: these were answers that the Sadducees would not have given. They were answers given by those who were taking a serious look at Jesus. For them, He was more than just another teacher; He was clearly bringing a message from God Himself. Yet all these answers made Jesus out to be a man and no more. They were inadequate answers because they failed to recognize Jesus as who He truly was.

Often times today when that question is asked, there are many definitions of who Jesus is. Some will say that Jesus was just a man, albeit a really good man. Some will say that He taught good things or that He told really good stories. Others will say that Jesus is an example that we should model ourselves after, that we should aspire to be like Him. When we look at these definitions, one thing is missing: Jesus is the One who grants to us salvation.

As far as the disciples go, they can’t help what others think of Jesus. Jesus had done all that He could as far as teaching the people who He was. If they did not want to believe or accept Jesus for who He was, then the disciples nor Jesus Himself could change their minds. But now Jesus moved on to the question which directly affected the disciples. “But who do you say that I am?” This should have been an easy question to answer, a no-brainer, so to speak. Since they had lived with Jesus on such an intimate basis, they knew He was a true man. He needed food; He needed rest. However, they had also seen Him perform miracles no man could ever do by his own power. They had even heard the demons and the demon possessed speak of Jesus as the Son of God. They had heard Him claim the authority on earth to forgive sins.

This was the disciples’ time to shine. Jesus had put them on the spot and it was time for them to answer and finish their test. Peter steps up to the plate and hits one out of park. Peter gives the answer that Jesus was looking for: “You are the Christ.” In Matthew’s account, Peter adds that He is the “Son of the living God.”

Now, given Peter’s answer, we have to ask the good Lutheran question, “What does this mean?” Peter rightly calls Jesus “the Christ,” what the people of the Old Testament would have called the Messiah. He is the One who had been expected for so long. He is the One who would bring about salvation to mankind. Jesus is more than just mere man. He is the very Son of God in flesh. The Messiah, though truly human, was also God the Son, and His assignment as the Anointed One was clearly stated back in Genesis – He would be the One to bruise the head of Satan; He would be the one to earn salvation for us sinners.

Even though Peter made this confession, there were many of Jesus’ day who could not or rather, would not. Messiah meant something different to the people. Messiah meant an earthly king. Messiah meant the one who would rescue Jerusalem from Roman rule. Messiah for the people meant only earthly terms. Messiah did not mean what the Scriptures had spoken of regarding the Messiah.

This answer of the disciples given by Peter is the very answer that Jesus had hoped for. It is the only answer that can be given. Jesus is the Son of God and Jesus is the Son of Man, our Christ, our Savior, and our Redeemer.

It is unfortunate, though, that Peter’s answer is not always our answer. We even see that in just a few verses, Peter’s answer isn’t his own answer. All too often, we are quick to downplay the work of Jesus and focus on the work of man, on what it is that I do to earn my salvation.

I’ve said it before and I will say it again because it bears repeating: if you get Jesus wrong, then you get everything wrong. If you get Jesus wrong, then nothing else matters. What exactly do I mean by that? If you do not have the right understanding of who Jesus Christ is and what He has done for you, then everything that follows after that is wrong also. If you do not accept that Jesus Christ is both God and man, that your salvation depends solely upon Jesus Christ and His life, death, and resurrection, then everything else you believe about salvation is wrong. Salvation can come from no other source than Jesus Christ. The moment that we start to think, or even worse, believe, that our salvation comes from someone or something other than Jesus, that is the point when everything means nothing.

Salvation for you and me would come at the expense of Jesus. After Peter makes this grand statement of who Jesus is, “[Jesus] began to teach them that the Son of Man must suffer many things and be rejected by the elders and the chief priests and the scribes and be killed, and after three days rise again.” That is how salvation would be earned and Peter wanted nothing to do with it. In fact, he went so far as to rebuke Jesus for even speaking like this. This boggled the mind. Why go to Jerusalem if this was in store? Head back to Galilee while there was still time. Of all people, the religious leaders should accept God’s Messiah, but instead, Jesus told the disciples that instead of receiving Him, they would crucify Him. As far as Peter was concerned, if Jesus had the ability to not face His passion, then Jesus should have taken advantage of it. It is far better to live than to die, especially dying the way that Jesus had described.

But Jesus counters with something that is much more important. After chastising Peter, Jesus gathers the disciples and the crowds and tells them that salvation is in Him and Him alone. Listen again to the stern words that Jesus says: “For whoever is ashamed of me and of my words in this adulterous and sinful generation, of him will the Son of Man also be ashamed when he comes in the glory of his Father with the holy angels.” In this brief moment of Peter’s anti-confession, he shows that he is ashamed of Jesus because of the words that Jesus has spoken. Peter didn’t like Jesus’ words. But just because he didn’t like them didn’t make them any less true.

We may not like Jesus’ words at times either. Though we don’t like them, that doesn’t make them any less true. We may not like hearing that Jesus Christ is the only means of salvation because it takes the focus off of us. We may not like hearing that we must repent and return to God, especially if we’re justified in our actions because I’m not as bad as that person. However, one thing remains the same: it is by Jesus Christ that you have everlasting life. St. Paul says, “God shows his love for us in that while we were yet sinners Christ died for us.” I didn’t die for you. You didn’t die for you. Your actions are not what save you. It is by Jesus Christ and Him alone that you have salvation.

By Jesus’ death on the cross, by His blood shed, we have salvation. When the question is asked to us, “Who do you say that I am?,” may we be bold to confess as Peter did: “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.” In the name of Jesus, amen. Now the peace of God that passes all understanding, keep your hearts and minds through faith in Christ Jesus, amen.

Grace, mercy, and peace to you from God our Father, and from our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, amen. The text for the sermon is the Old Testament, which was read earlier.

As we begin the season of Lent, one thing that some Christians do during this time is sacrifice something by giving it up during this 40-day period of solemn reflection on the upcoming passion of our Lord. When people give up something, they truly consider it to be a sacrifice, something that you can’t live without. We can live without our daily trip to Starbucks or that bag of chocolate candy that we absolutely love. Those are not necessities but are luxuries. But as we see with Abraham, he was truly called to sacrifice something, his only son Isaac.

One can only imagine what is going through Abraham’s head at this moment. I’m sure one question he is asking is, “Why me?” It doesn’t make sense of God to make this request to Abraham. Why is this happening to him and not to someone else, say someone with more than one child? Abraham might surely have asked the question, “Why me?” at God’s request and he would most certainly be justified in asking God that question. But as we see, God’s request was an amazing test of faith for Abraham.

Isaac was the son God had given Abraham and Sarah in their old age. Sarah had been unable to have children, yet God saw fit to give to them a child, a single child. Abraham was 100 and Sarah was 90 when Isaac was born. Isaac was the heir who would continue God’s covenant promise to Abraham. This was not only Abraham’s personal legacy, but also the legacy of God’s covenant. For this and every other good reason, Abraham loved Isaac! He brought great joy into the lives of his parents. How could God now require Abraham to make such a sacrifice, especially since God had just granted their request for a child?

This test was not for God’s benefit, for He knew in advance that Abraham was indeed a God-fearing man. Rather, this was for Abraham’s spiritual benefit. Abraham’s love for Isaac, although right and good, might in time have crowded out his love for God. In God’s view, Abraham needed an opportunity to consciously put God first. With this test, God brought Abraham’s training in faith to a climax. The particular sacrifice God asked Abraham to bring is called a burnt offering, a blood sacrifice that in the Old Testament symbolized a person’s complete dedication to God.

Because Abraham was a righteous and God-fearing man, he took his only son Isaac to the land of Moriah to offer him as a sacrifice. As much as Abraham loved his son, he was willing to offer him to God, just as He had asked. What a faith Abraham must have had in order to go through with this. It would have been very easy for Abraham to turn tail and run away from God, as if he might be able to hide himself and Isaac from God. And really, who would have blamed him if he did? Surely not any of us!

Regardless of what this would mean, Abraham met God’s request with faith and obedience. He trusted in spite of the past challenges in receiving a son. He trusted in spite of future plans God predicted through that son. Abraham did as God had commanded. He obeyed in spite of the three-day journey to change his mind. He obeyed in spite of the emotions he must have felt as he heard Isaac’s question, “Behold, the fire and the wood, but where is the lamb for a burnt offering?”

One can look at this account and see just how horrible God is. He deprives Abraham and Sarah a child during the prime of their child-bearing years, only to give them a child when they are 100 and 90. Then, if that isn’t bad enough, then God requires that Abraham make a sacrifice to God, with his beloved son Isaac as the sacrificial lamb. How could this be a loving God who would require so much?

This is where people get God wrong. Here we have a foreshadowing of the sacrifice that earned forgiveness for the entire world. Just as Abraham was willing to sacrifice his son, so also God the Father sent His son into the flesh of man in order to sacrifice Him on the cross. Surely Abraham was torn up inside as he prepared to sacrifice his son. Never the less, this is but a taste of the anguish of God the Father. God sent a ram to take Isaac’s place. There would be no ram to take the place of the Son of God.

In the case of Abraham and Isaac, God provided a substitute for the sacrifice in the form of a ram. But in order to redeem creation from its sin, God provided the sacrifice in His only begotten Son, Jesus Christ. We could not provide the sacrifice that was necessary to redeem our sins. Yes, the people of the Old Testament provided sacrifices that would forgive them of their sins. But the results of the sacrifices were only temporary. They would have to make another sacrifice for their sins in the future. These sacrifices were not once-for-all sacrifices. The only way to obtain true, once-for-all forgiveness would be given through Jesus Christ and His all sin-atoning sacrifice.

Jesus had to become our substitute so that He could clean up the mess we made. He substitutes His perfection for our sin, His innocence for our guilt, and His virtue for our depravity. He substitutes Himself as the target of God’s wrath so that we can be the target of God’s grace. He suffered hell so that we can experience heaven. He takes all the sinful stuff that earns our eternal punishment and takes it to Himself. At the same time, He takes all His righteousness and gives it to us.

Fortunately for us, since, in the fullness of time, God provided the Lamb, since He committed His Son to the cross, we will never have to wrestle with the frightening choice that God put before Abraham. Our faithfulness to God is not in what we are willing to give up, nor is it in what we are willing to do as God’s servant. Rather, our faithfulness is in our clinging to His Son, His cross and resurrection, knowing that nothing we could give or do could ever exceed what God has already done for us in giving us His Son. 

We need not ask the question of, “Why me?” because it is the wrong question to ask. Rather, we ask the question, “Why Jesus?” and the answer is “For me.” In Jesus’ name, amen. Now the peace of God that passes all understanding, keep your hearts and minds through faith in Christ Jesus, amen.