6 And Abraham took the wood of the burnt offering and laid it on Isaac his son. And he took in his hand the fire and the knife. So they went both of them together. 7 And Isaac said to his father Abraham, “My father!” And he said, “Here I am, my son.” He said, “Behold, the fire and the wood, but where is the lamb for a burnt offering?” 8 Abraham said, “God will provide for himself the lamb for a burnt offering, my son.” So they went both of them together. ~ Genesis 22:6-8
Genesis 1 & 2 tell us that God created man in His own Image. Colossians 3 tells us we are being renewed after the Image of God, lost in the Garden of Eden. God created us with love. Then, it says He came down to earth and walked and talked with mankind. Let that sink in. The Creator of the Universe came and walked in the Garden so that He could commune with mankind. There was a relationship. One of love and care. Like a Father and His children.
How different the God of the Bible is from the gods of the oldest civilization (we have archaeological evidence of today). The Sumerian gods created mankind, not for a relationship. Not to commune with. Not out of love, but because the younger gods were tired of the hard labor of working the earth. Mining. Farming. Digging canals. So, they created mankind as slaves to do the work they didn’t want to do.
This belief is recorded in texts like the Eridu Genesis and other Sumerian religious tales, where humanity is described as the “sheep of the gods”, created to “bear the yoke” and “carry the load” of divine service. This is so very different than our God, who created us for relationship. Who says, “Come to me all who are weary, and I will give you rest.” Who says, “Take my yoke for it is easy, and my burden is light.” He offers rest. He carries the heavy weight we cannot.
This was the hopeless atmosphere Abram was born into in Ur, an ancient city in Sumer. A society where the gods have no love for their creation, but created them solely for slave labor. How hopeless that was, but the LORD took him out of that. He gave him a hope. A future. He showed him love. It is because of Abraham’s relationship with God that we have the title for God “Yahweh Yireh (Jehovah Jireh),” which means the LORD will provide.
He went from being nothing more than a slave for the gods to the LORD God being his provider. What a change. What a revelation to come to. It changes the story of Abraham and Isaac going up to Mount Moriah and the LORD delivering Isaac with the Ram caught in the bushel. He went from unseen. Unimportant. Disposable to seen. Important. Irreplaceable. What an amazing revelation to have. What an amazing relationship to gain.
Peace. Love. Forth and Be In Awe With Abraham.
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