I’ve been working on writing a lesson about Isaac and Abraham for our Awana survey of the Old Testament.
(I think I am benefitting as much as, or more than, the Awana kids, by putting together these lessons!)
What keeps going through my head is the last chorus of Michael Card’s song about God testing Abraham by asking him to sacrifice his son, his only son, Isaac, whom he loves. You can read the whole story for yourself in Genesis 22, but here is the song:
Three days journey to the sacred place
A boy and a man with a sorrowful face
Tortured yet faithful to God’s command
To take the life of his son in his own hands.
God will provide a lamb
To be offered up in your place
A sacrifice so spotless and clean
To take all your sin away.
Here’s wood and fire, where the sacrifice?
The questioning voice and the innocent eyes
Is the son of laughter who you’ve waited for
To die like a lamb to please the Lord?
God will provide a lamb
To be offered up in your place
A sacrifice so spotless and clean
To take all your sin away.
A gleaming knife, an accepted choice
A rush of wind and an angel’s voice
A ram in the thicket, caught by its horns
And a new age of trusting the Lord is born.
For God has provided a lamb
He was offered up in your place
What Abraham was asked to do, He’s done
He’s offered His only son!
What Abraham was asked to do, He’s done
He’s offered His only son!
I LOVE how Michael Card concludes this song – What Abraham was asked to do, GOD did – HE offered His only son, whom He loved – Jesus – in *my* place, to take all *my* sin away.
By the way, if you’ve never listened to Michael Card, I HIGHLY recommend his music. Not only is he an excellent musician, but he is a serious student (and teacher) of the Bible. His songs are so saturated in the Word of God, and he makes the stories, events, and people come alive. He has done an album on almost every book or group of books in the Bible: the Law, the Writings (Psalms, Proverbs, Job, etc.), the Prophets, the Life of Jesus, The letters of Paul, Hebrews, the life of Peter, Revelation. And I just found out he has albums on Matthew, Mark, and Luke too. I first began listening to his music when I was a teenager, and now I can hardly read the Bible without being reminded of one of his songs. Especially in the Old Testament songs, he is so good at connecting it to the New Testament (as in the song above) and making a powerful application to *my* life.
