Key scripture- “Abraham looked up and there in a thicket he saw a ram caught by its horns. He went over and took the ram and sacrificed it as a burnt offering instead of his son. So Abraham called that place The LORD Will Provide. And to this day it is said, “On the mountain of the LORD it will be provided” (Genesis 22:13-14)

The Hebrew word raah (RA-ah, from which Jireh is derived) means “to see.” In this case, it is translated as “provide.” Since God sees the future as well as the past and the present, he is able to anticipate and provide for what is needed. Interestingly the English word “provision” is made up of two Latin words that mean “to see beforehand.” When you pray to Yahweh Jireh, you are praying to the God who sees the situation beforehand and is able to provide for your needs.

We have all heard the story about Abraham and Isaac and we know how it ends. But what if we didn’t? What if Isaac had been our son, the fulfillment of a promise God had made to us? Could we have traveled for three days to Mount Moriah, the place of sacrifice, dreading the moment and yet walking steadily toward it? Could we have taken the knife in our own hand, willing ourselves to obey the command we did not understand and wished we had not heard? It is hard to read the story without imagining how Abraham must have felt. Was his hand shaking as he held the knife? Was his mind reeling under the burden of the terrible command he was about to obey? Was he thinking, how will I explain this to my wife Sarah, Isaac’s mother? It is not hard to imagine his agony. Think about that as you read the story again.

God said to him, “Abraham!”

“Here I am,” he replied.

Then God said, “Take your son, your only son, Isaac, whom you love, and go to the region of Moriah. Sacrifice him there as a burnt offering on one of the mountains I will tell you about.” (Genesis 22:1-2).

Early the next morning Abraham got up and saddled his donkey. He took with him two of his servants and his son Isaac. When he had cut enough wood for the burnt offering, he set out for the place God had told him about. On the third day Abraham looked up and saw the place in the distance. He said to his servants, “Stay here with the donkey while I and the boy go over there. We will worship and then we will come back to you.” (Genesis 22:3-5).

Abraham took the wood for the burnt offering and placed it on his son Isaac, and he himself carried the fire and the knife. As the two of them went on together, Isaac spoke up and said to his father Abraham, “Father?”

“Yes, my son?” Abraham replied.

“The fire and wood are here,” Isaac said, “but where is the lamb for the burnt offering?” (Genesis 22:6-7).

“God himself will provide the lamb for the burnt offering, my son,” replied Abraham.(Genesis 22:8).

When they reached the place God had told him about, Abraham built an altar there and arranged the wood on it. He bound his son Isaac and laid him on the altar, on top of the wood. Then he reached out his hand and took the knife to slay his son. But the angel of the LORD called out to him from heaven, “Abraham! Abraham!”

“Here I am,” he replied.

“Do not lay a hand on the boy,” he said. “Do not do anything to him. Now I know that you fear God, because you have not withheld from me your son, your only son.”

Abraham looked up and there in a thicket he saw a ram caught by its horns. He went over and took the ram and sacrificed it as a burnt offering instead of his son. So Abraham called that place The LORD Will Provide. And to this day it is said, “On the mountain of the LORD it will be provided.” (Genesis 22:9-14).

Now I want you to consider this story from God’s point of view. Try looking through the eyes of our Heavenly Father, who would one day make the costliest of all sacrifices, providing his only Son as the ransom for our souls. As He watched Abraham with his son, Isaac, did God feel something tearing at His heart, knowing that what He asked, but did not require of Abraham–the sacrifice of his only son– that one day He would have to go through with it?

“For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved.” (John 3:16-17).

Our God, Yahweh Jireh, provides for you and me, on a daily basis, just like He provided the ram for Abraham. So take some time today to thank Him for all your blessings, for the ultimate sacrifice that He made for us, when Jesus died on the cross for our sins, for His Promises and the Holy Spirit, for His forgiveness and faith, purpose and hope, love and peace, for food and shelter, family and friends, strength and wisdom, rest and work, laughter and light. Thank Him that His blessings never come to an end and His mercies are new every morning. Thank Him for being a God of infinite Grace.

Pray this – Our Precious Heavenly Father, when I read this story and I think about the sacrifice that You made for us, when we were still sinners and Your enemy, it makes me fall on my knees before You in humility as I worship, and praise You. Forgive me for any tendency I have had to live as if Your Grace was cheap, forgive me for taking for granted the price that You paid to redeem me and to justify me so that I could be called a Child of the Only True Living God. Father, I thank You for Your loving provisions in my life, for my daily bread, and for all the ways You provide for my spiritual, material, physical and emotional needs. Holy Spirit help me to obey God like Abraham did, immediately, and without hesitation, doubt or compromise. Thank You Father for calling me Your Child. Thank You for bringing me from the darkness into the light. In Jesus’ Name, I pray, Amen.