The Gospel in Genesis 22

*Random Thoughts from Seminar by Dr. Jim and Val Harvey on Discovering the Difference Knowing God's Name Can Make*

'Adonai' is translated (and really means) 'Lord'. On the other hand, 'YHWH' is translated as 'LORD' but really means 'I AM'.

God does not have different names. Rather, God has one name (YHWH) with different titles (eg. Adonai - the God who is Lord, Yireh - the God who provides etc). To illustrate, Dr. Jim Harvey has one name (James) with different titles (eg. husband, father, grandfather, great-grandfather etc).

Jesus (Yeshua) = YHWH saves

"She will give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins." - Matthew 1:21 (NIV)

The God Who Provides

Interestingly, the word 'love' (Hebrew: ahavah) occurs in the Bible for the first time in Genesis 22:2. (The word 'love' in Genesis 20:13 is more accurately rendered as 'kindness'.)

"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 22:2 (NIV)

"For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life." - John 3:16 (NIV)

"He who did not spare his own Son, but gave him up for us all - how will he not also, along with him, graciously give us all things?" - Romans 8:32 (NIV)

Genesis 22 is not about how a good God could issue an ostensibly evil command. Neither is Genesis 22 about how Abraham passed the test of faith and how we too can follow in his footsteps. Rather, Genesis 22 is about love. A lamb. A substitutionary death. And resurrection. In other words, the gospel!

"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 22:5 (NIV)

"Abraham answered, "God himself will provide the lamb for the burnt offering, my son." And the two of them went on together." - Genesis 22:8 (NIV)

"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 (NIV)

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"By faith Abraham, when God tested him, offered Isaac as a sacrifice. He who had received the promises was about to sacrifice his one and only son, even though God had said to him, "It is through Isaac that your offspring will be reckoned." Abraham reasoned that God could raise the dead, and figuratively speaking, he did receive Isaac back from death." - Hebrews 11:17-19 (NIV)