Driving to work today, I had a thought as I listened to James McDonald (Walk in the Word Ministries- this guy is AWESOME). He was preaching about faith and using Hebrews 11 as a text. The message was great and I caught this scripture reference: Hebrews 11:17 "By faith Abraham, when God tested him, offered Isaac as a sacrifice. He who had embraced the promises was about to sacrifice his one and only son..." This made me think about something that I had never thought about before. We know that Isaac's potential sacrifice was a test of Abraham's faith and was also a foreshadowing of what was to come with Christ. The sacrifice of an innocent life, the request for obedience from God and the ram in the bush all point to Calvary. The bible says that Abraham was willing to go through with the sacrifice because he believed that God could raise Isaac from the dead (see Hebrews 11:19). Abraham's faith in God was so great that he took his obedience to the brink reason and he was willing to sacrifice Isaac even though he was Abraham's only son. He was certain that God could do something miraculous if Isaac was killed.
Let us stay with this line of thinking. God the Father offered up His only Son, Jesus Christ. He chose Jesus from before time began to be the atoning sacrifice for the "sins of the whole world" (1 John 2:2). Ephesians 3 speaks of the mystery, the plan of God, through the church which belongs to Christ, to bring both Jews and Gentiles to Himself. God's reconciliation project involved sending Jesus to do for man what the law could not do, to be the propitiation, the lamb without spot or blemish that would reconcile men back to God and grant forgiveness to those that repent and accept Jesus as Savior.
Jesus even offered Himself up. When He came and wrapped Himself in flesh to reveal grace and truth to man (John 1:17), He came with the expressed intent of going to Calvary. The wise men brought frankincense to Jesus as a newborn baby. Frankincense is a death spice/fragrance! Simeon prophesied to Mary that her soul would be "pierced" (Luke 2:34,35). Christ's mission is no secret! Isaiah prophesied it in Isaiah 53. The Old Testament is filled with references to Christ's crucifixion. Jesus said on multiple occasions that the "Son of Man" must be betrayed into the hands of sinful men, be crucified (or "lifted up") and be raised on the third day (Mark 8:31, Luke 9:22, Luke 24:7, John 3:14). To put it in perspective, Jesus says emphatically in John's gospel: John 12:27 "“Now is my soul troubled. And what shall I say? ‘Father, save me from this hour’? But for this purpose I have come to this hour". Jesus was well aware of His mission, why He had to wrap Himself in flesh in order to die a death "once and for all" (Hebrews 9:28) to defeat the power of death (Romans 6:9) and to grant all those who would receive his gift of salvation a. remission of sin and b. eternal life (1 Peter 3:18). Here is what intrigued me, Jesus did so knowing that the Father gave Him the command to get up on the third day. John 10:18: "No one takes it from me, but I lay it down of my own accord. I have authority to lay it down, and I have authority to take it up again. This charge I have received from my Father.” Jesus could trust that this commandment was sure because it came from the Father, who is eternally co-equal and faithful to the Son and the Spirit.
So where am I going with this? The grace of God is manifested here in very vivid, and certain terms. God offered Jesus up, Jesus offered Himself up in order to do away with death and sin and they did so KNOWING that there would be many that would not accept their offer of salvation! How gracious is that? This is not an endorsement of limited atonement or Calvinisim at all. What I am saying is that God, in His infinite wisdom, knows everything and knows that there are many that will reject the message of the gospel and the saving grace of Jesus Christ. But the plan for salvation did not begin in the manger, it began in eternity- before any man was ever created or born! Before Adam, Eve, Cain, Abel, Noah, Moses, Abraham, Isaac, Jacob or any human being that ever existed, God's plan to reconcile man to Himself existed. It's so amazing and what's more amazing is the number of people that flat out reject that plan and will find themselves in fiery, unrelenting torment- not because the offer of salvation was not presented, but because they turned their backs on that offer.
As a real life example, my son hates to eat breakfast. He does so grudgingly on exam days because we try to stress the importance of having a good breakfast and how it benefits the brain and enhances cognitive abilities for test taking, etc. Although he doesn't like to have breakfast, that doesn't stop me nor does is stop his mother from making breakfast for both of our children every morning...knowing that on most mornings, the food will not be eaten by at least one of the kids. Out of graciousness, there is some offer of food each morning. Whether they eat it or not is a different story. Sometimes I feel that it is wasteful to continue to cook/prepare knowing that there is going to be a lip turned up or a deep sigh followed by an "I'm not hungry" or "Do I have to eat?". I have even said to them and to myself that I would stop getting up to make breakfast because of their ungratefulness. However, this is not God's way. God keeps the offer on the table knowing, that just like that bowl of cheese grits that my son left on the counter this morning, it might not be accepted and some excuse will undoubtedly be made as to why it was not accepted.
It's not as if God wants people to go to hell. God asks in Ezekiel 18:23, "Have I any pleasure in the death of the wicked, declares the Lord God, and not rather that he should turn from his way and live?" We see here that God would much rather the wicked would turn from their ways and repent! That's mercy and grace. But God will not force the wicked to do so, He will present the opportunity, send His Spirit to convict them but the ultimate decision is on the person to whom God is speaking. Did you know that Christ's return is being held because God is still giving people time to repent? 2 Peter 3:9 specifically says that God's "slowness" in returning is indicative of His patience and His desire that men would repent of their sins.
Hell was not even created for humans. It was prepared for Satan and his angels (Matthew 25:41, 2 Peter 2:4, Jude 1:6, Revelation 20:1,2)! However, humans that choose life apart from God are given their wish and will have all eternity to live without him. God loves us so much that He will not force anything on us that we do not want- including Himself. That is a sobering and frightening thought!
Christians should rejoice that we have accepted the salvation of God and we should be thankful that we have become beneficiaries of God's unlimited and unmerited grace. We should also be telling others of this grace. When the door for ministry is opened, take advantage of it and tell someone about the richness of God's grace and God's love for them. Thank you Jesus that although the offer may not be accepted by everyone, the ones that do accept it, You've said that you will never cast away. Let us be in prayer for those that we know, family and friends, that have not made a decision for Christ. Grace and peace.
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