The conflict

If there is no conflict, it is not a sacrifice. Conflict is what shows the weight of what God is asking us to place on the Altar. The devil becomes desperate when he sees what the Holy Spirit will realize in life of an obedient person that sacrifices.

Imagine what must have gone through Abraham’s head, during the three day walk in the desert, hearing the innocence in his son’s voice ask: …Look, the fire and the wood, but where is the lamb for a burnt offering? Genesis 22.7

I believe that Satan used this moment to speak strong in Abraham’s mind, telling him that what God wanted him to do was madness and his loss would be irreparable, because no one else had this kind of testimony for doing something like this in the past. This was unheard of.

As a father, his senses screamed telling him not to sacrifice what he spent a lifetime waiting for, the guarantee of having descendants.

His conflict was great, but Abraham did not listen to the voices of doubt, fear and emotions. He answered, with the coldness of an obedient servant, without complaining or questioning his Lord:

My son, God will provide for Himself the lamb for a burnt offering… Genesis 22.8

And obeyed.

This reminds me of Jesus, whose conflict was so great that His sweat became like drops of blood as the time approached for the greatest and most painful of all sacrifices in human history. Still, He reacted by focusing on the will of His Father and not His: …if it is Your will, take this cup away from Me; nevertheless not My will, but Yours. Luke 22.42

The question is: Is your sacrifice filled with inner conflict? When you look at what God asked you for, do you feel the pain of loss? Or are you going to the Altar as if you were going to a party? If so, this is still not your perfect sacrifice.

Think about this