Pointing to Hope
Pastor Kirk Pearson
Part of A Thrill of Hope
December 15, 2024

Issac & Jesus:

• Both were promised by God or were a son of promise.

Genesis 18:10 NLT Then one of them said, “I will return to you about this time next year, and your wife, Sarah, will have a son!”

God is faithful to keep His promises.

• Both were born in miraculous circumstances.

If there’s ever a season that should encourage our faith in the miraculous, it’s Christmas.

• Both were only sons but were the first of many.

Romans 8:29 NLT “…his Son would be the firstborn among many brothers and sisters.”

Jesus was the first, so we could follow in His footsteps.

• Both carried their sacrifice. Isaac carried the wood, and Jesus carried the cross.

Genesis 22:6 NLT So Abraham placed the wood for the burnt offering on Isaac’s shoulders, while he himself carried the fire and the knife. As the two of them walked on together,

John 19:17 NKJV And He, bearing His cross, went out to a place called the Place of a Skull, which is called in Hebrew, Golgotha

We are all called to carry our cross.

Luke 9:23 NIV Then he said to them all: “Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross daily and follow me.

• Both were obedient to their father.

Genesis 22:9 NIV 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.

Matthew 26:42 NLT Then Jesus left them a second time and prayed, “My Father! If this cup cannot be taken away unless I drink it, your will be done.”

Faith requires not just belief, but obedience also.

Isaiah 53:7 NIV He was oppressed and afflicted, yet he did not open his mouth; he was led like a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before its shearers is silent, so he did not open his mouth.

Just because God is silent does not mean that He is not present.