His Cross Our HopeSample

I stood in the driveway with tears rolling down my face as my son drove off in the truck that was way too big for his few possessions to start his new life. I never thought I would experience this day. Despite my feelings and lack of understanding, I relinquished my only son.

My son and I navigated his challenges of Asperger’s syndrome, ADHD, and mood disorder with professional help as he learned to manage them. I thought he would live with me and rely on my counsel forever.

Yet, it was time to let him go and let him try to make his way in the world. I had to trust God to look out for him. My head knew God loved my son even more than I did, but my heart hurt. Maybe this was some kind of test for both of us in the next chapter of our lives.

God asked Abraham to sacrifice his only son Isaac. Abraham had faith that God could somehow bring Isaac back to life because he was a promised child who played a significant part in God’s overall plan. Abraham knew God couldn’t break His promise, and God had been closely teaching and leading Abraham for decades. At the climactic moment of Abraham raising his knife for the death blow, a voice stopped him. Abraham didn’t withhold his only son from God, and God delivered Isaac from death. This pivotal occasion foreshadowed the ultimate sacrifice of God’s Son on the cross years later. God loved us so much that He gave His only Son who would not only be delivered from death but would conquer death. Jesus rose from the dead.

Just as Abraham and I prepared to obey God by handing over our sons, those lives were not sacrifices God required. God showed His incredible love for us in giving up His only son, and Jesus sacrificed His human life for us.

God knows obedience hurts the heart. His Son obeyed His Father’s will and gave His life as a ransom for many. That “many” is us.

~Carol McCracken

Author, speaker, and Bible study teacher