Genesis 22:2 says, “And he said, Take now thy son, thine only son Isaac, whom thou lovest, and get thee into the land of Moriah; and offer him there for a burnt offering upon one of the mountains which I will tell thee of.”
“Wolverton Mountain” was a hit song in 1962. It was co-written by Merle Kilgore and Claude King, but King was the one who sang it. The song pictured a beautiful young girl that lived up on the mountain—the daughter of Clifton Clowers. A young man wanted her for his wife, even though he was warned not to go up on the mountain because Clifton Clowers was handy with a gun and a knife. He was tired of being lonely down in the valley and determined to go get the girl, even if he died doing it. His love for the girl was greater than his fear of her dad.
It is interesting that God told Abraham to take his “only” son to the mountain and sacrifice him. Abraham had two sons at this time; Ishmael and Isaac. However, Sarah had only one son, Isaac. This account is a foreshadowing of the day when God would sacrifice His only Son on Mt. Calvary at probably the exact location where He was having Abraham go.
The faith of Abraham and the obedience of Isaac are great lessons in themselves, however, I would like us to look at this account from God’s point of view. This was like a trial run of the sacrifice of His only Son, Jesus—almost like a wedding rehearsal. This was the way God planned to redeem man from his fallen state, from the very beginning. Everything was moving to the great day of the cross. His only Son was on His mind when He spoke to Abraham.
Why did God sacrifice His own Son? John 3:16 says because, “God so loved the world….” God chose the very location that the sacrifice of love would take place. God said to Abraham to take his son Isaac, “whom thou lovest,” and offer him for a burnt offering.
What is the person or thing that you love? Jesus Himself commanded us to love one another. It might be our own lives that we love more than anything. Sooner or later there will be a love test. We will be called to climb Love Mountain. Abraham didn’t wait a week or two to decide. I don’t think he laid awake all night thinking about it. We know that he rose up early in the morning and set out for Love Mountain. On the way, Isaac asked his dad where the sacrifice was and Abraham answered with a prophecy, “…God will provide himself a lamb…” (Genesis 22:8). A lamb was not provided, but instead a ram. Therefore Abraham called the name of the place “Jehovahjireh,” which means the Lord will provide, not the Lord has provided. The ram was a temporary sacrifice, the Lamb of God would be the eternal sacrifice (yes, I believe Abraham understood this.)
I ask you now, have you been to Love Mountain? Have you been to Calvary? Have you been there once and never returned? Do you go there daily? It is there that sins are washed away by the blood of God’s sacrificial Lamb.
Clifton Cowers’ beautiful daughter was protected on Wolverton Mountain. The young man would die to get her for his wife. Jesus died for you, calls for you, pleads for you to become His bride. Do you hear His call? Aren’t you sick of the lonely valley below? There is a Love waiting for you that will fill your heart to overflowing. Don’t let the devil scare you away from Love Mountain!
