The Father's Sacrifice

We often recall Jesus’ sacrifice for us: He chose to die in our place. He chose to do the will of the Father in all things, even choosing death. Death did not come to Him as it does to us, like an enemy in the night. No, he chose death --- for us. What more could one man do?

But what of Jesus’ Father, our Father?

We recall that Abram stood ready to sacrifice his son, Isaac, at the command of God. The knife was ready to slay him; Abram was willing to offer all of value in his life to do the God’s will. He was willing to slay his only son in sacrifice to please God. Instead, a lamb was found at the last minute to replace his son, and used as the offering. We often are told this prefigures the offering of Jesus, the innocent lamb, to please the Father, willingly dying. Jesus wasn’t a lamb slaughtered against its will like the one of Abram, Jesus chose to be sacrificed; He chose to die for His Father, and for us. Both Abram and Jesus chose to do the will of God.

This morning I read from a sermon by St. Alphonsus Ligouri: (God), by giving us his Son, whom he did not spare precisely so that he might spare us, he bestowed on us at once every good, grace, love and heaven; for all the goods are certainly inferior to the Son. He who did not spare his own Son, but handed him over for all of us; how could he fail to give us along with his Son all good things.

Jesus offered Himself for us, yes; “Greater love than this no man has …,” but the Father also made an offering for us: his Son, his only Son. I think we often recall Jesus’ willing sacrifice, but we forget the Father’s sacrifice. He also truly was prefigured by Abram, but with a crucial difference: Abram was willing to give his great sacrifice FOR GOD. God the Father offered his great sacrifice, of his only Son, FOR US!! He offered Him precisely so He might spare us!!!

A God chose us over his only Son!!! Are we worth that offering? Can we ever be? God choosing me, over His own Son? Can I be worth that??

Can I ever stop trying to be worth it? Can you?