A Word about a Ram

 

Today I want to share a word about a ram, as I comment on Genesis 22:6-14. This passage reads:

So Abraham took the wood of the burnt offering and laid it on Isaac his son; and he took the fire in his hand, and a knife, and the two of them went together. But Isaac spoke to Abraham his father and said, “My father!” And he said, “Here I am, my son.” Then he said, “Look, the fire and the wood, but where is the lamb for a burnt offering?” And Abraham said, “My son, God will provide for Himself the lamb for a burnt offering.” So the two of them went together. Then they came to the place of which God had told him. And Abraham built an altar there and placed the wood in order; and he bound Isaac his son and laid him on the altar, upon the wood. And Abraham stretched out his hand and took the knife to slay his son. But the Angel of the Lord called to him from heaven and said, “Abraham, Abraham!” So he said, “Here I am.” And He said, “Do not lay your hand on the lad, or do anything to him; for now I know that you fear God, since you have not withheld your son, your only son, from Me.” Then Abraham lifted his eyes and looked, and there behind him was a ram caught in a thicket by its horns. So Abraham went and took the ram, and offered it up for a burnt offering instead of his son. And Abraham called the name of the place, The-Lord-Will-Provide; as it is said to this day, “In the Mount of the Lord it shall be provided.”

The Goats of My Pasture: 

As many of you already know, for the past eight years or so, my wife and I have maintained a small herd of goats our our rural homestead. We initially acquired a buck and two does so that they could keep the grass cropped in a field I had previously been mowing. We also got them to help clear out the underbrush in a stand of trees behind that field. They have done a great job of doing both these things, and they are also entertaining to watch as well. We have been impressed by how powerful they are when butting one another. They rear back only a few inches and the lunge forward with their heads in an impressive show of strength which reminds me of a coiled spring . . .  a massive coiled spring at that.

The species of goat in our herd is the Boer goat, which was originally bred in South Africa to produce meat. As such, they have a rambunctious nature and more aggressive personalities than diary goats. They are also inquisitive, and they can get themselves in trouble. Someone told me once that they are born trying to kill themselves, and I can see that. I have rescued several of our goats who got stuck in various trees and vines, and I often have to free the smaller animals from our pasture fence.

Our smaller goats will stick their heads through the wires squares in the fence to try to reach something that they imagine is good to eat. Their horns are curved to the rear, and they easily pass through the fence moving forward. Sadly, when they try to withdraw their heads, the horns, like the barbs on a fish hook, catch on the fence and they are stuck. Then they begin bleating and crying for help. Of course, their herd members would like to help them, but they can’t, and so they are stuck until my wife or I can come free them. 

Goats are alert and wily animals when it comes to threats from predators. I have often commented to my wife about how “tactically sound” they are. When they move in a column they send the weakest adult goats forward first, so that they can flush out any threats so that the biggest goats in the rear can respond with a counterattack. They graze in a skirmish line, and they circle-up to chew their cud with 360 degree security. If they could carry a rifle and use a compass they’d be great candidates for the US Army Ranger School! :-)

As alert as they are to the threats of  predators, inanimate objects seem to have them flummoxed. Every one of our goats has gotten caught in a tree, or vine, or fence at least once, and currently, a posse of three small brown ones need to be rescued frequently. Yet, we enjoy having them, and they serve us well in trimming the grass in a portion of our property. By the way, we don’t sell our goats for meat; they are too valuable to us as gardeners!

Because we have goats, and because sheep were an important part of the economy and society were we served as missionaries in West Africa, I am always drawn to Bible passages about sheep and goats. Our passage for today is particularly interesting because it involves a ram which was caught in a bush. This passage is primarily about Abraham’s faith and trust in God, but the ram does illustrate several points.

A Humbled Ram:

First, rams are aggressive and self assured creatures, that is, until they are humbled. Our buck goat is named Buster Junior after his father. Like his father, Buster is the Alpha male in our herd, and he has tried to bully me in the past. He tried, that is, until I kicked him in the teeth. After that, I have been the Alpha creature when I am inside the gate.

In this case, a mighty and powerful ram was caught by a humble thicket of thorns or vines. The ram was trapped and brought low so that God could make use of it for His own purposes. So it is with humans also. We bluster and bully our way though life until God kicks us in the teeth and confronts us with our sin and human frailties.

We must remember that God, “resists the proud, but gives grace to the humble.” Sometimes we have to get caught in a thicket to become the people God wants us to be.

An Available Ram:

I also think that the story of this ram is a great example of a divine appointment. It was no coincidence that this animal entrapped himself just when Abraham need to make a sacrifice to God. God brought that ram there, and He caught that ram in the thicket for His purposes and for the use by Abraham. Timing, and they say, is everything, but in this case it was a “God thing!”

The Biblical record and our own personal experiences tell us that God makes appointments for us that we don’t anticipate. This is what Esther was told in that famous passage that says, 

“For if you remain silent at this time, relief and deliverance for the Jews will arise from another place, but you and your father’s family will perish. And who knows but that you have come to your royal position for such a time as this?” Esther 4:14.

Paul told us to “redeem the time,” which is another way of saying “seize the day.” When God gives us the opportunity to be used by Him, we must take it, embrace it, and pursue it with all our being.  In the case of the ram, it meant being a sacrifice, and, to be honest, we also need to willing to be a sacrifice and well. As I have often heard Dr. Chuck Kelley say, “The problem with living sacrifices is that they crawl off the altar!” 

Let’s look for those divine appointments and take full advantage of them for God’s Kingdom.

A Captured Ram:

Finally, you can run but you can’t hide. If He wants to, God will catch you like He caught this ram. The Biblical record is clear and abundant that this is the case:

God found Adam and Eve after they has sinned.

God caught Jacob when he was on the run from Esau.

God chose Saul even though he hid behind his family.

God waited on David to come in from herding the sheep.

God appointed a fish to swallow Jonah to give him time to change his mind.

God called some back country fishermen to be fishers of men.

God kicked Saul in the teeth on the road to Damascus.

God caused Peter to dream of bacon and ham and shrimp and lobster (ok, that’s a little poetic license, I will admit, but its essential correct).

The moral of the story of the ram is this, “Never run from God, because all you’ll do is get tired before you get caught.”

Conclusion:

One reason I love the Bible it that is is so real, and so relatable to our lives. Even though our modern lives are so very different than in Biblical times, God’s Word has an amazing way of shining down through the centuries to shine like a spotlight on our lives. 

Let's learn from the story of this ram. Be humble, be available, and be willing to get caught but God. Not only will we be blessed, but God will also use us to bless others!

Every blessing,

I’m Dr. Otis Corbitt