Types of Christ

We often define a “type of Christ” as someone or something that points ahead to Jesus Christ and his redeeming work. With a “type,” the Old Testament in some way will prefigure the person and work of Christ, and the New Testament will provide enough information to see how that type finds its fulfillment in Jesus Christ.

In the biblical account you referenced (Genesis 22), a ram became the sacrifice offered to God instead of Isaac. The prophet Isaiah described the Messiah’s approach to his suffering for our sins this way: “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” (Isaiah 53:7).

When Jesus embarked on his public ministry, John the Baptist said of him, “Look, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!” (John 1:29)

The substitionary sacrifice in Genesis 22 points us ahead to Jesus’ substitionary sacrifice for the sins of the world (1 John 2:2).

The sermons you heard contained accurate biblical interpretation. An allegorical approach to that account from Genesis 22 would turn objects like the fire and the knife into other items.