[Firstborn Son]}

"...The firstborn of your sons you shall give to Me."~Exodus 22:29b

This reminds me of the story of Hannah. {Short version: Hannah was barren. She prayed for the Lord to give her a son and promised that if He would, she would dedicate Him to the Lord. The Lord granted her request and gave her a son whom she named Samuel. Once he was weaned, she brought him to the priest, Eli, where the boy remained and eventually became a prophet of God.}

Wow. Now that I have a son, this has new meaning to me. According to this verse, I would give my son to God. Now, if I understand properly, he could be redeemed with a sacrifice, but he would still "belong to God."

Because God gave His firstborn son for the world, however, this is no longer required. My son has been redeemed by Jesus' sacrifice. But, likewise, he still "belong[s] to God." One day, he will choose whether or not to accept the free gift of salvation and to follow God, but until that day, I am to "train up [this] child in the way he should...[so that] when he is old, he will not depart from it."

What an awesome and difficult task!