In last week’s lesson on faith looking at Hebrews 11:11-12, we learned from Abraham that when God promises something, it is for real. We may not really believe, we may try to take things into our own hands, we may even laugh at God, but in the end, if we believe, God will still be able to say, “By faith ______”! Now let’s go to Heb. 11:17-19 for the next lesson in faith from Abraham:
“By faith Abraham, when he was tried, offered up Isaac: and he that had received the promises offered up his only begotten son, Of whom it was said, That in Isaac shall thy seed be called: Accounting that God was able to raise him up, even from the dead; from whence also he received him in a figure.” (Hebrews 11:17-19 HCSB)
Isaac. The child of promise. The miracle child, born of a barren woman long past child-bearing years. The child through whom God would fulfill his promise to Abraham. Isaac. The child Abraham was told to offer as a burnt offering on an altar.
There are few loving parents in the world who would have agreed to what Abraham did. In fact, this particular story provides a stumbling block for those whose eyes are blinded by the enemy. (“. . . The god of this world has blinded the minds of the unbelieving that they might not see the light of the glory of Christ.” 2 Cor. 4:4) They cannot see how a loving God would ask such a thing, nor can they understand how a loving father would ever agree to offer up his son on as a burnt offering. I mean, come on! Try to imagine putting YOUR first-born child on an altar, raising a knife to strike his or her throat, looking into those loving eyes, watching the fear, the disbelief, then the panic flood that trusting face! Oh God! Why would you ask such a thing! But this plea would soon be replaced by a rather stiff admonition: “What on earth am I doing??? I don’t care if it was God who told me to do it, I CAN’T do this!” Then anger might creep in, anger at the One who gave the command in the first place, disbelief, and maybe, even an abandoning of faith.
But when Abraham was asked to do this very thing, his reaction was different: “Early the next morning Abraham got up and saddled his donkey. He took with him two of his servants and his son Isaac. When he had cut enough wood for the burnt offering, he set out for the place God had told him about.” (Gen. 22:3)
Okay, maybe you or I would have gone that far. Maybe we would have thought, “Surely God will see I desire to be obedient, surely this is just a test! Surely God will remove the command!”
But Abraham went further than this: “When they reached the place God had told him about, Abraham built an altar there and arranged the wood on it. He bound his son Isaac and laid him on the altar, on top of the wood. Then he reached out his hand and took the knife to slay his son.” (Gen. 22:9)
Why? What would drive a loving parent to do such a horrible thing? Just this, my friend: Abraham KNEW GOD! God had proven Himself trustworthy enough times that Abraham knew better than to disobey, in even the slightest manner. In fact, Abraham knew God well enough that, as we are told in Heb. 11:19: “Abraham reasoned that God could raise the dead.” Abraham believed God would bring Isaac back to life!
Friends, the story has a better ending than this. God Himself appeared to Abraham through an Angel of the Lord: “‘Do not lay a hand on the boy,’ he said. ‘Do not do anything to him. Now I know that you fear God, because you have not withheld from me your son, your only son.’ Abraham looked up and there in a thicket he saw a ram caught by its horns. He went over and took the ram and sacrificed it as a burnt offering instead of his son.” (Gen 22:12-13)
It was nothing more than a test. And Abraham passed. Abraham loved God more than he loved this promised child. Abraham feared God enough to not even withhold his only son.
What gave him the strength to pass this test? His faith in God that God would raise the dead!
Enough to ponder, friends. But do ponder this: When God tells you to do something, even if it is something that is as unGodlike as offering your firstborn child as a burnt offering, you can trust Him enough to know that when you obey, God is able to raise the dead!
Join us next week for the next lesson in Faith to be learned from what Heb. 11 does NOT record about Abraham.
God bless you!
Lyn
Lyn Chaffart, Author, Moderator, The Nugget, Scriptural Nuggets website, www.scripturalnuggets.org , Answers2Prayer Ministries, www.Answers2Prayer.org .
(To access tne entire “Faith” mini-series, please click here.)