Graduate 82: Advent, Day 5
The Offering of Isaac
Genesis 22:1-19
Given what has been said about God’s trustworthiness and faithfulness up to this point, the story of the sacrifice of Isaac probably appears jarring and out-of-place. Why does God command Abraham to sacrifice his son? Why does Abraham submit and obey? Isaac is the son of promise—not just a son, but the son through whom Abraham is to become a great nation; and God asks him to destroy that promise and hope with his own hands.
Why does Abraham submit and obey? The radical and outrageous answer is: because he trusts God. The author of Hebrews praises Abraham’s great faith and says of him, “He considered that God is able to raise men even from the dead”. (11:19) That’s how strong Abraham’s faith and trust in God is; there is no doubt in his mind that God will keep His promise.
Learning to submit to God’s will and place our confidence in His plan is one of the hardest and most important steps to take in our walk with Him. Oftentimes, when God answers our prayers or blesses us, we construe that as a license to ask God for whatever we want and expect that He will grant all our requests. But that’s completely backwards; God brings good things into our lives, in part, to show us that He really is good and gracious and loving so that we will continue to trust Him even when He leads us down dark roads and through difficult times. God has a plan for us and it is a good plan, but if we are not willing to follow Him through the tough spots, we will never see the good things that God intends for us at the end.
Abraham is willing to follow God through the tough spots. Isaac is willing to follow God through the tough spots. And because of their trust, two thousand years after they live and die—a certain baby is born in a stable in Bethlehem. He models a life of perfect obedience to God, the Father. (John 5:19, 30) At the age of thirty-three, He kneels and prays, “Father, if Thou art willing, remove this cup from Me; yet not My will, but Thine be done”, (Luke 22:42, see also Mark 14:32ff; Hebrews 5:7-9) and in obedience to the Father, He goes to the cross and sacrifices Himself for us. (Heb. 12:1-3) We, too, can glorify Jehovah Jireh—The LORD Will Provide—for His sacrifice.
--
God is in this place,
and that reality, seen and understood by the grace of God in Christ Jesus through the work of the Holy Spirit, makes all the difference in the world.
Genesis 22:1-19
Given what has been said about God’s trustworthiness and faithfulness up to this point, the story of the sacrifice of Isaac probably appears jarring and out-of-place. Why does God command Abraham to sacrifice his son? Why does Abraham submit and obey? Isaac is the son of promise—not just a son, but the son through whom Abraham is to become a great nation; and God asks him to destroy that promise and hope with his own hands.
Why does Abraham submit and obey? The radical and outrageous answer is: because he trusts God. The author of Hebrews praises Abraham’s great faith and says of him, “He considered that God is able to raise men even from the dead”. (11:19) That’s how strong Abraham’s faith and trust in God is; there is no doubt in his mind that God will keep His promise.
Learning to submit to God’s will and place our confidence in His plan is one of the hardest and most important steps to take in our walk with Him. Oftentimes, when God answers our prayers or blesses us, we construe that as a license to ask God for whatever we want and expect that He will grant all our requests. But that’s completely backwards; God brings good things into our lives, in part, to show us that He really is good and gracious and loving so that we will continue to trust Him even when He leads us down dark roads and through difficult times. God has a plan for us and it is a good plan, but if we are not willing to follow Him through the tough spots, we will never see the good things that God intends for us at the end.
Abraham is willing to follow God through the tough spots. Isaac is willing to follow God through the tough spots. And because of their trust, two thousand years after they live and die—a certain baby is born in a stable in Bethlehem. He models a life of perfect obedience to God, the Father. (John 5:19, 30) At the age of thirty-three, He kneels and prays, “Father, if Thou art willing, remove this cup from Me; yet not My will, but Thine be done”, (Luke 22:42, see also Mark 14:32ff; Hebrews 5:7-9) and in obedience to the Father, He goes to the cross and sacrifices Himself for us. (Heb. 12:1-3) We, too, can glorify Jehovah Jireh—The LORD Will Provide—for His sacrifice.
--
God is in this place,
and that reality, seen and understood by the grace of God in Christ Jesus through the work of the Holy Spirit, makes all the difference in the world.
posted by Metaphysician_delta | 2:00 AM
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