So now we come to Abraham’s last huge lesson in his lifelong growth in faith; Genesis 22. Some things in our own experience will only make sense if we grasp this story. For me it’s a very emotional one…
Ever since Genesis 15 the big thing in Abraham’s life has been his son. And now God tells him: `Take your son — your only son — who you love` [why rub it in like that?] — this son on whom all his dreams had been centred – `and… sacrifice him as a burnt offering…`
So the climax in Abraham’s growth comes when he trusts, and obeys, God when God’s doing something he can’t understand at all. It’s utterly hard: this is the son he’s waited for so long, and loves so much. And for us? Doesn’t the climax of God’s faith-training come sometimes when we’re saying, Lord I don’t understand what you’re doing at all, and I seriously wish you weren’t, but I will choose to trust your love, your wisdom, your plan, and I will follow you? (Lord help us!)
(How do we prepare for such a thing? `What we have seen of God equips us to trust him in what we cannot see.` In Genesis 18:25 Abraham had reached `Will not the Judge of all the earth do right?`; now that had to be his anchor. As we feed on the whole Bible, we store up more and more visions of what God is really like: and what we’ve stored up will carry us through when the deep waters come…)
But here it’s hard also because Abraham doesn’t just have to wait for God. He has to do things, repeat the sacrifice himself, step after step after step. Imagine him saddling the donkey for the journey(v3): `Father I will trust and obey you, no matter what.` Or cutting the wood for the sacrifice (v3): `Father I will trust and obey you, no matter what.` It hurts like hell; having to say yes or no not once but repeatedly; and no guarantee at all from God that it will be OK. (Maximum maturing in the shortest time.)
So for two days he and Isaac walk towards the sacrifice site together. Imagine: faith, step by step. And on the third day Abraham tells his servants he needs space with his son; it may be the last time. `Stay here; we will go over there and worship` (v5). So the two go on together (v6). And then – Isaac says, Dad, where’s the lamb for the sacrifice (v7)? Whatever do you say? Abraham says, God will provide the lamb. Faith; it’s all he can possibly say.
Worship: sooner or later real worship has a cost. It’s not only enjoying singing. Biblical worship is a life of trusting & obeying; `We will worship` here means I choose, I make an act of will, to offer a sacrifice. Romans 12:1: `I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God’s mercy, offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy & pleasing to God— this is your spiritual act of worship.` God wants to grow us each into worship that is about giving not getting…
But hallelujah it doesn’t end there; not at all; and it’s deep… please come back next time…
