Hey, Abraham - why don't you go ahead and bring your son up to this mountain and burn him as an offering to me.
Really?
And without hesitation, Abraham attempted to do just that. But because he did as God asked of him, his son was spared.
Can you imagine being told to do this and having enough faith and trust in God to do it without thinking twice?
God is continually testing us just as he did with Abraham. God doesn't always specifically ask us to do certain things (especially burn our children), but this is a good reminder that we should always prayerfully consider all of our options and choose the one we know would please God. Abraham trusted God and had so much faith in Him, and God did provide. He will always provide. It may not be in the way that we expected, or in the way that we wanted, but He will provide. We just need to have as much faith and trust in Him as He does with us. We are made in His image and need to strive to be just like Him. Neat stuff. Julie
Genesis 21-23
There was a lot of interesting stuff today, but only one thing that I am planning on commenting on. I was disturbed when I read Genesis 22. At first I didn't really know how I could even comment on it. How could the Lord ask Abraham to sacrifice his son? How could our Loving Father ask such a thing? How could Abraham do it? Was he just sick to his stomach when he was tying Isaac to the alter?
Then I read a friend's blog and a word stuck with me. (Thanks John!) OBEDIENCE. God was not intending to kill Isaac. He was just testing Abraham to see if he was willing to hand everything up.
But, I wonder if this is one area of the bible that certain religious groups focus on when they have mass suicides. Do they think this is what God wants? Do they think that God has asked them to sacrifice their children? Because the way I read it.....God did not want Abraham to kill Isaac, he just wanted Abraham to be obedient. nic
Then I read a friend's blog and a word stuck with me. (Thanks John!) OBEDIENCE. God was not intending to kill Isaac. He was just testing Abraham to see if he was willing to hand everything up.
But, I wonder if this is one area of the bible that certain religious groups focus on when they have mass suicides. Do they think this is what God wants? Do they think that God has asked them to sacrifice their children? Because the way I read it.....God did not want Abraham to kill Isaac, he just wanted Abraham to be obedient. nic
Wouldn't it be great to have an account of Isaac's thoughts during this? If his father is willing to sacrifice him for fear of the Lord. Then does this help Isaac build his relationship with the Lord too? This has always been a challenging story for me. Abraham is so devoted to God that he doesn't question this at all. Am I that devoted. I'm not sure.
ReplyDeleteI never thought about that. What was Isaac thinking? I'm glad that you pointed that out. I will keep that in mind as we follow Isaac. I'm sure it had to make an impact on him.
ReplyDeleteAs far as being as devoted as Abraham.....I fall way short. It stinks to admit it.
Nic,
ReplyDeleteThanks for the shout out! lol! Can you imagine the trust issues Isaac would have with his pops after that?!?! I love how you can see the wheels turning in his head in verse 7, "Um...dad...." I also have always wondered how the whole binding issue happened. Did Isaac just go ahead and let him? At this point when his dad came towards him with some rope after seeing him build this altar. I am pretty sure that even a 4 or 5 year old would have a clue. Was there a struggle? Did he run? Who knows...in the end I am guessing that detail is important and God wanted us to focus on the obedience issue. Nice thoughts today!