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Genesis 22:1 "And it came to pass after these things, that God did tempt Abraham, and said unto him, Abraham: and he said, Behold, here I am."

We're told tight up front that this is only a test. The King James Bible usses the word temp. However, the word test is more accurate to out modern way of speaking. 

The word translated as "temp" is a verb meaning to test, to  try, to prove (1). The writer tells us that God doesn't intend for Abraham to kill his son by letting us know this is a test. 

A rod about tests. 

When we talk about test, we say something like this, "God wants to see if we will obey, so He gives us a test."

I want to ask two questions: 

  1. Whos is this test for?
  2. What is this test for?

Who is this test for?

The answer is obvious; God knows everything, so He already knows how Abraham will respond. This means the test is for Abraham. 

What is this test for? 

This is not at test about building faith. This is about revealing faith. God wanted to show Abraham, Abraham's faith. 

God does the same for us. We need to know how much we will trust God. So, God gives us tests. 

  • Abraham trusted God but didn't know to what extent he trusted God. 
  • Abraham was willing to obey God, but he didn't know to what extent he would obey. 

Our capacity for faith is more than we think. Our capacity for obedience is more than we think. 

What a test does for a believer is that it reveals our progess in the faith. 

Reltionship. 

Genesis 22:1 "And it came to pass after theses things, that God did tempt Abraham, and said unto him, Abraham: and he said, Behold, here I am."

Abraham hears the voice of God and recognizes it. This shows tjat Abraham dosen't just know about God; he knows God. Many people know about God but do not have a rlationship with him. 

The know things about God and enjoy his work but do not know him. Abraham was not a fan of God; He was a friend of God.

Question

How could we describe your relationship with God? Since we live in the Bible Belt, everyonewe know considers themselves a follower of Jesus. 

But being a fan is different that being a follower. 

  • Thirteen-year-old me had a Dallas Cowboy shirt
  • I had a Dallas Cowboy poster
  • I had Dallas Cowboy merchandise of every kind

Did that mean I was on the team? We all know people with all the outward appearances of being a follower of Jesus. 

  • They have little crosses everywhere decorating their home.
  • They have a jesus bumper sticker on the vehicle 
  • THe have Bible verses all over their social media page. 
  • They have Jesus tattoos on their arms

None pf that makes them followers of Jesus

There are a lot of fans of Jesus in the world, but there are not many followers. We look at the story of Abraham's nephew Lot; he was a fan of God but wasn't a follower. 

Abraham wasn't just a fan; he was a friend. How do we know? When tested, he proved himself. 

So, The request we hear in this story is not just a request form a random person; this is from a close friend. 

Abraham knows God; he has spent years walking with God and trusting God. 

But that doesn't mean that it's easy. There had to be an inner struggle

  • Genesis 22:2 And he said, take now they son, thine only son Isaac, whom thou lovest, and get thee into the land of Moriah; and offer him there for a burnt offering upon one of the mountains which I will tell thee of. 
  • Genesis 22:3 And Abraham rose up early in the morning, and saddled his ass, and took two of his young men with him, and Isaac his son, and clave the wood for the burnt offering, and rose up, and went unto the place of which God had told him. 
  • Genesis 22:4 Then on the third day Abraham lifted up his eyes, and saw the place far off.

The Bible doesn't reveal Abraham's thoughts, but as we read the story, we put ourselves in his place without thinking. 

All this took three days. It would be one thing for God to make this request and immediately require Abraham to follow through but God gives him three days to think about what he must do. 

  • How do you think he slept? 
  • Do you think he was fun to be around during this time? 

I would imagin that with each he was fun to be around during this time?

How do you think he calmed himself?

We are not told explicitly in the text, but three things are implied. 

  • He remembers God's plan.
  • He remembers God's promise.
  • He remembers God's provision.

God's plan

Genesis 22:2 "And he said, Take now thy son, thine only son Isaac, whom thou lovest, and get thee into the land of Moriah; and offer him there for a burnt offering upon one of the mountains which I will tell thee of."

We know from reading the story that Isaac is not his only son. The phrase only son is a title of preeminence. He was preeminent due to his miraculous birth. 

The writer of Hebres calls Isaac Abraham's "only begotten son," meaning that Isaac was special and unique.

God reveals to Abraham and Sarah that they would have a baby and that the Messiah would come to save the world through that baby.

This was God's plan. Abaham had been following this plan for decades. 

So, the request, "take your only son," implied a plan. 

No doubt, as he's riding toward mount Moriah, he's reminding himself over and over again, "God has a plan." 

  • God has given Issac. 
  • God has a plan for Issac.

Isaac's birth was miraculous; his birth was crucial part of God's plan to save humanity. 

This line of thinking is implied in vs. 4-5

  • Genesis 22:4  Then on the third day Abraham lifted up his eyes, and saw the place afar off. 
  • Genesis 22:5 And Abraham said unto his young men, Abide ye here with the ass; and I and the lad will go yonder and worship, and come again to you

Why was he going up the mountain? To sacrifice Isaac. If we were going up to sacrifice Isaac, how would Isaac come back with him?

Is Abraham lying? The writer of Hebres helps us out!

  • Hebrews 11:17 by faith Abraham, when he was tried, offered up Isaac: and he that had received the promises offered up his only begotten son, 
  • Hebrews 11:18 Of whom it was said, That in Isaac shall thy seed be called: 
  • Hebrews 11:19 Accounting that God was able to raise him up, even from the dead; from whence also he received him in a figure. 

In the moment of decision, Abraham was focused on God's plan.

He thought Isaac would be raised from the dead fulfilling God's plan.

Application

Even though your birth may not have been as miraculous, your life (compared to Isaac's) may seem mundane.

God has a plan for your life! This means that when you are going through a trail, you should remind yourself repeatedly that this part of God's plan. 

Isaac was a child of promise, and so are you. God has a plan for your life. God has something that only you can do. 

This means all the trails and tribulations in your life are htere for a purpost. 

"Things aren't falling apart; they're falling into place (2).

God's promis.

Earlier, we talked about Abraham's relationship with God, and I mentioned that Abraham didn't just know things about God; he knew God. 

He was not a fan of God; he was a friend of God. He had developed his relationship with God over the course of years. 

When you have a good friend, and they act in ways inconsistent with wha you know of them, you naturally give them the benefit of the doubt. 

Abraham hears what God is asking of him, but he also remembers the promise of his good friend. 

  • Genesis 12:7
  • Genesis 13:14-17
  • Genesis 15:1-21
  • Genesis 17: 1-27
  • Genesis 18:10

I would imagaine that with each passsing hour, he continually reminded himself of all the times God had promised him a son. 

Application 

God hasn't just given Abraham promises; he has given you a commitment. God designed the test that you may be going through to bless you. That is a promis. 

God's promis for trials. 

  • He will never leave us Romans 8:35
  • We are not cictims. We are conquerors Romans 8:37. This means that anything or anything that comes against you does so at its peril. Why? Jesus lives in you. The Bible says that "greater is He that is in you than he that is in the world" 1 John 4:4

God's Provision. 

  • Genesis 22:7 And Isaac spake unto Abraham his father, and said, My father: and he said, Here am I, my son. And he said, Behold the fire and the wood: but where is the lamb for a burnt offering? 
  • Genesis 22:8 And Abraham said, My son, God will provide himself a lamb for a burnt offering: so the went both of them together. 

Abraham knew that whatever the test required, God would provide. He didn't know how. He didn't know when, but he knew that God would provide. 

Application

When going through a trial, we tend to only focus on the negative things happening to us. 

What this does is causes us to accept a victim mentality. We stop being the conquerors and overcomers God has called us to be. 

The solution is to stop focusing on what the would says to you and about you. 

  • Your in-laws may call you a good-for-nothing, but the Bible says you are an overcomer. What are you going to fix your attention on?
  • Your boss may call you a loser, but the Bible says you are a conqueror. What are you going to fix your attention on?

Your ability to focus is limited. You can only focus your attention on one thing at a time. 

This isn't self help daily affirmation nonsense you see on telvision. 

You are an overcomer becuase Jesus lives in you. You are a conqueror because Jesus lives in you. 

If you are focusing on what the Bible says to you and about you, you're not focusing on what the would says to you and about you. 

There will be times when you say these things to yourself, and you won't believe them.

  • Remember the story of Abraham in those times, God promised to provide for him, and he did.  
  • Remember God's history of victory. 
    • Tell yourself the stories of God providing for His people.
    • Tell yourself the stories of how GOd has provided for people you know. 
    • Tell yourself stories of how God has provided for you.
  • Remember the empty tomb.

When we do that, our daily meditation on God's promises becomes declarations built on the acts of God in history. 

We are not just affirming we are who God says we are; we are declaring we are who God says we are. 

Our takeway

In our story, not only do we see the faith of Abraham, but we also see the faith of Isaac. 

Typically, we think of this story only thinking of the testing of Abraham, but surely Isaac is being tested too. 

Abraham believed in God, but so did Isaac. Isaac's example of faith is one of the most vivid examples of faith in the Bible. 

Abraham was willing to sacrifice, but Isaac was willing to be sacrificed. It's one thing to trust God with someone's else life; it's another thing to trust Him with yours. 

 

(1) Word Study Dictionary

(2) Jan Markell