Genesis 22:1-24
22:1 In the
journey of our lives there are moments which test our faith in varying degrees.
The circumstances of life continually prod us to rediscover, redefine and rejuvenate
our values, intentions, motivations and purposes. As we experience, our minds
and our bodies fluctuate but what must remain constant is the frequency of our
faith.
Abraham, proclaimed by God to be a prophet, will in this
chapter symbolize an extreme test of faith. For there is a difference in
believing in God and trusting in God. These each place differently on the spectrum
of faith. Some people look out at the Earth and the universe and truly believe
that there is a God, an intention and purpose to life. Other people look within
themselves as products of Earth and Universe and in that discovery, entrust God
in perfectly aligning them with the intention and purpose of life.
Even if God manifested physically and tangibly in front of
the believer, He would still have limited impact on their life. Yet even unseen,
God can completely wield and transform the life of the one who trusts. For it
is only with our permission that He can enter the minutia of our lives.
Permission comes through trust.
Abraham’s test in this chapter is extreme. It represents the
many varied ways in which the strength of our faith is tested. This chapter encourages
us to ask ourselves questions such as these: Under what circumstances would I
abandon my faith? How far on the fuel of faith am I willing to go? Am I willing
to walk by faith rather than sight? What are God’s intentions and am I willing
to trust in them even when I am weak?
Beginning this chapter officially, God calls to Abraham and
readily, Abraham is available. If we read quickly over this verse, we may neglect
to notice the familiarity within the relationship between God and Abraham. In
whatever manner God reached out to Abraham, Abraham was not confused or wary or
lethargic in answering. He knew Who was communicating with Him on a first name
basis.
We have a blessed opportunity: developing a relationship
with our creator that is familiar, safe, immediate and accessible. We communicate
with God throughout our days and lifetimes in the quest for comfort and
reassurance, love and protection. God communicates back to us in propelling us
toward our purpose and joy.
22:2 God has a
mission for his prophet, Abraham. This is an opportune moment to remember that
God loves without partiality. His children are servants, propellers of His
compassionate intentions and works. Yet we must remember that God’s children
are dutiful because they choose to be not because they are required or even
forced to be. Perhaps we are not prophets but our importance to Him is not
diminished because of that missing credential. Therefore, we can trust that
just as God led Abraham, He shall lead us.
22:3 When God
points in a direction and prods us to move, we must move. In immediate trust, Abraham
follows God’s directive. It is a beautiful moment, this early morning of
Abraham preparing to follow God’s advice. Abraham begins in the first early
moment of the day not out of fear or duty but out of trust. Abraham trusts that
God is good and moreover, has his best interest at heart.
It is a wise habit to develop a voracious thirst, a habit of
inquiry in our world today. Honesty and justice are not assured in our
interactions with humanity and the world. Fortunately, however, honesty and
justice are assured by our God. There is no need for asking or worrying about
the who, what, when, where and why of circumstances in our interactions with
God. He takes care of the details. Abraham trusted that whatever and wherever
God pointed him, it was a place that was ultimately going to contribute to his
wellbeing.
22:4-5 Abraham
and Isaac walked toward the place God had called Abraham.
22:6 Taking only
what they needed for worship, a handheld torch of fire and a knife (remember
these were times of sacrifice) Abraham and Isaac begin to walk.
22:7 Isaac calls
to his father with a question. Abraham responds to him with affection: Here I
am, my son. Abraham and his wife Sarah waited a long length of time for this
child to be born. They passionately prayed for him all their lives and finally,
he was delivered to them by God. Certainly, it must have been the great joy of
his life for Abraham to be with his son and especially on a mission for God.
Isaac asks Abraham where the sacrificial lamb is. Knowing
that they were on a journey to worship, Isaac wondered why the main proponent
was missing.
22:8 God assures
Isaac that God will provide what they require. When we walk in trust and faith
in God what we require will be provided by Him. It is imperative that we are
steadfast in the pursuit of our dreams and goals, even when we lack the
materials, because our God provides.
22:9-10 Here we
come to realize that Abraham knew the full directive from God in full from the
beginning. God told Abraham to bring Isaac, his beloved child, to this place
for sacrifice. As we read, Abraham did this without qualm. Why? How? Perhaps
you are horrified with Abraham and with God. If so, realize that this chapter
symbolizes the strength of trust we must have in our Creator.
Abraham brought his son up for sacrifice not because he was
willing to do so but because he knew that God would never actually require it.
We spoke about the familiarity between God and Abraham and we witness it here
again in this verse. Abraham knew His God. Our God is a God of justice and
compassion and life. Abraham, Sarah
and God put so much love and effort into manifesting Isaac’s life on earth.
Abraham knew that God would never take him away.
Moreover, Abraham trusted that if God were to take him away,
it would be in his best interest. Our God of life exists beyond the mortality
of life on Earth. He and His children live in spiritual eternity. Abraham knew
that Isaac would be just as alive in Spirit, if not more, as he was on earth
with him on this mountain.
Abraham’s faith in this chapter represented that He believed
in God’s limitlessness and in His limitless
compassion.
22:11 God stops
Abraham from sacrificing Isaac.
22:12 God
arranged these circumstances and Abraham participated in them for our benefit.
God knows our soul, intimately. He knows every crevice, every weakness, every
strength within us. We are the ones who require such lessons. Here is the
account of a man, a journey of faith, who went from having nothing to having
everything. These circumstances work to explain to us how that happened:
through the development of faith and trust in God.
22:13-14 God
replaces Isaac on the altar with a ram. This fulfills Abraham’s comment to
Isaac: God will provide. This chapter is so relevant to our lives. We found
ourselves constantly climbing figurative mountains and often without the
equipment we feel that we need. Life tests our faith in various degrees all
throughout our lives. Circumstances in life constantly draw fear and anxiety
out of us, making us feel inadequate, incapable, and underprepared.
God and Abraham work together in this chapter to be a balm
for us. Whatever it is that you need, God will provide. Your trust is His
landing pad. The delivery of your answered prayers is enabled through your
faith and arrives into your life on your trust.
22:15-16 Withhold
nothing from God. The wider and broader your faith, the bigger the blessings
that can come through. The larger the landing pad, the larger the landed
object. If we withhold nothing from God, He withholds nothing from us. We
receive access to His all. All His
wisdom, all of His love and protection and guidance.
22:17-18 Through
Abraham’s unbarred faith, all nations
of the Earth have been blessed… have been given access to the love of this extraordinary
Entity. God is thrilled to fill to capacity all the space your faith creates
for Him. Allow Him to fill your life with wonder and joy, opportunity and
wisdom and love. His blessings to you through your trust.
Giving trust to God is a proclamation, it is to truly
believe that our lives are better and more precisely wielded by God than they
are by our own hands (and works, and decisions). Our first gift from Him is a
life of freedom of choice: He is not an overbearing parent. The moment we allow
Him full access and control of our lives is the very moment that all other
things, people and ideas lose ability to have control over us. Absorbed in Him
Who is limitless in wisdom, love, and life we become supernatural, undefined, unmoored and undeterred by the limiting laws
of humanity and Earth.
22:19 Abraham
returned to his men and continued with his life. Although our gratitude for
them never is, blessings become common place in a life lived with God. Abraham
returns to his normal schedule, his regular life, after this amazing experience
of divine intervention. For Abraham knows that God is with us not only in the
spectacular moments but also in the mundane.
22:20-23 Abraham’s
family continues to grow. His brother Nahor (“Snoring”) and his wife Milcah (“Queen”)
produce eight children: Huz (“Wooded”), Buz (“Contempt”), Kemuel (“Raised of
God”), Chesed (“Increase”), Hazo (“Vision”), Pildash (“Flame of Fire”), Jidlaph
(“Weeping”), and Bethuel (“Dweller in God”).
22:24 Nahor’s
concubine, Reumah (“Elevated”), also produced children: Tebah (“A Slaughter”),
Gaham (“Burning”), Thahash (“Dugong”), and Maachah (“Oppression”).
