Lord, Let Me Imitate Isaac's Trust

Last month was the Academy Awards – which, just so you know – I did not watch nor cared to watch. But each year at this ceremony they give out awards for all sort of things related to movies & movie making. I guess the top or most important or most anticipated awards are the “Best Actor,” “Best Actress,” & “Best Picture” awards. But another important award – not the top one but an important one nonetheless is the “Best Supporting Role” & they give 1 out for the best supporting role for an actor & 1 for the best supporting role for an actress as well.

Last week, in our study of James in 2:21-24, in order to illustrate his point that faith w/o works is dead uses the OT story of Abraham being willing to offer up his son, Isaac, as a sacrifice in obedience to the Lord’s command. And throughout the story & ever since then the spotlight is & has been on Abraham. And rightly so. But because of the emphasis on Abraham, because of our focus on his incredible act of trust & obedience & all the ramifications that came from that for Israel & for us as Christians, we have missed viewing & thinking much about Isaac’s role. So I would like for us to go back to Genesis 22 & look at this story again but this time let’s let spotlight shine on Isaac some because I would like to nominate him for the “Best Supporting Actor” award.

Genesis 22:1-19

This is 1 of the tremendous stories in the Bible. Abraham shines brighter here than anywhere else. We sit back & marvel at his trust & obedience. As fathers, we wonder if we could have done what Abraham was willing to do. But God appeared to Abraham for the purpose of testing him. Now God already knew what was in Abraham’s heart. This test was not going to reveal anything to God that He didn’t already know. But it was going to reveal a lot to Abraham, those who knew Abraham & to generations since.

-22:2 – Here we read of this startling, inconceivable command. And it was a command. “Abraham, go take your only son, this son whom who so dearly love & offer him as a sacrifice to Me.”

Now we are told in v.1 that God was testing Abraham, but Abraham did not know that – for that would have defeated the purpose of the test. Is it possible that God does the same thing in your life too? It is! He doesn’t show up & announce, “Chuck, I am going to test you.” Or “Chuck, what is happening to you right now is a test from Me.” No, things just happen (at least from our viewpoint). They seem to be random & we don’t necessarily associate them w/ a test from God.

Not let me bring in that very familiar verse from Proverbs 3:5-6 – “Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your what??? – own understanding! Take that verse, that principle & apply it to Abraham here.

? How can he not lean on his own understanding in light of the fact that what God has commanded him to do goes against everything he knows about God & the character of God?

? How can he not lean on his own understanding in light of fact that obeying God here will cancel out God’s covenant, God’s promise that through Isaac He would make him a great nation?

? How can he not lean on his own understanding when obeying this command seems opposite to what makes sense to him?

? Which brings up the question: What are you going to do when His command seems opposite of what makes sense to you? Maybe you are facing 1 of those kinds of situations right now - What are you going to do – lean on your own understanding or trust in the Lord w/ all your heart?

-22:3 – V.3 tells us that Abraham got up the next morning, gathered up everything that would be needed to carry out God’s command & took off the land of Moriah which was a couple of day’s journey. As I read this part of the story, I am reminded of something that was said about Jesus when He was facing a very difficult task. As time was growing closer for His sacrifice for us upon the cross & knowing that He had to allow the religious leaders to have their evil & wicked way over Him, we read in Luke 9:51 – “And it came to pass, when the time was come that he should be received up, he steadfastly set his face to go to Jerusalem.”