Theme: ON THE MOUNTAIN OF ABSOLUTE SURRENDER
Text: Genesis 22: 1-14
Introduction
A. Our passage this morning is one of the most preached portions of the Bible. Usually, this story was used as a picture of God giving His darling Son to die for the sin of mankind. God is revealed here as the “God of Provision.” Abraham called Him “Jehovah Jirah,” which means, “The Lord Himself will see and provide.”
B. But on the other dimension of this text, it talks about Abraham being in the most trying times of his faith in God. God tested Abraham. He told Abraham to offer his beloved son Isaac as a burnt offering at the mount of Moriah.
Though human sacrifice was a common practice in Abraham’s time, God’s command to offer Isaac could have been so horrifying to Father Abraham. Isaac was his only legal heir for all that he had, especially, for all that God had promised to him. And above all that is so heart-distressing, Isaac was Abraham’s greatest treasure. This son was everything to him –Isaac was and would be the fulfillment of all the promises he received from God. How could God ask Isaac from him?
But instead of seeing a devastated heart of a broken man, what can we see? We see the heart of a worshipper. Abraham, full of faith and confidence, without doubting and questioning God, made his steps towards the mountain of absolute surrender.
Now as we study this particular event of Abraham’s life, let us see through his example what it would take for us to be on the “Mountain of Absolute Surrender” as well, just like him. Remember, God has called each of us to absolute surrender of ourselves to Him.
What would it take for us to come to that mountain? Absolute surrender involves:
I. PERCEPTION.
1. If one must come to the place of absolute surrender, he must first be in the position where he could hear God and where he could understand and discern what God’s will is. Spiritual perception is important for a person to be able to come to the altar of God, the place where God wants him to be. But he must be in the right position to have that.
2. Now I gather that Abraham was in the right position to hear God and to have clear perception of God’s will:
First, because Abraham had a personal relationship with God. There’s no doubt about that. He knew the Lord and the reality of his conversion were revealed in the chapters we have previously studied. Of course the person who has no relationship with God is unable to hear God.
Second, Abraham was able to hear God with clarity because of his intimate relationship with God. Look at verse 1: God even called him by name! That implies intimacy. Abraham was so close to God that he could hear God’s word without obstruction. A believer whose relationship is not right with God, who is in his spiritual waywardness, will have distorted hearing and would have a hard time listening and perceiving what God wants him to be.
Third, Abraham was able to hear and perceive the will of God for him because he has a willing heart to respond. That’s the reason Abraham was able to rise up to the mountain of absolute surrender.
Please take note of this: the greatest hindrance to spiritual growth is the unwillingness to listen and respond to the words of God. This is the major culprit of the immaturity of many Christians. God Himself tells us not to harden our heart when we hear His voice. But today’s Christianity seems to have problematic hearings. That’s why you don’t have to wonder of the reality that Christian churches today are filled with immature Christians and spiritual weaklings.
3. Knowing that Abraham was in the position to hear Him, God then had a message for Abraham in verse 2. God’s revelation is part of the process. We would never know the mind of God until He reveals it to us. There would be no clear perception of God’s will without God’s revelation. We see Abraham here had not been disappointed. God revealed to him His divine plan because he was listening. That’s right! If you are ever hungry for the Lord, you will not get disappointed. Jesus said: “Blessed are those who thirst and hunger for righteousness for they shall be filled.”
II. PREPARATION.
1. Abraham was a thoroughly prepared man. He was ready to obey the voice of God. So the day after he received the words of God, he rose up early in the morning and prepared everything to set out for Mount Moriah. You see, if you must come to the place where God wants you to be, you must be thoroughly prepared to respond to His voice. You are not able to come to the place of absolute surrender unless you are ready to obey the words of God.
2. It’s amazing that in spite of the fact that God’s command to Abraham is so difficult and horrifying, there was not any indication that Abraham was afraid, agonizing, broken, and hesitant. In fact, you can see that his hands were prepared to do the difficult and painful task. He went on to obey God without any doubt of his mind. Why, because his readiness comes from the bottom of his heart. His hands were prepared because his heart was ready to obey God.
3. Now let’s look at Abraham’s own word in verse 5 because it will tell us the reasons of his being prepared to obey God’s voice. It says, “You stay here with the donkey; the lad (Isaac) and I will go yonder to worship, and we will come back to you.”
a. He’s ready about the task because he knew why he was there –he was there to worship God. Abraham viewed his coming there to offer his son as a service of worship to God. He viewed God as being worthy of receiving all that he had, even the giving of his son. He knew that to worship God was the reason and the purpose of his life and that on this truth he resolved his mind that it must be the center of everything he was going to do.
This example of Abraham gives us the truth that no task or ministry is difficult if done in the purpose and spirit of worship.
b. He’s ready about the task because he knew that God would be there for him. It took great faith to say the second phrase of verse 5: “and we will come back to you.” Although Abraham did not know everything about how God would be able to fulfill all His promises through Isaac, he did know and believe that God always honors His Word. Abraham believed that if Isaac would be offered, and yes, Isaac was already offered in the his heart, God would have His way and provision in fulfilling His promises. Therefore, Abraham’s was a readiness out of great confidence in the power and ability of God to provide. He then called God “Jehovah Jireh,” which means, “The Lord Himself will see and provide.”
4. Are you ready to move on of your spiritual life to absolute surrender? Are you prepared to obey God’s voice, God’s word no matter what it requires? You can if you realize that the purpose of your life is to worship God, to give all you have to Him. And, believing in your heart that God always honors His Word.
III. PARTICIPATION.
1. If one must come to the place of absolute surrender, he must bring himself up there. Abraham could not reach the mountain without doing his part. We call it “Participation.”
Friends, your involvement is important in the accomplishing of God’s precious plan for your life. Spiritual maturity, personal holiness, or absolute surrender requires participation. No one will ever grow to maturity doing nothing!
2. But it’s not a shoddy kind of participation. When Abraham was in the sacrifice site, he himself prepared the wood, took the knife, and put Isaac on top of the altar. Abraham was giving up everything he had longed for, lived for and loved for. What an act of love and worship! Abraham’s all out commitment to God was his secret to arriving at the summit of the mountain of absolute surrender. You see, really it’s all about the altitude of the heart.
3. But look: this kind of participation was so powerful.
It gives God the opportunity to move. When Abraham had to stab Isaac, God called Abraham to stop. Did you see that? You have that ability to give God the opportunity to flex His muscles to do something extraordinary to your life. The reason why many people missed the powerful movings of God’s hands in their lives is their unwillingness to give their all to God. They want more of God, but are not willing to give all of their lives to God.
It gives us the opportunity to prove Who God really is. Even from the start of His dealing with Abraham, God had already presented Himself to be the One who would see and provide all his needs. But only at this time that Abraham was able to prove the reality of this truth that God, indeed, was his Jehovah Jireh.
Our participation is necessary to know God not only in truth but also in reality. God needs our faith, our commitment, and our willingness to give our whole life to Him to give us the opportunity to prove Him. Like the story we have this morning: Abraham’s faith honored God, so in return, God honored his faith.
