Genesis 22:1-14 KJV 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. [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. [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. [4] Then on the third day Abraham lifted up his eyes, and saw the place afar off. [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. [6] And Abraham took the wood of the burnt offering, and laid it upon Isaac his son; and he took the fire in his hand, and a knife; and they went both of them together. [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? [8] And Abraham said, My son, God will provide himself a lamb for a burnt offering: so they went both of them together. [9] And they came to the place which God had told him of; and Abraham built an altar there, and laid the wood in order, and bound Isaac his son, and laid him on the altar upon the wood. [10] And Abraham stretched forth his hand, and took the knife to slay his son. [11] And the angel of the LORD called unto him out of heaven, and said, Abraham, Abraham: and he said, Here am I. [12] And he said, Lay not thine hand upon the lad, neither do thou any thing unto him: for now I know that thou fearest God, seeing thou hast not withheld thy son, thine only son from me. [13] And Abraham lifted up his eyes, and looked, and behold behind him a ram caught in a thicket by his horns: and Abraham went and took the ram, and offered him up for a burnt offering in the stead of his son. [14] And Abraham called the name of that place Jehovahjireh: as it is said to this day, In the mount of the LORD it shall be seen.
I. INTRODUCTION
-It has been said that there are three components of every man’s life: a great affection, a great sorrow, and a great trial. Few men ever become what God desires for them to be until they have submitted to all three of these avenues of faith.
-There is not a single man in the Old Testament or New Testament that did not have such an experience with God. It is through our affections, sorrows, and trials that God uses the hammer of purpose on the anvil of destiny. He develops prized instruments for noble purposes in this way.
-There is not a man among us who will be immune from the trials of life! We have to walk through them despite how we may feel or think about them.
II. THE LESSONS FROM THE TEXT
-We are not long into this text until we see several lessons that work themselves out for us.
A. The Challenge of the Call
Genesis 22:1. . . It came to pass. . . after these things. .
-Abraham had experienced a call and then a covenant with God. But after the call and covenant with God there had been a series of things to take place to prepare him for the greatest challenge of his whole life.
-His challenge is to take Isaac, his only son and offer him as a sacrifice. Take your son and offer him. It would have been so much easier for Abraham to have offered a servant but it was not to be, he had to offer a son. Add to that the pressure of Isaac being an only son and the command is suddenly a cutting, killing command.
-The call has its high tides but it also has its low tides. This son Abraham was being commanded to offer was the God’s gift to him. It was his hope of the future and now the call was for him to sacrifice him.
B. The Challenge of Obedience
Genesis 22:3. . . And Abraham rose up early in the morning. . .
-Abraham acted immediately. He did not wait and nor procrastinate the thing that God had called him to do. He refused to linger or post-pone this difficult thing that God had called him to do. He was in the habit of instant obedience.
-This is one of the most prized qualities of a soul that longs to please God. Obedience has an element of sacrifice in every aspect of our walk with God.
-All throughout the parables that Jesus taught, obedience was always rewarded.
C. The Challenge of the Interval
Genesis 22:4. . . Then on the third day, Abraham lifted up his eyes. . .
-Between verses 3 and 4 is a three day time frame. Three days of travel are undertaken by Abraham, his son, and his men.
• Three days is more than enough opportunity to turn around and go home.
• Three days is more than enough time to change your mind.
• Three days is more than enough time to cave in to his sense of honor.
-Use your imagination a bit and consider Abraham while he is looking at the questioning eyes of Isaac. Think about that first night when Abraham is watching Isaac and his men sleep. Abraham is too troubled to sleep. He looks at the innocent sleeping son and sadly thinks to himself that soon enough, he will no longer have a son but God has called and he must give him back.
-Just because Abraham was obedient did not mean that it was not a tremendous test to his soul.
• Do I hold treasures with loose hands?
• Do I love God at all costs?
• Am I willing to slay everything that God calls for me to relinquish?
-Marching on the second day, there were tears for Abraham to dry when others were not looking. He had to clear his throat before speaking to some of his men because of the grief that was heavy on his heart. The second night and Abraham thinks to himself that on the next day will be the time for the sacrifice.
-It is hard to imagine what kind of challenge went on in the soul of Abraham during this interval.
D. The Challenge of the Summit
Genesis 22:4. . . and saw the place afar off.
-God will always lead you to specific summits that have such a huge impact on your walk with Him.
• Ararat—A place of new beginning but it was ushered in by a flood.
• Moriah—A place of the victory of faith but it was ushered in by a crucial test.
• Sinai—A place where the Law was given but it was accompanied by idolatry at the foot of the mountain. Moses exalted in the presence of God but Aaron was trapped in backslidden rebellion. Revelation for you will be accompanied by backsliding for another.
• Pisgah—A place of vision to see into the Promised Land.
• Bethel—A meeting place with God.
• Carmel—The mountain of victory for the prophet and a place of decision for the people.
• Hermon—The summit of separation from worldliness.
• Transfiguration—A summit to see things and manifestations that you have never seen before.
-You will have to be just like Abraham and see these mountain ranges from a distant place. But step by step, prayer by prayer, trial by trial, you will make it to the place of worship and victory.
E. The Challenge of Isolation
Genesis 22:5. . . Abide ye here. . . I and the lad will go yonder and worship. . .
-Notice in this moment of further isolation. Abraham had already been isolated by his response to the voice of God and now he is being stripped of every human relationship he has been involved with. Now it will be just he and the boy.
-The highest form of worship will always be tied to sacrifice and to loneliness. When Abraham came at last to Mount Moriah, he told his men to stay at the foot of the hill. Make the connection if you will to Calvary which was also Moriah.
-At the foot of the hill, every man stopped. Twelve have been with the Lord for the whole three and a half year journey but they will not be there, save one, when He dies.
• Eleven go with Him to Gethsemane.
• Three draw near during the passion.
• But when it comes to the bitter end, they forsake Him and flee.
• He fights the battle alone.
-Abraham has to fight his battle all alone also. You will have to fight your own battle alone too! You never have the right to worship until you pass through the fire of sacrifice. . . alone. . .
I heard recently of a man who travelled to London for a vacation. One of the most remarkable things that he saw when he was there were the very large and very green healthy trees that were around the Queen’s palace.
During his stay, a violent thunderstorm came along one night lasting several hours. The next morning, the traveler ventured out and found to his great dismay that multiple trees had been toppled by the storm. As he was looking around at the damage, one of the local people came up to him and said in conversation to him, “Not enough droughts!” The traveler was shocked by this statement, “Beg your pardon?” and the local said again, “Not enough droughts!” The explanation then came; the trees were watered heavily at least eight months of the year by daily or every other day showers that fed them well. Because of this, the roots of the trees never pushed down into the earth, they simply ran a few feet below the surface and interlocked with all of the other trees. This storm had devastated them because there hadn’t been enough droughts.
During seasons of drought, the roots of trees begin to push deep into the earth and there is a great foundation that comes about through this. Whether we are willing to admit it or not, there has to be experiences of drought in our walk with God so that our roots will push deep and anchor us during times of the storm!
-The greatest triumphs of the Christian walk are gained when we are in isolation and it is just us and God!
III. CONCLUSION—GREAT TRIALS THAT BRING US TO THE CROSS
-It is the value of our trials that bring us to the Cross. The Cross has the power of life in it and it will sustain us but only as we look backwards toward it.
-You can trust Him. . . He endured Calvary for all of us. . . .
Tis so sweet to trust in Jesus,
And to take him at his word;
Just to rest upon his promise,
And to know, "Thus saith the Lord."
Refrain:
Jesus, Jesus, how I trust him!
How I've proved him o'er and o'er!
Jesus, Jesus, precious Jesus!
O for grace to trust him more!
O how sweet to trust in Jesus,
Just to trust his cleansing blood;
And in simple faith to plunge me
‘Neath the healing, cleansing flood!
Yes, 'tis sweet to trust in Jesus,
Just from sin and self to cease;
Just from Jesus simply taking
Life and rest, and joy and peace.
I'm so glad I learned to trust thee,
Precious Jesus, Savior, friend;
And I know that thou art with me,
Wilt be with me to the end.
Philip Harrelson
January 9, 2011
