Lesson 18<\/p>\n
The Test of Faith<\/p>\n
Genesis 22 \u00a0<\/p>\n
Me-<\/p>\n
My wife and I have often said that we just cannot imagine what it would be like to lose a child.\u00a0 Experts say that second to the loss of a spouse, the death of a child is the second most devastating thing that can happen to a family.\u00a0 Fortunately, I have never experience such an event in my life.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u00a0Because we live in a fallen and broken world where so much evil is taking place, many families have seen their sons and daughters go off to war never to return.\u00a0 Others have seen their children gunned down in the streets.\u00a0 Whether a person has sacrificed his or her life for our country or a principle does not lessen the pain.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Even with the tragedies listed above, I am thankful that I live in a country where I am not required to put my family in harm\u2019s way.\u00a0 I am also blessed that I still have religious freedom to worship as I please without the fear of persecution of me or my family.\u00a0 If that day ever comes, I pray that I will remain faithful and leave the results in God\u2019s hands.<\/p>\n
We-<\/p>\n
We are beginning to see the day when we as followers of Christ are being called on to make choices about our faith that we have never seen before in our nation.\u00a0 No longer is the church or its members respected as it has been in times past.\u00a0 In many parts of the country we are being demeaned by politicians, educational institutions from grade schools through colleges and universities.\u00a0 Society is slowly eating away at the foundations upon which the country was built. It does not take much imagination to see the day when we will have to make choices and sacrifices that will affect the future of our families and nation.<\/p>\n
Abraham found himself having to make a choice.\u00a0 Some of the decisions he made in the past were questionable and showed a lack of faith on his part.\u00a0 Today we will see how he handles the most difficult choice that any man is called to make.<\/p>\n
God-<\/p>\n
Genesis 22:1<\/p>\n
The author starts this chapter by referring to all of the events that had occurred previously.\u00a0 What was done before in the life of Abraham will now stand in stark contrast to what was about to take place.\u00a0 None of the past decisions on his part would come close to the one he would be required to make.\u00a0 God was about to test his faithfulness as never before.<\/p>\n
Genesis 22:2<\/p>\n
Abraham was told what the test was to be.\u00a0 He was to take Isaac on a three day journey to the land of Moriah and sacrifice him there as a burnt offering. Here is seen the foreshadowing of the events in the life of Christ.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The question was to be how he would respond to the command of God?\u00a0 The test was greater than any he had faced before.\u00a0 It would cost him everything that was dear to him.<\/p>\n
Genesis 22:3-5<\/p>\n
Abraham put into motion all of the actions necessary to carrying out God\u2019s command. Along with Isaac, two of the servants made the trip with Abraham.\u00a0 Of course neither of the other three knew the purpose for the journey.\u00a0 Leaving nothing to chance he took the wood for the sacrifice with him.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Arriving at Moriah, Abraham instructed the two servants to remain with the donkey.\u00a0 He then shared with them that he had come to that place for worship.\u00a0 Only Abraham and Isaac were to take part in the worship.\u00a0 Although he had been commanded to sacrifice Isaac, he indicated that he expected that both he and Isaac would return for the trip home.<\/p>\n
Genesis 22:6-8<\/p>\n
If the narrative is a foreshadowing of the sacrifice of Christ, the first picture that is given is that Isaac bore the weight of the wood upon which he would be placed in the same way that Christ carried the cross upon which he would be crucified.\u00a0 Abraham also took a knife and the material with which to start the fire. Then Abraham and Isaac proceeded to the place where the sacrifice would be made.\u00a0 Although at that point it became obvious that some kind of offering was to be made, he asked his father about the lamb that was normally sacrificed, since they had no animal with them.\u00a0 His answer provides another picture of Christ.\u00a0 He said, \u201dGod will provide for Himself the lamb for the burnt offering.\u201d Having had his question answered they went on together.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n
Genesis 22:9-12<\/p>\n
Even though Abraham may have believed that God would intervene and provide him with an alternative he prepared Isaac as the offering.\u00a0 He first built an altar for the sacrifice, put the wood on it and then laid Isaac on the wood.\u00a0 As with other offerings Abraham was about to kill his son with the knife when the angel of the Lord, the very one who would one day suffer and die for man\u2019s sin, called out to Abraham commanding him to spare the life of Isaac.<\/p>\n
The test was over and Abraham had passed.\u00a0 He had been willing to give up the one who was the most precious to him, the one in whom he lay all hope for posterity because God had called him to do so.\u00a0 The faith that began in chapter 12 was fully manifested in this chapter.\u00a0 God then said to him, \u201cI know that you fear God, since you have not withheld your son, your only son, from Me.\u201d\u00a0 God, The Father, would one day allow His only Son to die on the cross.\u00a0 He did not even withhold His own Son from that horrible death because of His love for mankind.<\/p>\n
Salvation for all men who choose to follow Christ is summed up in John 3:16 where the writer said, \u201cFor God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son.\u201d\u00a0 Unlike the offering of Isaac, The death and resurrection of Christ has impacted mankind down through the ages.<\/p>\n
Genesis 22:13-14<\/p>\n
God did provide the lamb for the offering.\u00a0 All Abraham had to do was look around to find the ram caught in the thicket.\u00a0 What Abraham had hoped for had come to fruition.\u00a0 The ram became the substitute sacrifice in place of his son. In the same way Christ became the substitute for every man who deserves to die because of sin.<\/p>\n
He then named the place, \u201cthe Lord Will Provide\u201d which in the Hebrew is YHWH- jireh. God had indeed provided what Abraham could accomplish on his own.<\/p>\n
Genesis 22:15-18<\/p>\n
When God again spoke to Abraham a second time, He once again affirmed the importance of Abraham\u2019s faith as shown by his willingness to give up Isaac.\u00a0 God repeated the covenant components that Abraham had heard before.\u00a0 This time it would take on a new meaning.\u00a0 He had an heir through whom the blessings could take place.\u00a0 Because of his obedience:<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Genesis 22:19<\/p>\n
This verse almost seems anti-climatic after dwelling on the events that had just taken place.\u00a0 It seems there was no impact on the little group that had made the journey. It is interesting that the Scripture only mentions Abraham returning to the men.\u00a0 Isaac had almost been offered up as a burnt sacrifice, and he is not even mentioned.\u00a0 After Abraham came to them, they just went back to Beersheba where Abraham continued to live.<\/p>\n
Genesis 22:20-24<\/p>\n
Abraham heard that his brother Nahor and Milcah, his wife, had some children.\u00a0 Some of whom would play an important part in Isaac\u2019s and Jacob\u2019s life.\u00a0 Bethuel the youngest son had a daughter named Rebekah. The inclusion of Nahor\u2019s family was for the exclusive purpose to introduce her. Others are mentioned including some born to Nahor\u2019s concubine, Reumah.<\/p>\n
You \u2013<\/p>\n
We \u2013<\/p>\n
In a way, we are living in some of the most difficult times for the church. With everything that is happening, it seems that we no longer have anywhere to turn to relieve the stress of just trying to make it in the world day after day.\u00a0 All around us all of the virtues on which we have stood for centuries are crumbling.\u00a0 There appears to be a new crisis every day.\u00a0 In every arena those who we thought we could trust disappoint us.\u00a0 Of great concern, is the trouble that families are facing that they have never experienced in the past.\u00a0 With all of this in mind what are we to do.\u00a0 The answer as we have seen in our study today is to remain faithful to God in the face of any adversity in our lives. Probably few of us have had to make the kind of decision that confronted Abraham.\u00a0 We are called to remain steadfast and resolute as all believers have in the past.\u00a0 God\u2019s Word and prayer are still the greatest defense against situations and people who do not have our best interest at heart.\u00a0 In every circumstance God still loves us.\u00a0 Everything He allows in our lives is for our good. See Roman 8:28-29 to understand God\u2019s thoughts about each person who belongs to Him. \u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n
Additional Notes:<\/p>\n
BL In chapter 22, God tested Abraham by asking him to sacrifice his son, Isaac, who was now a young lad.\u00a0 Even though God had told Abraham that Isaac was the child through whom God’s promises to Abraham would come true, Abraham trusted that God would \u00a0somehow preserve Isaac’s life and obediently set out for Mt. Moriah.\u00a0 His utter faith in God is exemplified by the words of v. 3, in which he said, “We (meaning he and Isaac) will worship and then we will come back to you.”\u00a0 Isaac, too, was obedient to God’s and Abraham’s command and willingly laid down for his father to<\/strong> bind him.\u00a0 At the last minute, the angel of the Lord (probably Christ) called out to Abraham and stayed his hand.\u00a0 God says in v. 12, “Now I know that you fear God, because you have not withheld from me your son, your only son.”\u00a0 Then God provided a ram for Abraham’s offering instead of Isaac! RT-Looking at what Abraham did from a different perspective there is a question that Abraham is to be praised and honored for his willingness to offer up Isaac as a burnt sacrifice.\u00a0 It took that extreme measure for God to finally get his full attention.\u00a0 He had previously not heeded the words of God by going about his own business in his own power and ability.\u00a0 If God was to bless the nations through him, He had to be assured that Abraham truly trusted Him with everything he had. (Gen. 22:1-12) \u00a0M-In following God\u2019s command to sacrifice Isaac, Abraham showed to all of us the fact that our actions always need to be in complete concert with what God would have us do.\u00a0 Abraham knew because God was the One directing him to take that action that there must be a purpose for Him doing so. (Gen. 22:1-12)<\/p>\n UE-God commanded Abraham to sacrifice his only son. What makes this more amazing is the fact that He send him on a three day journey to a specific place to carry out the act. (Gen. 22:1-5)<\/p>\n UE-Abraham continued to believe that somehow his son would be spared and they would make the trip back home together.\u00a0 Even with this strong faith he was filling to face the possibility that God would take his son.\u00a0 In a way God did receive Isaac because Abraham was willing to relinquish him to God. (Gen. 22:5-8)<\/p>\n RT-Possibly Abraham\u2019s attempt to sacrifice Isaac was God\u2019s way of removing from him the last vestige of would be a practice in the pagan religions with which he would be familiar both in Ur, Haran and now in Canaan.\u00a0 By finally submitting the Lord God could now establish a covenant of the enduring inheritance in which his descendents through Isaac would become God\u2019s children. (Gen. 22:1-12)<\/p>\n E-Abraham experienced God as no other man in the Bible did.\u00a0 God called upon him to make the ultimate sacrifice.\u00a0 He was instructed to offer his son as a burnt sacrifice.\u00a0 He proceeded in obedience and did exactly as God had commanded him. (Gen.22:1)<\/p>\n DM-God spoke many affirming words to Abraham over the years since he left Ur.\u00a0 Abraham would experience a great deal in his life but never heard the ones that came to him at the time he had been willing to sacrifice his son, Isaac.\u00a0 Abraham needed to come to what might be considered the defining moment in his life when he was willing to surrender everything he held dear and sacrifice the one who was his only true hope for posterity, Isaac.\u00a0 At this decisive moment in his life, God spoke and said, \u201cI know that you fear God, since you have not withheld your son, your only son, from Me.\u201d This was the very moment that Abraham\u2019s life from one who thought only of his self-preservation to total commitment to the fact that God was truly in charge of his life and the events surrounding him.\u00a0 Abraham believed that God would provide the lamb or give Isaac back to him. (Gen. 22:8, 10-12, 16-18; Heb. 11:17-19)<\/p>\n UE-God waited to last second to spare Isaac who was as good as dead and gave him back to Abraham. (Gen. 22:10-12)<\/p>\n UE-God demands complete commitment from his people even to giving up everything that is important to them in this world.\u00a0 They are commanded to relinquish all for the gain of the greater treasure of being His.\u00a0 How many of us even come close to doing what Abraham was called to do? (Gen. 22:12-13)<\/p>\n M -From our prospective we can see the reason for this event.\u00a0 It is found in the statement, \u201cI know that you fear God, since you have not withheld your son, your only son, from Me.\u201d (Gen. 22:12)<\/p>\n C-What some consider Abraham\u2019s greatest test of faith came when God commanded him to sacrifice Isaac.\u00a0 This one event would solidify his relationship with God.\u00a0 God said to him, \u201cI know that you fear God since you have not withheld your son, your only son, from Me.\u201d (Gen. 22:1-12, 16)<\/p>\n RT-Giving up all we deem important to receive the greater treasure that comes from being that living sacrifice ready to serve Him.\u00a0 (Gen. 22:1-12; Rom. 12:1-2)<\/p>\n GC-God tested Abraham\u2019s faith and obedience by commanded him to offer of Isaac. (Gen. 22:1-12)<\/p>\n GC-We are to obey God even when what He is asking to do is very difficult.\u00a0 It was because Abraham had trusted God in small things that his faith was strong enough to offer his son. (Gen. 22:8)<\/p>\n RT-It is only in laying our lives on the altar and slaying ourselves as an offering to God that we show that we truly fear Him.\u00a0 He expects us to withhold nothing from Him.\u00a0 Abraham realized that with the offering of his son that in a way he would die also since no one would be left to carry on his name as God had promised. (Gen 22:9-12)<\/p>\n WM-Why did it take the extreme measure by God calling on Abraham to sacrifice to finally get a total commitment from him?\u00a0 It sees that He had not been able to break through the shell of self-preservation so He decided to take from him the one person other than Sarah he held dear.\u00a0 Through Isaac, he could expect posterity.\u00a0 Take that one thing away from him and finally all he had left was God.\u00a0 That is exactly what God wants from each one of us.\u00a0 He wants to strip away all that hinders us from loving and trusting Him completely. (Gen. 22:12, 16)<\/p>\n WM-What are our Isaacs that keep us from having relationship with God that He wants from and for us. (Gen. 22:16)<\/p>\n GC-We must reach a point when we give everything up for God.\u00a0 He who does not love God more than family or self cannot be His disciple. (Gen. 22:12, 14)<\/p>\n GC-Abraham loved God to the point that he was willing to give up his only son if God called him to do so. (Gen. 22:12)<\/p>\n UE-God supplied the lamb for the sacrifice in place of man.\u00a0 He has indeed provided a way from death to life for mankind in His Son. (Gen. 22:13-14)<\/p>\n \u00a0RT-Jesus was the provision on Mt. Moriah of which Abraham spoke. (Gen. 22:14)<\/p>\n C-Learning to obey God\u2019s voice brought blessings not only to Abraham but all mankind through one of his descendents, Jesus Christ. (Gen. 22:15-18; Gal. 3:8-9)<\/p>\n UE-God will only bless when we hold nothing back from Him but give Him our all.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 (Gen. 22:16-18)<\/p>\n RT-Only when there is nothing else between us and God can we truly receive His blessings. For Abraham it was his Isaac, representing all that man could hope to have in the world.\u00a0 The question then becomes for us what are our Isaacs? (Gen. 22:16-17)<\/p>\n DM-It was only after Abraham had offered the substitute for Isaac did God speak to him and made one of the greatest promise of all that could be given to man.\u00a0 He would be the ancestor of the Savior of the world. (Gen. 22:16-18)<\/p>\n E-Following the test which Abraham has passed, the Lord appeared to him and told him what would happen through him.<\/p>\n C-Abraham returned home with the son who was to be sacrificed and with the promise of everlasting blessings. (Gen. 22:19)<\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Lesson 18 The Test of Faith Genesis 22 \u00a0 Me- My wife and I have often said that we just cannot imagine what it would be like to lose a child.\u00a0 Experts say that second to the loss of a spouse, the death of a child is the second most devastating thing that can happen […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-110","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/biblicalmastery.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/110","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/biblicalmastery.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/biblicalmastery.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/biblicalmastery.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/biblicalmastery.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=110"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/biblicalmastery.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/110\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":111,"href":"https:\/\/biblicalmastery.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/110\/revisions\/111"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/biblicalmastery.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=110"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/biblicalmastery.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=110"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/biblicalmastery.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=110"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
\n\u00a0 This action was a real turning point in Abraham’s life.\u00a0 It showed how Abram, who only partially obeyed God’s command to leave behind his land, his family, and his possessions in Ur, was willing to sacrifice EVERYTHING–his son, his promises, his future–because God has asked it of him.\u00a0 This unreserved willingness to please God demonstrated how completely Abraham trusted God–and God was very pleased with the way Abraham had responded.\u00a0 In vv. 15-18, He reiterated His covenant with Abraham and told him “all the earth will be blessed, because you have obeyed Me.”\u00a0 Just think what would have happened if Abraham HAD NOT obeyed God.\u00a0 There would be no blessing, no Jesus, no salvation–YIKES!)\u00a0 Abraham had moved from a position of reluctant obedience to complete surrender all because he had passed this ultimate test of faith.\u00a0 For that reason God poured out His blessings on him.\u00a0 In what area of your life might God be asking you and I to exhibit faith in our walk with Him this week?\u00a0
\n\u00a0
\nRT-Up to this point Abraham had pretty much followed a path of his own choosing.\u00a0 Now God stopped him in his tracks and said in essence you will not do things My way if you are going to truly be called Mine. (Gen. 22)<\/p>\n\n