Genesis 22:1-8. 1After these things God tested Abraham and said to him, “Abraham!” And he said, “Here I am.” 2He said, “Take your son, your only son Isaac, whom you love, and go to the land of Moriah, and offer him there as a burnt offering on one of the mountains of which I shall tell you.” 3So Abraham rose early in the morning, saddled his donkey, and took two of his young men with him, and his son Isaac. And he cut the wood for the burnt offering and arose and went to the place of which God had told him. 4On the third day Abraham lifted up his eyes and saw the place from afar. 5Then Abraham said to his young men, “Stay here with the donkey; I and the boy will go over there and worship and come again to you.” 6And Abraham took the wood of the burnt offering and laid it on Isaac his son. And he took in his hand the fire and the knife. So they went both of them together. 7And Isaac said to his father Abraham, “My father!” And he said, “Here I am, my son.” He said, “Behold, the fire and the wood, but where is the lamb for a burnt offering?” 8Abraham said, “God will provide for himself the lamb for a burnt offering, my son.” So they went both of them together.
The Jewish sages say that Abraham passed ten tests in his walk with God. But this test, what we call the binding of Isaac, is by far the hardest test faced by Abraham or possibly anyone for that matter. On the surface it seems almost cruel. Why did God promise a son, then make Abraham and Sarah wait, and wait, and wait some more, just to then take that son away? Especially after God had told Abraham to expel Ishmael.
It’s been several years since the expulsion of Hagar and Ishmael. Several years of living in peace. Isaac is a young man, ready to take on the responsibilities of the homestead. But then, in a moment, God shatters that peace. God appears once again with a call to Abraham. And just as it was in chapter 12, Here I am, is Abraham’s reply. This will also be Abraham’s reply to Isaac in verse seven – Here I am, my son. Abraham didn’t choose a side. He was here for God and for his son. He was faithful to both.
The conversation between Abraham and Isaac in verses 6-8 is telling. It’s the only recorded conversation between this father and son. Isaac asks his father, where is the lamb? Literally he is asking, “Where did the lamb go?” It reveals that in this moment Isaac understands that he is the lamb.
Am I the lamb, father?
God will provide for himself the lamb for a burnt offering, my son.
The author, Moses, lets us, the reader, know that this is all a test from God – After these things God tested Abraham. We know that God isn’t going to make Abraham offer his son, but Abraham doesn’t know this. Abraham doesn’t know for sure what God will end up doing. The book of Hebrews tells us that Abraham believed God would raise Isaac from the dead. This means that Abraham had every intention of following through in killing his son.
Let’s just pause and let all this sink in. Would any of us make it through day one of this three-day journey? I know I wouldn’t. But Abraham didn’t run away. He went step by step alongside his son to the mountain. Abraham will leave the final decision up to God. He doesn’t know what God will do, but he trusts that God will provide.
So what is this test all about? What is the point?
The question for Abraham was can he give up the thing he loves more than anything? What does Abraham love the most? His son. His only son, Isaac. The word son appears ten times in the narrative. Isaac is the son of his old age. The son of his laughter. The son of promise to the whole world. This test goes against all earthly and heavenly logic. It violates God’s covenant. His promise. His character. His calling to Abraham – isn’t Abraham supposed to be different from the surrounding pagan child sacrificers?
Did Abraham have these doubts? These questions? If he did we’d never know it. All we see is Abraham’s stalwart obedience, not the inner turmoil, if any, that may have been there. So Abraham rose. He simply got up and went. Abraham moved forward in faith because he had seen and once again trusted in the provision of God – God will provide for himself the lamb for a burnt offering, my son.
Make no mistake Christian, God is testing you just as he did Abraham. He is testing your faith, right now. This moment. Life itself is often the test. Why? To what end? To see if you too will trust in the provision of God through the Lamb of God, Jesus Christ. So let me ask you:
Do you live in the confidence of what God has provided for you in Christ? Or do you spend most of your life in fear and worry?
Do you live in the peace and comfort of knowing that God is at work in you by the Spirit? Or has your suffering brought you to a place of discouragement and doubt?
Do you live with a sense of purpose from obeying God’s calling upon your life? Or are you coasting through life just waiting for the next “nice” thing to happen to you so you can survive?
To live is Christ means Jesus has passed all the final and ultimate tests for us. But in his grace, God desires for you to continue to grow in your faith in him. This requires testing. A testing of our faith that produces endurance in this life’s journey to the mountain top where we will find not only a test but a testimony of the grace of God.
You: Think through the questions above.
You in Christ: How does knowing that Christ has passed the test of faith perfectly for us allow you to welcome the testing of God today?
Christ in you: Where can you see God testing your faith right now? What would “Abrahamic” obedience look like?
Prayer: Father, I trust you in the testing because you have already provided the lamb that I need. Amen.
To Live is Christ 