Israel's dark setting
Read Judges 21:25; 1 Samuel 1:1-28
ABRAHAM | SAMUEL | SAUL
Faith reveals God
Read Genesis 22:1-14
ABRAHAM | SAMUEL | SAUL
In this fascinating story of faith and sacrifice and trust and surrender, I see the characteristics of a God who asked nothing of Abraham that He didn't demand of Himself. Because it is so significant, I cannot resist sharing with you three powerful truths about our God that I see illustrated here.
Release your grip
Read Genesis 22:10-14
ABRAHAM | SAMUEL | SAUL
This isn't a movie. As far as Abraham was concerned, the drama didn't have a surprise ending. The knife goes up in order to bring it down into his son's chest or across his throat, and what will happen next is the death of his boy. This is real! This is faith in the wild where the stakes are incredibly high—life and death!
Suddenly, at the last possible moment, God intervened:
Faith involves risk
Read Genesis 22:9
ABRAHAM | SAMUEL | SAUL
Some people live so carefully they absolutely refuse to take risks. Everything has to be carefully regulated and kept under control ... their control. Borders defined, guidelines spelled out, every dime accounted for, no surprises. And after having expended so much time and effort trying to live safely, they end life never having accomplished anything of lasting value. They built nothing, tried nothing new, invested in no one.
Genuine faith
Read Genesis 22:3-8; Hebrews 11:8-19
ABRAHAM | SAMUEL | SAUL
The test
Read Genesis 22:1-2
ABRAHAM | SAMUEL | SAUL
Why? Why would a good and loving God ask an obedient and faithful man to do this? The answer can be found in the original language of Moses, the inspired,human author of Genesis. The Hebrew word nasah, translated "tested" in Genesis 22:1, has the idea of proving the quality of something, usually by putting it through a trial of some kind. God wanted to prove the validity— the authenticity — of Abraham's faith.
Holding too tightly
Read Genesis 22:1-2
ABRAHAM | SAMUEL | SAUL
Each of our children grew to become a self-sustaining, responsible servant of Jesus Christ, in his or her own way. As God intended from the beginning, wereleasedthem to follow their destinies.
An urgent charge
Read 2 Timothy 4:1-16
PAUL
Paul wrote with urgency, "I solemnly charge you in the presence of God and ofChrist Jesus, who is to judge the living and the dead, and by His appearing and His kingdom: preach the word; be ready in season and out of season; reprove, rebuke, exhort, with great patience and instruction" (4:1-2). In other words, stick with the preaching plan God has promised to bless and use. Deliver the biblical goods! Be a man or woman of the Word!
Anchor of reality
Read Acts 27:39-44
PAUL
All those going through a storm need to be engaged in the process. No one is promised a magical escape clause. Passivity is faith's enemy. It isn't an acceptable option to fold our arms and wait for the storm to pass.
Anchor of renewal
Read Acts 27:33-38
PAUL
Can you imagine fighting a storm for two weeks and getting virtually no nourishment? That's what the men on Paul's ship experienced. Even more amazing, that's how most people respond to life's storms. We run our tanks dry fighting the battles on our own, and we end up physically weak, emotionally drained, and unable to sleep. The anchor of renewal guards against that sort of anatomical depletion. Instead, Paul encouraged the men to eat and be renewed. But first, he prayed. They all prayed!