RTW January 7
Don’t Test Me That Way
Some time later, God tested Abraham’s faith. “Abraham!” God called. “Yes,” he replied. “Here I am.”
Genesis 22:1
My Takeaways
Something Old
I love the tenderness between God and Hagar.
Something New
Abraham never questioned God about this plan.
This doesn’t mean we can’t ask God for confirmation. We will see many people in the Bible who ask God questions about His plans. We just have to ask with the right heart…a willing heart.
Abraham kept the conversation between he and God.
Sometimes it’s nice to have secrets just between God and myself. Everyone doesn’t have to know.
Abraham was so confident in God’s plan he said “we” in 22:5.
Am I this confident in the plans God reveals to me.
Abraham knew God’s voice and he obeyed it.
When God called out…he stopped.
Abraham withheld nothing from God.
What am I withholding from God?
Something to Do
Withhold nothing because when you do, you gain everything.
RTW brings the hope of the working of God’s word in each of our lives.
To God be the glory and the thanks.
Something Old
Genesis 22:2. “Take your son, your only son…yes, Issac….” God made a point to refer to Issac as his only son. He sanctioned the removal of Ishmael and wanted Abraham to rest assured that Issac was the son of promise. It seems he wanted Abraham to move on and not look back.
Issac as a picture of Jesus:
“Both were loved by their father
Both offered themselves willingly
Both carried wood up the hill of their sacrifice
Both were sacrificed on the same hill
Both were delivered from death on the third day” (Guzik’s commentary)
Something New
Abraham’s naming of the mountain, Mount Provision, shows his focus was on God’s ability and God’s goodness rather than the pain and sorrow of the trial itself. I recently read a devotional message admonishing us to “resist the temptation to worship the problem….it’s a common form of idolatry. It’s easy to get so focused on a problem so that we talk about it endlessly instead of praying about it and focusing on God’s ability to handle it.”
Something To Do
Remember that God is bigger than any trial I face. I try to say this out loud every time I am tempted by the what-ifs of life.
My Takeaways:
I wonder why God referred to Isaac as Abraham’s only son in Genesis 22:2 and Gen.22:12. Was it because he sent Hagar and Ishmael away earlier or is there something I am missing?
Something Old:
The sacrifice of Isaac
Something New:
Abraham has really grown in his walk with God. So far I’ve read how Abraham has demonstrated his faith through his believe in the Lord, but today I see that it’s his actions of obedience that demonstrate his faith (the sacrifice of Isaac). He trusted God enough to
carry out what God told him to do because he knew God would provide. This time when God tested Abraham he followed through in exactly the way God told him- promptly and completely. He trusted God throughout the whole ordeal. He did not think his ways were better anymore, he knew God would make everything right. Abraham received abundant blessings because he obeyed God, not just for himself but for generations to come all the way to eternity.
Something To Do:
When God test me I must remember not to complain but try to see how God is stretching me to build my character, molding me into the woman he desires me to be. Though obedience isn’t easy it is through my actions that I grow closer to God and I send a message to those who do not believe. A willing heart that produces actions is what I saw in Abraham today. I want to show that kind of obedience.