God tells Abraham to sacrifice Isaac: Part 1 the test

He is to take his only son Isaac, whom he loves, and offer him as a burnt offering on the mountain God will show him. Abraham take Isaac, servants and wood and finishes up on Mount Moriah. He gets the servants to wait at the bottom telling them “the lad and I will go yonder and worship, and we will come back to you.” Isaac asks “where is the lamb for the burn offering?” Abraham tells him “the Lord will provide the burnt offering.”  At the point of following through,  having built the alter, bound Isaac and is lifting the knife to slay him, the Angel of the Lord stops him, shows him a ram caught in the thicket. Abraham sacrifices the ram in the place of Isaac, and calls the place  “the Lord provides” (Genesis 22:1-15).  

This story has puzzled and horrified people down through the ages. I mean what kind of a god would ask you to do that? And would He ask this of me?  And so the very first thing I need to say is that this was before God's command “Do not murder” (Exodus 20:13).  And God would not,  and does not command such a thing today, since it would contradict His Word. I'm not saying He will not test you, and make no mistake about it, this was a test,  “God tested Abraham” (verse 1).  Well, you might say it was cruel, and God had no right! We might even go further and say that God has no right to test anyone!

I want to temper what I say next by saying that as New Testament believers we know that God works all thing together for good for those who love Him and are called according to His purpose (Romans 8:28). Though he did not have this verse, Abraham knew something equivalent. We read  “By faith Abraham, when he was tested, offered up Isaac ... of whom it was said, 'in Isaac your seed shall be called,”' concluding that God was able to raise him up, even from the dead, from which he also received him in a figurative sense” (Hebrews 11:17-19).

The story is told of a father who asked his daughter to give him the fake pearls that she dearly loved. He didn't say why, but simply asked her to trusted him. She wrestled and wrestled with it, for she loved her fake pearls. Finally one day she told herself “I know daddy loves me,  and he must have a reason, so I'm going to trust him.”  She did,  and gave him the pearls, at which point the father gave her a real pearl neckless.

We can hold onto our children too tightly,  trying to control them “for their own good.” The son, in the story of the prodigal son, in asking for his inheritance now,  was essentially wishing his father dead. The father lets him go, and by doing so ultimately wins him back (Luke 11:15-24). We don't know if this was Abraham's problem. But the real question is “will we trust God in the midst of our own testings?”

Father, I don't say I did not wrestle and wrestle with things You either allowed,  or tested me with. But ultimately I surrendered (Romans 12:1). And most of the time afterwords,  as I came to peace,  I wondered why I'd not trust You sooner. Thank You for Romans 8:28, please give us grace to trust You in the difficult times Lord in Jesus Name Amen