Mountain Movers

By faith Abraham, when God tested him, offered Isaac as a sacrifice. He who had received the promises was about to sacrifice his one and only son, even though God had said to him, It is through Isaac that your offspring will be reckoned. (Hebrews 11:17-18).

God tested Abraham-- not in a way he desired but in a manner that was essential for his spiritual development. In fact, none of the "tests" God gave people in the Bible were comfortable or easy.

Some of life's hardest lessons are learned when God tests us. In James 1:2ff, it says, "Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance. Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything." Abraham offering Isaac as a sacrifice was only one of the many tests that God put in Abraham's life. How Abraham reacted to the test had everything to do with his heart.

Abraham had faith, and willingly offered Isaac as a sacrifice. If Abraham were faithless at the time, he would have shrunk back and rationalized the situation. He might have used humanistic thinking and not followed through with God's plan. He definitely would have made excuses. If Abraham were unfaithful, he would have grown angry and bitter towards God's plan and walked away from God. It would have been much easier, in his sinful nature, for Abraham not to offer Isaac as a sacrifice-- but we recognize that the consequences of his actions would have been extremely different. God would have disciplined him rather than blessed him. Ultimately, if Abraham did not have faith in God at the time he was tested, we would not be reading his victory story in the Bible today. Even though the test that God gave Abraham involving Isaac lasted a few days, the outcome of the testing lasted the rest of his life and the impact that his actions made has lasted thousands of years.

Another reason Abraham had the faith to offer Isaac was because of God's encouragement in his life. Abraham was well aware of the promises God gave him. As believers, God lavishes our lives with promises and blessings. In John 1:16 it states that from the fullness of God's grace "We have all received one blessing after another." Yet a distinction between a faithful and faithless person is how much they are aware of that. Abraham had already received God's promises and they were fresh in his mind. Those promises gave him the hope and encouragement to build his faith so that he would experience triumph in handling God's tests. By faith, Abraham was ready to sacrifice his one and only son.

Faith requires 'giving up' of something. Abraham's sacrifice of Isaac necessitated sacrificing physically, emotionally, mentally, and spiritually. Abraham sacrificed physically knowing that there was a realistic chance that had he gone through with the sacrifice, Isaac's physical life was at stake. I'm sure it took every ounce of 100-year old Abraham's strength and effort to make the three day journey, along with the wood and other provisions, to the mountain where he was to offer the sacrifice. Surely, after arriving at the mountain, Abraham would have been feeling physically exhausted. Did that stop Abraham?

The emotional sacrifice that Abraham endured was also extreme. The most wrenching times in life are whenever we lose a loved one. Certainly, Abraham's feelings were intensified as he took every step toward the mountain on his journey with Isaac. Yet, during those times, his faith in God gave him the strength to endure.

Abraham also sacrificed mentally for the sake of God. From a human perspective, God's request of Abraham didn't make sense it was beyond understanding and comprehension. Abraham, we see, was surrendered to God in this decision, and was willing to go through whatever his Lord and God asked of him. Strong, unswerving love for God drove Abraham's spiritual decision-- ultimately, a choice that left a godly legacy for his family, and his descendants.

With every test to Abraham's faith, was a concomitant increase in his spiritual growth. Perseverance worked through Abraham's life so that he was mature and complete. Finally, the tests God gave Abraham resulted in pure joy! I am reminded of Jesus' journey to the cross. According to Hebrews 12:2, Jesus endured the cross because of the joy set before him. Going to the cross, Jesus was overwhelmed with sorrow to the point of death. Yet the joy that Jesus' sacrifice would produce would be worth it in the end.

We, too, are guaranteed tests by God. We never really know when we will be called to be tested. Times will come when He will test us to the maximum limit that we can handle, as He did with Abraham. What a relief to know that God tests us because He loves us! Like a great, hard-pressing celestial coach, He wants us to be the best we can be spiritually.. everything God does in our lives is for our good.

Can we prepare for God's tests? According to 2 Timothy 3:16ff, the Scriptures train us in righteousness and thoroughly equip us for every good work. I'm fascinated by what Paul wrote when he himself was going through an incredible testing by God near the end of his life. In our next chapter, we will look at how faith and hope worked together in Abraham's life to accomplish the seemingly impossible and how God rewarded him for that.