Fellow-Redeemed,
Three men in the Bible, among others, model trust in God as simply taking God at his Word; Naaman, the Roman centurion, Abraham
I can just picture Moses shaking his head at the thought of this definition of faith when he wrote, “Sometime later God tested Abraham.”
There are numerous truths here for our instruction
We’ll seek to discover some new treasures as well as take out some old ones
Commanded by God to offer his only son, Isaac, as a burnt offering, Abraham Placed His Trust in His Gracious LORD.
That faith moved Abraham to follow God’s Word
Abraham made the necessary arrangements and went about the task at hand.
The essential elements of Abraham’s faith were not pious wishes crouched in uncertainty but a heartfelt reliance on the LORD’s gracious Word
It was such reliance, such trust, simply taking God at his Word that moved Abraham to follow God’s Word no matter how counter intuitive or strange it seemed
There is some discussion whether Abraham offering Isaac are typical of God the Father offering us his Son, Jesus Christ, on the cross as an offering for sin.
We do well to emulate Abraham’s faith as we seek spiritual role models for our trust in the Lord God. Abraham’s great faith is not prescriptive but descriptive. It is a commendable goal
That faith led to Abraham’s receiving a substitute or his son, Isaac
God’s history with Abraham is one promise after another kept exactly as God said it would happen
The LORD provided the ram which is a type of Jesus Christ, the Savior God had promised Abraham from his family
Had Abraham not taken the LORD at his Word he would not only have been guilty of disobedience. Abraham would have missed this visible concrete offering in repetition of God’s promise
God gives us many certain promises we take on the basis of the fact those promises are God’s Word
Amen. <SDG>