This week at our Wednesday night Bible Study, we took a look at the story of Abraham and Isaac in Genesis 22. This is one of those stories that make you stop and go, “Really?!” Here we have the famous, faithful “Father” Abraham, hand selected to be the father of the people of God (Genesis 12). After all of the promises and all of the waiting, God had provided. Then, God turns around commands Abraham to sacrifice Isaac as a burnt offering. Really?!
God’s command seems to be in direct conflict with God’s promise. God promised a son, and now God wants to take away that son. Through the prophet Isaiah, God reminds us that God’s thoughts are not our thoughts, and God’s way are not our ways. God wants us to seek after God, to study God and God’s word, and to be in relationship with God. That does not, however, mean that God will always make rational sense. That is part of the challenge of faith- trusting and obeying even when it doesn’t always make complete sense.
Abraham’s response to this challenge is to proclaim, “God will provide” (Genesis 22:8). When the moment comes for Abraham to take his son’s life, God stops him and provides a ram as a substitute. God says to Abraham, “Now I know that you fear God” (verse 12). God had faith in Abraham, yet Abraham still had to make a choice. This speaks to one of the core ideas within United Methodism- the idea of free will. Our choices matter. We can choose to obey, or we can choose to disobey. God does not force us to go one way or another, and we must live with the consequences of those choices. This can lead to pain and suffering when we choose disobedience, but it makes our relationship with God rich and authentic when we choose to obey.
Two more quick but important ideas…
First, isn’t it interesting that Abraham isn’t upset or confused by the call to sacrifice his own son. This is because human sacrifice, and especially the sacrifice of the first-born is nothing new in Abraham’s time. Other gods and goddesses were worshipped that demanded this and far worse on a regular basis. It is almost as if Abraham knew this was coming. Yet, God stopped it- saying in a sense, “This is not how I work. I am different. I will provide.”
Second, this is a situation that appeared to be destined for death, yet God provided life. This parallels the Gospel message. We are destined for death because of our sins. There appears to be no way out and no way around. Yet, God comes in and provides through the sacrifice of Jesus a way to be reconciled and restored to life the way it is meant to be for eternity. Even in the particulars of the Gospel story itself, death seems sure but life is provided. When Jesus prays in the Garden of Gethsemane in the final moments before his arrest, he asks God if there is any other way. Jesus sees his coming death and it scares him. Yet, like Abraham, he chooses out of his own free will to trust and obey God. Three days later, Jesus has risen from the dead and the defeat of death is sure. In the face of certain death comes everlasting life. This is the message of hope we take to the world.
