By Sharon Chiellini
As I was thumbing through my Bible recently I found myself re-reading the story of Abraham and Isaac. I've read the story many times and I have always wondered how Abraham could possibly be strong enough to lay his own son down on the alter and prepare to sacrifice him in true obedience to God.
Then God said, "Take your son, your only son, Isaac, whom you love, and go to the region of Moriah. Sacrifice him there as a burnt offering on one of the mountains I will tell you about."
Early the next morning Abraham got up and saddled his donkey. He took with him two of his servants and his son Isaac. When he had cut enough wood for the burnt offering, he set out for the place God had told him about. On the third day Abraham looked up and saw the place in the distance. He said to his servants, "Stay here with the donkey while I and the boy go over there. We will worship and then we will come back to you." Abraham took the wood for the burnt offering and placed it on his son Isaac, and he himself carried the fire and the knife. As the two of them went on together...
Isaac spoke up and said to his father Abraham, "Father?"
"Yes, my son?" Abraham replied.
"The fire and wood are here," Isaac said, "but where is the lamb for the burnt offering?"
Abraham answered, "God himself will provide the lamb for the burnt offering, my son." And the two of them went on together.
When they reached the place God had told him about, Abraham built an altar there and arranged the wood on it. He bound his son Isaac and laid him on the altar, on top of the wood.
Then he reached out his hand and took the knife to slay his son.
There have been many times that I have faced great heartache from being a parent and I am sure you have your own story to tell as well. I remember the feeling of heart wrenching, mind numbing pain as I handed my 2 year old little boy over to the nurse at the entrance to the operating room. I knew what his little body was about to endure as he looked at me over the nurse's shoulder as she walked away. His innocent eyes were smiling at me for he had no idea where he was going. He trusted us to protect him and it felt as if we had led our own baby to the slaughter. Words could not express how much I wanted to rescue him. But the open heart surgery he was about to undergo would ensure that we would have him with us for many more years. I wished that I could take his place and have the surgery for him, but I had to have faith that God knew best and would protect him and take care of him. Faith is never easy.
When my oldest son, still only a child at 17, sat behind a thick pane of glass as we visited him in jail, I would have taken his place in a heartbeat if given the chance. Arrested and falsely accused of a violent crime he did not commit and being tried as an adult, he faced an undeserved prison sentence if convicted. I had to lay my Isaac down. Two weeks later, the judge finally set bail and we were allowed to set our son free to await trial. Without a doubt, they were the longest two weeks of my life. Each minute ticked by in my head like a pendulum. A multitude of prayers from friends and family went up on my son's behalf and the Lord protected him during his "time in the Big House" as he calls it. Not one fellow inmate laid a hand on him, in fact the Lord sent a few to protect him. Once released, my son endured months of having to wear an humiliating ankle bracelet that monitored his every move. When we finally got our day in court and he was acquitted of the crime, I experienced a small taste of how Abraham felt when he heard the angel of the Lord call out.."Abraham! Abraham! Do not lay a hand on the boy!"
But the angel of the LORD called out to him from heaven, "Abraham! Abraham!"
"Here I am," he replied.
"Do not lay a hand on the boy," he said. "Do not do anything to him. Now I know that you fear God, because you have not withheld from me your son, your only son."
Abraham looked up and there in a thicket he saw a ram caught by its horns. He went over and took the ram and sacrificed it as a burnt offering instead of his son.
So Abraham called that place The LORD Will Provide. And to this day it is said, "On the mountain of the LORD it will be provided."
I think we all have many Isaac moments through the years. In fact I think there are many times that we are asked to lay down the things, or people that we treasure most. Sometimes we're not asked, sometimes we have to lay them down whether we want to or not. But I know, for me, it was during the times that it was "do or die" and I had to rely completely on faith, that God's protection and provision sustained me and His glory shined the brightest like a diamond on a backdrop of black velvet.
I believe we are called, as believers, to lay down our cross daily, one Isaac at a time. But do we have enough faith to be an Abraham? Maybe now would be a good time to test God. I have an Isaac or two he wants me to lay down and so do you. But why make the sacrifice?
The angel of the LORD called to Abraham from heaven a second time and said, "I swear by myself, declares the LORD, that because you have done this and have not withheld your son, your only son, I will surely bless you and make your descendants as numerous as the stars in the sky and as the sand on the seashore. Your descendants will take possession of the cities of their enemies, and through your offspring all nations on earth will be blessed, because you have obeyed me."
I truly believe that unless we choose to make the sacrifice we will never know what could have been. We will never know what lies on the other side of obedience. It all comes down to faith, which is a road not easily traveled, but leads to a destination we surely would not want to miss out on. Just ask Abraham.
Comments
Until next time my friend.
Strength and honor in Christ
