The Only Son

Good morning. My name is Matthew Capone, and I'm the pastor here at Cheyenne Mountain Presbyterian Church.

And it's my joy to bring God's word to you today. A special welcome to those of you who are visiting.

We're glad that you're here, and we're glad that you're here not because we're trying to fill seats,

but because we're following Jesus together as one community.

And as we follow Jesus together, we become convinced that there's no one so good.

They don't need God's grace, and no one's so bad that they can't have it,

which is why we come back week after week to hear what God has to say to us in his word.

We're continuing our series for Advent in the book of Genesis,

and you'll remember that Advent comes from a Latin word that means to come or to arrive.

And so during this season, we celebrate the fact that Jesus came.

He arrived here on this earth, and we do several things.

First, we celebrate that, what has happened in the past.

The fact that Jesus came, that he died, that he rose from the dead.

We also look forward with longing to what he's going to do in the future.

His first coming reminds us of his second coming.

And then third, we live faithfully now in the present.

We do what the entire Christian life is, not just in the month of December,

celebrating what God has done in the past,

looking forward to what he will do in the future

so that we can follow him and live faithfully now in the present.

We are moving on from Genesis chapters 11 and 12,

Genesis 11 · chapter mention

where we were last week, to Genesis chapter 22.

Genesis 22 · chapter mention

You'll remember our first week, we were in Genesis chapter 3,

Genesis 3 · chapter mention

and we talked about the fact that Jesus is the one who ends shame.

He destroys evil forever.

Our second week, in Genesis 12,

we looked at the fact that Jesus is the one who brings the ultimate blessing to the nations,

the blessing that God promised that Abraham would develop through his offspring.

And now, this week, we're looking at Jesus as the final sacrifice,

and God is the one who provides him for us.

If you're familiar with this passage of Scripture, Genesis 22,

you know it's actually one of the most controversial stories in the entire Bible.

And it's cited by those who have doubts or objections about Christianity

as one of the reasons that they're not Christians.

And so, instead of shying away from it,

we are going to go dive headlong into this

and see what it is that God has to teach us in his word.

We're going to see God's provision for us,

his provision for Abraham in providing a sacrifice,

his provision for us providing a sacrifice as well.

And so, I invite you to turn with me now to Genesis chapter 22.

Genesis 22 · chapter mention

You can turn there near the end of your worship guide.

You can turn in your Bible, or you can turn on your phone.

No matter where you turn, remember that this is God's word.

And God tells us that his word is a lamp to our feet and a light to our path,

which means that God has not left us to stumble alone in the dark,

but instead, he's given us his word to show us the way to go.

And so, that's why we read now Genesis chapter 22, starting at verse 1.

Genesis 22 · chapter mention

After these things, God tested Abraham and said to him,

Abraham, and he said, Here I am.

He said, Take your son, your only son Isaac, whom you love,

and go to the land of Moriah and offer him there as a burnt offering

on one of the mountains of which I shall tell you.

So Abraham rose early in the morning, saddled his donkey,

and took two of his young men with him and his son Isaac.

And he cut the wood for the burnt offering and arose

and went to the place of which God had told him.

Verse 4.

On the third day, Abraham lifted up his eyes and saw the place from afar.

Then Abraham said to his young men, Stay here with the donkey.

I and the boy will go over there and worship and come again to you.

And Abraham took the wood of the burnt offering and laid it on Isaac, his son.

And he took in his hand the fire and the knife.

So they went, both of them, together.

And Isaac said to his father Abraham, My father.

And he said, Here I am, my son.

He said, Behold, the fire and the wood, but where is the lamb for a burnt offering?

Verse 8.

Abraham said, God will provide for himself the lamb for a burnt offering, my son.

So they went, both of them, together.

When they came to the place of which God had told him,

Abraham built the altar there and laid the wood in order

and bound Isaac, his son, and laid him on the altar on top of the wood.

Then Abraham reached out his hand and took the knife to slaughter his son.

The angel of the Lord called to him from heaven and said,

Abraham, Abraham.

And he said, Here I am.

He said, Do not lay your hand on the boy or do anything to him.

For now I know that you fear God,

seeing you have not withheld your son, your only son, from me.

And Abraham lifted up his eyes and looked,

and behold, behind him was a ram caught in a thicket by his horns.

And Abraham went and took the ram and offered it up as a burnt offering

instead of his son.

So Abraham called the name of that place the Lord will provide.

As it is said to this day,

On the mount of the Lord it shall be provided.

And the angel of the Lord called to Abraham a second time from heaven and said,

By myself I have sworn, declares the Lord,

because you have done this and have not withheld your son,

your only son,

I will surely bless you.

And I will surely multiply your offspring as the stars of heaven

and as the sand that is on the seashore.

And your offspring shall possess the gate of his enemies,

and in your offspring shall all the nations of the earth be blessed,

because you have obeyed my voice.

So Abraham returned to his young men,

and they arose and went together to Beersheba.

And Abraham lived at Beersheba.

I invite you to pray with me as we come to this portion of God's word.

Our Father in heaven,

we thank you again that you speak to us,

and you teach us by your word,

and we ask simply that you would do that this morning,

that you would show us our need for you and your grace,

and you would also show us that you come,

and you do more than we could ask or imagine,

that you meet us at that very same point of need,

that you came and died for us,

even when we were still sinners.

We ask that you would use your word this morning

to challenge us and also to encourage us.

Most of all, you would use it to transform us,

that we would be people who look more and more like your son.

We thank you that we don't have to worry this morning

about whether we've earned or deserved these things,

but instead, we simply ask them in the mighty name of Jesus Christ.

Amen.

Okay, last week in Genesis chapter 12,

Genesis 12 · chapter mention

we saw this great promise that God gave to Abraham.

We might even think of it as a little bit over the top.

He tells him at the very beginning of chapter 12, verse 2,

I'm going to make of you a great nation.

And then in verse 3,

in you all the families of the earth will be blessed.

So he's going to have all these offspring,

except there's only one problem, right?

He's talking to a 75-year-old man

who happens to have an infertile wife

who's also his half-sister.

So we have this great promise on the one hand.

We have incredibly bleak odds on the other.

And so there's this huge gap

between the promise that God gives Abraham

and the reality that he's living in at the moment.

Now, we've skipped a bunch of chapters between 12 and 22.

A lot happens in those chapters,

but we're just going to focus on the parts

that relate to this promise that God's given.

In Genesis 15, he makes a covenant with Abraham.

He repeats this promise again.

In fact, he tells him,

not only is he going to have a son, verse 5,

he's also going to have offspring

that are as numerous as the stars.

So it's not just that Sarah's going to have a child,

but his offspring are going to be more

than he can possibly count.

Genesis 17, he repeats this promise again.

I'm going to give you a son.

We find out that time has passed.

Abraham is no longer 75.

He actually says,

how are you going to have a child

born to a man who's 100 years old?

Shall Sarah, who is 90 years old, bear a child?

We found out later in that chapter,

Abraham is rounding up.

He's actually 99 years old.

That doesn't necessarily change a lot.

It's getting harder and harder, right?

The odds are getting lower and lower.

Remember, Genesis 18, God shows up again and says,

this time next year, you will have a son.

Then the previous chapter before this one,

chapter 21, it finally happens.

After all these promises and all these repetition,

after 15 years have passed in Abraham's life,

finally God's promise comes to fruition.

And we've been on this story,

if you've read the book of Genesis,

with Abraham feeling this longing and this conflict,

wondering if what he wants is finally going to happen.

If you've ever known someone who has longed for a child

and not been able to have one,

you understand what this journey is like.

It's one of prayer and heartache.

It's one of hoping and longing, right?

You're joining with them in that.

We've done that together as a church in the past.

And so you know the joy,

you know that feeling of what happens

when it finally comes to pass,

when the child is finally born.

That's the joy that Abraham and Sarah are feeling.

That's what we're supposed to be thinking about

as we enter into this chapter

at the beginning of Genesis chapter 22.

Genesis 22 · chapter mention

And so that's why what comes next,

one and two, is so shocking.

I want you to look there with me first at verse two.

Take your son, your only son, Isaac, whom you love,

go to the land of Moriah

and offer him there as a burnt offering

on one of the mountains of which I shall tell you.

Can you imagine a greater reversal?

Can you imagine something more shocking than that?

I've been promising to you for 15 years

that I'm going to give you a son.

And not only that,

you are going to have offspring

that are more than the stars.

And now that this has all happened,

the son has been born,

it's time for you to go kill him.

If there's a shock to it,

it's because they're supposed to be.

There is a whiplash here for us

as we read this story.

We've been building for 10 chapters to this moment.

We should expect Abraham's line to continue,

but instead we see this threat

that it's going to end.

What in the world is going on?

We'll look first at verse one.

It tells us that God tested Abraham.

We have to understand that in the Bible,

this idea of testing

was where God would take someone

and he would present a choice.

God presents a choice

between obedience and disobedience.

And the point,

the goal of this test is twofold.

First, it's supposed to reveal

the character of the one tested.

It's their chance to demonstrate

the faith they have.

The other one is it's supposed

to result in blessing.

This obedience is a chance for them

to appropriate the blessings

that God offers.

And so that helps us maybe a tiny bit

to understand that this is a testing narrative.

By the way, we already saw one

in the Gospel of Mark

when Jesus is in the desert.

That's a testing narrative.

We're seeing if he's going to remain faithful

to God in the face of the temptations

of Satan.

It also clarifies for us

what God is asking here.

God is saying,

do you really love me

more than anything else?

I'm testing you.

I want to know

if you're going to remain faithful

in the face of an obstacle.

That solves part of the problem for us.

It doesn't solve the whole problem.

We still have this story

in which God has just asked a man

to sacrifice his son, right?

Which raises all kinds of questions

and objections in our mind.

This is something for those people

who have doubts or questions

or objections to Christianity

that rises to the top

of the list of reasons

they wouldn't believe or have faith.

How could we worship a God

who chooses to ask someone

to kill their own son?

What kind of crazy deity is this?

There's a scandal to it, right?

And so instead of shying away from it,

instead of ignoring the question,

this morning we're going to dive

head on into it.

And the reason we're going to do that

is because we have confidence

in God and his word.

We don't need to shy away

from the hard questions

that we encounter

as we study the Bible.

In fact, we can have faith

knowing that God

provides answers for us.

We can ask hard questions

and not be afraid of it.

We can bring our doubts

into the light

and not be afraid of them

because we believe

that God is big enough

and great enough

to handle them.

So you might be familiar

with an atheist

named Richard Dawkins

who wrote a book

called The God Delusion

and he points to this story

and says,

this disgraceful story

is an example

simultaneously of child abuse,

bullying in two

asymmetrical power relationships

and the first recorded use

of the Nuremberg defense.

This is a reason

not to believe in God.

What are we going to do?

How would we answer someone

whose objection

to the Bible is that?

Well, I want you to think

for a second

about eating food, okay?

There are different

cultural practices

around how you handle

your plate

when you're eating

with someone.

So if you are in India

or Japan,

you're expected

to clean your plate.

If you don't clean

your plate,

that's a sign

that you didn't enjoy

the food.

It wasn't very good.

And so it's an insult

to someone

to leave food

on your plate.

If you're in China,

you want to do

the exact opposite.

You want to leave

food on your plate

because you're saying

I've had enough to eat.

If you finish

all your food,

what you're telling

your host

is that they didn't

feed you well.

Okay?

Different cultures,

opposite messages.

In Egypt,

apparently,

it's rude

to ask for the salt.

And it's rude

to ask for the salt

because the person

who's prepared your meal

has decided

exactly how they want

it to taste

and they put

the perfect amount

of salt on it.

So if you ask

for salt,

you're telling them

you're not a good cook

and you don't know

what you're doing.

Now in America,

right,

if you ask for the salt,

someone just thinks,

well,

they need some salt.

Right?

No one thinks

anything of it.

The point I'm driving

at is this.

Different cultures

have these implicit messages

that are hidden

in different actions.

Now we're doing something,

we're talking about

something here

that's much more serious

than food,

but my point is this.

Often it's what you do,

not what you say.

Okay?

So track with me here.

When we're talking

about child sacrifice

in the ancient Near East,

this was a cultural form

that was well understood

in that time.

If you ask someone

to sacrifice their child,

what you were saying

implicitly was,

is your loyalty to me

above everything else?

Is your loyalty to me

above everything else?

Do you trust me

more than anything else?

Okay?

So track with me here.

Cultural form,

there's an explicit action

with an implicit question.

Is God being crazy

and deranged here

in this passage?

No, because he's using

a well-known cultural form

that Abraham would have understood.

And this is in fact

the way the entire Bible works.

God always comes to us,

he always comes

to the characters in the Bible

in ways that they can understand.

That's the reason

why the Bible is written

in different languages,

because different audiences

speak different languages.

Okay?

That's the reason

why Jesus came,

part of the reason

why Jesus came as a man.

He's translated

into our form.

God always meets people

where they're at.

In this story,

God is asking

for a sacrifice

because he is meeting

Abraham

as an ancient

Near Eastern man

where he's at.

He is speaking

in a way

that Abraham

can understand.

Okay,

I'm not sure

what this form

would be in America.

I'm not quite sure

how you ask

for someone's

total allegiance.

My guess would be

it would be this.

Are you willing

to go bankrupt?

Are you willing

to lose

all your money?

Right?

That's the American way

of asking

for total loyalty

and obedience.

If you're talking

to an entrepreneur

and they say,

I'm giving everything

that I have in on this,

then you know

they're committed

above everything else.

Right?

So this is the ancient

Near Eastern way

of saying,

I'm willing

to go bankrupt.

I'm willing

to sacrifice

my son.

Of course,

Jesus asks

a question

like this.

He makes a statement

like this in Luke 18.

Remember,

he talks to the rich

young ruler

and he tells him,

one thing you still lack,

sell all that you have

and distribute

to the poor

and you will have

treasure in heaven

and come follow me.

As you track Jesus

in the Gospels,

we know he doesn't

ask that of everyone,

but this is his way

in that instance

with that man

of asking him,

do you love me

more than anything else?

Is your loyalty

to me

greater than anything else?

And so as we wrestle

with this difficult passage,

I can tell you

with great certainty

this morning

that if you hear

a voice telling you

to sacrifice a child,

that is not from God.

Okay?

And I have great confidence

about that

for many reasons.

One of them is

that's not a cultural form

that we recognize.

Okay?

Another reason is

you're not Abraham,

you're not the founder

of God's people.

And a third reason

would be

Jesus is the final sacrifice,

right?

This points towards

something

that now has been fulfilled.

And so we don't need

to shy away

from these difficult questions

about Scripture

and so we can dive

into them and say,

yeah, we have an answer

for this.

We understand

that God speaks

in specific ways

to specific people

honoring their cultural context,

honoring the time

and place

in which they live.

Finally,

I would say

you can remember this.

Isaac isn't actually

sacrificed, right?

At the end

of this narrative,

Isaac is still alive.

If God

is not going

to ask you

to sacrifice

your son,

what does this passage

have to do with us?

And

how does it apply

to us

in any way?

If this is something,

a cultural form

that we don't recognize,

if Abraham

has a role

that we don't have,

does it have

any relevance

for us right now?

As we read

this passage

as people living

in Colorado Springs

in 2021,

near the end

of 2021,

the point for us

is this.

Sometimes

obedience

to God's

commands

doesn't make sense.

sometimes

obedience

to God's

commands

does not

make sense.

Sometimes

it looks like

God

is threatening

the blessing

and goodness

in our life,

not giving it.

Sometimes

it looks like

God is threatening

our blessing,

not giving it.

Sometimes

we're afraid

that God

wants to destroy

us

rather than

save us.

us.

Sometimes

we're afraid

God wants

to destroy

us

rather than

save us.

As Americans,

it might

look like

this.

God

tells us

to be

unified

and be

in community

with people

who are

radically

different

than us.

Our culture

tells us

that people

who disagree

with us

are evil

because they

disagree

with us.

We

actually

are called

by God

to associate

with people

who are

weird,

outcast,

marginalized,

socially

awkward,

people like

us.

Our culture

tells us

that's not

going to

save us,

that's going

to destroy

us,

that's social

suicide.

It looks

like God

wants to

destroy us,

not save

us.

God tells

us we

need to

trust him

for justice,

that vengeance

isn't ours.

And the

world tells

us that

we're alone

and we

have to

defend

ourselves.

we need

to vindicate

ourselves

and gossip

about others.

If someone

offends us,

we can

ruin them

on social

media.

And so

it feels

like God

wants to

destroy us,

not save

us.

God

still tells

us today

to trust

him more

than our

money.

And the

culture tells

us that we

will have

lost if

we miss

out on

certain

experiences

and

lifestyles.

God

wants to

destroy

us

rather

than

save

us.

God

calls

us to

be

faithful

to

him

in

the

midst

of

persecution

and we

know

that that

means

the

world

will

reject

us.

And so

it feels

like God

is

threatening

our

blessing,

not

giving

it

to

us.

God

still

tells

us

that

our

bodies

are

sacred

and we

need to

be stingy

with

them.

And the

world

tells us

there is

nothing

that's

more

important

than

sexual

freedom.

And so

it feels

like God

wants to

destroy

us

rather

than

save

us.

Of course

we have

the words

of our

Lord

Jesus

from

Mark

Mark 8 · chapter mention

chapter

8.

If

anyone

would

come

after

me

let

him

deny

himself

and

take

up

his

cross

and

follow

me.

For

whoever

would

save

his

life

would

lose

it

but

whoever

loses

his

life

for my

sake

in the

gospels

will

save

it.

And so

the question

this passage

presents us

with is

this.

What do

we do

when we

hit up

against

these

places

where

God's

commands

in our

lives

feel

like

death

rather

than

life?

we

we

need

to

look

to

Abraham

and

his

example

to

see

how

he

responds.

Just

like

in

chapter

12

without

hesitation

Abraham

obeys

right away

we see

in verses

3

and 4

that he

prepares

and sets

out.

In

verses

5

through

10

Abraham

and

Isaac

go

by

themselves

they

leave

the

others

behind.

And so

Abraham

here

serves

for us

as an

example

of

faithful

obedience.

He

hears

God's

command

he

feels

the

threat

of

it

and

he

moves

forward

knowing

that

he

does

trust

God

more

than

anything

else.

The

answer

to

the

question

of

whether

Abraham

is

loyal

to

God

more

than

anyone

else

is

yes.

The

answer

to

whether

Abraham

trusts

God

and

his

promises

is

yes.

Abraham

is

able

to

obey

because

he

has

seen

God's

faithfulness

to

him

in

the

past

and

he

trusts

God's

promise.

On

the

one

hand

we've

just

come

off

of

chapter

21

it

seems

shocking

that

he

would

ask

this

child

to

be

sacrificed.

On

the

other

hand

we've

just

come

off

chapter

21

Abraham

has

seen

that

God

can

provide

a

child

to

a

99

year

old

man

and

a

90

year

old

woman.

He

knows

how

great

and

how

powerful

God

is.

He

knows

that

there

is

nothing

that

can

stop

God

or

thwart

his

plan.

He

knows

that

God

will

provide

for

him

no

matter

what.

And

so

he's

able

to

move

forward

in

obedience.

We

see

his

faith

here

in

verses

7

and

8.

His

son

Isaac

asks

him

where

is

the

lamb

for

a

burnt

offering?

Abraham

said

God

will

provide

for

himself

the

lamb

for

a

burnt

offering

my

son.

Abraham

knows

somehow

somewhere

God

is

going

to

do

what's

needed

to

protect

him

and

his

family

and

the

promise

that

God

has

made.

He

knows

that

God

will

never

leave

him

nor

forsake

him.

And

so

the

New

Testament

presents

Abraham

to us

as

this

great

model

of

faith.

Hebrews

11

mentions

something

that

we're

not

told

in

this

passage.

Hebrews

11

says

one

option

that

Abraham

was

considering

was

that

God

was

going

to

raise

Isaac

from

the

dead.

So

that's

one

way

that

maybe

he

thought

God

was

going

to

show

up.

It

says

by faith

Abraham

when he

was

tested

offered

up

Isaac

and

he

who

had

received

the

promises

was

in

the

act

of

offering

up

his

only

son

of

whom

it

was

said

through

Isaac

shall

your

offspring

be

named.

He

considered

that

God

was

able

even

to

raise

him

James

James 2 · chapter mention

chapter

2

also

commends

Abraham

to

us.

It

tells

us

Abraham

believed

God

and it

was

counted

to

him

as

righteousness.

Was

not

Abraham

our

father

justified

by

works

when

he

offered

up

his

son

Isaac

on

the

altar?

In

other

words,

Abraham

is able

to

obey

God

no

matter

what

because

of

God's

promise

and

his

faithfulness.

Abraham

obeys

in

faith.

He

knows

that

he

can

trust

God

no

matter

what.

Brothers

and

sisters,

when

we

find

ourselves

cutting

up

against

the

sharp

edge

of

God's

commands

in

this

world,

we

know

because

of

God's

faithfulness

to

us

that

he

will

protect

us

and

he

will

care

for

us

no

matter

what.

Abraham

could

only

look

back

to

the

miraculous

birth

of a

child

to

a

90

year

old

woman.

Brothers

and

sisters,

we

can

look

back

to

something

much

greater

and

more

powerful.

We

look

back

not

to

Isaac

being

born,

we

look

back

to

a

different

son

who

was

born.

We

look

back

to

Jesus

Christ

who

came

into

this

world

as

God

and

as

a

man

was

born,

also

a

miraculous

birth,

but

even

greater

so

because

he

was

not

only

man

but

also

God.

He

came

not

through

natural

reproduction

through

Abraham

and Sarah

but

through

divine

reproduction

with

Mary.

We

know

more

than

Abraham

could

ever

dream

how

faithful

and

trustworthy

God

is.

And so

just like

Abraham

we can

follow

him

in

faith.

True

faith

leads

to

obedience.

And the

New Testament

presents

Abraham as a

model for

us of this

type of

faith.

And so

we see

in our

final scene

here

God's

faithfulness

to

Abraham.

Verses

10

through

13

this

angel

intervenes

and provides

another

sacrifice

for him

to use.

Verse

12

Abraham

hears

the words

of God's

approval.

Do not

lay your

hand on

the boy

or do

anything

to him

for now

I know

that you

fear

God

seeing

that you

have not

withheld

your son

your only

son

from me.

In other

words I

asked a

question

do you

love me

and trust

me more

than anything

else?

And you

by your

actions

gave the

right

answer

yes.

And so

we see

these promises

here at

the end.

Verse

16

because you

have done

this and

have not

withheld

your son

your only

son I

will surely

bless you

and I

will surely

multiply your

offspring

as the

stars of

the heaven

and as

the sand

that is

on the

seashore

and your

offspring

shall possess

the gates

of his

enemies.

God

requires an

offering from

Abraham.

God

provides the

offering

for Abraham.

All

Abraham

brings with

him

is his

faith.

All

Abraham

brings with

him is

his trust

and his

obedience

because God

gives him

everything

that he

needs.

God

provides for

us,

his people,

in miraculous

ways even

as he brings

us through

trials and

difficulties that

he's ordained

for us.

God

provides for

his people in

miraculous ways

as he brings

them through

trials that

he has ordained

for them.

Trials that he

brings to test

to reveal

our faith

like he

reveals the

faith of

Abraham,

to bring

us blessing

like he

brings blessing

to Abraham.

And so

the point

is this,

it may

not make

sense in

the moment

or right

away,

but eventually

obedience to

God's commands

will make

sense.

God will

vindicate us

and provide

for us.

We may

not see it

fully now

and we

know that

we will

one day.

And so

we obey

and trust

God no

matter what

because we

know that

he is

faithful to

his covenant.

And of

course we

know ultimately

his faithfulness

because of

his provision

of his son.

And so

that's part

of our

celebration

of Advent.

That's why

we look at

these passages

from Genesis

during this

month so

that we

can cast

a spotlight

on Jesus

and see

how great

and glorious

he is.

That we

can understand

how much

hope and

confidence and

peace that

we take

from the

fact that

he came

to this

earth as

a man.

We can

look and

see and

understand

more than

Abraham did

how much

God will

himself provide

the sacrifice.

And God

continues to

provide for

us even

now today.

He provides

for us in

the way that

he provided

for the

Israelites in

the wilderness

whose shoes

didn't wear

out.

He provides

for us by

the power of

his Holy

Spirit,

changing our

tastes and

our desires.

God provides

for us through

his word and

the wisdom and

counsel and

support of the

church and

Christians around

us.

It at times

feels like God

is asking the

impossible of

us and he

provides everything

we need to

obey him and

to follow him.

God provided

everything Abraham

needed to

obey.

He provides

everything that

we need to

obey as

well.

And of

course,

ultimately,

he provides

the greater

and greatest

sacrifice.

He provides

his own

son, Jesus

Christ, as

the ultimate

proof of his

faithfulness to

us.

That there is

nothing greater

or more powerful

that we can look

to to see

God's love

and his

authority in

this world.

It's like Paul

tells us in

Romans 8,

Romans 8:31

verses 31 and

32, if he

gave us his

son, how

will he not

also give us

everything else?

Why would he

not also give

us everything we

need to follow

him and love

him and obey

him?

And so even in

the most trying

situations, we

remain faithful

because we know

that God remains

faithful to his

covenant.

He will not

leave us and

he will not

forsake us.

And so we can

take the words

of verse 14 as

our own.

So Abraham

called the name

of that place,

the Lord will

provide.

As it is said

to this day on

the mount of

the Lord, it

shall be

provided.

Let's pray.

Our Father in

heaven, we thank

you for the hope

and the confidence

that we can take

in your love and

your provision for

us.

We thank you

that you never

ask us to do

something without

also providing the

resources and

power that we

need to do it.

And we thank you

that we see that

in this story of

Abraham and we see

it as you work in

our own lives.

We ask that you,

by your spirit,

would grow our

faith more and

more, that we

would trust you,

and we would love

you and believe you

no matter what.

We ask these

things in the

mighty name of

Jesus Christ.

Amen.