Genesis 22

Let me pray and then we'll look at this together.

Thank you so much, Heavenly Father, for your kindness to us,

the ways you speak to us, to tell us of your Son and your grace to us in him.

Please, by your Spirit now, open our hearts, open our minds.

Help us to see Jesus, to trust him, to follow him.

We ask in his name. Amen.

Amen. Well, there may be some chapters in the book of Genesis

that are not very well known, some bits of Abraham's life

that aren't terribly familiar to us.

But as Paul mentioned just earlier,

I doubt that's going to be a problem for us this evening, is it?

This famous, some might say infamous, account that we have before us here.

What is the Lord doing?

How could he ever put someone through something like this?

So let's not miss a round.

There's no long introduction this evening.

That takes us straight into the first thing for us to see.

A huge thing in this passage, isn't it?

The puzzle, just the sheer puzzle of God's ways.

How so often they leave his people, they leave you and me sometimes,

thinking, what on earth is he doing?

Just one, after these things, God tested Abraham.

So immediately, as is sometimes the case in the Bible,

we know more than Abraham does about what's going on in this incident here.

God is testing him. He's testing his faith.

His fear of God, we find out later.

Not testing in the sense that the Lord doesn't really know

whether or not Abraham has faith,

or what kind of faith it might be if he does,

so he's got to run a test to try to work it out.

Of course the Lord knows.

He's God. He knows everything.

But testing in the sense of proving it,

of demonstrating it for other people.

So you think of engineers, perhaps,

piling huge loads onto a brand new, unlikely-looking bridge.

Not because they don't know if it's going to work,

at least you hope not.

They've run the calculations.

But to try to show people like us,

it works, it's safe, you can walk on it.

Well, sort of like that here, really.

The Lord showing Abraham and us what real faith looks like.

We'll come back to that thought in a few moments' time.

Verse 2.

He said, the Lord 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.

And there's such a danger we gloss over those words,

especially if we're very, very familiar with the story.

Just let them land on you for a moment.

Imagine being Abraham, hearing God say this to you.

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

and go to the land of Moriah and offer him.

You notice every phrase kind of deepening the pain

of what Abraham realizes he's being asked to do.

Your son, your only son, now that Ishmael's gone,

whom you love.

Take him, go to the land of Moriah,

which we're about to realize is three days' journey away.

That is a lot of time to think about

what you've just been asked to do.

And when you get there, sacrifice him.

Most parents, including Christian parents,

we're super sensitive about our children, aren't we?

We really are.

You think very, very carefully, don't you,

before you say something critical

about someone else's child to their parents,

or ask the parent to do something

you know their child isn't going to like.

Teachers, if you're any teachers here,

you must know this more than any of us, don't you?

You must brace yourselves

for some of those conversations you have to have.

Probably one of the main forms of idolatry

in the Western Church today.

I'll do anything for you, Lord.

I'll give up anything for you,

so long as it doesn't affect my children.

And God just goes straight there.

Offer him, he says.

Of course, by this stage in the book of Genesis,

it's not just the pain of losing his son

and being the one through whom that son will die

that is so hard for Abraham.

There's a real theological problem here as well,

isn't there?

Because who is Isaac?

He's not just a dearly loved only child.

He's the child of the promise.

So God's great promise to undo the curse of sin

by bringing blessing into the world

through Abraham's family

after Abraham,

it all hangs on Isaac.

It rests on him.

You lose Isaac at this stage, it's over.

And now God's saying,

he must die.

And you can imagine Abraham wrestling with that,

can't you?

You've promised this, Lord,

but now you're commanding this.

I wonder whether you've ever found yourself

thinking you just haven't got a clue

what God is doing.

Can't even begin to make sense

of something he's commanding

or asking you to do

or something he's allowing to happen,

something you seem to be leading you towards,

perhaps.

Maybe showering with blessing

and then suddenly he snatches it away.

And in our heads, of course,

we know moments like that shouldn't be a surprise,

should they?

After all, he's God and we're not.

So, you know,

just as you wouldn't expect a child

in a reception class at school

to understand everything

their head teacher's doing,

it would be ridiculous, wouldn't it?

Can you imagine a four-year-old

marching into a head teacher's office,

demanding an explanation

for every decision the head teacher makes?

And of course,

the gap between a four-year-old

and a head teacher,

that is nothing compared to the gap

between you and me and the Lord.

Of course we shouldn't expect

to get our heads around his ways.

But here's a helpful reminder

of how painful that can sometimes be.

Not just an intellectual puzzle,

agony emotionally sometimes.

The puzzle of God's ways.

Then the second thing for us to see,

the faith God seeks.

The faith he seeks.

It's the faith he shows

that Abraham has.

You see,

what is Christian faith, really?

What does it look like

when we really trust in him?

What kind of response

does the Lord long to see

from people like you and me?

And you notice a couple of things

that we see about it here

in this passage.

First,

real faith

is obedient.

It does what God says.

So verse three,

and don't worry,

we are going to speed up considerably

in just a moment.

But verse three,

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.

It's very different, isn't it,

to how we'd write that today.

There's nothing in there

about how Abraham's feeling.

We'd be full of that,

wouldn't we?

Although,

I wonder whether we get

just a little glimpse.

He's up early.

You sense

he's probably not slept.

That night,

thinking through

what he's been told to do.

He collects Isaac,

the other things he needs

and he heads off

just as God has told him to do.

Because that's the point.

Real faith

does what God says.

Martin Luther put it so well,

didn't he?

We're saved by faith alone.

But the faith that saves

is never alone.

So just as Abraham

was saved by faith,

Genesis 15 told us,

Abraham believed the Lord

and he counted it to him

as righteousness.

But that belief he had

that saved him

didn't stand alone.

He didn't just say

he was trusting God.

I thought anyone

could do that,

can't they?

All you need is a voice

and you can say

you're trusting God.

Anyone can say the grief

we said together earlier.

But he shows it

by doing what God says

and obeying his commands.

Even the things

that we wish God

hadn't said perhaps.

The commands

that we can't understand.

The ones that we know

will be really painful

to obey.

Faith God seeks

obeys him

and that's a very relevant

thought isn't it

at the moment

as just increasingly

doing what God says

is less and less popular

in our society now.

And then notice

the other remarkable thing

about true faith.

It trusts the Lord

to keep his promises

beyond the grave.

You see how does Abraham

reconcile those two things

he's heard from God?

So Isaac is the child

of the promise.

He must live

if that promise

is going to come true.

But here's God

asking Abraham

to put him to death.

God says Isaac must die.

Which is it?

How can they both be true?

And I think there is a clue

to how Abraham is thinking

in verse 5.

We'll pick it up

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.

You notice those

last few words?

Not just

and I will come

back to you

but I and the boy

will.

Me and Isaac.

Isaac who

so far as I know

I will put to death

on that mountain

over there.

He will come back

with me

to see you again.

You see what is that?

Is that wishful thinking?

Is that

refusing to face

the facts?

It wouldn't be the last time

would it

in the face of death?

Or could it be

a deep confidence

in God's ability

to keep his promises

and that not being

limited by death

but ultimately

demonstrated

and proven

in resurrection life

beyond.

But more simply

even if Isaac

must die

on that mountain

Abraham

trusts God

to bring him

back to life

as well.

God has to do that

he knows

if this promise

of blessing

is going to come true

and that's certainly

what the book of Hebrews

says when it reflects

on Abraham's life

and that great gallery

of heroes of the faith

that we get

in Hebrews chapter 11.

Hebrews 11 · chapter mention

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 Abraham

considered that God

was able

even to raise him

from the dead.

deep confidence

death won't be

the end of the story.

It can't be.

There must be more

if what God has promised

is going to come true

and so it is of course

with you and me

and Christian brothers

and sisters

right back through history

and right across

the world today

God's promises

to us

in the Lord Jesus

just so phenomenal

aren't they?

Every spiritual blessing

ours in him

he says

and yet our experience

of that at the moment

so much less

in this life

suffering

and opposition

and disappointment

and maybe even

persecution too

and even if we don't

personally experience

too many of those things

even so

our experience

nowhere near

the full

expanse

of what God

has promised.

We get into so much

trouble don't we?

We mess ourselves up

when we try

and convince ourselves

no this is it

this is as good

as it gets now

this is everything

but it's okay

isn't it

because this life

is not all

after death

when Jesus returns

that's when so many

of those things

that the Lord

has promised

really will

be felt to be true.

The faith of God

speaks

obeying him

hoping beyond the grave

so verses 7 and 8

even when Isaac

suddenly realises

hang on

something's missing

and asks that question

can you imagine

how this must have

just cut Abraham

to the heart?

Dad

where's the lamb?

Even then

Abraham still carries

on treading that

path of obedience

up the mountain

when he gets there

verse 9

builds the altar

and prepares to

slay his son

which brings us

third to the

salvation God

provides

the salvation

that God provides

Abraham

Abraham

this voice

from heaven

cries

and we get

the sense

don't we

it's right

at the last

minute

just as the

knife

is about

to come down

really urgent

don't do it

God says

now your faith

is clear

because you have

not withheld

your son

and nearby

there's a ram

for Abraham

to offer

instead

to die

in Isaac's

place

which is what

happens

so verse 14

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

God provides

a substitute

something to

come and die

in Isaac's

place

and it's a

pattern we see

so often

isn't it

right across

the Old Testament

most clearly

in that sacrificial

system in the

tabernacle

in the temple

at this stage

still yet to come

the temple

you know from

later

built

guess where

I love this

detail

right here

on Mount

Moriah

where all

this happens

the place

where every

day for

centuries

animals would

die

just as

God commanded

in the place

of his

people

when they

sinned

each of

them

pointing

forward

to the

sacrifice

that this

moment is

pointing forward

to as well

Isaac's

haunting

question

there in

verse 7

where is

the land

for the

burnt

offering

one person

has said

it's as if

that question

it kind of

hangs over

the whole

of the rest

of the Old

Testament

it's a question

the whole

of the rest

of the Old

Testament

can't quite

answer

where is

the one

who is going

to come

and really

take away

people's sins

in a way

that of course

no animal

ever could

and so even

at the end

of the Old

Testament

where is

he

still to

come

until that

magic moment

John's

Gospel

John 1

from the

Baptist

chatting

with some

of his

disciples

suddenly

sees

Jesus

coming

his

way

look

he says

the Lamb

of God

who takes

away the

sin of the

world

the one

who really

does take

it away

there he

is

the one

we've been

waiting

for

the one

Isaac

was asking

about

Jesus

Christ

God's

great

salvation

look to

him

and then

fourth

the frailty

of God's

ways

the frailty

of his

ways

it's not a

great heading

this one

but I hope

you'll get

the sense

of what

it means

it's an

odd little

postscript

to the

chapter

isn't it

verses 20

to 24

don't you

think

Abraham

and Isaac

back in

Beersheba

now

Genesis

12

what was

one of

the things

God

promised

to

Abraham

I'll

make of

you a

great

nation

he said

it's a

promise

actually

it's

reiterated

it's

underlined

in our

passage

today

verse 17

I'll

surely

bless

you

and I'll

surely

multiply

your

offspring

as the

stars

of heaven

and as

the

sand

that is

on the

seashore

so lots

of people

due to

come from

Abraham's

line

so end

of the

chapter

how's it

going

oh not

brilliant

is it

Abraham

Sarah

and now

Ishmael's

gone

just Isaac

rattling

around

in the

tents

at home

with the

servants

meanwhile

birth

announcement

after birth

announcement

coming from

Nahor's

line

do you

notice

12 of

them

which even

taking into

account some

help from a

concubine is a

lot of

offspring

you imagine

Sarah

I assume

it fell to

Sarah

trying to

keep track

of all

those

birthdays

birthdays

all those

cousins

birthdays

not a

problem in

our own

household

though

just

Isaac

imagine the

family get

togethers at

Christmas

the piles

of presents

for Nahor's

clan

just the

one in the

corner

Isaac that's

yours

as if to

really rub

in

the great

nation

part of

God's

promise

hasn't yet

come true

come on

Lord you can

imagine Abraham

thinking can't

you

well

the Lord's

people looking

so few

so often

so weak

so frail

compared to

the rest of

the world

and it's a

feeling some

of us know

really well

isn't it

think what it

will be like

tomorrow when

you're back at

school or

dropping off in

the playground

perhaps with

other parents

or at work

or in our

public life at

the moment

or in the

media

it's that

sense of

God's

people seeming

so few

looking so

weak

numerically

I know

this says

but don't

panic

that is

often God's

way

often how

he works

through what

looks small

and frail

so there we

are Genesis

22 it is an

extraordinary

chapter isn't

it how could

God do this

how could he

put Abraham

through something

like this

how can that

be right

how can that

be fair

it's kind of

hard not to

ask that

question I

vividly remember

the first time

I preached

this passage

for two reasons

actually the

first was it

was a Sunday

evening almost

exactly three

years ago

the last Sunday

evening before

Boris told us

do you remember

you must stay

at home

so in hindsight

such a precious

time that last

Sunday evening

service before

we didn't meet

for a little bit

as a church

and you must

remember that

some of you

even you guys

didn't meet for

a couple of

weeks at least

did you before

things got back

together again

but the second

reason I remember

it so clearly is

because there sat

almost at the

front of church

was a friend of

mine a member

of our church

family who

just a couple of

years earlier

had lost his

own son

completely out

of the blue

17 years old

started to feel

a bit ill one

evening and a

couple of days

later was dead

and you think

how do you help

a parent who

knows that kind

of pain

in a way that

most of us

don't

how do you

encourage them

to keep trusting

this God

I mentioned

Martin Luther

earlier this

great 16th

century church

leader in

Germany one of

the towering

figures in

church history

and there's

another lovely

story about

Luther in

family devotions

with his

family he

reads Genesis

22 to them

gets to the

end I do

not believe it

his wife Katie

said perhaps

feeling what

some of us

have been

feeling a bit

this evening

the impression

family devotions

in the Luther

household like

most things in

the Luther

household were

probably quite

plain speaking

affairs most

of the time

I do not

believe it

she said

God would

not have

treated his

son like

that

but Katie

Martin replied

he did

and of course

he did

John 3

God so

loved the

world

God

gave his

only son

God the

son sent

into the

world by

God the

father and

gladly obeying

as he came

to be offered

in place of

people like

you and me

not to be

saved from

death at the

last moment

kind of whipped

away in the

nick of time

but given

completely to

death

there at the

cross the one

God provided to

take all the

judgment people

like us deserve

for our sins

so that that

blessing that

God had

promised and

promises again in

this passage

Genesis 22

really can come

flowing into our

world to turn

back that curse

of sin

how can you

trust a God

like this

his ways are

so puzzling

how can I

trust him

when his

commands

and the

things he

allows to

happen

sometimes

seem so

so hard

how can

you when

his ways

feel like

agony as

well

because as

we remember

again in just

a moment as

we share the

Lord's

supper

he gave

his son

for you

and for

me

and that

is why we

can trust

him

let's be

quiet together

for a moment

and then I'll

pray