Read Genesis 22:1-19; Hebrews 11:17-19

Faith in the Lord’s Provision

The faith of Abraham was never more fully realized than when God commanded him to offer his son Isaac as a burnt offering. Isaac was the child of promise; God said that He would “establish My covenant with him for an everlasting covenant, and with his descendants after him” (Genesis 17:19), and that “in Isaac your seed shall be called” (Genesis 21:12). How could this be accomplished, if Abraham sacrificed Isaac as a burnt offering?

Abraham had faith in the provision of the Lord. Isaac was not dense; he realized there was something missing when he and his father went to worship. When Isaac questioned his father about the absence of a sacrificial lamb, Abraham told him, “My son, God will provide for Himself the lamb for a burnt offering” (Genesis 22:8). And indeed, as Abraham prepared to slay the only child born to Sarah, the child through whom God’s blessing would be achieved, he was stopped and God provided a ram for the offering in Isaac’s stead.

We get a fuller understanding of Abraham’s faith in the New Testament. The Hebrews writer tells us that Abraham was willing to sacrifice Isaac, “concluding that God was able to raise him up, even from the dead” (Heb. 11:19). Abraham knew that obedience to God was not only important but necessary, and if God commanded something, it should be done without hesitation and He would take care of those who were faithfully obedient. Abraham understood the purpose of man long before the inspired preacher wrote, “Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter: fear God and keep His commandments, for this is man’s all” (Eccl. 12:13; cf. Gen. 22:12).

Abraham memorialized the place where God spared Isaac, calling it “Jehovah-jireh” (Genesis 22:14 KJV). Most modern translations render that phrase, “The Lord Will Provide.” Do you believe that? He will, if we “fear God and keep His commandments.”

Have you done the things that Lord has commanded in his new covenant with man? The covenant He established with Israel, the Law of Moses, has been nailed to the cross. Today, we are commanded to repent of our sins (Acts 3:19). We are commanded to confess our belief in Christ (Romans 10:9-10). We are commanded to be immersed to have our sins washed away (Acts 22:16). We are commanded to live faithfully for Him, “always abounding in the work of the Lord” (1 Corinthians 15:58). What is stopping you from full obedience to His Word?