Week 3 - Trust & Obey | Day 17

SCRIPTURE - GENESIS 22:1-14

Some time later God tested Abraham. He said to him, “Abraham!” “Here I am,” he replied. Then God said, “Take your son, your only son, whom you love—Isaac—and go to the region of Moriah. Sacrifice him there as a burnt offering on a mountain I will show you.” Early the next  morning Abraham got up and loaded 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. 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.” 

OBSERVATION

In the chapter just before this passage, God miraculously fulfilled His promise to Abraham by giving him and his wife a son, despite their old age. Now, God was telling Abraham to sacrifice the very son he had been waiting for. Just as he was coming out of a season of difficulty and disappointment, he found himself facing another test. And yet, Abraham didn’t argue with God or resist His command. He obeyed immediately. In verse 8, Abraham tells Isaac that God Himself will provide a sacrifice. Even though Abraham didn’t know how God would come through, he trusted that God would make a way for Isaac to be spared. He believed that the same God who provided for him before would provide for him again. Abraham knew that if God was bringing him into a test, God would also bring him through it.  Just as Abraham had trusted, God spared Isaac. God provided a ram as the sacrifice in his place. The test became an opportunity for Abraham to experience God’s provision once again. But the significance of this story doesn’t end there. In verse 2, God called Abraham to go to the region of Moriah to offer the sacrifice. Thousands of years later, Jesus’ sacrifice would take place in that same region. God provided a way for Abraham’s son to be spared, but He did not spare His own Son. Jesus took our place and became the sacrifice for our sins. And just as God provided for us then, He will provide for us now.

APPLICATION

After sacrificing the ram, Abraham named the place Jehovah Jireh, which means “the Lord will provide.” Jehovah Jireh has long been one of the names used to describe God. He doesn’t just provide occasionally; He keeps providing. It’s not just what He does. It’s who He is. Maybe, like Abraham, it feels like you’ve walked through one season of testing after another. If so, look back on the times in your life when God has provided for you before. If He provided then, He won’t stop now. What do you need to trust God to provide? In fact, finish this sentence: “I need God to provide _____.” Now, ask God what step of obedience He’s asking you to take so that you can see His provision become a reality. Abraham could’ve hesitated, argued, or refused to do what God asked of him. But because he obeyed, he not only passed the test, but he also saw God provide for Him. Even when you can’t see how, God can provide exactly what you need. And if we want to walk in the provision of God, we must be willing to obey Him.

PRAYER

Today, take time to thank God for the ways He has already provided in your life. Ask Him to help you trust that He will bring you through every test you face. Pray for the strength to obey Him no matter what. 

God, thank you for the ways I’ve seen your provision in every season of my life. Most of all, thank you for providing your Son as a sacrifice in my place. Help me to remain obedient to you in every test, and trust that you will always see me through. Amen. 

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