Genesis 22:12-18
“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.”
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.”
Comments
Abraham’s story shows us “the fear of God” is something of a
misnomer. Abraham and Isaac teach us about trust, not fear.
We can easily imagine Isaac fearing for his life and
fighting against his father, but there is no evidence of this in the story. At
an earlier point Isaac asks what is being sacrificed, but he accepts Abraham’s
answer, “The Lord will provide.” Nothing is said about Isaac fighting against
the ropes that bound him; the clear implication is that Isaac trusted his
father in spite of what was happening to him.
Likewise, we can easily imagine Abraham agonizing about what
was happening and moving ahead only because he was too afraid of God to disobey,
but there is no evidence of this in the story either. Abraham gives every
evidence of being at peace, trusting God in spite of what was being asked of
him.
Isaac trusted Abraham and Abraham trusted God. Everything
was given; nothing was withheld. Such faith blesses all of us.
Reflections
When something goes wrong in your life, do you jump to the
conclusion that God is punishing you for something?
When you put yourself in God’s hands, are you able to trust
that whatever happens to you will turn out okay?
Prayer
Blessed are you, O Lord our God, King of the universe, who
has been proven loving, good and trustworthy from generation to generation.
Awe. Awareness of God's largesse. Big, giving, powerful...and loving ME, on and on and on. This is far from the fear that is sold by politicians and marketers. And because I am so certain that he loves ME in my far-from-perfection, I know that he loves those I might foolishly consider "the least". I am grateful to have regular opportunities to sit with those on the margins and discover our similarities, of both frailty and giftedness.
ReplyDelete