Praise the Lord! Yesterday we celebrated the 250th Anniversary or semiquincentennial (Independence Day) of the United States of America. The Lord God Almighty has also been good to us throughout the past week and He has given us another week to glorify His name and meditate upon His Word. The Scripture passage we chose for our SftW meditation (Genesis 22:14 [1-19] / mentioned above) is the continuation of God’s conversation with Abraham as part of confirming the covenant God made with Abraham.

Abraham’s life story is very interesting before and after the call of God in his life.  Prior to his call, he was not a worshipper of One true God but was a worshipper of other gods [idols] (Joshua 24:2); from social perspective – he was an outstanding head of his household or community (Genesis 18:19; 24:2); emotionally – perhaps, he was a man of strong personality; physically – he might have been a well-built person and a mighty warrior; he was wealthy and influential (Genesis 14:1-24; 24:1, 35). He was leading a well-to-do-nomadic-kind-of-life-style in the region of Ur of the Chaldeans [Genesis 15:7].  When he was about 75 yrs of age, he had an encounter with a God named El Shaddai or God Almighty, as it is mentioned that I am God Almighty (Genesis 17:1) whom he had never known or heard of. God called and separated him (Genesis 12:1-3), God promised to bless him (Genesis 13:2; 24:35), God promised to bless all people on earth through him (Genesis 12:3b); gave him offsprings (Genesis 15:5; 16:15-16; 21:1-5), made covenant with him (17:1-27), and so on.

The Lord had said to Abram (Genesis 12:1-3) to leave (i) his country, (ii) his people, and (iii) his father’s household and (iv) go to the land the Lord will show him. As a result, the Lord will (a) bless him, (b) make his name great, (c) make him a great nation with multitude of descendants and (d) bless all peoples on earth through him, and so on. Abraham trusted God and obeyed His commandments wholeheartedly and started off to the place the Lord God is leading him though not knowing where he was going to. Imagine, he was a rich man with family and friends, large number of herds and sheep and donkeys and camels, male and female servants, fighting men (he took 318 of the best warriors to rescue Lot – his nephew 14:14), etc.

When Abraham began to trust God more and more, God was pleased with him and decided to bless him on a larger scale. So, in Genesis 17:2-14, God made a covenant with him by changing his name from Abram [means, exalted father] to Abraham [means, Father of multitude or many nations] (Genesis 17:1-7). In Abraham’s life he faced at least three major tests: Initially, he was asked to leave his country, his people, and his father’s household and go to a land unknown to him. Secondly, he had to believe all that God had told him, which he had never seen or heard or experienced in life or even imagined in his heart any time. Thirdly, he was asked to sacrifice his beloved son Isaac whom he loved very much. The third one was the most demanding [that is, to sacrifice his beloved son Isaac] because that test was to prove whether Abraham love his beloved son more that he loves his God who gave him the son. Imagine, for Abraham, almost everything went on well in agreeing with the covenant God was planning to establish with him up until Ch 21. Abraham never ever thought that there is something more to do to finalize and seal the covenant. God absolutely surprised him when we come to chapter twenty-two of Genesis by asking him to sacrifice his son Isaac, whom he loved very much (22:2). Humanly thinking, Abraham could see the end of everything he dreamed about the covenant God made with him even before things began to take shape. God was literally testing Abraham’s faith and Abraham was testing God’s compassion and faithfulness for him. Who will win in this test? God or Abraham as both parties wanted to stand firm in their positions before each other. In Abraham’s case, Abraham has to release something precious to win the test – i.e., winning through losing. God asked Abraham to leave his country, his people, father’s household, and go to an unknown land God promised, and, of course, Abraham obeyed God’s commands in its entirety. Leaving behind something or someone means depart from it or losing. Anyone who encounter such situations has to make many sacrifices – part with their beloved family and extended relatives, their neighbors and  friends, their native land where they were born and grew up, etc. In addition, Abraham had to give up his beloved son Isaac, which means, [humanly thinking] losing his son. Despite thinking about the consequences, Abraham did everything God commanded him to do without any hesitation. As a result, we can see that God’s favor and blessings rested upon him and his son Isaac and generations to come. When God test a person – he/she has to decide whether they want to pass or fail the test. Remember, God always wants us to pass the test He sets before us.  According to Apostle Paul, No temptation [test] has overtaken you except what is common to mankind. And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted [tested], he will also provide a way out so that you can endure it (1Corinthians 10:13). As Genesis 22:14 states, Abraham believed that the Lord is his provider and the Lord provided him with a ram for the sacrifice in the place of his dear son Isaac (Genesis 22:13). Abraham passed the test with distinction, as it is mentioned: I swear by myself, declares the Lord, that because you have done this and have not withheld your son, your only son (Genesis 22:16). And God blessed him, saying: 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,^[c] because you have obeyed me (Genesis 22:17-18).

Dear friends in the Lord, as we conclude our this week’s SftW meditation, let me ask us all a very simple question – if God asks us to sacrifice anything we love or like, would it be possible for us to sacrifice it? Keep in mind that it was the very thing God the Father did to His One and only Son – Jesus Christ, on the cross of Calvary. He sacrificed Him to redeem us from our eternal condemnation. He saved our life from eternal death and destruction. He purchased our lives by giving up His very life; He shed His blood to redeem and heal us.  He saved us by breaking His body and shedding His very own blood on the cross of calvary. Therefore, let us acknowledge and accept what the Lord God Almighty did to love us and save our life from eternal condemnation: As the children of God …

… we must trust the Lord as Abraham trusted the Lord 

… we must obey His commands as Abraham obeyed Him wholeheartedly

… we must give the Lord the best as Abraham gave his best to the Lord 

… we must fulfill His purpose in our life and through our life as Abraham did

… we must be able to receive God’s blessings in our lives as Abraham received

May the Lord God Almighty bless us all! Amen!