This is a difficult situation to figure out. What kind of God would ask this of Abraham? First, Abraham lives for decades with the knowledge and shame that he has no rightful heir, then with the joy that despite impossible odds, he has been given a son. Now, he is to offer that beloved son back to God by killing him on the altar. Wow.
While this story can certainly be understood as a test of Abraham’s faith in God, it seems just as much a testament to God’s faith in Abraham. I’m not sure God would have asked this of Abraham if there was any question in God’s mind about whether Abraham would obey.
Have you ever felt like there were circumstances in life that put your faith to the test? In those times, did you feel as if you had been abandoned by God or did you trust, as Abraham did, that God would provide a way out? We can also learn from Abraham that even when things seemed to be past the point of no return, he was still looking up, still looking for God to rescue him from the unimaginable. That’s when he noticed the ram, which might have been there all along.
In prayer, ask God to lift your eyes to the signs of redemptive love that are already around you.
