Reading Plan: Genesis 22

I often wonder what was going through Isaac’s mind after realizing his Father was about to kill him. We aren’t told anything of his response, his reactions, his thoughts, or his emotions. We are only told of Abraham’s obedience. I have so many questions about what was going through Isaac's mind after God provided a ram to take his place. Did he understand what was happening? Did he hear the voice as the angel of the Lord called out to Abraham to stop? Did his father explain anything to him beforehand? Was he fighting back as he was being bound? Did he live in fear after experiencing this? So many thoughts run through my mind, yet we are only left with the facts given about his father. It’s amazing how Scripture is perfect at pointing us toward what matters most. Isn’t that true for all of us? The only thing that brings us freedom from our own wandering thoughts, actions, and emotions are the facts of our Heavenly Father!

This story also leaves me wondering how many "Isaacs" do we encounter in our own lives? I wonder who in our families, among our friends, or among our coworkers are experiencing something significant and those around them have absolutely no clue what they are thinking or how they are feeling. We can’t always know what everyone else is truly dealing with, but remember, we know the facts about our Father and that is all that matters.

So, what facts do we learn through Abraham as the father figure in Genesis 21? We learn to listen to God’s voice. We learn the benefit of responding immediately to God’s direction. We learn the advantage of trusting God to provide when there seems to be no other solution. We learn to keep moving forward with the plan until God changes our course. And, we learn to be willing to give up even the things we cherish most because we believe obedience matters more than what we are sacrificing.

Trace the pattern of Abraham's decisions: he responded, he trusted, he moved forward, he was willing, and he was obedient. If we followed this pattern with our lives, where would it take us? Who would it impact? In verse 18, God tells Abraham, “All nations on earth will be blessed because you have obeyed me.” Let’s ask ourselves today:  Who have we blessed because we have chosen to obey God? This brings us great truth in the realization that our choice to obey God never ends with us. Other people have blessings to lose when we choose not to obey.