ISAAC:
TRUSTING IN HIS FATHER'S TRUST IN GOD
I) INTRODUCTION
A) [Genesis 22:1-18]:
(v. 1) "Now it came about after these things, that God tested Abraham, and said to him, 'Abraham!' And he said, 'Here I am.'
(v. 2) He said, 'Take now your son, your only son, whom you love, Isaac, and go to the land of Moriah, and offer him there as a burnt offering on one of the mountains of which I will tell you.'
(v. 3) So Abraham rose early in the morning and saddled his donkey, and took two of his young men with him and Isaac his son; and he split wood for the burnt offering, and arose and went to the place of which God had told him.
(v. 4) On the third day Abraham raised his eyes and saw the place from a distance.
(v. 5) Abraham said to his young men, 'Stay here with the donkey, and I and the lad will go over there; and we will worship and return to you. '
(v. 6) Abraham took the wood of the burnt offering and laid it on Isaac his son, and he took in his hand the fire and the knife. So the two of them walked on together.
(v. 7) Isaac spoke to Abraham his father and said, 'My father!' And he said, 'Here I am, my son.'
And he said, 'Behold, the fire and the wood, but where is the lamb for the burnt offering?'
(v. 8) Abraham said, 'God will provide for Himself the lamb for the burnt offering, my son.' So the two of them walked on together.
(v. 9) Then they came to the place of which God had told him; and Abraham built the altar there and arranged the wood, and bound his son Isaac and laid him on the altar, on top of the wood.
(v. 10) Abraham stretched out his hand and took the knife to slay his son.
(v. 11) But the angel of the LORD called to him from heaven and said, 'Abraham, Abraham!' And he said, 'Here I am.'
(v. 12) He said, 'Do not stretch out your hand against the lad, and do nothing to him; for now I know that you fear God, since you have not withheld your son, your only son, from Me.
(v. 13) Then Abraham raised his eyes and looked, and behold, behind him a ram caught in the thicket by his horns; and Abraham went and took the ram and offered him up for a burnt offering in the place of his son.
(v. 14) Abraham called the name of that place The LORD Will Provide, as it is said to this day, ' In the mount of the LORD it will be provided.'
(v. 15) Then the angel of the LORD called to Abraham a second time from heaven,
(v. 16) and said, 'By Myself I have sworn, declares the LORD, because you have done this thing and have not withheld your son, your only son,
(v. 17) indeed I will greatly bless you, and I will greatly multiply your seed as the stars of the heavens and as the sand which is on the seashore; and your seed shall possess the gate of their enemies.
(v. 18) 'In your seed all the nations of the earth shall be blessed, because you have obeyed My voice.'
II) [Gen 22:1-2]:
(v. 1) Now it came about after these things, that God tested Abraham, and said to him, 'Abraham!' And he said, 'Here I am.'
(v. 2) He said, 'Take now your son, your only son, whom you love, Isaac, and go to the land of Moriah, and offer him there as a burnt offering on one of the mountains of which I will tell you
A) GOD COMMANDS ABRAHAM TO SACRIFICE HIS SON
[Isaac will later on in this scenario see his father's obedience to God's command as a shocking command to end his own young life when he looked forward to so much especially considering that people lived to be well over a hundred in those days, a shocking command to end the son's life which Abraham so waited for in faith for so many years and now cherished so much. Yet Abraham instantly obeyed God's command which offered no explanation and no encouragement or incentive]
III) [Gen 22:3-7]:
(v. 3) "So Abraham rose early in the morning and saddled his donkey, and took two of his young men with him and Isaac his son; and he split wood for the burnt offering, and arose and went to the place of which God had told him.
(v. 4) On the third day Abraham raised his eyes and saw the place from a distance.
(v. 5) Abraham said to his young men, 'Stay here with the donkey, and I and the lad will go over there; and we will worship and return to you.'
(v. 6) Abraham took the wood of the burnt offering and laid it on Isaac his son, and he took in his hand the fire and the knife. So the two of them walked on together."
A) ABRAHAM OBEYS GOD AND BEGINS THE TASKS TO COMPLY
[Note that Abraham went about his normal duties in traveling and preparation for obeying God's command. He was not overly stressed out about the matter, nor did he complain. He just went about his way in preparation to do what God had commanded of him in total faith and obedience]
IV) [Gen 22:7-10]:
(v. 7) "Isaac spoke to Abraham his father and said, 'My father!' And he said, 'Here I am, my son.'
And he said, 'Behold, the fire and the wood, but where is the lamb for the burnt offering?'
(v. 8) Abraham said, 'God will provide for Himself the lamb for the burnt offering, my son.' So the two of them walked on together.
(v. 9) Then they came to the place of which God had told him; and Abraham built the altar there and arranged the wood, and bound his son Isaac and laid him on the altar, on top of the wood.
(v. 10) Abraham stretched out his hand and took the knife to slay his son."
A) ABRAHAM CONTINUES TO OBEY AND ISAAC DOES TO
[When Isaac asks his father where the lamb was for the burnt offering, Abraham at that time being over 100 years old and Isaac being a teenager, no doubt of much greater strength and agility, would have had a problem if Isaac did not voluntarily obey when he indicated shortly thereafter to his son that he was going to be the sacrifice. Yet the passage indicates that Isaac did comply and permitted himself to be placed on the altar, bound and positioned so that his throat could be slit by Abraham's knife - as Isaac had seen countless times when his father and others sacrificed animals. So Isaac permitted himself to be killed as a sacrifice in total obedience to his father's request of him. Later on in the New Testament an earnest student of God's Word would learn more of what was going on in Abraham's mind:
B) ABRAHAM TRUSTED THAT GOD WOULD RESURRECT HIS SON ISAAC
1) [Heb 11:17-19]:
(v. 17) 'By faith Abraham, when he was tested, offered up Isaac; and he who had received the promises was offering up his [unique] son [of the Promise through whom our Saviour would be born].
(v. 18) it was he to whom it was said, 'In Isaac your seed [descendants] shall be called.'
(v. 19) He considered that God was able to raise men even from the dead; from which he also received him back as a type."
[unique] "son" [of the Promise] = God promised that through Abraham's and Sarah's first natural son, Isaac, (and Isaac only), that the Messiah Savior would be born Who would make provision for all mankind for eternal life, (Gen 17:19; 21:12; Heb 11:18; Ro 9:7). "type" = "parabole" = a figure or a typical example of a man whom God raises from the dead much as God raised our Lord Jesus Christ from the dead as the First Type and then all believers. Isaac was as good as dead and Abraham trusted God to bring Isaac back to life "as a type" as he himself would be resurrected from the dead by God and as God would resurrect His Son. How else would our Lord be born of the seed of Isaac if Isaac were to there and then permanently die?
C) ABRAHAM'S OBEDIENCE TO GOD WAS THEREFORE A GREAT EXAMPLE TO HIS SON ISAAC WHICH ENABLED ISAAC TO OBEY HIS FATHER IN TURN
Abraham's obedience to God was therefore a great example to his son Isaac which enabled Isaac to obey his father in turn. So Isaac obeyed and trusted in his father out of Abraham's trust in God.
This is not to say that Abraham obeyed or anyone should obey such a command out of ignorance of Who God is. For Abraham previously had a number of encounters directly with God and proved out his understanding of God and showed his faith in Who He was and what He said (Gen chapters 12-20; Ro chapter 4).
Therefore an individual should do likewise by the alternative offered today: a consistent daily study of the words of God's Word: the Bible, under the auspices of teachers who properly teach what God is saying in a verse by verse fashion as it was written.
D) STUDY TO SHOW YOURSELF APPROVED
1) [2 Tim 2:15; 3:16-17]:
(v. 2:15) "Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a workman who does not need to be ashamed and who correctly nandles the word of truth. [the Bible]"
(v. 3:16) "All Scripture is God breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness,
(v. 3:17) so that the man of God many be throroughly equipped for every good work."
By earnestly studying the Bible every day, an individual can familiarize himself with Who God is, even more than Abraham could, so that he too can discern godly behavior from the ungodly - what to obey and what not to - when obedience of even ungodly commands is to be a test and when it is not to be obeyed, (and there are those circumstances). That takes discernment which comes only out of an earnest study of what God has to say on the matter in the Bible.
Ref: proper approach and study of God's Word:
V) NEW TESTAMENT EPISTLES PROVIDE MORE SPECIFIC INSTRUCTIONS AND APPLICATIONS FOR THE YOUTH
A) PASSAGES WHICH SPECIFICALLY ADDRESS BEHAVIOR OF CHILDREN
1) [Eph 6:1-4]:
(v. 1) "Children, obey your parents in the Lord, for this is right.
(v. 2) HONOR YOUR FATHER AND MOTHER (which is the first commandment with a promise),
(v. 3) SO THAT IT MAY BE WELL WITH YOU, AND THAT YOU MAY LIVE LONG ON THE EARTH.
(v. 4) Fathers, do not provoke your children to anger, but bring them up in the discipline and instruction of the Lord."
2) [Compare Col 3:20-21]:
(v. 20) "Children, be obedient to your parents in all things, for this is well-pleasing to the Lord.
(v. 21) Fathers, do not exasperate your children, so that they will not lose heart."
Although parents are not to provoke or exasperate their children, sad to say this often occurs. A godly child's response who passes God's test of enduring unfair behavior might very well turn his father or others to faith alone in Christ alone unto eternal life or if saved back onto the faithful path while providing spiritual growth, longer life and eternal rewards for himself.
3) [Jas 1:12]:
(v. 12) "Blessed is a man who perseveres under trial; for once he has been approved, he will receive the crown of life which the Lord has promised to those who love Him."
B) PASSAGES WHICH ADDRESS CHRISTIAN BEHAVIOR AND RESPONSIBILITY
1) REF. The basics of the Christian faith:
VI) CONCLUSION
A) [Pro 3:5-6]:
(v. 5) Trust in the LORD with all your heart
[First comes the the trust, i.e., the faith alone in Christ alone unto eternal life as it did with Abraham and Isaac and then what should follow is a daily trust in their walk with God]
And do not lean on your own understanding.
[Not leaning on your own understanding implies leaning on something more reliable: the words of God's Word which have been earnestly studied, accepted and obeyed. You cannot have faith in something you know nothing about - faith is not to be blind faith but knowledgeable faith - that's why God revealed Himself in His Word: the Bible]
(v. 6) In all your ways acknowledge Him,
[which implies that you know His ways which are described in detail in the Bible and therefore decide to follow them which in essence is acknowledging Him]
And He will make your paths straight.
[or "And He will direct your path" = indicates that God has already ordered the steps you are to choose to take in life in order to glorify Him and thus resulting in your best life and eternal rewards in heaven. These steps to take will be revealed to you as you obediently follow the principles recorded for you in God's Word, mainly in the New Testament Epistles which are directed specifically for individuals living at this time of human history]