Day Five: Isaac--03.14.15
THE BIRTH OF ISAAC | Genesis 21:1-7
The Question: What do the circumstances surrounding Isaac's birth tell us about God and His ability to keep His word?
My Response: God is the creator of all things, including us, so we have no right to doubt God or His ability to keep His own word. If He has promised us something, He will go through with it through His perfect timing--He will never give us anything too early or too late.
AN OFFERING | Genesis 22:1-18
The Questions: Why do you think God tests Abraham like this? What is accomplished?
While we don't know how old Isaac is at this time, he is old enough to help carry the wood and ask an insightful question. What do you imagine is Isaac's response to the events that unfold?
My Response: God tests Abraham like this to prove Abraham's faith and trust in Him. I've also heard that God is a jealous God--jealous for our love for Him. Perhaps God wanted to make sure Abraham kept God first above all, even his only son. Through this test, proof of Abraham's unyielding faith in God is given. It also is a great lesson for the father and son; God will provide for all of our needs.
I imagine Isaac to be very scared for his life when he is tied up and lying on the alter watching his father pointing a knife at him. He might already think that his father is crazy--it was he who made the decision to name him "he laughed" after all--so this event might have made Isaac really question his father's sanity. Also, there is no other recorded dialogue from Isaac during this event; perhaps he did not have anything nice to say when he was about to be sacrificed? And how was he tied? Couldn't he have made an effort to roll off the alter? We'll never know until we get to ask him in Heaven! But Abraham must have had Isaac's consent to be sacrificed, since he was most likely more agile than his father. It takes quite some trust and obedience to do that.
ISAAC'S MARRIAGE | Genesis 24:1-51
The questions: Name some ways you see God at work in this story.
The Bible's account of Isaac emphasizes a number of characters who exhibited obedience to God. Which episodes of obedience in Isaac's story are the most striking to you?
My Response: Abraham follows God's commands by asking his most trusted servant to go back to his homeland to bring a wife for Isaac. The servant knows this is a honorable yet daunting task and relies on God to show him the right lady to be Isaac's wife. God uses the servant's great story retelling skills to share with Rebekah's father and brother the events that have brought him into their house in the first place. While Rebekah's family want to spend more time with her before she leaves, the servant wants to leave. It is a blessing in itself that Rebekah was willing to leave her beloved family so soon.
The most striking episode in Isaac's life, in my opinion, is when he was being sacrificed on the altar. Only someone who knows how much of a blessing from God that each and every moment of their life is can do what he was willing to do.
DISCLAIMER: As with the previous post, I am following Christopher Hudson's book The 40-Day Bible Adventure. The scripture selections and questions are as found in the book. I am simply providing my commentary to his questions and the additional information that Hudson provides in the book. If you'd like to join in on the 40-Day Bible Adventure as well, the book's ISBN is 978-1-63058-669-0. More information on the book can be found at Hudson's blog found here. Just for the record, I have not been endorsed to do this in any way, shape, or form; I am doing the adventure through eagerness and posting my response to promote understanding and conversation of God's Word. Thanks for reading!
No comments :
Post a Comment