Monday January 23, 2023
Theme: “Christian obedience increases faith“
Text: Genesis 22:1-14
1. After these things God put Abraham to the test, and said unto him, Abraham! And he answered: Here am I! 2. God said: Take your son, your only one, the one you love, Isaac; go to the land of Moriah, and offer him there as a burnt offering on one of the mountains that I will tell you about. 3. Abraham got up early in the morning, saddled his donkey, and took with him two servants and his son Isaac. He split wood for the burnt offering, and left to go to the place that God had told him. 4. On the third day Abraham looked up and saw the place from afar. 5. And Abraham said unto his servants, Stay here with the ass; me and the boy will go over there to worship, and we'll come back to you. 6. Abraham took the wood for the burnt offering, loaded it on his son Isaac, and carried the fire and the knife in his hand. And they both walked together. 7. Then Isaac, speaking to Abraham his father, said: My father! And he answered: Here am I, my son! Isaac replied: Here is the fire and the wood; but where is the lamb for the burnt offering? 8. Abraham answered: My son, God will provide Himself the lamb for the burnt offering. And they both walked together. 9. When they came to the place God had told him, Abraham built an altar there, and put away the wood. He bound his son Isaac, and put him on the altar, over the wood. 10. Then Abraham stretched out his hand, and took the knife, to cut the throat of his son. 11. Then the angel of the LORD called him out of heaven, and said, Abraham! Abraham! And he answered: Here am I! 12. The angel said, Stretch out not thy hand upon the child, nor do anything unto him; for I know now that you fear God, and that you have not refused me your son, your only son. 13. Abraham looked up, and saw behind him a ram held in a bush by the horns; and Abraham went and took the ram, and offered it up for a burnt offering in place of his son. 14. Abraham named this place Jehovah Jireh. That is why it is said today: In the mountain of the Lord it will be provided.
Remember:
Had it not been for his obedience, Abraham would not have become the father of faith. He would look like ordinary mortals who have an ordinary faith. But Abraham stood out from those of his generation by completely obeying a request made by God. Abraham had of course heard the voice of God asking him to offer his only son on the altar of sacrifice. In its place, we would have doubted the veracity of this voice or we would have disobeyed it. So we would have asked ourselves a multitude of questions that God would have told us to drop. However Abraham had believed and he set out without even asking permission from Sarah, from whom the child was born. He was not crying on the way, rather he had prophesied that God would provide and provide the sacrificial burnt offering. Let's not forget that this is the child of promise, a child he had in his old age, after several renewed promises from God. Abraham pierced the abscess of doubt, of unbelief by promoting the blind faith that trusts in God. Plant obedience to reap faith. Excellent Monday. Amen Alain Louz.-
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