The Ultimate Sacrifice

Read Genesis 22

In Genesis, Chapter 22, it says that God wanted to test Abraham in verse 1.

In verse 2, God told him to offer his son Isaac as a burnt offering, and where to go to do it. So, he packed up, got his son, and headed there.

There was no arguing with God. There was no lamenting and begging. He simply obeyed.

In verse 4, they came to a place that was near the site. You can see that he must have also taken his servants with him for support. He told them to stay where they were, because he and the boy had business to attend to, and he went the rest of the way alone with Isaac.

But, here is the kicker: In verse 5, he told them to stay with the ass that was carrying their supplies, and that he and the boy would go, and return when their business was finished.

You could say that it didn't even dawn on him that the boy would not be with him when he returned.

Abraham made Isaac carry the wood in verse 6. Just like Jesus carried the cross that he was to be sacrificed on. There was no argument. The boy was obedient, just like Jesus was.

Isaac was smart. He could see they had all the makings of an offering to God, but he didn't see the animal that was to be sacrificed. So, he finally let curiosity get the better of him and asked about it, in verse 7.

Abraham, like the dutiful servant of God he was, said, (in verse 8) "God will provide." You could say that he heard was God was telling him to do, he knew what he had to do, but not once did he believe that God would let Isaac fall to harm. After all, God made a promise.

In verses 9 and 10, Abraham prepares Isaac and is just about to stab the knife into him to slay him for the sacrifice when, in verse 11 God stops him.

In verse 12, God explains why. Abraham was obedient, even to the point of killing his own son in order to obey the word of God.

In all the other verses, God told Abraham that because he was so obedient, that his seed would bless all the earth. Many years later, Jesus was born, a descendent of Abraham, and through the blood of HIS sacrifice, the whole earth is blessed!

After that, Abraham went to Beersheba to live. A messenger came bringing tidings from his brother, Nahor, and told of the family that Nahor had. Later, Isaac would marry Nahor's grandaughter, Rebekah.

On a personal note, how many of you would find it easy to lay your own life down for the Lord? How many of you, those of you who say you would, would find it harder to lay down the life of your child? Abraham was truly heroic in his obedience!

Israel and Palestine

Read Genesis 21:22-34

22 And it came to pass at that time, that Abimelech and Phichol the chief captain of his host spake unto Abraham, saying, God is with thee in all that thou doest:
23 Now therefore swear unto me here by God that thou wilt not deal falsely with me, nor with my son, nor with my son's son: but according to the kindness that I have done unto thee, thou shalt do unto me, and to the land wherein thou hast sojourned.
24 And Abraham said, I will swear.
25 And Abraham reproved Abimelech because of a well of water, which Abimelech's servants had violently taken away.
26 And Abimelech said, I wot not who hath done this thing: neither didst thou tell me, neither yet heard I of it, but to day.
27 And Abraham took sheep and oxen, and gave them unto Abimelech; and both of them made a covenant.
28 And Abraham set seven ewe lambs of the flock by themselves.
29 And Abimelech said unto Abraham, What mean these seven ewe lambs which thou hast set by themselves?
30 And he said, For these seven ewe lambs shalt thou take of my hand, that they may be a witness unto me, that I have digged this well.
31 Wherefore he called that place Beersheba; because there they sware both of them.
32 Thus they made a covenant at Beersheba: then Abimelech rose up, and Phichol the chief captain of his host, and they returned into the land of the Philistines.
33 And Abraham planted a grove in Beersheba, and called there on the name of the LORD, the everlasting God.
34 And Abraham sojourned in the Philistines' land many days.

King Abimelech feared Abraham's God. He knew His power.

So, for insurance, he took his captain with him and went to have a talk with Abraham, to make sure that peace between them is secured.

Abraham agreed to the treaty, but had a problem with a well he had dug that the King's servants had violently taken away from them. Abimelech didn't know anything about it. Abraham decided to be the bigger man and give Abimelech seven ewe lambs in payment for the well, that it could provide his people with needed water. He called the place where the well was dug "Beersheba", in honor of the agreement they had reached concerning it.

They lived in the land of the Philistines. Later, many years later, that area came to be known as part of Israel. The Palestinian people are descended from the Philistines. There is still much unrest in Israel between them.

Tamarisks are a common tree found in that area today. Some translations say it was a tamarisk tree that he planted, not a grove. No one knows for sure, but it seems likely, given the environment today.

Sanctification

Read Genesis 21:14-21

14 And Abraham rose up early in the morning, and took bread, and a bottle of water, and gave it unto Hagar, putting it on her shoulder, and the child, and sent her away: and she departed, and wandered in the wilderness of Beersheba.
15 And the water was spent in the bottle, and she cast the child under one of the shrubs.
16 And she went, and sat her down over against him a good way off, as it were a bowshot: for she said, Let me not see the death of the child. And she sat over against him, and lift up her voice, and wept.
17 And God heard the voice of the lad; and the angel of God called to Hagar out of heaven, and said unto her, What aileth thee, Hagar? fear not; for God hath heard the voice of the lad where he is.
18 Arise, lift up the lad, and hold him in thine hand; for I will make him a great nation.
19 And God opened her eyes, and she saw a well of water; and she went, and filled the bottle with water, and gave the lad drink.
20 And God was with the lad; and he grew, and dwelt in the wilderness, and became an archer.
21 And he dwelt in the wilderness of Paran: and his mother took him a wife out of the land of Egypt.

The word "sanctify", according to the Mirriam Webster's Dictionary, means "to set apart to a sacred purpose or to religious use : CONSECRATE"

According to the New Testament, when you are saved, your closest loved ones are "sanctified" with you. This does not mean they are saved, too, however. It just means that God is paying them special attention, giving them more conviction, drawing them more strongly, and using them to fulfill His purpose, for good or bad. They still have free will to contend with.

What does that have to do with today's lesson, you ask?

Abraham had already been told that Ishmael would become a great nation. (He was "sanctified", because he was Abraham's son.) So, he did what God told him to do. He believed God at His word, which is why he was chosen to begin with.

Hagar left with her son and wondered in the wilderness of Beersheba.

Beersheba has an interesting history. Even in it's present state, it is an interesting subject. Click Here to learn more

The land was dry and barren. There was no water or food to be had for miles. There were only desert shrubs and hot sand and rocks.

The water was gone. They had no food. Without divine intervention, they would die. Hagar did not want to see her son die, so she laid him down under a shrub to protect him from the sun, and walked away.

But, God already had a plan. He had already sanctified Ishmael, so He was not going to let Ishmael die.

She cried, not knowing what to do. But, it was not her voice that God heard. Ishmael, too, was crying. Verse 17 said, " And God heard the voice of the lad".

When you are "sanctified", God hears your voice, as He hears one of His own children, saved or not. When you pray for someone, you are sanctifying them in the name of Jesus, and that is why praying for others is so important.

1 Timothy 4:5 speaks of two ways that sanctification occurs: The Word of God, and prayer. This is why it is so important to pray for your children and your loved ones.

God told Hagar what He told Abraham, that Ishmael would become a great nation. Then, He gave her water to drink.

This tells us that those whom God sanctifies, He provides for until their purpose is fulfilled.

Hagar arranged, in due time, for her son to marry an Egyptian woman. All of Ishmael's descendents are more Egyptian than Hebrew because of this, and it has served as a thorn in Israel's side even until today.

But, God has a plan. We must always remember that even the enemy of Israel is sanctified. To pray for the peace of Israel and Jerusalem is to pray that Muslims around the world turn to Jesus for salvation.

Good Intentions

Read Genesis 21:9-13

9 And Sarah saw the son of Hagar the Egyptian, which she had born unto Abraham, mocking.
10 Wherefore she said unto Abraham, Cast out this bondwoman and her son: for the son of this bondwoman shall not be heir with my son, even with Isaac.
11 And the thing was very grievous in Abraham's sight because of his son.
12 And God said unto Abraham, Let it not be grievous in thy sight because of the lad, and because of thy bondwoman; in all that Sarah hath said unto thee, hearken unto her voice; for in Isaac shall thy seed be called.
13 And also of the son of the bondwoman will I make a nation, because he is thy seed.

Ishmael was making fun and mocking Isaac on his day of celebration. Maybe, because he was the first born, he thought he was better than Isaac. Or, maybe he was just jealous and insecure about his relation with his father. Or, maybe it was learned behavior, copying what his mother did. The reason is not given in the Bible.

The important thing is that Sarah saw him, and heard him, and it made her angry.

So much so, that she demanded that Hagar, the Egyptian servant, and her son, Ishmael both be cast out from the tribe, swearing defiantly that he should not have any part of the inheritance that Abraham leaves his children.

This distressed Abraham, because Ishmael, like Isaac, was his son. He loved his son, no matter what, and no matter who his mother was. He was his blood, just as Isaac was. But, Hagar was not his wife, or the love of his life. In fact, he was so grieved by this, he turned to God in prayer.

We could all learn from this.

When our problems overwhelm us, and we are unsure what to do about it, the first thing we should do is go to God in prayer.

God told Abraham to lift up his head, and not grieve over Ishmael. He told him to do what Sarah has said, because Ishmael was not the seed of His promise. HOWEVER, because Ishmael was Abraham's son, he still obtained the blessing of being so, and God would make him a great nation because of it.

There was no need to grieve.

Ishmael was a good intention, but not the right answer to Abraham's problem, previously. Isaac was the answer.

Sometimes we make decisions with good intentions that are not the correct answer to our problems. This does not stop those intentions from being blessed by God to grow - and whether they will become a problem in the future, or not, depends on the over-all plan of God.

As we shall see, Ishmael DID become a great nation, and the sibling rivalry is present even today between Israel and the Arab nations around it. Ishmael's descendants are the founders of modern day Islam. It is, then, understandable why the Muslims hate the Jews.

Jesus has made a way for even the descendants of Ishmael to come into God's Kingdom, if only they would get to know and follow Jesus. It is not for us to hate them, but to pray for them, and to forgive them, and to teach them lovingly about their Christian heritage, and invite them to once again be part of the family that Abraham was forced to have to banish, though he did not want to.

We must praise God that today, many of them have chosen to come back into the family willingly and with their whole heart. Dr Michael Youseff is one such Christian who has converted from Islam, and his ministry has made waves and converted many more as a result.

Goodness of God

Read Genesis 21:1-8

31 And the LORD visited Sarah as he had said, and the LORD did unto Sarah as he had spoken.
2 For Sarah conceived, and bare Abraham a son in his old age, at the set time of which God had spoken to him.
3 And Abraham called the name of his son that was born unto him, whom Sarah bare to him, Isaac.
4 And Abraham circumcised his son Isaac being eight days old, as God had commanded him.
5 And Abraham was an hundred years old, when his son Isaac was born unto him.
6 And Sarah said, God hath made me to laugh, so that all that hear will laugh with me.
7 And she said, Who would have said unto Abraham, that Sarah should have given children suck? for I have born him a son in his old age.
8 And the child grew, and was weaned: and Abraham made a great feast the same day that Isaac was weaned.

When God says something is going to happen, you can take Him at His Word.

What God says MUST come to pass, because God is truth. (Ezekiel 12:25).

God told Abraham he would have a son through Sarah. And, just because they were old, and Sarah laughed, they would not keep God's Word from happening.

Abraham was 100 years old. By this time, Ishmael, would have been around 14 years old.

God had made an old lady, past her time, to have a child.

My grandmother had a child about the same time as her oldest daughter had her second child, my mother. It was well past her time to have children, and odd that my grandma would be a sister to a tiny baby. My mother and her aunt were raised together like close sisters. It was a miracle, and my aunt was called the "after baby".

Isaac, too, was an "After baby". When Isaac was weaned, it was cause for a great celebration. He was growing strong, and would survive. And, I know his mother was as proud and loving toward him as my grandma was toward my aunt.

And, God was GREAT!

When Abraham and Sarah celebrated, it wasn't just a celebration of love for their son. It was a dedication of their son to God, and it was a testament to His goodness and faithfulness toward them.

Fear is a Liar

Read Genesis 20

Abraham took his household to Gerar, where Abimelech was king.

To everyone who asked, he told them that Sarah was his sister, because she was beautiful, and he was afraid the men of the area would kill him to get to her otherwise.

Fear makes you do stupid things.

It was stupid, because it gave King Abimelech an open invitation to take her without fighting for her. And, take her, he did.

Abraham didn't know, when he got there, what kind of man Abimelech was. He could have been dangerous, for all he knew. So, once again, he took matters into his own hands and tried to fix something that wasn't broken before it was. He did something God didn't approve of because he thought it would protect them all. He told a half-truth in order to deceive the strangers.

Thankfully, Abimelech was God fearing enough to hear when God was speaking to him.

God told Abimelech, "If you touch her, you die."

Simple enough. And, scary enough that Abimelech pleaded for mercy. "I am innocent! I have done nothing wrong! He lied to me! How was I supposed to know the truth?"

God calmed him down and told him, "I understand that. That is why I have not allowed you to touch her yet. And, that is why you are still alive. But, if you don't give her back to him, I will kill you and all of your household. Abraham is my prophet. Give her back, and he will pray and you will live."

God had come to Abimelech in a dream with all of this. So, when he woke up the next morning, he called in all of his household and told them what he had dreamed, and they were very worried about it all.

Abimelech then called Abraham to him. He asked Abraham, "What have I ever done that made you so afraid that you couldn't be truthful toward me? Why do you fear me so badly that you would set me up for destruction when I have done NOTHING to harm you in any way, or your household?"

Abraham explained that he thought that the people before him were not god-fearing people, and that alone was cause for concern.

"And, besides, I didn't REALLY lie! She IS my half-sister!"

Abimelech paid Abraham with cattle, servants and gave Sarah back to him, and even gave him a thousand pieces of silver. He basically made him rich. Not only that, but he also gave Abraham permission to hang out in any part of his kingdom without being bothered or afraid. Abraham had his protection from there on out.

Abimelech probably felt like that if God thought enough of Abraham to protect him that way, he needed to make sure that God wasn't mad at him any longer, and that Abraham prayed for his forgiveness, even though he was acting in the integrity of his heart.

Besides, his whole family had been made barren and childless until this matter could be settled.

Abimelech had good reason to be angry with Abraham, and good reason to be afraid. Abraham's lie could have cost him his kingdom and his life, and any chance of having prodigy to inherit what was his!

So, when you tell a lie because YOU want to be protected, especially if you are a child of God, you need to think about the consequences your lie will have on others who are innocent.

God protected Abraham, and brought Abraham's mistake to light before any real harm could be done, but that didn't mean He excused it or condoned it. Abraham would now have to live with this attack on his own integrity for the rest of his life. Even today, we know Abraham as a liar who God used and loved.

If Fear can't make you lie, it will lie to you.

Mistakes

Read Genesis 19:30-38

30 And Lot went up out of Zoar, and dwelt in the mountain, and his two daughters with him; for he feared to dwell in Zoar: and he dwelt in a cave, he and his two daughters.
31 And the firstborn said unto the younger, Our father is old, and there is not a man in the earth to come in unto us after the manner of all the earth:
32 Come, let us make our father drink wine, and we will lie with him, that we may preserve seed of our father.
33 And they made their father drink wine that night: and the firstborn went in, and lay with her father; and he perceived not when she lay down, nor when she arose.
34 And it came to pass on the morrow, that the firstborn said unto the younger, Behold, I lay yesternight with my father: let us make him drink wine this night also; and go thou in, and lie with him, that we may preserve seed of our father.
35 And they made their father drink wine that night also: and the younger arose, and lay with him; and he perceived not when she lay down, nor when she arose.
36 Thus were both the daughters of Lot with child by their father.
37 And the firstborn bare a son, and called his name Moab: the same is the father of the Moabites unto this day.
38 And the younger, she also bare a son, and called his name Benammi: the same is the father of the children of Ammon unto this day.

After all that, Lot was still afraid. So, instead of staying where he was supposed to stay, he decided to take matters into his own hands and go up into the mountains, after all.

The problem with this is that God had not made provision for Lot to be where he was when he got there. And, since Lot took matters into his own hands, his daughters decided to take matters into their own hands, as well.

They felt that Lot's seed would die with him when he died, if they didn't have children.

So, they got their father so drunk that he had no idea what he was doing, and he committed incest with both of them.

They had children who's descendents became the Moabites and the Ammonites.

These people had their purpose in the plan of God for the future. We will see as we go further into the Word of God through our studies.

When you become afraid, even after the Lord has saved you, and you decide to be fickle in your decision making, you should be prepared to wreap a harvest among a crop of thorns and rocks. Life is not going to be easy, and your actions could birth hardship for those you love in the future - as we will soon see.

But, there is no mistake you can make that God can't use for His glory if you are His child!