Tried and True Faith

by Pastor Chad

Many stories and statements within Scripture have been bandied about and discussed in both the secular and religious worlds. One episode, however, that has garnered the attention of philosophers, religious scholars, historians, and the observant reader is the perplexing story of Abraham being commanded by God to offer his promised son, Isaac, as a sacrifice to the Lord. 

Why would God, who has never demanded a human sacrifice, and in fact forbids it in Sacred Scripture, tell Abraham to offer his one and only Son on an altar at Mount Moriah? And what does that have to do with faith?

There are two clear principles of faith one can acquire from this narrative. First, biblical faith demands an undivided loyalty. Hebrews 11:7 says, “By faith Abraham, when he was tested, offered up Isaac and he who had received the promises was in the act of offering up his only son…” God had promised to bless Abraham by making his descendants as numerous as the sand on the seashore. And God said that promise would be fulfilled through Abraham’s son, Issac. Then, God commanded Abraham to sacrifice this promised son. 

Hindsight cannot be overlooked here: God knew that Isaac would not be killed. Thus, God gave a command the act of which He knew would never come to fruition. But God’s purpose in giving the command was much larger than simply checking the quality of Abraham’s faith. Isaac’s death was never God’s objective. Isaac was simply an instrument of refinement. He was used as a vessel to draw out a clear expression of Abraham’s total loyalty to God. It is in this narrative that we see how faith is proven to be tried and true. When faith is tested by God, it is put through the fire of refinement to strengthen our dependence upon the Lord and increase our devotion to Him. 

The second principle we can see is that biblical faith requires surrender to God’s will. As Norman Geisler writes, “God’s purpose was to test Abraham’s faith by asking him to completely surrender his only son to God.” True biblical faith is an act of surrender to God. Hebrews 11:19 gives us a picture of Abraham’s submission. It says, “He considered that God was able even to raise him from the dead, from which, figuratively speaking, he did receive him back.” Abraham was so submissive to the will of God, that he believed God would still fulfill His promise through Isaac, even if Isaac was offered as a sacrifice. What we see from Abraham is a perfect illustration of surrendering to the will of God. I don’t want you to miss the biblical picture shown of the quality and measure of biblical faith. Abraham, not fully understanding what God was doing, willingly submitted to God’s word. It’s not that Abraham lacked a good reason to trust in God, but he didn’t know the full picture. Biblical faith requires believers to trust in the will and plan of God even when we don’t fully understand. 

Biblical faith, as the author of Hebrews depicts for us in the life of Abraham, is not an apathetic, half-hearted, willy-nilly decision. As Dietrich Bonhoeffer has rightly stated, “When Christ calls a man, He bids him to come and die.” The call of God is an abandonment of our hopes, our goals, our dreams, our desires, our wants; as a substitute we first and foremost seek after God’s will, God’s goals, God’s desires, and God’s plan.