When Pastor Mark asked me if I would be one of the guest preachers during his paternity leave, as if to make it more enticing, he added “it would be a continuation on the Old Testament series”. 

Great…I have always found the Old Testament to be difficult to comprehend, often depicting a seemingly judgmental, random, vengeful god who’s difficult to relate to, so the idea working with the text from the Old Testament was not something I would look forward to.  

I said to him flippantly, “I’ll do it as long as I don’t have to preach about the book of Job, or about the Abraham and Issac story…”

Well, I guess he felt that I needed the challenge, because today’s reading is from Genesis 22: 1 – 19, one of the more beloved stories about Abraham and Issac.

Let the words of my mouth, and the meditations of our hearts, be acceptable in your sight, O Lord, our Rock and our Redeemer.

PASSAGE

 2 Then God said, “Take your son, your only son, whom you love—Isaac—and go to the region of Moriah. Sacrifice him there as a burnt offering on a mountain I will show you.”

3 Early the next morning Abraham got up and loaded his donkey. He took with him two of his servants and his son Isaac. When he had cut enough wood for the burnt offering, he set out for the place God had told him about.

4 On the third day Abraham looked up and saw the place in the distance. 5 He said to his servants, “Stay here with the donkey while I and the boy go over there. We will worship and then we will come back to you.”

 6 Abraham took the wood for the burnt offering and placed it on his son Isaac, and he himself carried the fire and the knife. As the two of them went on together, 7 Isaac spoke up and said to his father Abraham, “Father?”

   “Yes, my son?” Abraham replied.

   “The fire and wood are here,” Isaac said, “but where is the lamb for the burnt offering?”

 8 Abraham answered, “God himself will provide the lamb for the burnt offering, my son.” And the two of them went on together.

 9 When they reached the place God had told him about, Abraham built an altar there and arranged the wood on it. He bound his son Isaac and laid him on the altar, on top of the wood. 10 Then he reached out his hand and took the knife to slay his son. 11

But the angel of the LORD called out to him from heaven, “Abraham! Abraham!”

   “Here I am,” he replied.

 12 “Do not lay a hand on the boy,” he said. “Do not do anything to him. Now I know that you fear God, because you have not withheld from me your son, your only son.”

 13 Abraham looked up and there in a thicket he saw a ram[a] caught by its horns. He went over and took the ram and sacrificed it as a burnt offering instead of his son. 14 So Abraham called that place The LORD Will Provide. And to this day it is said, “On the mountain of the LORD it will be provided.”

 15 The angel of the LORD called to Abraham from heaven a second time 16 and said, “I swear by myself, declares the LORD, that because you have done this and have not withheld your son, your only son, 17 I will surely bless you and make your descendants as numerous as the stars in the sky and as the sand on the seashore. Your descendants will take possession of the cities of their enemies, 18 and through your offspring[b] all nations on earth will be blessed,[c] because you have obeyed me.”

 19 Then Abraham returned to his servants, and they set off together for Beersheba. And Abraham stayed in Beersheba.

This is the Word of the Lord – Thanks be to God.

The passage begins with a clear message that God is testing Abraham.  As we’ll see later the fact that this is a test for Abraham is an important point of this chapter.

It starts with God calling Abraham, then without any prelude, and without any explanation, God tells Abraham to take Issac to the region of Moriah and sacrifice him as a burnt offering on top of a mountain.  The only clarification God offers is about Issac – God says:

“Take your son, your only son, whom you love—Isaac…”

I don’t think Abraham needed a reminder that Issac is his beloved and only son, born miraculously when he was 100 years old. Perhaps the emphasis was placed there to illustrate the enormity of what is being asked of Abraham.  I think all of us, especially those of us with children, cringe at the thought of something like this being asked of us.  It is probably this reason that I have always found this passage disturbing.  

What would I do if God asked me to sacrifice my son or my daughter?  I am filled with admiration for Abraham for his obedience, and at the same time appalled by the fact God asked Abraham to do such horrific thing.  Why would God test Abraham is such a way? I hope that we can answer this question by the end of my sermon.

I think that the sparse dialog with little explanation creates a very tense atmosphere to the story.  As we read the story and overlay our own emotions on to it, we definitely feel the tension that comes from the anticipation of watching the story unfold – will Abraham go ahead and obey God?  Will God really make Abraham kill his own son?  If so, how is Abraham going to be the “father of a multitude” as promised by God?  How did Abraham feel about God’s command?

Perhaps Abraham did question, plead and negotiate with God, but the bible does not say, because it does not matter.  At the end of the day, Abraham obeys God and acts on his faith, as disagreeable and incomprehensible it may have been to him.  

Abraham gets up early next morning to start the journey to the place where he would sacrifice Issac, his beloved son.  I’m guessing that Abraham did not have a restful night – it’s likely that he did not sleep at all that night.  But he obeys.  

Abraham loads up his donkey with provisions and the sacrificial wood and along with 2 servants and Issac, he heads out towards Moriah.  After 3 days, they arrive at the location God designated.  Three days – long enough for Abraham to truly think about what he is being asked to do; long enough for him to reconsider and disobey God’s command.  But Abraham pushes along. Abraham says to his servants:

“Stay here with the donkey while I and the boy go over there. We will worship and then we will come back to you.”

Interestingly Abraham says that “WE will worship and then WE will come back to you”.  Does Abraham say this because he doesn’t feel like explaining what he has to do to his servants, or does he believe that he is really not going to be asked to sacrifice Issac, or even if Issac is sacrificed, that God will restore him to life?  After all, God promised that Abraham will be the “Father of a Multitude” right?  

Then, Abraham places the wood on Issac to carry, and Abraham carries the fire and the knife for the sacrifice.  As Abraham and Issac walk on, Isaac notices that they have everything they need for a sacrifice except the sacrificial lamb, so he questions Abraham who responds:

 “God himself will provide the lamb for the burnt offering, my son.” And the two of them went on together.

I’m certainly not an expert on Christ-centered (Christological) reading of the Old Testament like Yoon, but the images of Issac carrying the wood to the place of his own sacrifice, and the prophetic words of Abraham that God himself will provide the lamb for the burnt offering, is a striking reminder of the image of Jesus carrying his cross to be crucified.  While Abraham is spared the experience of sacrificing his son, God does, in fact, sacrifice his only begotten son, Jesus, as a sacrificial lamb for humanity 2,000 years later.

After building an alter at the place God told him about, Abraham arranges the wood on it and binds his son Issac, then gets ready to strike Issac with the knife.  We are now out of time, and we see that Abraham is going to have to make a decision, and at this moment of truth, there is no doubt that he is going to slay Issac, as an act of ultimate obedience to God.  

At this peak of tension, as Abraham lifts the knife to strike Issac, the angel of the Lord calls Abraham suddenly and urgently:  “Abraham! Abraham!”, and Abraham responses “Here I am” – same response to all previous calls from God, but perhaps this time, it was mixed with cautious optimism.

 12 “Do not lay a hand on the boy,” he said. “Do not do anything to him. Now I know that you fear God, because you have not withheld from me your son, your only son.”

Abraham has passed the test.  It was a test that determined the worthiness of Abraham to truly become the Father of a Multitude of Nations.
When Abraham looked up, he saw a ram caught in the thicket, so although it was not explicitly instructed by God, he sacrificed the ram instead of Issac.  After this the Angel of the Lord called Abraham again and something extraordinary happens:   

 15 The angel of the LORD called to Abraham from heaven a second time 16 and said, “I swear by myself, declares the LORD, that because you have done this and have not withheld your son, your only son, 17 I will surely bless you and make your descendants as numerous as the stars in the sky and as the sand on the seashore. Your descendants will take possession of the cities of their enemies, 18 and through your offspring[b] all nations on earth will be blessed,[c] because you have obeyed me.”

When I first read this and realized that God is swearing by God-self that Abraham will be blessed, I had to chuckle.  “I swear to myself…” I guess if you’re God who else would you swear by?  Then as I thought about it, I realized how serious this declaration was, especially considering that I can’t recall another time in the Bible when God swears by God-self.  This was indeed a solemn vow.

WHO IS ABRAHAM?

So, how did Abraham become such a pivotal figure in the Bible?   

Ironically, the answer is not very dramatic.  Even the way Abraham was chosen seems rather random.  Abraham was not chosen because he was outstanding in any particular skill or character.  In fact, we know very little about Abraham before God called him. Perhaps what God saw in Abraham was his potential for faithfulness, but it was not specifically pointed out in the Bible.  God’s calling was, in fact, a gift to Abraham and what God asked for in return was faithful obedience.  

If you remember, the topic of Grace’s sermon last week was Abraham’s acceptance of God’s call to walk in faith.  It was the story of how Abraham began the process of becoming the man who will go on to be remembered for his Faith.

Throughout the Book of Genesis, we see how God continues to promise Abraham that he will be the father of countless number of children and that his children will be blessed.  At the same time, God provides increasingly difficult challenges in order to nurture and groom Abraham into the faithful and obedient servant that God envisioned him to become.

In story after story, we see Abram who tries very hard to trust and obey the Lord, but we also see that he is far from perfect.  He is constantly being led astray by his fears and desires and his own idea of what is best for him and his family.  Despite constantly falling short, the Lord continues to look with favor on Abraham and continues to bless him and his family.  

In Genesis, we see Abraham who is not very different than you and me.  He has the capacity for faithful obedience, but struggles to fully trust in God, sometimes letting his fears and his own desires get in the way of this obedience.  Honestly I think this is a very human characteristic that we can all relate to easily. How often do you need to feel like you are controlling your own life, even as you try to place your trust in God?

Today’s story of God calling Abraham to sacrifice Issac is the final, climatic test that God puts before Abraham.  What is important to note here is that Abraham was nurtured by God by being taught what it means to trust in the Lord and to live the life of faith for 25 year, before he is given this difficult challenge.  The Lord picked Abraham, then continued to test and mold him until he became the faithful and obedient servant that was worthy of being the Father of a Multitude – the Father of many nations.

The message here is that God can pick anyone to do great deed.  Abraham was not selected because of his superior intelligence, his prophetic talents or his physical strength.  God picked Abraham because of his potential for faith and obedience to the Lord, and I believe we all have this potential.  Although we do not start with the faith to do the most difficult thing, we are being nurtured and guided by God to be better and greater than we can be on our own.

On a personal level, when I was younger, I always had a feeling that I was born to do something special – that I would leave a lasting legacy of my existence in this world by helping others.  That feeling stayed with me even after I got married and had children, and while helping to guide Morningside through its infancy and childhood.  When I turned 40, I began to feel a sense of urgency and anxiety to do something meaningful, like starting an arts foundation as I’ve been thinking about for a long time.

But while I was talking to a pastor friend about my anxiety, I came to a realization that I was misguided in my desires.  The question that came to my mind was “who are you to decide that what you have already done in your life is any less important than what you want to do?”  Why did I not think that I was called to be the best husband and father that I can be?  Why did I not think that serving Morningside consistently and diligently for over 20 years was my calling?

When I realized this, I understood that I have been responding to God’s calling for me, but my own ego prevented me from seeing that, causing this anxiety.  It was all about me leaving a lasting mark.  After that, I was liberated.  The anxiety from feeling like my time was running out disappeared, and I found peace in my heart.  

But that’s not the end of the story.    

Then about 8 years later, I felt God’s calling to start KoreanAmericanStory.org.  This was when the economy had tanked and I was looking for a new job along with millions of others.  It was a time of uncertainty for all of us.  

I would pray and ask God, are you sure about this, because you know 8 years ago would have been a lot better time.  In case you haven’t noticed, we’re in a bit of an economic downturn – probably not the best time to be starting a nonprofit organization.  Besides, I have to get a job and help support my family.  But, sure enough I felt God calling me to start

KoreanAmericanStory.org.  It would mean making some sacrifices in our family, and putting burden on Theresa with additional financial responsibility, but it was no longer about me.  I truly felt that this organization was needed, and I needed to take a leap of faith to respond to God’s calling because there is the need, not because I needed to satisfy my ego.  God does seem to work in mysterious ways…

Like Abraham, I have been nurtured by God throughout my life.  So, when the time came for me to make this decision to respond to God’s calling to start the nonprofit organization at the peak of recession, like Abraham, I have been able to make the decision to trust and obey the Lord.

Abraham was given a seemingly impossible test to sacrifice what was most important to him – his son. But what God had in store for him was not just a blessing of one son, but many generations of descendants who will be blessed by God.  God did not give Abraham this difficult test without proper training, because ultimately it was God’s will to bless Abraham and his descendants.  

Do you have experiences in your own lives of God nurturing you to grow in faith through trials?  Have you recently gone through a difficult struggle in your life?  Has your faith been challenged?  Perhaps these are all part of God’s plan to nurture and bless you.

Do I feel like I can have the level of Faith Abraham displayed?  I hope so.  I know that my ability to trust in God has steadily increased over the years, because God was there to provide the proper training for me.  

Sometimes we rely too much on our own wisdom and capabilities, but this story of Abraham reminds us that ultimately the most important thing is to live the life of Faith.

Then maybe one day, with practice, we will be able to obey the Lord with the unfaltering faith of Abraham.  Amen.