Trust Me!

He said, “Take your son, your only son Isaac, whom you love, and go to the land of Moriah, and offer him there as a burnt offering on one of the mountains of which I shall tell you.”. . . And Abraham lifted up his eyes and looked, and behold, behind him was a ram, caught in a thicket by his horns. And Abraham went and took the ram and offered it up as a burnt offering instead of his son. So Abraham called the name of that place, “The LORD will provide.”

Genesis 22:2, 13-14

Do you believe Me? Do you trust Me? Do you have faith in Me? It looks like God asks this question over and over in the Bible—and in many ways. He does not simply ask, “Do you believe, period? Trust, period? And have faith, period?” The focus is on the object of the belief, trust, and faith . . .

Me—God!

Abraham was 100 years old when his wife Sarah bore him a son, Isaac. God told him, “Through Isaac shall your offspring be named” (Genesis 21:12). Throughout Genesis, we see Abraham consistently believing the Lord, even when it just didn’t make sense. At the age of 75, in Genesis 15, he believed the Lord . . . that his offspring would be countless. And then, 25 years later, Isaac was born to Abraham’s wife, Sarah. He believed in his Lord, trusted in his Lord, and had faith in his Lord.

But, dude, this ask in Genesis 22 takes it to a-whole-nuther level. This is God’s eighth appearance to Abraham, and it’s a biggie. In truth, it is not even an ask. It is a command from God. The step-by-step way God identifies Isaac makes it even more emphatic, painful, and difficult. “Take your son,” God says. “Your only son.” “You know, the one you love, and go.” It is like God is saying, “Trust Me, Abraham. Trust Me. Now I know you’ve been waiting for a long time for this boy. And we both know that he’s not your only male child, but he IS the only unique son of promise. I know just how much you love him, but trust Me! Take him there and offer him to Me.” 

Genesis 22:3-10 records Abraham’s obedience. He did exactly what God told him to do. Despite the apparent insanity of it all, not knowing how it would play out, Abraham trusted in the promises of God and proceeded on with the plan.

As he raised the knife up to slay his son of promise, Jehovah Jireh—God the provider—provided a way out. He always provides a way through or a way out. God intervened, “Don’t lay a hand on the boy. Now I know you trust Me.” The Lord stepped in at the last second and provided a ram as the burnt offering.

As I read these words in the Fall of 2000, I immediately had negative feelings toward God. Why would He put Abraham through such a torturous affair? I am the father of two sons, Zach and Will. My love for them knows no bounds. Had it been me and Zach or Will in this scene in Genesis 22, I would have been pleading with the Lord, “Let’s figure another way out to get done whatever it is that You’re trying to get done. I don’t understand why You’re doing this. It doesn’t make any sense. This is THE son that You promised everything, and everybody, would go through. Lord, if I kill him, Your whole plan falls apart. I’m not going to do it. No way.”

This narrative really bothered me. It bothered me because it negatively impacted my view of who I thought God was supposed to be. But He was just beginning to reveal Himself to me. Months later, as I pushed into the New Testament, particularly Hebrews 11, and began to have a clearer understanding of faith, I began to have a clearer image of who God is. Hebrews boldly declares, “Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen” (Hebrews 11:1).

Abraham did not trust in what he could see or touch or feel. But he trusted anyway. Again, he relied on the promises of God. Without knowing how God would fulfill his hopes, Abraham nonetheless believed. Faith is what bridged the gap. Just as the writer of Hebrews stated, faith was the assurance of the promises Abraham looked towards. Faith was the conviction of the things Abraham could neither see nor understand. He knew God would provide the answer. Faith allowed Abraham to act upon God’s provision before the provision showed up. It is almost as if “faith” saw the ram in the thicket.

Thank You, Lord, for being the One who provides. I praise You for the gift of faith because it allows me to trust that You will always find a way for Your children to make it through seemingly impossible circumstances. In Jesus’ name, Amen.