This week, we are continuing our journey through the highlights
of Abraham and Sarah’s life. Last week, we focused on the sad day when Ishmael
and Hagar were cast out into the wilderness.
Fortunately, God had a positive plan for their lives and God rescued
them from harm. This week, we focus on another sad occasion in the life of
Abraham and his son Isaac. Please turn with me to Genesis Chapter 22 as we read
verses one through fourteen:
Proclamation of the Scripture Genesis 22:1-14
Some time later God tested Abraham. He
said to him, “Abraham!”
“Here I am,” he replied.
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.”
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.
On the third day Abraham looked up and saw
the place in the distance.
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.”
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,
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?”
Abraham answered, “God himself will
provide the lamb for the burnt offering, my son.” And the two of them
went on together.
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.
Then he reached out his hand and took the
knife to slay his son.
But the angel of the Lord called
out to him from heaven, “Abraham! Abraham!”
“Here I am,” he replied.
“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 looked up and there in a thicket he
saw a ram caught by its horns. He went over and took the ram and
sacrificed it as a burnt offering instead of his son.
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.”
Here ends this reading of the word of God
for the people of God. Thanks be to God.
Amen.
Prayer of Illumination
Pastor: Almighty God,
prepare us to discover your word for us today.
Help us hear your servant,
and in the spoken words, hear your Word.
May these words help us recognize our master
in the many fields of life
through which we travel. Amen.
Message Holy
Welcome
Abraham came from the city-state of
Ur in ancient Mesopotamia. It was the largest city in the ancient world during
Abraham’s lifetime. Archaeologists love
to study ruins and burial sites to learn more about the practices of the
ancient people who lived there, people like Abraham and Sarah before they were
sent by God on their quest to the future Holy Land. The religious practices of Abraham’s homeland
included worshipping multiple deities, like Marduk the head god and Tiamat the
mother goddess. We know a little about
their worship practices because of statues, engravings, and because some of
their stories have been passed down through poetry and books we still have,
such as the Epic of Gilgamesh.
Archaeologists often study tombs and burial sites to learn about
ancient people; therefore, they know many people were sacrificed to
Mesopotamian gods. High-status young people between the ages of 5 and 20 were
the main victims of this practice. We don’t know exactly what their deaths were
supposed to accomplish, but we know they were put to death in great
numbers.
Abraham and his ancestors, for
hundreds of years, were accustomed to children being sacrificed to their gods.
For them, this was a normal and appropriate practice – a perfectly reasonable
way to honor their gods.
For us, this is a horrifying and
strange practice. For twenty-first century people, it seems unbelievable that
Abraham would consider sacrificing his son– Isaac was his only remaining child
after Ishmael was sent away. Isaac was born when Sarah was in her 80s – what
were the chances of her having another baby? Abraham believed God was going to
make him the ancestor of many descendants – how could that become true without
Isaac having children?
This story is held up to us as a
story about Abraham’s faithfulness to God. He was willing to listen to God no
matter what doubts cropped up in his mind….he followed God’ s directions to
have his family move all over the place. He trusted God when God said he would
have descendants. He trusted God when God said Sarah would become pregnant. He
trusted God when God said Hagar and Ishmael would be cared for. And, in this instance, Abraham trusted God when
he was told to sacrifice Isaac – Abraham was probably unhappy….Abraham was
probably sad….Abraham was possibly angry….but he listened to God and he trusted
God.
Many religious scholars believe the
events surrounding the near-sacrifice of Isaac were intended to teach Abraham
and Sarah and all of the new followers of God that God wanted different things
than the ancient Mesopotamian gods. Instead of offering human sacrifices, God
wanted animal sacrifices. This moment,
when Isaac was saved, communicated that our God is different than the false
gods of the Mesopotamian people. God did not want human sacrifices – in this
harsh story, God made this clear to Abraham. As we read through the Bible, we
read that other groups in the Middle East continued to sacrifice humans to
their Gods, but this was never a part of the Jewish religion – it was never an
expectation placed on us by God.
When we were at Lunch Bunch on
Tuesday – shameless plug: bring a lunch at 12 on Tuesdays and we will eat,
chat, and probably talk about a scripture or two – Anyway, at lunch bunch on
Tuesday, one of our members pointed out the parallels between the
near-sacrifice of Isaac and the crucifixion of Jesus. Isaac carried the wood
for the pyre; Jesus carried his cross to the site of his crucifixion. Abraham
led Isaac to the site of the sacrifice; God allowed others to lead Jesus into
the hands of his executioners. God saved Isaac from becoming a sacrifice; God
saved humanity by resurrecting Jesus from the dead.
God did not prevent Jesus from being
sacrificed, like he prevented Isaac from being sacrificed. In each case, God
was starting something new. In Isaac’s
rescue, God communicated that God no longer expects or wants human sacrifices.
In Jesus’ death and resurrection, God communicates that God loves the people of
the world so much that Jesus was allowed to die….but, God’s love overcame death
when Jesus was resurrected.
Our God is different than the false
beliefs humans come up with – God doesn’t want us to hurt each other, to hurt
anyone on God’s behalf. And, when we mess up and people do hurt each other, God
loves and forgives us, just as God loves and forgives us for allowing Jesus to
die on the cross.
When we put our faith in God, we are
agreeing to do things differently than the rest of the world. We don’t have to
participate in the rituals and the odd practices of the secular world. We are
called to be different than other kinds of people – stand up for vulnerable
people, like widows and orphans and children; forgive people who hurt us;
follow God even when we don’t have advance knowledge of where God is leading
us; love God and love other people as much as we love ourselves; put the needs
of others before we put our own needs.
It is not always easy being a
Christian; but God appreciates and blesses us when we work to follow God.
Amen.
Photo by Tom Bradley on Unsplash
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