a great example

a little morning reading has intrigued me. the account of abraham's willingness to sacrifice his son isaac is familiar territory, but a sudden glimpse of his perspective leaves me dumbfounded by his motive.

the account is raw. it is barbaric. and it makes absolutely no sense to me.

if i could see through the eyes of abraham and reason with his perspective. if i were steeped in the unspoken values and expectations of that culture.

i wonder if children were sacrificed in the worship of gods during abraham's life. did he witness that perversion in the temples of the cities he passed through? and what was his assessment of that practice?

i wonder what abraham knew of noah. of enoch. of adam. of God.

he did have the benefit of seeing the faithfulness of God in his past, which would inspire a better certainty of hope and trust for the future. and he was certainly blessed with a personal relationship with God, but he was not privileged as we are with the end of the story. most of the record we enjoy of God's actions and interventions has yet to occur.

and yet he obeys a simple but devastating command. sacrifice your only son. whom you love.

i find nothing in it for abraham.

all of God's promises hinge on that boy. all the blessings were to be fulfilled through abraham's son isaac. he was to be the father of a mighty nation. and yet he could only see the beginning of that nation in the face of that boy. his only son. whom he loved. to sacrifice him would be to sacrifice all the promises. to kill him would be to kill hope. to lose him would be to lose his beloved. so i ask...what's in it for abraham?!

...unless the promises do not hinge on that boy at all. unless the linchpin for hope is really found in God Himself.

and abraham's act of obedience is an expression of deep reverence for "the Lord, the Everlasting God" (Gen 21:33). his motive is exposed and stands forever as an exemplary pillar in the great hall of faith.

i stand in the shadow amazed.