Christ Church Daily Devotion Dec 4 2023

Abraham is tested by God when he is asked to sacrifice his son Isaac. Abraham obeys without hesitation and prepares for the sacrifice. Isaac questions where the lamb is, but Abraham assures him that God will provide. In the end, God spares Isaac and provides a ram for the sacrifice. This story shows Abraham's complete faith in God and reminds us to trust God to provide for us in difficult challenges. Welcome to Christ Church's Daily Devotion for December 4th, 2023. Today we will be reading from Genesis, chapter 22, verses 1 through 8. 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 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 my 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. I cannot imagine how Abraham must have felt when God told him to take his son and offer him as a sacrifice to God. A few years ago, I was leading a disciple Bible study at Christ Church, and this reading was part of our assignment for the week. As we sat in our class session, we talked about how hard it would have been for Abraham to have obeyed God and prepared to sacrifice Isaac. A member of our class with a great sense of humor said, I don't know, maybe by this time Isaac was a teenager and then it would have been easier. Of course, there was nothing about this test that was easy. There was no mention of Abraham arguing with God, but rather it appears that he went about following God's instruction immediately and without resistance. I find it interesting that when they left the donkey and the servants, Abraham carried the knife and fire, the things that could have harmed Isaac and allowed Isaac to safely carry the wood. Abraham demonstrated his complete allegiance to and faith in God who spared Isaac by providing a ram for the sacrifice. God is with us on all our journeys and we can trust God to provide for us. Today's personal worship option, think about a difficult challenge or task that lies ahead of you. Could it become a test of your faith? Trust God to provide what you need along this journey. Give thanks for God's love and the way God provides for you.