Your God Sees Ahead and Provides
I’m blessed to be teaching Blood Covenant to the first year students at Rhema this term, and we just finished the story of God asking Abraham to offer his son Issac on the altar of sacrifice.
It’s a great story, with so many great points that encourage me…I’ve been thinking about it ever since, and wanted to share some thoughts with you this month.
1) Passing the test. Right off the bat, the story grabs you because Genesis 22:1 says, Now it came to pass after these things that God tested Abraham.
Let’s face it…we don’t really like to hear about tests. We especially don’t like to hear that GOD might be testing us! But think about it…what is a test for? In school, when you take a math test over chapter 4, the idea is to see what you know to be sure you’re ready for chapter 5.
God loves you…He has things in store for you. He won’t send you to the next level until He knows you’re ready. How does He find out if you’re ready? He tests you.
I’m here to tell you: God has every right to test you. It’s for your benefit. When test time comes, just rub your hands together and say, “Great! A chance to show what I know! Lord, help me pass my test.”
2) Instant obedience. The next part of the story that grabs me is how God asked Abraham to do this hard thing (sacrifice the son he loved more than anything) and we never once see Abraham hesitate or question God’s instruction.
In Genesis 22:2 God tells him to sacrifice Isaac, and verse 3 says,
So Abraham rose early in the morning and saddled his donkey, and…arose and went to the place of which God had told him.
I wish I could say that every time God gave me instruction, I just got up early, saddled the donkey and got on with it. Wow. Abraham had faith (and he wasn’t even born again like we are!). Oh, that we would all trust our Heavenly Father this much, instead of arguing or questioning Him. He always has something supernatural at the other end of our obedience.
3) Right place, right time. Notice that it took Abraham three days to arrive at the place where God told him to sacrifice Isaac (v. 4).
Now, don’t you suppose there was a mountain closer by that they could have gone to? I think a lot of times we can miss God by rationalizing what He tells us to. “Surely it’s just as good if I do this here – I don’t have to go all the way there to obey God.”
But here’s the deal – God has a plan. His plan is in the place where He tells you. His provision is there, not in the place that you might think it is.
4) God sees ahead. This is possibly my favorite part of the story. Abraham fully intends to sacrifice Issac, pre-enacting God’s covenant to offer His only begotten Son for us, believing so much in the promise of God that he figured God would raise Isaac from the dead if necessary (Hebrews 11:19).
But when the angel stopped Abraham from killing Isaac, suddenly there was a ram caught in the thicket right there in front of him…an offering provided by God in place of Isaac. And in that place, they first called God “Jehovah Jireh – the God who provides.”
Just think…when Abraham and Isaac were on their way up one side of that mountain in obedience to God, that ram was on his way up the other side. Another way to say Jehovah Jireh is “the God who sees ahead and provides." God saw ahead and provided their need for a sacrifice. It wasn’t hard for Him.
And it’s not hard for Him in your life either. He’s already been to your future and back. He has provision ahead for you as you obey him. It’s worth rejoicing over now, before you can see it. Your God sees ahead and provides!
