When Isaac was a young boy, God tested Abraham's faith and obedience, by asking him to sacrifice Isaac. As Abraham was going through with the sacrifice, God's angel intervened and stopped Abraham. All through this ordeal Isaac was old enough to know exactly what was happening to him. For the Bible says in Genesis 22:6-8, "Abraham placed the wood for the burnt offering on Isaac's shoulders, while he himself carried the knife and the fire. As the two of them went on together, Isaac said, "Father?" "Yes, my son," Abraham replied. "We have the wood and the fire," said the boy, "but where is the lamb for the sacrifice?" "God will provide a lamb, my son," Abraham answered. And they both went together."
Isaac carried the firewood, not knowing he was going to be sacrificed, on Mount Moriah. Once they arrived there and the altar was prepared, Isaac was bound by his father and laid on top of the altar. And with his father's hand raised with a knife to strike him, could you imagine the emotions experienced by the little boy who faced death unexpectedly at the hand of one whom he trusted, loved and depended for protection. He was also a witness to God's mercy and provision! Just at the moment Abraham was ready to bring the knife into his son's body, the angel of the LORD stopped Abraham. The LORD then provided a ram in Isaac's place.
He married his first cousin Rebekah at the age of forty. Rebekah did not bear him a child for 20 years of their marriage. Isaac pleaded with the LORD to give Rebekah a child. (Genesis 25:21). The LORD answered his prayer. Later in life, we read in Genesis 26 that a severe famine struck the land where Isaac lived with his household and had to move to the land of Gerar in southern Palestine. The LORD appeared to him there and said, "Do not go to Egypt. Do as I say, and stay here in this land. If you do, I will be with you and bless you. I will give all this land to you and your descendants, just as I solemnly promised Abraham, your father. I will cause your descendants to become as numerous as the stars, and I will give them all these lands. And through your descendants all the nations of the earth will be blessed. I will do this because Abraham listened to me and obeyed all my requirements, commands, regulations, and laws. So Isaac stayed in Gerar."
While there, the men of the land inquired about Rebekah, and fearing for his life that the Philistines might harm him to take her as she was beautiful, he lied to them that Rebekah was his sister. He lived in fear in the land the LORD promised him until the day King Abimelech of the Philistines discovered Isaac's lie and subsequently issued an order of protection for Isaac and his household. Even after things settled down for Isaac in the new city of Gerar, trouble seemed to continue to follow him as he grew more richer and powerful than anyone else in that land.
The local Philistines out of their jealousy for the success of Isaac started filling up all of Isaacs wells with dirt. Could you imagine the impact on his household and its operations when their only source of water is taken away? How could his large household including all the servants and livestock survive in that land without water? This happened again and again as he dug newer wells. Finally, even King Abimelech asked Isaac to leave the country. Mind you God had appeared to Isaac personally advising him to not go to Egypt, but to settle in Gerar, when he left his hometown with his household due to the great famine. Isaac then moved with his household to the Gerar Valley. As he settled there and reopened the wells that his father, Abraham, had dug in his time, the local shepherds came and laid claim to those wells. As these troubles mounted, Isaac moved again with his household to Beersheba.
Here in Beersheba God appeared a second time on the night of his arrival. "I am the God of your father, Abraham," he said. "Do not be afraid, for I am with you and will bless you. I will give you many descendants, and they will become a great nation. I will do this because of my promise to Abraham, my servant."
In his old age, we read, his oldest son Esau's wives made life miserable for Isaac and Rebekah. As I finished reading the chapter the question in my mind was 'Why does the "Promised Son" Isaac have so many challenges and difficulties in life?' As a young boy, he almost died at the hands of his father; as a married man he had no children for 20 years of his marriage; faced a great famine and the resulting move with a very large household and possessions couldn't have been any harder; in the land of the Philistines, even with God's personal promises, he lived in fear for his life; dealt with the jealousy driven actions of the locals destroying vital assets needed for his household's survival; and towards his old age mistreated by his daughters-in-law. Why did Abraham's promise child endure so many challenges in life?
As I sat thinking of Isaac's life, the Holy Spirit dawned it on me that it is only when facing great challenges your mettle is tested. A nation that was to come through the descendants of Isaac can have the most populous army in the world, but unless and until they'd been tried and tested in actual battles their ability and true character will not be developed. In order for faith to mature, challenges have to be faced, God's faithfulness has to be experienced.
After Isaac settled down in Beersheba, we read, "One day Isaac had visitors from Gerar. King Abimelech arrived with his adviser, Ahuzzath, and also Phicol, his army commander. "Why have you come?" Isaac asked them . "This is obviously no friendly visit, since you sent me from your land in a most unfriendly way." They replied, "We can plainly see that the LORD is with you. So we decided we should have a treaty, a covenant between us. Swear that you will not harm us, just as we did not harm you. We have always treated you well, and we sent you away from us in peace. And now look how the LORD has blessed you!" They signed a peace treaty amongst them. Many hundreds of years later God's promise was still true for the children of Israel, the descendants of Isaac, as spoken through prophet Isaiah. In Isaiah 54:16-17, it is written, "If a nation comes to fight you, it will not be because I sent them to punish you. Your enemies will always be defeated because I am on your side."
Apostle Paul who knew first hand what pain and suffering was wrote in Romans 5:3-6 "We can rejoice, too, when we run into problems and trials, for we know that they are good for us -- they help us learn to endure. And endurance develops strength of character in us, and character strengthens our confident expectation of salvation. And this expectation will not disappoint us. For we know how dearly God loves us, because he has given us the Holy Spirit to fill our hearts with love. When we were utterly helpless, Christ came at just the right time and died for us sinners." There will be challenges in the lives of God fearing men and women. God's children have to persevere in the face of challenges. God will certainly come to his children's rescue, for it's his glory at stake!
Today, the descendants of Abraham and Isaac, the children of Jacob, the nation of Israel, though a tiny nation, its "tough as nails" attitude allows it to exist among neighbors who desire to wipe it of the map! Even with God's promise upon you, there comes temporary setbacks, but ultimate success is yours, for it is God's glory at stake.
Chris Tomlin - White Flag
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