Blessing or the Blesser

We all have things we love the most—the things we value most on this earth—the thing our lives revolve around, what we consider our greatest blessing. For some, it might be their job—which gives them their income, their sense of identity—it is their passion. For some, it might be their new home—they value it, they find ways to improve it. But for most people with kids, their children are what they value most. It is the thing most precious to them. Their lives revolve around their children.

The child is the most prized possession and relationship that the parents have. The parent will do absolutely anything to make sure that the child has the happiest life possible. They will sacrifice anything necessary, their own comfort, time, money, to make sure that the child is happy, healthy, and well.

But as Christians, living in the culture that we live in, there is a conflict, a problem, a dilemma that all parents, in fact everything single Christian has—it is a conflict and problem that most people do not even realize they have.

More than 3,000 years ago, another parent, a Father, another follower of God, had the same love for his child. His life also revolved around his son. He would do anything for his son. This father also had the same conflict. We will see what this conflict was, what his response was to it, and what the result of his response was.

Abraham was this Father. The son was Isaac. Most of us know the background of the story. Abraham was a pagan, but God had called him to leave his father’s family, and follow Him by faith, wherever he would take him. God had promised Abraham that he would bless him with a great amount of descendants, land, and that all the nations of the world would be blessed through his descendants. He would be the father of a great nation. But at 80 years of age, Abraham had no children, so he complained to God, asking how these promises would be fulfilled, if he had no children. So God promised him a son. At 85, he still didn’t have a son, so he got desperate. I’m 85, my wife is 75… its not looking too good. So his wife suggested that he conceive with her servant, Hagar, who gave birth to Ishmael. But he had disobeyed God. Ishmael was not the true heir, the promised son. As Abraham continued to age, hitting 90, 95, he still had no son by his wife Sarah. Finally, at the age of 99, God promised he and his wife that they would have a son, an announcement at which Sarah and Abraham had laughed, since they thought it was ridiculous. But God had come through for them, and at age 100, and his wife at age 90, Abraham and Sarah had a son. Isaac.

This was Abraham’s miracle baby. Imagine how much he loved him. Imagine how much he valued him. He would do anything for Isaac. Isaac was his life. This was the son he had waited for countless years. This was the son who represented God’s tremendous faithfulness to him. It went way beyond a normal father son relationship. So Abraham lovingly watched Isaac grow up. After years of wondering around to different places, Abraham and his family were now living in the land that God had promised to him, in a place called Beersheba. Life was good.

The Conflict

But little did he know, one morning when he woke up, that everything would turn upside down. In Genesis 22, we see the recounting of the most horrific experience of this father’s life. In verses 1-2, we read: 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, Isaac, whom you love, and go to the region of Moriah. Sacrifice him there as a burnt offering on one of the mountains I will tell you about.

We know that God does not advocate child sacrifice, and it is constantly condemned in the OT. In hindsight, the author of Genesis informs us that this was a test. God did not really intend for Abraham to sacrifice his son. But Abraham had no idea this was a test. It wouldn’t be a test if he knew it was a test.

Imagine Abraham’s reaction and thoughts to this command by God to sacrifice his son, the son he had waited for 25 years, whom he loved so dearly. What? God, what are you saying? Why would you want me to take my son, whom you gave to me by your grace, the son whom I live for, the son who is the greatest blessing you have given me, through whom all your promises to me will be fulfilled, why would you want me to take this son and sacrifice him? Sure you’ve asked me to do difficult things before, like asking me to leave my father’s family to follow you, even though I had no idea where you would take me. That was hard. But this? This is crazy! Something must be wrong.

Here came the conflict, the dilemma, for Abraham. Either he obeyed God, and went to the mountain, to sacrifice his son, or he would tell God, no—I will not to this. This is the son whom I have waited for, the greatest blessing I have received. I will not give him up.

The question, the conflict, simply was: Who will Abraham worship? God or Isaac? The blesser or the blessing? The Son whom he loved or the God who gave him that son?

God tests the faith of believers. He tests each and every one of us. No, God does not test us in the same way huge way he tested Abraham in this case. We might not even realize we are being tested. Our tests are more subtle. But even if we don’t realize it, we often face the same conflict that Abraham faced. Who are we going to worship? God, or the blessings that he gives? The blessings, or the blesser?

For instance, we talked about how much parents love their kids. For parents, their conflict is whether they will worship their kids, or God. This might be tested in subtle situations. For instance, a kid might be a pretty good soccer player. The parent sees a college scholarship in the future for this kid, because of their soccer playing. The kid is selected to be on a regional select team, for good players. But they play the majority of their games on Sunday. If he joins the team, the kid cant attend church anymore, for a long while. This is the conflict for the parent. A choice between a chance for a better earthly opportunity, or encouraging their kid to worship God.

Or someone who normally gives regularly and a substantial part of his income to the church has a tough year financially. The expenses are up. The bills are too much. His income is much lower this year. Business was bad. This year, he is supposed to do so house renovations, as well as buy a new car for his teenage kid. But because things are so bad, he can either cut back substantially what he gives to the church, or not give at all, or he has to cut back on his consumption big time, possibly cutting out the renovations or the car. He might think, its ok if I don’t give to the church this year. God will understand if I do that. Things will pick up next year, and I’ll make up for it then. It is just too hard this year. This is the conflict, the dilemma.

You don’t have to be a father or a parent to face this conflict. A Christian guy or a girl might have recently graduated from college, or from graduate school, have a job, and are looking for just that right person. They don’t meet anyone for a while, or the people they meet fall far below their standards (not good looking enough, not rich enough, too boring, doesn’t cook as good as my mom).. Finally, they meet someone of the other sex, who is their ideal person. Very intelligent, has a good job, great personality, drives a nice car, sense of humor, gets along well with your family, is Armenian, could even pass for a model (that’s a unique Armenian). Seems like the ideal partner. One problem. The person is not a Christian. They call themselves a Christian, attend church from time to time, but you know that they don’t have a genuine relationship with Jesus Christ. Who will they worship? Who will they obey? Their own desire to find the ideal partner (the possible blessing?) or God? What will the parents of this person encourage them to do? Follow God’s word or what society would advise you to do? This is the conflict, the dilemma.

The Response

We all faced these tests and conflict. Who are we gonna worship? God, or the blessings that he gives? Let us see what Abraham’s response was to this conflict.

Abraham had faced tests of his faith before, sometimes passing, sometimes failing. He obediently followed God when he called him out from his father’s family to follow him, but he failed in waiting for God to provide him a son, taking matters into his own hands with his wife’s servant, bearing Ishmael. But now, he had learned his lesson. By faith, he obeyed God. In verses 3-5, we see him immediately and decisively obeying God. Early the next morning, Abraham got up and saddled 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.”

So Abraham immediately obeyed God. He went and woke up Isaac, who was a teenager right now. Imagine what would be going through Abraham’s mind, as he went into Isaac’s tent, looking at his son sleeping, and knowing what God had commanded him to do. All he knew was that God has planned the future around Isaac, and that he wanted him to sacrifice Isaac. He could not reconcile the two. But he would obey God regardless.

So, Abraham, Isaac and two of his servants set out on the fifty mile journey to a mountain in the land called Moriah, where God had instructed him to go, which was a 3 day’s walk. What a long 3 days it must have been for Abraham. He probably had chances to think it over and have second thoughts about obeying. He might have thought, “it would not be so bad if I disobey God this one time. I’ve obeyed him so much before. This is too much for him to ask of me. He would understand it if this time I did what was better for me.” But he continued to obey by faith, and when they got close to the destination, Abraham left the servants and went up to the mountain alone with Isaac.

Look at what he says to his servants before he leaves them. We will worship and then we will come back to you. We don’t know exactly what was going through Abraham’s mind. He might have thought God would resurrect Isaac. But in any case, he saw this as an act of worship to God. God has asked him for his best, his most precious, and Abraham would worship God by obeying him.

So in verse 6, Abraham took the wood for the burnt offering and placed it on his son Isaac, and he himself carried the fire and the knife. Abraham prepared the materials necessary for the sacrifice, and as they continued alone to Moriah, Isaac asked the question that Abraham must have been dreading, a question that made his heart sink. Verse 7--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?” Now Isaac was realizing something was weird. This was not the normal way to give the sacrifice. Where is the lamb that is normally used to sacrifice? What could Abraham respond to Isaac?

Abraham’s response is a little cryptic. He says in verse 8 God himself will provide the lamb for the burnt offering, my son. And the two of them went on together. Again, we don’t know whether Abraham fully understood what would happen. He might have just been trying to comfort Isaac. His answer was ambiguous enough to allow God to have the final say over what would happen, whether he would allow Abraham to go through with this, or whether he would provide an alternative. But he had the great faith in God—to do as He see fit.

So they continued up the mountain, and in verse 9, it says “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.” Abraham was ready to go through with it. He was ready to give up the greatest blessing that God had given him, his precious son, in order to be obedient to God. He had made the choice. He would worship God—regardless of what that cost him.

But all of a sudden, he was interrupted. 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.

God did not let him go through with that atrocity. Now Abraham saw that it was a test. God did not let him give up Isaac. In verse 12, Abraham discovers the reason for the test. It was now evident that Abraham fears God. His fear of God was shown because he did not withhold his most precious possession, relationship, and blessing from him. The thing that he valued most on earth, was not as important to him as God. He would not withhold anything in worshipping God. He worshiped the blesser, not the blessing. God was God to Abraham. He did not play second fiddle to anyone or anything in his life.

It is so much easier to focus on all the blessings that we receive, because He blesses us so abundantly—with people, with things, with opportunities. Let’s think about how much we think about God, how much we value God, in comparison to how much we think about all the blessings that he gives—whether it be family, whether it be financial, work related, a possession—all great things, but somehow they become more important than God to us. Think about our desire for future blessings--- for ourselves or our familes. How much of them are related to growing in the knowledge of God, growing in our faith and our relationship with God?

So often, instead of fearing God, revering him, we fear the consequences of obeying God in these dilemmas. We fear what will happen to us if we are obedient. We think, if we obey God, if we do what we know he wants us to do in this situation, then we will lose out on certain blessings in our lives. Life will not be as good.

This often happens in the ultra-competitive society. Parents are so intent on having their kids have that edge, for them to become successful and prestigious in this competitive society that they will do anything to achieve that, even if God is entirely ignored in the process. There is nothing wrong with wanting the best for your kids… but They will take them to so many different activities, classes, and such, that there is no time left for spiritual things and by their example and their own priorities show them that money and status are the most important things in life. The kids are left saying, “no time for Bible Study,” too much to do.

I have spoken to one parent and asked if she was at all worried about the spiritual life of the child, but the only response was that he would have time for that later in life, after he had achieved the success that he needed to achieve. She said, God would understand. The child would fall too far behind other kids his age if he focused too much on spiritual things. There is time for that later in life. The parent was more worried that the child would fail in life, than he would fail spiritually. By her example, the parent worshipped the child, not God.

If my child does not join that all-star soccer team which prevent him from going to church on Sundays, he might lose out on a college scholarship. If I don’t take the promotion that takes up my life and all my time, I will be stuck in my position forever, and can’t progress. If I don’t marry that perfect person who is not a Christian, I wont get another chance. If I give sacrificially to the church this year, I’ll lose too many things in life that I value. We end up worshiping all of the blessings that God gives us on earth, or the blessings that we hope to receive, and wanting to protect those blessings at all costs..

The result

Abraham was faced with this decision. Who will I worship and obey? He chose obedience to God. He chose the costly obedience. What was the result? What was the outcome of his decision? In verses 13-14, we see the first part of the result. Abraham looked up and there in a ticket 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.” God provided a substitute sacrifice, instead of Isaac. Abraham was determined to worship God, and God allowed Abraham to worship Him. Instead of Isaac, God himself provided a ram for Abraham to sacrifice, as an act of worship to Him. This became a perpetual reminder to Abraham and future generations that God would always provide.

In verses 15-19, we continue to see the result of Abraham’s obedience. The angel of the Lord called to Abraham from heaven a second time and said, “I swear by myself, declares the Lord, that because you have done this and have not withheld your son, your only son, I will surely bless you and make your descendants as numerous as the stars in the sky and as the sand on the seashore. Your descendants will take possession of the cities of their enemies, and through your offspring all nations on earth will be blessed, because you have obeyed me.

Because Abraham obeyed God, because he worshipped the blesser and not the blessing, God reiterated his promise to bless Abraham and his descendants and he even increased the blessings they would receive. Because Abraham obeyed God, not only was he blessed, but he son Isaac was also better off.

This does not mean that every time we obey God, every time we make a costly decision, we will get the earthly blessing or reward we want at the end. It doesn’t mean that if we give to the church self-sacrificially, our income will triple next year. It doesn’t mean that if a kid gives up certain thing in his life, they will necessarily get that college scholarship they were working for. These things might happen, but God’s blessings might not be the same blessing that we are seeking.

But Scripture does guarantee that if we obey God as he calls us to, we will be the recipients of his spiritual blessings, by growing in Him. And The Lord will also provide what is necessary to survive, and what is necessary to worship Him. So often, we don’t make these costly decisions to obey God because we are afraid of the consequences. But if we remember these words, “The Lord will Provide,” if we have the conviction that the Lord Will Provide all that is necessary, then we do not need to fear any earthly consequences. And the amazing part of reading these verses, where the Lord provided a substitute sacrifice in place of Isaac, is that they are a foreshadowing of God’s ultimate provision, the ultimate sacrifice, the ultimate substitute, that God, in his only precious Son, Jesus Christ. God did not let Abraham sacrifice his son, but He himself sacrificed His own Son, as our substitute and ultimate offering for sin.

Romans 8:32, in its language, refers back to this incident with Abraham and Isaac, and says He who did not spare his Son, but gave him up for us all—how will he not also, along with him, graciously give us all things? The story of Abraham and Isaac reminds us of God’s great provision in Jesus Christ. He has given us his Son. He has given us the ability to worship him through his son. He has given us the ultimate provision. If the Lord has given us that great provision, if he has provided for our greatest need, salvation from our sins, if he has paid such a costly price for that provision, His son, will He not also give us all things, will He not also continue to provide any need we have and our families have?

The best thing any of us can do, is to worship God above all things. To make God God in our lives. We will come across many situations in life, where we will face these conflicts. Whom will I worship? By making those decisions of costly obedience, we will receive God’s spiritual blessings, always remembering that the Lord will Provide all that is necessary.