Fearless Requires Faith

Key Verse:

2 “Take your son, your only son—yes, Isaac, whom you love so much—and go to the land of Moriah. Go and sacrifice him as a burnt offering on one of the mountains, which I will show you.” Genesis 22:2 NLT

If you’re going to talk about faith, I think the conversation always starts with Abraham. He was promised a son, and finally at the young and fertile age of 100, God blessed him with Isaac. And now in Genesis 22 we find God telling Abraham to take his son up a mountain and to sacrifice him as an offering. Wait! What? If I’m Abraham, I’m probably going on vacation the next day, maybe sleeping in, or acting like I didn’t hear what God just asked me to do. And yet that’s not what he does.

3 The next morning Abraham got up early. He saddled his donkey and took two of his servants with him, along with his son, Isaac. Then he chopped wood for a fire for a burnt offering and set out for the place God had told him about. Genesis 22:3 NLT

Early the next morning? Abraham got right to it. He didn’t wait or drag his feet. He operated with a fearless obedience. Takes his son and servants and begins making preparations for the sacrifice. Little did Isaac know he was the one scheduled to be sacrificed.

6 So Abraham placed the wood for the burnt offering on Isaac’s shoulders, while he himself carried the fire and the knife.  Genesis 22:6 NLT

This really has no importance to our topic today I just found the connection of Isaac, Abraham’s only son, walking up a mountain as a sacrifice carrying the wood he was to be sacrificed on, and Jesus, as the ultimate sacrifice, carrying his cross up a hill to be uncanny.

7 Isaac turned to Abraham and said, “Father?” “Yes, my son?” Abraham replied. “We have the fire and the wood,” the boy said, “but where is the sheep for the burnt offering?” Genesis 22:7

it was at this moment that I’m sure Abraham looked at Isaac like this:

And Abraham responds:

8 “God will provide a sheep for the burnt offering, my son,” Abraham answered. And they both walked on together. Genesis 22:8

And what did God do? What God always does. Came through in the moment of need. Providing a ram for the sacrifice so that Isaac wouldn’t have to be. This story is one that has always left me wondering. Why would God ask Abraham to do that? To test him sure but couldn’t there be another way? To see if Abraham would be willing to give up the thing he loved the most for God? We could go on and on about the why, but the fact that Abraham was willing.

Abraham’s life is a testament to his faith. He walked in a fearless faith. One that trusted God around every corner and every step of the way. Faith is not a blind hope, but rather it’s our actions in response to where our hope is placed. As God is calling us to be fearless, it will most definitely require faith. A faith that doesn’t see the outcome before we jump, a faith that takes God at his word and knows that he will be with us every step of the way, a faith that doesn’t just believe but knows that He will provide everything that is needed. How could Abraham believe God like that? Because God had proven Himself to Abraham time and time again. Abraham knew that God had come through in the past and that he would again in this moment.

Whether God provided a ram or decided to raise Isaac from the dead, Abraham knew that he could trust God. May we look back on God’s faithfulness, on all of the times He has seen us through, and may we walk forward with fearless faith.

Our Prayer:

Father, in the moment’s you’re calling us to be fearless, please remind us to be faithful as Abraham was. No matter the calling, no matter the unseen outcome, remind us that you are i control, and that we are called to trust you. When we claim to trust you completely, help us to walk out that trust fearlessly. In Jesus’ name, amen.