AN AWKWARD OFFERING - HEBREWS 11:17-19

BIG IDEA: BY FAITH WE OFFER.

Christian Standard Bible Chapter 11

17 By faith Abraham, when he was tested, offered up Isaac. He received the promises and yet he was offering his one and only son, 18 the one to whom it had been said, Your offspring will be traced through Isaac., 19 He considered God to be able even to raise someone from the dead; therefore, he received him back, figuratively speaking.

THERE IS AN AWKWARD TENSION IN THE TEXT CONNECTED TO THE AWKWARD TEST PLACED UPON ABRAHAM! TENSION - TEST -

HOW DOES ONE OFFER UP WHAT HAS BEEN CLEARLY SENT DOWN?

ABRAHAM'S MONO-GENES - ONE AND ONLY - UNIQUELY GIVEN SON IS NOW BEING REQUIRED...AS A SACRIFICE!

THIS NARRATIVE EXTRACTED FROM GENESIS 22: 22 After these things God tested Abraham and said to him, “Abraham!”

“Here I am,” he answered.

2 “Take your son,” he said, “your only son Isaac, whom you love, go to the land of Moriah, and offer him there as a burnt offering on one of the mountains I will tell you about.”

3 So Abraham got up early in the morning, saddled his donkey, and took with him two of his young men and his son Isaac. He split wood for a burnt offering and set out to go to the place God had told him about. 4 On the third day Abraham looked up and saw the place in the distance. 5 Then Abraham said to his young men, “Stay here with the donkey. The boy and I will go over there to worship; then we’ll come back to you.” 6 Abraham took the wood for the burnt offering and laid it on his son Isaac. In his hand he took the fire and the knife, and the two of them walked on together.

7 Then Isaac spoke to his father Abraham and said, “My father.”

And he replied, “Here I am, my son.”

Isaac said, “The fire and the wood are here, but where is the lamb for the burnt offering?”

8 Abraham answered, “God himself will provide, the lamb for the burnt offering, my son.” Then the two of them walked on together.

9 When they arrived at the place that God had told him about, Abraham built the altar there and arranged the wood. He bound his son Isaac and placed him on the altar on top of the wood. 10 Then Abraham reached out and took the knife to slaughter his son.

11 But the angel of the Lord called to him from heaven and said, “Abraham, Abraham!”

He replied, “Here I am.”

12 Then he said, “Do not lay a hand on the boy or do anything to him. For now I know that you fear God, since you have not withheld your only son from me.” 13 Abraham looked up and saw a ram caught in the thicket by its horns. So Abraham went and took the ram and offered it as a burnt offering in place of his son. 14 And Abraham named that place The Lord Will Provide, so today it is said, “It will be provided on the Lord’s mountain.”

Christian Standard Bible. (2020). (Ge 22:1–14). Nashville, TN: Holman Bible Publishers.

TAKE!

GO!

SACRIFICE!

GOD’S INSTRUCTIONS DON’T COME WITH EXPLANATIONS! HOWEVER, UNDERSTANDING IS REVEALED IN THE FULLNESS OF TIME THROUGH OBEDIENCE! OBEDIENCE…AWW BELOVED, THERE ARE SOME LESSONS THAT I NEVER LEARNED, BECAUSE I FAILED TO OBEY THE AWKWARD OFFERING...

WHAT WAS BEING REQUIRED TO OFFER UP WAS TOO GREAT A SACRIFICE....SO RATHER THAN RECEIVE MY BREAKTHROUGH, I EXPERIENCED DELAY...

I’M PREACHING ALREADY...

YOU SEE, AWKWARD OFFERINGS MAKE THE AVERAGE BELIEVER TOO UNCOMFORTABLE TO FULFILL.... AWKARD…IT’S JUST AWKWARD!

GOD SAID, “GIVE ME YOUR MARRIAGE, AND I’LL MAKE IT WHAT YOU’VE LONGED FOR....” AWKWARD.

GOD SAID, “GIVE ME YOUR EMOTIONAL AND MENTAL HEALTH, AND I’LL ENSURE WHOLENESS AND HEALING...” AWKWARD.

GOD SAID, “GIVE ME YOUR FINANCES, AND I’LL GIVE YOU FISCAL STABILITY AND FINANCIAL FRUITFULNESS....” AWKWARD!

AWKWARD OFFERINGS MAKE THE AVERAGE BELIEVER TOO UNCOMFORTABLE TO FULFILL....

BUT NOT ABRAHAM! THE FATHER OF THE FAITH APPROACHED THIS TEST, ACCORDING TO OUR MOTTO TEXT: (((BY FAITH)))!

ABRAHAM HELPS US TO SEE WHAT A GODLY WORLDVIEW LOOKS LIKE! TO SEE YOUR WHOLE LIFE EXPERIENCE THROUGH THE LENS OF FAITH: TRUSTING GOD AND HIS WORD FOR EVERY MOVE - EVERY STEP!

THE TEXT SAYS: 17 By faith Abraham, when he was tested, offered up Isaac.

HOW DOES ONE OFFER UP WHAT HAS BEEN CLEARLY SENT DOWN?

THE FIRST MOVEMENT OF OUR TEXT IS THIS:

ABRAHAM RESPONDED IN TOTAL OBEDIENCE!

ABRAHAM (IN THIS AWKWARD OFFERING), NEVER WAVERED… HE RESPONDED IN TOTAL OBEDIENCE!

FROM THE INSTRUCTIONS IN VS. 2 OF GENESIS 22, TO THE RAISING OF HIS KNIFE IN VS. 9 - 9 When they arrived at the place that God had told him about, Abraham built the altar there and arranged the wood. He bound his son Isaac and placed him on the altar on top of the wood. 10 Then Abraham reached out and took the knife to slaughter his son.

THIS WAS ABRAHAM’S SON AND SEED… THE ONE, ACCORDING TO THE TEXT, “WHOM IT HAD BEEN SAID, YOUR OFFSPRING WILL BE TRACED THROUGH ISAAC.”

FAITH IS DEVELOPED IN AWKWARD MOMENTS! OUR DETERMINATION TO REMAIN IN CONTROL - TO BE IN CHARGE (AT LEAST IN OUR OWN MINDS), HAS KEPT OUR FAITH FROM DEVELOPING! OBEYING GOD’S WORD RARELY FEELS RIGHT! THAT’S BECAUSE FAITH & FEELINGS ARE RARELY IN AGREEMENT…BUT IF WE WOULD JUST LET OUR FAITH TAKE OVER, WE’LL DISCOVER BLESSINGS THAT OUR FEELINGS WOULD NEVER PRODUCE!

During an especially trying time in the work of the China Inland Mission, Hudson Taylor wrote to his wife, "We have twenty-five cents--and all the promises of God!

I NEED YOU TO CATCH THAT: TAYLOR SAW WHAT HE HAD, WHILE SEEING BEYOND WHAT HE SAW! AND AS AWKWARD AS ONLY HAVING TWENTY-FIVE CENTS, HE PRESSED ON TO EMBRACE THE PROMISES OF GOD, WHICH WERE UNENDING!!!

CHILD OF GOD, IT’S TIME FOR FAITH THAT PUSHES YOU INTO AWKWARD MOMENTS!!! GONE AHEAD AND SEE BEYOND WHAT YOU SEE....TAKE THAT FIRST STEP TOWARDS THAT TO WHICH GOD HAS CALLED YOU!

YEAH, FAITH IS DEVELOPED IN AWKWARD MOMENTS....

SECOND SUB-POINT: FAITH IS MANIFESTED IN AWKWARD MOMENTS.

ABRAHAM’S FAITH HAD TO GROW UP AND SHOW UP WITH THIS TEST FROM GOD...

THERE IS AN AWKWARD TENSION IN THE TEXT CONNECTED TO THE AWKWARD TEST PLACED UPON ABRAHAM! TENSION - TEST -

THE PROMISES (VS. 17B) WHICH WERE TO BE FULFILLED THROUGH ISAAC WERE ALSO BEING PLACED UPON THAT ALTAR...

ABRAHAM HAD TO GROW AND SHOW THAT HE FULLY TRUSTED GOD.

CAN’T YOU SEE HIS FAITH MANIFESTING IN THIS STORY?

BACK IN GENESIS, ISAAC SPEAKS TO ABRAHAM: 4 On the third day Abraham looked up and saw the place in the distance. 5 Then Abraham said to his young men, “Stay here with the donkey. The boy and I will go over there to worship; then we’ll come back to you.” 6 Abraham took the wood for the burnt offering and laid it on his son Isaac. In his hand he took the fire and the knife, and the two of them walked on together.

7 Then Isaac spoke to his father Abraham and said, “My father.”

And he replied, “Here I am, my son.”

Isaac said, “The fire and the wood are here, but where is the lamb for the burnt offering?”

8 Abraham answered, “God himself will provide, the lamb for the burnt offering, my son.” Then the two of them walked on together.

ABRAHAM RESPONDED IN TOTAL OBEDIENCE:

FAITH IS DEVELOPED IN AWKWARD MOMENTS...

FAITH IS MANIFESTED IN AWKWARD MOMENTS...

ABRAHAM IS MODELING WHAT IT LOOKS LIKE TO “HOPE FOR WHAT IS NOT SEEN!” IF EVER YOU NEEDED AN OCULAR DEMONSTRATION OF FAITH MANIFESTED - LOOK TO ABRAHAM!

ABRAHAM WAS DECLARING: I DON’T KNOW HOW, BUT I KNOW WHO...

I KNOW THAT MY SON AND I WILL GO UP TO WORSHIP, AND I KNOW THAT MY SON AND I WILL RETURN… (((I DON’T KNOW HOW, BUT I KNOW WHO)))!

I KNOW THAT GOD WILL PROVIDE A LAMB FOR THE OFFERING…(((I DON’T KNOW HOW, BUT I KNOW WHO)))!

CHURCH FOLK - IT’S TIME WE PRESSED INTO A LEVEL OF LIVING THAT SURRENDERS AND SUBMITS TO THE LORD…TO OFFER AN AWKWARD OFFERING!!!

GOD GIVES US MOMENTS TO MANIFEST OUR FAITH, AND WE MUST PRESS INTO THOSE MOMENTS...

WE MUST BE LED BY OUR FAITH IN THESE MOMENTS...Faith is to believe what we do not see; and the reward of this faith is to see what we believe. -Augustine.

ABRAHAM RESPONDED IN TOTAL OBEDIENCE:

FAITH IS DEVELOPED IN AWKWARD MOMENTS...

FAITH IS MANIFESTED IN AWKWARD MOMENTS...

BUT THE TEXT IS MOVING: VS. 19: HE CONSIDERED GOD TO BE ABLE EVEN TO RAISE SOMEONE FROM THE DEAD; THEREFORE, HE RECEIVED HIM BACK, FIGURATIVELY SPEAKING.

ABRAHAM RESPONDED IN TOTAL OBEDIENCE ((SECOND AND FINALLY)):

ABRAHAM CONTEMPLATED THE ONE WHO MADE THE PROMISE!!

ABRAHAM CONTEMPLATED - CONSIDERED - REASONED…SINCE GOD IS INSTRUCTING ME TO SACRIFICE MY SEED, THEN GOD WILL REVEAL TO ME ANOTHER SIDE OF HIS POWER....LET’S GO!

ABRAHAM WASN’T FAKING THE FUNK. HE WASN’T PUTTING ON A SHOW...

HE WASN’T PRETENDING OR GOING THROUGH THE SACRIFICIAL MOTIONS...

HE WAS PREPARED TO DO EXACTLY WHAT GOD HAS INSTRUCTED HIM TO DO...

FAITH WILL MOVE YOU: ABRAHAM CONTEMPLATED (IN THAT MOMENT). FROM THE COMMAND TO ((TAKE. GO. SACRIFICE.)), TO THE RAISING OF THE KNIFE…HE REASONED…WATCH THIS: WHILE YOUR FAITH IS PROCESSING, KEEP MOVING!!!

OUR BOOK CLUB IS READING ANDY STANLEY’S BETTER CHOICES - FEWER REGRETS....AND IN THERE, HE TELLS OF HIS GRANDFATHER’S FAVORITE QUOTE ABOUT GOD: “Obey God and leave all the consequences to him. If God tells you to run your head through a brick wall, start running and trust God to make a hole.”

METAPHORICALLY, ABRAHAM WAS RUNNING HIS HEAD THROUGH A BRICK WALL…HE WAS CONTEMPLATING WHILE MOVING!

HE KNEW HE WOULD GO THROUGH THIS WALL, AND HIS MOVEMENT MATCHED HIS FAITH IN GOD!

CHILD OF GOD…IT’S UNDERSTANDABLE THAT YOU’RE CONTEMPLATING…BUT DON’T STOP MOVING!!!

THE OLD FOLKS SAY, “WHILE YOU’RE TRYING TO FIGURE IT OUT. GOD HAS ALREADY WORKED IT OUT!”

SOMEONE UNDER THE SOUND OF MY VOICE HAS BEEN HOLDING BACK - NOT MOVING. CONSIDERING WITHOUT PROGRESSING…AND I’M HERE TO ENCOURAGE YOU: MOVE!

LET GOD BE GOD, AND YOU BE HIS CHILD! HE’LL MAKE A WAY OUT OF NO WAY....FAITH WILL MOVE YOU!

AWWW, I’M FINISHED. BUT FINALLY,

FAITH WILL REMIND YOU! ABRAHAM IS CONTEMPLATING THE ONE WHO MADE THE PROMISE, AND THEN HIS FAITH REMINDS HIM: VS. 19: HE CONSIDERED GOD TO BE ABLE EVEN TO RAISE SOMEONE FROM THE DEAD; THEREFORE, HE RECEIVED HIM BACK, FIGURATIVELY SPEAKING.

ABRAHAM’S FAITH REMINDED HIM THAT EVEN IF ISAAC WAS SACRIFICED, GOD COULD RESURRECT HIM!

Y’ALL, THAT’S FAITH!!

THIS IS HOW HE COULD SPEAK WITH CONFIDENCE (THE BOY AND I WILL GO UP TO WORSHIP, AND THE BOY AND I WILL RETURN)…ISAAC WOULD EITHER BE SAVED PRIOR TO OR RESURRECTED THEREAFTER...

FAITH WILL REMIND YOU...

YOU SEE, ABRAHAM KNEW THAT GOD MADE THE PROMISE (NOT HIM). SO THE PRESSURE TO FULFILL WAS NOT ON ABRAHAM…THE PRESSURE TO OBEY WAS UPON ABRAHAM.

AND IN OBEYING, HIS FAITH REMINDED HIM THAT GOD IS ABLE TO DO JUST WHAT HE SAID HE WOULD DO!!!

1500 Illustrations for Biblical Preaching Faith, Childlike

Faith, Childlike

When a father picks up his little daughter and tosses her all around in the air, she laughs and enjoys it, for she trusts—has faith in—her father. Even though she finds herself in unusual situations, like being upside down four feet above the floor with nothing supporting her (normally an uncomfortable circumstance), she does not fear, for she trusts her father. That is the sort of faith we should have toward our heavenly Father, too.

AN AWKWARD OFFERING

ABRAHAM RESPONDED IN TOTAL OBEDIENCE ((SECOND AND FINALLY)):

ABRAHAM CONTEMPLATED THE ONE WHO MADE THE PROMISE!!

CLOSE: BOTH ABRAHAM & ISAAC WERE AS GOOD AS DEAD!!