Some readers believe Abraham knew God wouldn’t actually require him to sacrifice his son; one can only suppose. Imagine – take the time to consider what Abraham went through. God does some startling things, and asks of us some startling things, and His ways are higher than our ways. This was the kind of test that not only showed what was in Abraham’s reverence for God, but also grew it. Abraham exercised his choice to obey God at cost of not only his beloved son but also the promises God had given him through Isaac, and the choice he made doubtless grew his love for God. That is sort of a reversal of Adam and Eve’s choice to eat the fruit forbidden to them. Abraham responded to his test in the way God had hoped Adam and Eve would respond to their test. God, prepare us to respond like Abrahams and not Adams when You present us with a testing and proving opportunity. Can you spend some devotional time praying for that today?
Chapter 23 may not be important to us, but it would have been to the Israelites for whom the book was written. It reminded them that Abraham was well-respected in the land they were about to take possession of. The Canaanites of that day welcomed him into their midst, to the point of offering to give him land at no cost; however, Abraham paid full price for it, and it was formally and legally deeded to him in full sight and approval of the elders of the people who lived there. Formal burial of one’s dead was a mark of habitation; everyone understood the tie to the land that resulted from it.
God’s provision of Rebekah for Isaac is a lovely story of God’s working out the details of man’s affairs in accordance with His will, to fulfill His purpose, and in such a way to delight His people. Do you suppose God delighted in delighting Abraham’s servant and Isaac? Do you suppose He delights in delighting us? In delighting you? Can you imagine Him working in your affairs in such lovely fashion? What lessons does this story have for you?
One thing that speaks to me is Isaac’s waiting on God. Chapter 25 tells us that he was forty years old when Rebekah became his wife. Apparently she was worth waiting for, for from that impersonal selection process came a match that obviously pleased Isaac. God doesn’t always bring us good in our timing, and sometimes the enjoyment of good is delayed by other things that are necessary.
Another point from Isaac’s story is that he didn’t take the easy route. Abraham set high standards for the choice of Isaac’s mate, standards not easily met. Can you imagine being given the assignment Abraham’s servant was given? It must have seemed impossible. How often do high standards get that very response in our experience? If God gives the standards, He can see that the one who adheres to them meets them. This is no promise, but it is the example we have been given in Abraham and Isaac.
The servant sought God’s help in carrying out his charge. He didn’t expect to get help from God in the form of an audible instruction, any more than we can expect that. He knew God’s provision by the fulfillment of the arrangements he had made with God ahead of time. Then when God worked according to his arrangement, he recognized God in it and gave Him due praise. Is that a step we tend to omit when circumstances work out well for us? Do we rejoice in the circumstances and the way they worked out, but forget that God was in them, and neglect to give Him thanks and praise? For what can you praise God today that you have failed to do so in the past? Can you commit to Him today to wait on Him to work out the circumstances that tempt you to take matters into your own hands?