Good Morning.
Then on the third day Abraham lifted his eyes and saw the place afar off. And Abraham said to his young men, “Stay here with the donkey; the lad and I will go yonder and worship, and we will come back to you.” (Genesis 22:4-5)
On the third day of what we would presume was a difficult journey, Abraham saw his destination in the distance. According to the Bible, he didn’t hesitate or shy away from the purpose for his travel but gathered what he needed in order to fulfill what he came to do. At this point he was prompted to instruct his servants to stay with the donkey and to await his return — along with Isaac. Knowing what he was about to do, what made him so confident that both he and Isaac would be returning? The writer of Hebrews said:
“By faith Abraham, when he was tested, offered up Isaac, and he who had received the promises offered up his only begotten son, of whom it was said, ‘In Isaac your seed shall be called,’ concluding that God was able to raise him up, even from the dead, from which he also received him in a figurative sense.” (Hebrews 11:17)
Because Abraham truly believed God’s promise that through Isaac he would be the father of many nations, he concluded that if he took Isaac’s life, God would be obligated to raise Isaac from the dead. Furthermore, according to the writer of Hebrews, because Abraham was determined to obey God completely, it was as if Issac truly died and then was resurrected in a “figurative sense” — on the third day of their journey.
All of this was to point Abraham and his seed, the people of faith, to the Promised Seed — the Messiah who would suffer and die only to be raised on the the “third day.” Knowing that God would indeed be true to His Word is, no doubt, what inspired Abraham to endure the most difficult of trials. Likewise, if we really believe that God is faithful, there is no trial that we cannot endure. So let us purpose in our heart to be true to His calling knowing that our resurrected Messiah will be with us through all of life’s challenges.
Blessings and Shalom,
Bill
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