There is a defining moment in the life of the great Abraham who is often referred to as our Father in Faith. God asked Abraham to sacrifice his only son Isaac. This was a huge ask for Abraham. Isaac was the child of his old age, his pride and joy, his only hope of posterity.
On the face of it, it seems cruel for God to ask Abraham to let go of his beloved son. But God needed to put Abraham to the test. It was important that the man God had chosen to be our Father in Faith would have complete trust in him. We know that Abraham responded to God’s request. He did what God invited him to do. He abandoned himself totally to God. In response God not only spared the life of Isaac. He also showered blessings in abundance on Abraham and his descendants. “I make a vow by my own name – the Lord is speaking – that I will richly bless you. Because you did this and did not keep back your only son from me, I promise that I will give you as many descendants as there are stars in the sky or grains of sand along the seashore. Your descendants will conquer their enemies. All the nations will ask me to bless them as I have blessed your descendants – all because you obeyed my command” (Genesis 22:16-18).
As we go through life our faith in God is tested. Difficult and painful experiences like failure, rejection, disappointment and sickness make us wonder if God is really loving and caring. Often in the face of suffering the silence of God can be deafening. Like Abraham, we have a choice to make. We can either trust God in the hope that God will eventually bring good out of our pain or we can blame God for the distress we find ourselves in. Suffering can either draw us closer to God or make us bitter.
It is important for us to realise that God does not cause human suffering. Free will does. However, God uses our suffering to strengthen our trust. God can best work in our lives when we allow ourselves to depend on him. Self-sufficiency keeps us distant from God; surrender brings us near to God. Growth in our spiritual lives requires deeper levels of surrender and trust. Abraham was richly rewarded for his great act of surrender and trust. So will we.