Faith To Go Yonder
“FAITH TO GO YONDER”
Genesis 22:1-19 (NKJV)
1 Now it came to pass after these things that God tested Abraham, and said to him, “Abraham!”And he said, “Here I am.”
2 Then He said, “Take now your son, your only son Isaac, whom you love, and go to the land of Moriah, and offer him there as a burnt offering on one of the mountains of which I shall tell you.”
3 So Abraham rose early in the morning and saddled his donkey, and took two of his young men with him, and Isaac his son; and he split the wood for the burnt offering, and arose and went to the place of which God had told him.
4 Then on the third day Abraham lifted his eyes and saw the place afar off.
5 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.”
6 So Abraham took the wood of the burnt offering and laid it on Isaac his son; and he took the fire in his hand, and a knife, and the two of them went together.
7 But Isaac spoke to Abraham his father and said, “My father!”And he said, “Here I am, my son.” Then he said, “Look, the fire and the wood, but where is the lamb for a burnt offering?”
8 And Abraham said, “My son, God will provide for Himself the lamb for a burnt offering.” So the two of them went together.
9 Then they came to the place of which God had told him. And Abraham built an altar there and placed the wood in order; and he bound Isaac his son and laid him on the altar, upon the wood.
10 And Abraham stretched out his hand and took the knife to slay his son.
11 But the Angel of the Lord called to him from heaven and said, “Abraham, Abraham!” So he said, “Here I am.”
12 And He said, “Do not lay your hand on the lad, or do anything to him; for now I know that you fear God, since you have not withheld your son, your only son, from Me.”
13 Then Abraham lifted his eyes and looked, and there behind him was a ram caught in a thicket by its horns. So Abraham went and took the ram, and offered it up for a burnt offering instead of his son.
14 And Abraham called the name of the place, ]The-Lord-Will-Provide; as it is said to this day, “In the Mount of the Lord it shall be provided.”
15 Then the Angel of the Lord called to Abraham a second time out of heaven,
16 and said: “By Myself I have sworn, says the Lord, because you have done this thing, and have not withheld your son, your only son—
17 blessing I will bless you, and multiplying I will multiply your descendants as the stars of the heaven and as the sand which is on the seashore; and your descendants shall possess the gate of their enemies.
18 In your seed all the nations of the earth shall be blessed, because you have obeyed My voice.”
19 So Abraham returned to his young men, and they rose and went together to Beersheba; and Abraham dwelt at Beersheba.
Wood: The weight of obedience. Issac carried the wood up the mountain, just as Jesus carried his cross to Calvary.
Fire: Representation of then Holy Spirit working in believers to burn away the flesh, refine faith, make us wholly God’s.
Knife: the spiritual process by which the Word of God shapes and refines us by removing the fleshly nature that resists full obedience.
Hebrews 11:17-19 (NIV)
17 By faith Abraham, when God tested him, offered Isaac as a sacrifice. He who had embraced the promises was about to sacrifice his one and only son, 18 even though God had said to him, “It is through Isaac that your offspring will be reckoned.”]19 Abraham reasoned that God could even raise the dead, and so in a manner of speaking he did receive Isaac back from death.
FOUR TAKEAWAYS
God’s tests reveal our hearts; not to destroy but to refine
God sometimes asks us to lay down what we love most to see if we trust Him above all.
Scripture:
● Genesis 22:2 Then He said, “Take now your son, your only son Isaac, whom you love, and go to the land of Moriah, and offer him there as a burnt offering on one of the mountains of which I shall tell you.”
● Romans 4:18 “Even when there was no reason for hope, Abraham kept hoping—believing that he would become the father of many nations. For God had said to him, “That’s how many descendants you will have!”
Faith walks even when the path is unclear
Faith doesn’t always mean understanding the “how” - it means trusting the “Who”.
Trust God’s character and promises, even without visible evidence or a detailed roadmap.
Scripture:
● Hebrews 11:17 “By faith Abraham, when God tested him, offered Issac as a sacrifice.”
● Genesis 22:5 “Stay here with the donkey; the lad and I will go yonder and worship, and we will come back to you.”
● Genesis 22:8 “My son, God will provide for Himself the lamb for a burnt offering.”
God provides at the Point of obedience
Believing God will provide even in the most painful moments.
Just at the time Abraham was going to sacrifice Issac, a ram was caught in the thicket.
Abraham called the place Jehovah-Jireh “The Lord Will Provide”
Scripture:
● Genesis 22:8 “Abraham said, “God will provide for himself the lamb for a burnt offering, my son.”
● Genesis 22:14 “And He said, “Do not lay your hand on the lad, or do anything to him; for now I know that you fear God, since you have not withheld your son, your only son, from Me.”
Obedience unlocks greater purpose
What we surrender in obedience, God multiplies for His glory
Abraham’s act of faith, becomes part of the redemptive story of the world.
Scripture:
● Romans 4:3 “For what does the Scripture say? “Abraham believed God, and it was counted to him as righteousness.”
● Genesis 22:18 “In your seed all the nations of the earth shall be blessed, because you have obeyed My voice.”