The gospel today had God tell Abram to go out into the
country, and offer as a sacrifice His only son, Isaac. When Abram follows through with God’s request
and is about to sacrifice his son, God stops him: “I know now how devoted you
are to God.”
Wait a minute!
God knows NOW? But God always knows. Abram didn’t have to convince God of his
faith; God knows all things. So, what is
going on here?
Abram, as we do, probably thought that trials were a test of
his faith and trust in God, and in a way, they are. But, trials are not tests of “do you have
faith or not,” but rather they are tests like the drill sergeant yelling: “Drop
down and give me twenty.” They are tests
of endurance, not to check IF there is faith, but to strengthen it by repetition
--- and stretching to its limits. Abram surely thought that he had faith in
God, but until that faith is strongly tested, he couldn’t really be sure of the
strength of it. Trials test and
strengthen our commitment to faith and trust.
Jesus, and martyrs imitating His commitment, professed and
lived their faith to their death. Most
of us aren’t called that far --- and in truth, we might fail such a test. But everyone is called to some trials, to
some tests in their life. And sometimes
we think we’ve reached the end of our strength: “I can’t continue to do this…”
And that’s when faith comes in: “Lord, help me.” And that’s when He picks up His share of the
yoke. Our faith is not just about our
strength of belief in what God expects of us, but also is about what we expect
of God.
Abram tested the strength of his faith, and God responded
with His.
In any of our trials, our tests, our sorrows, we are not
alone.
May you have a blessed holiday, as this country of ours
undergoes its test of strength.
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