Sunday School | Genesis 22

Introduction

Genesis 22 today. Genesis 22 is the story of Abraham and Isaac. This can be a confusing passage of scripture. I remember when I was young and I first heard the story of Abraham and Isaac, I think a preacher told me, would you be willing to kill your own kids if God told you to? And I kept thinking, well, no. Not really. I don't think I'd be able to do that. And if that's your reaction to this scripture, then you are correct. Do not come away from the story of Abraham and Isaac and think that God is okay with abuse because he's not. Instead, this story is about God's provision.

What we're going to do is look through this scripture. This is a passage that's closely tied with itself. It's like there are shoelaces throughout where there are phrases that happen in one part of the story connected to another part of the story, and that happens several times. So we're about to read this scripture together. And as we do, look for phrases that you see repeated because we're going to draw out some of those interpretations in just a minute.

The Text and Key Connections

Here we are. Genesis 22, starting with verse one.

Sometime later, God tested Abraham. He said to him, Abraham, here I am, he replied. Then God said, take your son, your only son whom you love, Isaac, and go to the region of Moriah. Sacrifice him there as a burnt offering on a mountain, I will show you.

Early the next morning, Abraham got up and loaded his donkey. He took with him two of his servants and his son Isaac. When he had cut enough wood for the burnt offering, he set out for the place God had told him about.

On the third day, Abraham looked up and saw the place in the distance. He said to his servants, stay here with the donkey while I and the boy go over there. We will worship and then we will come back to you. Abraham took the wood for the burnt offering and placed it on his son Isaac, and he himself carried the fire and the knife.

As the two of them went on together, Isaac spoke up and said to his father Abraham,

Father?

Yes, my son, Abraham replied. The fire and the wood are here, Isaac said, but where is the lamb for the burnt offering?

Abraham answered,

God himself will provide the lamb for the burnt offering, my son.

And the two of them went on together. When they reached the place God had told them about, Abraham built an altar there and arranged the wood on it. He bound his son Isaac and laid him on the altar on top of the wood. Then he reached out his hand and took the knife to slay his son. But the angel of the Lord called out to him from heaven,

Abraham, Abraham,

here I am, he replied.

Do not lay a hand on the boy, he said. Do not do anything to him. Now I know that you fear God because you have not withheld from me your son, your only son.

Abraham looked up and there in a thicket, he saw a ram caught by his horns. He went over and took the ram and sacrificed it as a burnt offering instead of his son.

So Abraham called the place the Lord will provide. And to this day it is said,

on the mountain of the Lord it will be provided.

The angel of the Lord called to Abraham from heaven a second time and said,

Swear by myself, declares the Lord. That because you have done this and have not withheld your son, your only son, I will surely bless you and make your descendants as numerous as the stars in the sky and as the sand on the seashore. Your descendants will take possession of the cities of their enemies, and through your offspring all nations on the earth will be blessed because you have obeyed me.

We are jumping into Abraham's story outside of a larger series. Will somebody be able to quickly summarize the life of Abraham so that all of us are on the same page about who this person is?

He was God came to him and Wow. That is a great insight. I’m glad you picked that up right away. That is really short.

The passage she’s referring to is in Genesis 12 where God calls Abraham the first time.

In Genesis 12 verse one, the Lord said to Abraham, go from your country, your people and your father's household to the land I will show you. And that's exactly how 22 verse two says, where he says, go to the region of Moriah, to the mountain I will show you.

That’s exactly right. That’s the first connection. Also, on that same passage is where God gives him the promise, and you see the promise repeated here in this chapter. It’s amazing when you see the promises of God and the calling of God at the beginning and the end of Abraham’s life. It really shows a theme throughout his journey.

Everywhere he goes, he’s under the calling of God. He experiences the promises of God whether he's young or old, in plenty or in want, worried about his future or his own son — the promises of God remain. There is a theme that runs through his entire life. I wonder: if you looked at your own life and had a theme for that, what would it be? How has God put your life together in your relationships, vocation, calling, or ministry?

Thank you.

Another connection we see is in verse one, where it says, “sometime later God tested Abraham and he said, Abraham,” and he said, “here I am.”

Where else in this chapter does that happen?

Isaac speaks to Abraham. When Isaac speaks to Abraham, they're trying to connect dots—what’s going on? You know, important things.

So he calls out to his father and says, Abraham.

He says, “alright.”

I like that connection where God calls him and he's also hearing a calling from his own son. His son is not silent in this passage.

There’s one other place where God calls to Abraham. Do you see which verse that’s in?

Right. About verse 11.

Gary, would you like to share more about that?

It's when the angel says, “Abraham, you know, stop what you're doing. Don't kill your son.”

That's right.

Why do you think it is that God addresses Abraham, and he answers just the same way both times?

There isn’t a right answer. This is a chance to think about the scripture.

Can you repeat the question?

Yeah. The eye consciousness awakened in Abraham. What's that?

The eye consciousness?

Awakened in Abraham?

Yeah.

What do you mean by the eye consciousness?

That’s wonderful. Thank you. That’s good.

Would you repeat what he said?

Yes.

Thank you.

What he was saying is that it’s just being conscious of who he is and his relationship with God. That God calls to him and he is aware of who he is in his relationship with God. That God is the one who calls him, and he is the one who responds and serves the Lord.

Does that capture what you're saying?

Good. Thank you. Good.

So you even see a connection there between where Abraham is saying, “here I am,” and then later when God reveals himself as “I am” to Moses, and the “I am” statements of Jesus in the Gospel of John.

This is a very good comparison with what happened to Christ and Isaac. It’s a sacrifice that often takes place later on. You’re right. We’ll bring out some of that later. That’s one of these parallels, again, connecting Isaac and Jesus.

Let’s look more closely at verse two and walk through the story. It says that Abraham asked him to sacrifice his only son. He has another son, Ishmael.

What happened to Ishmael?

He was sent away.

And so right now, Abraham only has Isaac with him. This is deeply personal.

He says to take Isaac to Moriah. Does anybody know where that is?

The Temple Mount.

That’s great.

This matters because, at the end of the scripture, it says, “on the mountain of the Lord it will be provided.” This is the Temple Mount. They believe God provided during this time of Isaac there, at that place — not the temple itself, but the area later became the temple.

Later on, when they need anything provided from the Lord, they can look to him at the temple.

When we come to church, we can look to God as our provider too.

There are many things we need—wisdom, guidance, health, prayer for salvation for family members.

And when we come together, especially during prayers, we look to the Lord as our provider.

He will take care of us, and he will provide.

That's good.

When God asked Abraham to offer Isaac as a sacrifice, would you call this blind obedience?

Go ahead.

You don’t think so?

I think he believed—I mean, God had already promised he was going to build a nation through Isaac.

I feel like Abraham thought he could give him life, and God could give him life again.

Right. So he thinks Isaac will survive somehow, and he has faith in God's promises.

He has to be obedient, but he also believes.

Good.

Yes?

He says in verse five,

He says to the servants that are with him, stay here with the donkey while I and the boy go over there. We will worship and then we will come back to you.

He’s already thinking that he's going to come back.

Yes. He says it there.

That really shows what he thinks is going to happen.

And with that verse, I’m interested in your thoughts. When Abraham says to his servants, and later to his son, “God will provide,” and that he’s going to come back—do you think that he's lying to them, or that he's speaking out in faith about what he thinks God will do?

I think the latter.

You think he’s speaking out in faith?

Any other thoughts?

Since we looked at Hebrews last week and will again next week, the Bible itself is the best commentary.

In Hebrews 11, it says, “by faith, Abraham, when he was tested, offered up Isaac, and he received the promises,” because he considered that God was able even to raise him from the dead.

So he had faith that God could do that, even in this moment.

That makes it so striking—he obeys even though the full picture isn’t clear.

That’s right.

This story of faith and provision shows us that we can speak in faith when facing challenges.

What would that look like?

I think it comes down to Abraham trusted God because he had trusted him in the past.

And so he continued to trust, even if he didn’t understand how all the pieces would come together.

Exactly.

It’s the same for us.

Even when we don’t see the full picture, we trust that God does.

He’s helped us in the past, and He will continue to provide.

That’s wonderful.

Yes?

The importance of following His commandments—that faith Abraham showed is mainly being obedient.

There was no precedent for this kind of sacrifice for the Lord, yet Abraham obeyed because he trusted God’s promises.

He knew that the Lord is for him, and he obeyed, even if he didn't understand.

That’s right.

It’s about living in humility and godliness in everything we do.

Exactly.

It really comes down to living out our faith daily.

Living in humility and obedience, trusting God with everything.

That’s good.

Let’s look at Micah 6:8.

He has shown you, O mortal, what is good. And what does the Lord require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God.

And then you just gotta love and follow His commandments.

He’s made it pretty clear—through Christ especially, the commandments are clear, though sometimes they may seem vague in our daily lives.

But our obedience is rooted in living what we believe from the beginning to the end of the Bible.

Yes.

I know there have been times I’ve faced difficulty.

I remember a tough job with a manager I didn’t like, and I would listen to praise music and speak scripture over myself—“I am a child of God,” and “I can do all things through Christ.”

When you do that, it gives you boldness and courage.

Because God calls us to do hard things, but doing them with joy, peace, and godliness — that’s a Christian life.

Abraham was able to talk back to God when thinking things through, like in Genesis 18, when God discusses destroying Sodom and Gomorrah.

He debates with God, questions Him, and shows faith that God will do what’s right.

That’s the kind of faith we’re called to.

The next connection is in verse four—on the third day, Abraham looked up and saw the place in the distance.

And that same phrase, 'looked up and saw,' is in verse 13.

Abraham looked up and saw a ram caught by its horns.

He was able to look up and see God's working twice.

That really illustrates the point that sometimes we can’t see how God's going to work it all out at first, but when we arrive at the end, it makes sense.

That’s often how God's call in our lives is.

We can’t always understand how it will work out initially, but eventually, when we arrive at the destination, we see the Lord’s hand.

Let's look briefly at verse 6.

You see Isaac with all the wood on his shoulders. He carries it up the mountain.

How old do you think Isaac might have been?

14, 15 maybe?

Any other guesses?

Those are guesses.

Go ahead.

I thought of something from verse four.

On the third day, they looked up and saw Jesus resurrected.

That’s a great connection.

Yes, this story is very closely tied to Jesus because of the sacrifice.

Just as Isaac carried the wood, Jesus carried the cross.

Isn’t that amazing?

And it’s felt strongly during the time of Jesus.

It doesn’t specify Isaac’s exact age in the Bible.

Tradition suggests he might have been about 30, similar to Jesus at his crucifixion.

But we know from Genesis that his mother was 90 when she had him.

So if he was 15, Abraham would have been about 106, and if he was 30, about 120.

In either case, Isaac was a willing sacrifice because Abraham wouldn't be able to physically stop him if he resisted; Isaac would have been strong enough to resist.

Both Isaac and Jesus made sacrifices of faith.

Isaac also serves as an example for us.

It makes me think of Romans 12:1—offering our bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God.

We should never harm ourselves intentionally, but in the sense of surrendering our will to serve the Lord, we imitate Isaac's willingness.

This story’s heart is in the conversation between Abraham and Isaac—found in verses seven and eight.

Isaac spoke up and said to his father, ‘Father,’

Yes, my son, Abraham replied.

The fire and the wood are here, Isaac said, but where is the lamb for the burnt offering?

Later, Abraham responds,

God himself will provide the lamb for the burnt offering, my son.

And in verse 14, Abraham calls that place the Lord will provide.

And to this day it is said, ‘On the mountain of the Lord it will be provided.’

Abraham said, “God will provide the sacrifice,” and God truly did.

Isaac had a voice. He wasn't silent through the whole thing.

Both had faith, and they saw their faith fulfilled.

Often, we feel like we have to do everything ourselves—like we’re the ones who must provide for God.

But as in Abraham’s story, when we give up what we shouldn’t hold onto—sins, doubts, guilt—God provides so much more.

Whenever we surrender, we find freedom.

God provides.

When we give up sin, we find freedom.

When we generously give or serve others, we gain joy and deeper connection.

And when we trust God to provide, we see His hand in our lives.

Isaac, Jesus, and God's Provision

Let’s look at some other connections between Isaac and Jesus.

We already saw Isaac carrying wood on his shoulders; what else?

Go ahead.

His willingness to go.

Absolutely, his willingness to go and listen to his earthly father.

Just like Jesus listened to His heavenly Father.

If it were my kids, they might complain about walking for three days or about the sacrifice.

But Isaac’s willingness is remarkable.

What else?

An animal lurking—the donkey.

Both Abraham and Jesus rode donkeys.

That’s wonderful.

Thank you.

I’d like to go back a step.

What an example this is, especially for those of us with adult children—teaching them to rely on the Lord, not just on us.

God will provide.

And it’s an example for us as parents, trusting that God loves our children more than we do.

Living in faith teaches them to rely on God Himself.

We don’t control everything, but the Lord does.

He makes better decisions than we could.

And that’s good because He loves our children even more than we do.

The faith we have is a gift that shapes the next generation.

Thank you so much for bringing that out.

God truly is the best parent, and we can teach our kids to trust in Him.

Another interesting tradition—there’s a Jewish legend that Abraham had to cut off a ram’s horn to get it out of the bush and used it as a shofar.

That’s neat.

Thank you for sharing.

It’s a legend, but it shows how God uses what’s available.

When Jesus returns, a trumpet—like a ram’s horn—will herald His coming.

Thank you.

In John 3:16, when God says,

Your Son, your only Son, whom you love,

that’s the first time “love” is used in the Bible.

And this point is very significant, because love, worship, and God's oath are all tied together.

Hearing that, we understand the depth of God's love and commitment.

This story also points to substitutionary atonement—the lamb for Isaac, and Jesus as the Lamb for us.

Revelation talks about the lamb that was sacrificed but also rules on the throne.

That’s right. Jesus is our sacrifice and our King.

And in John 1:29, John the Baptist calls Jesus the Lamb of God,

who takes away the sins of the world.

This shows how Jesus is our provision—every need fulfilled in Him.

We find belonging, acceptance, guidance, and provision through Christ.

Though this story is about Abraham and Isaac, it also foreshadows Jesus.

Go ahead.

That’s right.

It’s about helping Abraham rely fully on the Lord, not just on his own understanding.

Any final insights?

There are many things we saw today, and some of you wanted to share more.

Would anyone like to add anything before we close?

Thank you.

Would somebody like to close us in prayer?

I’d be happy to.

Lord, thank you so much that you provide for us.

Thank you that you are a good God, and we can trust in you.

Even in difficult times, we know you understand and are there for us.

Thank you for the ultimate provision of Jesus—that in Him we find our hope, our comfort, our salvation.

Help us to continue looking to you as the One who provides everything we need.

In the name of Jesus, we pray.

Amen.

Good. You’re dismissed. Thanks.