In the Genesis account of the story, Abraham is tested by
God. He is told to take his son, his
only son, the one he loves, Isaac and offer him as a sacrifice. Abraham does
not discuss what to do with anyone. He
does not debate whether the voice he is hearing is real or unreal. He obeys, takes his son along with a few
young men, necessary supplies and heads for a place to slaughter his boy. He seems calm and without concern.
In Jewish tradition, this event is called the Akeda, the
binding of Isaac. This test of Abraham’s
faith and loyalty is a story with deep and controversial meaning for Jews and
Christians.
Maybe the story has less to do with Abraham’s faith than
God’s reliability. God has promised
Abraham descendants as plentiful as the stars in the sky, as the dust on the
earth, and Abraham believed and trusted God.
He trusted God so much he decided to test God. So, he remained calm, took his son to Mount
Moriah, prepared the fire and bound his son, and bet all he had on God’s
reliability.
God was testing Abraham, but Abraham was also testing
God. Who would blink first? Abraham won
the wager. God was reliable. Abraham was reliable.
Whether Abe testing God is true or not, what can we say today
about God’s reliability? In our times
and in our lives, many have experienced the silence of God. But, are we right? It depends how you want to talk about God working
in our world.
In Jewish tradition we are taught, every time one of us
cares for the neighbor, one of us is kind rather than angry, one of us stands
up for justice, one of us changes his or her life for the better, there, right
there is the presence and influence of God.
God has faith in our capacity to act.
And what if God’s reliability is tied to our reliability? What if God needs us to act for God to be
reliable? I’m not sure but it’s something
to think about.
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