And being fully persuaded that, what he had promised, he was able also to perform.

Romans 4:21

Those are Paul’s words concerning Abraham, the figure we are going to study tonight in Bible class. Join us, won’t you?

To simplify the verse here: Paul is saying “Isaac was born by faith…but not by faith only.” God promised a blessing, but Abraham had a part to play. Abraham’s work didn’t put God in debt to him; he simply did what he was supposed to do and God blessed him. When it comes to God’s blessings there are always two elements: A Divine component (Grace) and a human component (obedience).

Later, when Abraham was commanded to offer Isaac, Abraham had such a strong faith in God that he merely assumed God would raise him from the dead (Hebrews 11:17-19). He didn’t assume God would stop him (as God did). He didn’t assume a different command would be given to override the original one (which happened, when God commanded him to offer the ram instead). He didn’t assume anything other than “God will just bring him back from the dead.” Catch that? That kind of assumption presumes that Isaac will die.

That kind of assumption requires Abraham TO PUT A KNIFE THROUGH HIS SON! There was no doubt in his mind: When God gave the command, Abraham was going to kill Isaac. After that, Abraham was willing to let God figure it all out.

That takes a LOT of faith.

As with everything, when God made a promise, Abraham’s faith allowed him to perform whatever was necessary according to God’s commands.

Do I have that kind of faith? I hope so, but I don’t know.

We’ll talk about that tonight. Why not join us!