The Godly Art of Letting Go
By faith Abraham, when God tested him, offered Isaac as a sacrifice. He who had received the promises was about to sacrifice his one and only son, Hebrews 11:17
In Genesis 12, God told Abraham to leave his country, his family, and his security. When he said yes to God, he travelled an unfamiliar path to an unknown destiny based on the strength of a promise. Without hesitating, the seventy-five-year-old patriarch ‘went, as the LORD had told him’ (Genesis 12:4).
Now fast-forward twenty-five years and Isaac is born; the miracle son who would fulfil God’s promise that through Abraham’s descendants ‘all the nations of the earth [will] be blessed; because… Abraham obeyed my voice’ (Genesis 26:4-5). Then God makes a heart-wrenching demand: ‘Take your son, your only son, whom you love – Isaac – and go to the region of Moriah. Sacrifice him there as a burnt offering’ (Genesis 22:2). And in obedience to God’s Word, ‘the next morning Abraham got up and…took with him…his son Isaac’ (v. 3).
God’s promised blessing was contingent upon Abraham’s willingness to let go of what he loved most. Holding on to Isaac would have been natural and understandable, but it would have short-circuited the promised blessing. So, what are you clinging to that’s blocking God’s blessing in your life? Is it your children, friendships, reputation, power, possessions, comfort, habits?
Abraham’s willingness to sacrifice Isaac was the supreme act of faith. ‘By faith Abraham, when he was tested, offered up Isaac.’ How could he do it? ‘Abraham reasoned that if Isaac died, God was able to bring him back to life’ (Hebrews 11:19). Abraham believed that, with God, letting go never means losing but getting back something better. And you will too!
Prayer
Heavenly Father, help me let go of things so I can be freed up to more fully serve You and do what You have planned for me. In Jesus’ Name, Amen
One on the outside might ask, “what kind of God do you listen to? Killing your own child? Is this some sort of sick, cruel and demonized joke?”
Absolutely not! It’s an illustration about a father sacrificing His own Son, to a cruel, sick and demonized world in order to show love, true agape love for all his children. Letting go is different than when someone says, “let it go “, think about the Frozen song. “Let it go. Let it go!” It’s not an easy thing to do.
Even when a friend or neighbor or a relative moves away, letting go is not easy, but in the event of a tragedy or death, letting go can be impossible, until the time comes and we realize we must move on and move forward in life, and that’s with the hope of promises given by God and the faith we have to follow