He said this was about swimming in the "deep end" of the pool of faith. And from the beginning of the sermon I had a visual tucked in my head. And then John Crimmins, my CEPC pastor, began his lesson on the familiar story in Genesis 22 of Abraham taking Isaac up the mountain. That has always been a hard one for me because I, to this day, continue to struggle with the concept that I would never have enough faith, or a deepened obedience to God to take my child up the mountain knowing he was to be sacrificed.
This story is the earliest clue and parallel to John 3:16; For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. This was father Abraham, taking his only son to the mountain to be sacrificed. Abraham and Isaac, God and Jesus. Isaac carried the wood, Jesus carried his cross. Isaac was substituted for a ram, Jesus' sacrifice ended in death for he was the only unblemished, spotless, sinless sacrifice that could take on the sins of the world. There were no other substitutes. God delivered his only son for all of us to be able to have everlasting life.
Ok, I don't want to be preachy here, but the story is such a great reminder especially here at Christmas time as we celebrate the birth of this Holy baby who would be the very one who would make way for us to have eternal life.
Lets just get back to this swimming pool deal. Every single one of us have had one of those mountain top experiences. And I am not talking about joyful celebrations, I am talking about having to swim in the deep end of the pool of faith and surviving it. Maybe some of you are in the deep end right now and are having to trust God like never before and hang on so tight to your faith that your knuckles are turning white.
God gives us opportunities as new Christians to step in His pool of faith. When we can still touch bottom, the security is not yet entirely on God rather we have our own footing and a stable floor. But as our relationship with God grows, so does our pool of faith deepen and at some point our trails become over our head. We can either sink under the suffering, pain and despair or we can put our faith in God and count on him to help us tread the waters of faith. I in no way am minimizing the anxiousness of grief or suffering or facing unknown territory, for I know that is real and the emotions that go with it are at times overwhelming, But as strong as those feelings of insecurity and anxiousness are, so is the balance of faithfulness in God. If we allow God to take over and rescue us from our worldly dependencies, our faith will cast us into an arena of hope. This is a hard sacrifice for anybody, those going through tough spots and those on a coasting path.
If I was to look back on my life there are definite points in which I know with all my heart that it was God who got me through the tough times. And if I close my eyes and imagine those mountain peaks, it gives me great peace to think, he got me through those, and he will be faithful to get me through the one that I may be in now or ones to come.
I may never have the sell out faith that Abraham had, but I know that everyday whatever God puts in my path that he will give me the strength, fortitude, tenacity and perseverance to faithfully survive it. No matter how deep any of us are in the pool of faith, God will get a lifeguard for you, and so many times it is someone who has experienced your same trial and has come out of it on the other side. This is the hope that floats. Whatever difficulty you have come face to face with, God calls to you to not face it with fear but with faith.
For on that mountain Abraham was called to be obedient and his faith was tested in a way that hardly seems bearable to most of us. But his test that day was relative to him, and our tests this day are relative to us. When we find that we have made our way from the shallow end of faith and have tiptoed down to the deep end of faith, and life trials are over our head, the floor may no longer be an available security from below, but there is a security from above that is everlasting. That is God. And through his grace and provision, and he will bring us peace when we submit to a sincere and true faith and belief that He is who he says he is, and does what he says he is going to do.
Dear Lord, Thank you for the story of Isaac, and for the faithful reminder that you do what you say you are going to do, even when you told Abraham and Sarah in their old age that they would have a child, and you followed through. From one generation to the next stories continue to mount and your hand is seen in all of them. This was a story of faith, clear and simple. May we seek to find that same faith within our own hearts.
Amen
Praise God wherever you are and whatever situation He has allowed you to be in . . . His glory will shine through!
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