INTRODUCTION

THE BLESSING OF WAITING

Audience Question: Feel free to raise your hand to answer this one: What is the longest thing you’ve had to wait for and how long did you have to wait for it?  

Do you remember the long wait for your first car?

Do you remember waiting to finally get married?

How about the 9 month wait for your first child?

I guess when your a kid, waiting for desert can seem like an eternity…!!!

But here is a truth, sometimes the wait makes the thing that you waited for even more special to you. Especially when the waiting involves suffering, agony, or hard work — You finally get to move in, or fill that long coveted position, or finish that eternal project.

When you finally arrive, you sit back in satisfaction. In fact, our most prized possessions are usually things we have waited for — and even more special than physical objects, are people we have waited for, children we have waited for!

You are beginning to catch a glimpse of our Bible Story and main character who had to wait a very long time for someone very very special…

[Gen 12:1-3 NKJV] 1 Now the LORD had said to Abram: “Get out of your country, From your family And from your father’s house, To a land that I will show you. 2 I will make you a great nation; I will bless you And make your name great; And you shall be a blessing. 3 I will bless those who bless you, And I will curse him who curses you; And in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed.”  

An amazing promise to a man who was already old — “I will make of you a GREAT nation”.

Abram you’re going to be a dad, not just of one or two, but a nation will come from you!

LIVING & WAITING FOR THE DREAM

Imagine with me, growing up as little Abe — You see and play with children, you have brothers and sisters… Finally the day comes when you drive your first Camel — Phew! You’ve waited a long time to get your Camel Driving License, but you watch your friends get theirs and you finally get yours.

And then Abram finally gets a wife — He has watched as one by one of his friends married, and he too finds a wife in Ur. Sarai, a beautiful woman who Abram can be proud of… And then Sarai and Abe see that many of their friends are getting their own homes in the city and beginning to have kids. It’s the next step in the cycle of life, but things don’t come as quickly for Abram and Sarai as it does for their friends and they wait, and wait, and wait and wait to get out of living with mom and dad, but they don’t leave and start their own family like everyone else. They are waiting five years, seven years, ten years, twelve years, fifteen years… Sarai says, “Abram if we are going to move out and have kids, it needs to happen soon — Abram I’m almost 40!” but still the dream doesn’t happen. They move to Haran with Abram’s parents and wait longer — Twenty years, Twenty five years, Thirty years, Forty years, Fifty years living with his parents and still no children of their own, no little family raised in a cute little house at the end of the cul de sac like all the other families… Nope, not for Abram and Sarai… The dream is dead — Life has turned in an expected direction.

GIVING UP ON THE DREAM

By now all their friends are grandparents, have gone through several nice homes, have enjoyed a full life in the city of Haran — and here is Abram and Sarai still living with mom and dad at home, but now taking care of their parents in their old age, no kids, no grand kids — Having given up on the dream of raising a little family all their own YEARS and YEARS and YEARS ago!!! Nope, it’s not going to happen for us honey — The Dream is DEAD!!!

GOD REVIVES THE DREAM

The Bible tells us that this is precisely when they finally get the promise from God to move out into their own home and yes they will have their own little baby, with their own little family, in their own little home. But they are SEVENTY FIVE years old!!!

[Gen 12:4 NKJV] 4 So Abram departed as the LORD had spoken to him, and Lot went with him. And Abram [was] seventy-five years old when he departed from Haran.

Are you catching a glimpse of the insanity, the absurdity, the complete impossibility of this dream that God now paints for Abram… Maybe you too would have a hard time catching the vision, that you felt you had to abandon years and years and years ago: “Sorry, God… you’re a little late on this one — we were dreaming of our country home at 30 — we were hoping for the a little bouncy bundle of joy at 20… We are in retirement age, Lord?”  

But I want to pause right here and highlight that just because we have given up on the vision long ago, does not mean that God has given up on the vision also!

[Hab 2:3 NKJV] 3 For the vision [is] yet for an appointed time; But at the end it will speak, and it will not lie. Though it tarries, wait for it; Because it will surely come, It will not tarry.

I love how this prophecy says “though it tarries….” and then says “it will not tarry” … That’s like saying, “Even if you have to wait for it, don’t worry you won’t have to wait for it.”— Meaning, it’s going to come at the right time even if the right time is not your time or my time!

God is never late!  

[Gal 4:4 NKJV] 4 But when the fullness of the time had come, God sent forth His Son…

and Jesus reminds us, that we don’t always see from the beginning God’s timing on things. We have to wait and trust in the Lord, and know that God is never late and rarely early, but always right on time:

[Act 1:7 NKJV] 7 And He said to them, “It is not for you to know times or seasons which the Father has put in His own authority.

FAITH FOR AN UNEXPECTED LIFE

So Abram and Sarai depart from Haran with the promise of God — And just remember, they don’t even know where they are going to… There is no destination God has given them, they simply depart from Haran in faith… believing that finally they will get a home of their own and a family of their own… But the cute little home in the country doesn’t come and the cute little baby in the crib doesn’t come… Yes they are on their own — but the Bible says that instead of a brick and mortar home with  a nice fenced backyard, they get a tent!

Let me tell you, when you are walking with the Lord and He is leading in your life, not only do you have to have faith in the timing of God, but you also have to faith in the plan of God — Because God’s plans, God’s dreams are bigger than our dreams and our plans — and bigger plans require that we give up on our own plans, in faith, so that God’s bigger, better, and more perfect plans can be accomplished in our life.

[Isa 55:8-9 NKJV] 8 “For My thoughts [are] not your thoughts, Nor [are] your ways My ways,” says the LORD. 9 “For [as] the heavens are higher than the earth, So are My ways higher than your ways, And My thoughts than your thoughts. and we see this in Abraham’s life.

[Heb 11:8-10 NIV] 8 By faith Abraham, when called to go to a place he would later receive as his inheritance, obeyed and went, even though he did not know where he was going. 9 By faith he made his home in the promised land like a stranger in a foreign country; he lived in tents, as did Isaac and Jacob, who were heirs with him of the same promise. 10 For he was looking forward to the city with foundations, whose architect and builder is God.

So they live in a tent and wait, and wait, and wait … Five years (no child), Ten years (no child), Fourteen years (No child)  

The Bible says, [Gen 17:1 NKJV] 1 When Abram was ninety-nine years old…

Remember the promise was given when he was 75!  

By this time, not only has Abram and Sarai given up on the dream of having their own kids, they have made their own plan to accomplish God’s promise through their own power — and I will just take a moment to say, that the biggest mistake of the men and women in the Bible that we see over and over again that creates such strife, and pain, and hurt in their lives is when God’s people take matters into their own hands and try to force the promise of God because they are tired of waiting.

Ishmael is born, and it creates major interpersonal family conflicts for Abram and Sarai — and their attention is diverted from God’s promise, to their own accomplishment and they FULLY give up on the promise of the Lord. But God doesn’t give up on Abram or Sarai or His dream for them, even when they give up and chose their own way.

GOD REMAINS FAITHFUL

[2Ti 2:13 NKJV] 13 If we are faithless, He remains faithful; He cannot deny Himself.

You will see this over and over again in the Bible and in the life of Abraham… It is when

Abraham has completely given up, that God comes and reminds Him of His promise.

[Gen 17:15-18 NKJV] 15 Then God said to Abraham, “As for Sarai your wife, you shall not call her name Sarai, but Sarah [shall be] her name. 16 “And I will bless her and also give you a son by her; then I will bless her, and she shall be [a mother of] nations; kings of peoples shall be from her.” 17 Then Abraham fell on his face and laughed, and said in his heart, “Shall [a child] be born to a man who is one hundred years old? And shall Sarah, who is ninety years old, bear

[a child]?” 18 And Abraham said to God, “Oh, that Ishmael might live before You!”

Do you see what Abraham just did? He reverts back to his plan, and asks God to bless and accept his plan… Whose plan is better, God’s plan or our plan? Already, Ishmael and Hagar have created jealousy and contention in the family… and yet as dysfunctional as Abraham’s family unit is, he still asks God, “God, please just give up on your plan… I’m to old, I have a son by someone else… It’s not perfect, it’s not all I had hoped for, but God can you just give up on your plan and accept mine?”

and God could have just said, “Ok, Abraham… Let’s just go with Ishmael.” But when God looked into the life of Abraham, He saw what Abraham couldn’t see…. God saw a man crying out for an ordinary life, when God planned to do something extraordinary in Him — God saw a man crying out for God to fit within his human box and just do what is possible for any man, when God wanted to burst outside the box and do the humanly impossible for this man….

Let this be a lesson to you that temptation will come in your life to ask God to just fit in your box and follow your plan and give you the ordinary, the possible, the life of your neighbor, the cookie cutter house, on the cookie cutter block, with the cookie cutter family — But when those temptations come, remember:

1. God’s plan is not for you to live an ordinary cookie cutter life
2. God has no intentions of fitting in your box — He has higher ways, bigger plans, and a more extraordinary life for you than you can imagine — And if you let God’s plan rule in your life, it may come later than you expect, but you will live the impossible dream because you are following a God who is able to conquer the impossible!

[1Co 2:9 NKJV] 9 But as it is written: “Eye has not seen, nor ear heard, Nor have entered into the heart of man The things which God has prepared for those who love Him.”

THE FULFILLMENT OF THE DREAM

and so finally, when Abraham is 100 years old — 100 YEARS OLD!!!! The dream of their life, is now being rocked in their lap…

[Gen 21:5 NKJV] 5 Now Abraham was one hundred years old when his son Isaac was born to him.

Can you imagine the joy, the pride of his father and mother, and the number of people they would share this story with…. Over and over and over and over again they share the story — “Yes, it’s true, we were living in Ur, just wanting a child of our own, to live a cookie cutter life in the city and raise our family like everyone else — but God called us to the country… and we did tent living waiting for God’s promise, and even when we lost faith in God’s ability to accomplish what He said He would do… He made it happen… We are finally, finally, finally parents to a little bundle of joy…”

and we could say that Isaac, like Jesus, grew in stature (which means height), and grew in strength, and in wisdom and knowledge, and he grew in favor with God and in favor with man. Think of it, at that time he would have been the most famous baby ever born — a miracle birth to a woman who was past the ability to have children. Can you imagine the opportunities that came to Abraham and Sarah to witness to all their household, and anyone else they came in contact with, to the power, the greatness, the magnificence of their God. Had God fit in the box that Abraham had asked God to fit in, they would not have such a testimony to give! They would not have the ability to bring God glory, as much as they had now.

This really speaks to the purpose of humanity — We were created to bring glory to our Creator, and when we glorify God by allowing Him to work out His plan in our life, we are fulfilling our highest purpose — and with that it brings a deep satisfaction to our life.

Not only was Abraham & Sarah’s purpose in life to bring glory to God, but as a family they were also to represent Him in their life — and when you look at the life of Isaac and compare it to the life of Jesus, you realize that God had an even bigger plan in foreshadowing the coming Messiah through the life of Isaac.

CALLED TO REFLECT JESUS

In many ways we can see the life of Jesus being foreshadowed through the life of Isaac:

1. Miraculous Birth: — Sarah gives birth when she is past the birthing years, Mary gives birth before she has ever been with a man.
2. Coming Was Prophesied: Both are children of the promise, born out of prophecy — Isaac was prophesied over a lifetime, and Jesus was prophesied over many lifetimes.
3. Both Were Beloved of Their Father:

[Gen 22:2 NKJV] 2 Then He said, “Take now your son, your only [son] Isaac, whom you love…”

Now pause here, the verse says “only son” — was Isaac, Abraham’s “only son”? The truth is the Abraham also had Ishmael who was just as much Abraham’s son. Why then does the Bible says “only” son? The Hebrew word is “Yakeed” which means much more than “only” it can be translated as “darling” or “beloved”. The verse literally reads, “take your son, your darling baby boy, the one who you love to the moon and back”.

and fair enough — Had not Abraham and Sarah waited for this darling little bundle of joy their entire lives? This verse captures the deep, deep, deep love that they had for their most prized and treasured promised son. This incredible love pointed forward to the love of the heavenly Father for His own Son:

[Mat 3:16-17 NKJV] 16 When He had been baptized, Jesus came up immediately from the water; and behold, the heavens were opened to Him, and He saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and alighting upon Him. 17 And suddenly a voice [came] from heaven, saying, “This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.”

and now we come to the hardest part of the story — the ultimate way in which Isaac was called to foreshadow the coming Messiah.

CALLED TO BE A SACRIFICE

4. Both Were Called To Be A Sacrifice:

[Gen 22:2 NKJV] 2 Then He said, “Take now your son, your only [son] Isaac, whom you love, and go to the land of Moriah, and offer him there as a burnt offering on one of the mountains of which I shall tell you.”

God was asking Abraham for his MOST prized possession — the one thing he had literally waited his entire life for.  

Now I want you to remember a few things about this promised baby boy… Abraham had not worked for this boy. He had not earned this boy. He had not even created this boy. Over and over and over again in the story of Abraham, we have the evidence that he had given up on this boy!!! We could even say, he didn’t deserve this boy!

Remember his words to God when God said he would have a son?

“Oh that Ishmael would live before you.”  

“Would God give a child to us in our old age?”

No, Isaac was not Abraham’s because of Abraham — Isaac was God’s son, given to Abraham and Sarah when it was proved beyond a shadow of a doubt that they could do nothing for themselves. (Take a brief moment and contemplate the verse that says  

[Eph 2:8 NKJV] 8 For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves;

[it is] the gift of God,

God gave the promise, God gave the miracle birth — and yet friends when God gives what we do not deserve, somehow at some point along the way we are tempted to cease to believing in grace, and somehow we take ownership of God’s gift as if it is our own earned right! As though we through blood, sweat and tears accomplished the miracle. The promised son, becomes our most prized POSSESSION and ceases to be our most priced GIFT.  

the Bible says, what God has given — He has a right to take back. Job, got it right when he said,

[Job 1:21 NKJV] 21: “Naked I came from my mother’s womb, And naked shall I return there. The LORD gave, and the LORD has taken away; Blessed be the name of the LORD.”

Which is to say — “God, I trust you to bring into my life the very best things that I know are for my good, and if God you chose to take them away, I will continue to trust that even this is for my good!”

and so when Abraham was called to give up his son, he looked beyond the sacrifice of Isaac to the resurrection and by faith believed that He who had given this miracle child, could and would give him again!

[Heb 11:17-19 NKJV] 17 By faith Abraham, when he was tested, offered up Isaac, and he who had received the promises offered up his only begotten [son], 18 of whom it was said, “In Isaac your seed shall be called,” 19 concluding that God [was] able to raise [him] up, even from the dead, from which he also received him in a figurative sense.

THE ULTIMATE SACRIFICE

This represented the ultimate sacrifice for Abraham, because it was the ultimate gift from God

— A son, A miracle boy, A promise given long ago to a couple who had waited their entire lives, A boy given through the grace and faithfulness of God even when God’s man of the hour had lost faith. This Isaac, given to Abraham, foreshadowed the ultimate sacrifice of Jesus, who also represented the ultimate gift from God. A son, a miracle boy, promised long ago, given through the grace and faithfulness of God at a time when a whole nation had lost faith.

[Jhn 3:16 NKJV] 16 “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.

Do you feel as though you’ve waited for the dream, the promise from God, your whole life and it just isn’t coming? Maybe you feel that God has asked you to sacrifice your most prized possession? or perhaps you feel that the box you so desperately want God to fit in just isn’t happening like you had planned?

God never asks us to make a real sacrifice, but when we choose God’s plan for our life, we are choosing a plan that will bring the greatest happiness, the greatest joy, and the greatest rewards for those who are willing to not only wait on the Lord, but to give up their plans for God’s higher plans—  

[Mar 10:29-30 NKJV] 29 Jesus said, “Assuredly, I say to you, there is no one who has left house or brothers or sisters or father or mother or wife or children or lands, for My sake and the gospel’s, 30 “who shall not receive a hundredfold now in this time–houses and brothers and sisters and mothers and children and lands, with persecutions–and in the age to come, eternal

life.

Friends, behold the centenarian and his son travel three days to Mount Moriah… See the aged Abe — who had long ago given his life into the hands of His Maker, now wandering up that long hill to offer His most prized gift back to God. With teared streaked eyes, and a faith that would thunder down the ages to all time, he raises his knife to give the ultimate sacrifice — His darling baby boy, now a young man, when suddenly the mighty voice of an angel sent from God whose voice now echoes like the crash of lightning on the rocky mountain: “Abraham, Abraham… Don’t sacrifice your son — For God has provided the sacrifice — God has provided a Ram!!!”

and in saying this the Angel gave a proclamation, A truth that should sound in the minds and hearts of God’s people to the very end of time — The only one who ever truly gives a sacrifice is GOD!!!! And whenever we are called upon to make a sacrifice, we are but offering to God something good that He may give us something better.  

There is a little book, filled with spiritual gems, called “Help in Daily Living”, and I’d like to share with you what it says:

“We are never called upon to make a real sacrifice for God. Many things He asks us to yield to Him, but in doing this we are but giving up that which hinders us in the heavenward way. Even when called upon to surrender those things which in themselves are good, we may be sure that God is thus working out for us some higher good.” — Help in Daily Living, 13

This story of Abraham ends with him calling this place a new name:

[Gen 22:14 KJV] 14 “And Abraham called the name of that place Jehovahjireh…” What does it mean? “The Lord Will Provide” Appeal:

Today you may be looking at your own life and asking God — How long do I have to wait before I get what everyone else gets, before my life is the happy cookie cutter life of my neighbor? Maybe, just maybe, God is asking you through the story of Abraham to step out of the box you’ve made for yourself, realizing that God’s plans for you are bigger, greater, and more extraordinary than cookie cutters! And in the place of your plans, He is asking you to simply put “Jehovah-Jireh” — “The Lord will Provide”….

Are you willing to bow your head and say it with me just now? “Jehovah Jireh” …. “Jehovah Jireh”…. “Jehovah Jireh”…..