Why we should be grateful for God’s jealousy
This is the final post in a series on how God tested Abraham by calling him to sacrifice his son Isaac (see Genesis 22). To read from the beginning, click here.
God’s fierce, covenant love is what draws us even though he tests us. His love is worth everything. His love is better than life. And his love can be trusted. In fact, one of the most encouraging things about Abraham’s test is God’s jealousy. It shows how much he cares about you. Your love matters to the Lord of all.
The worst thing that can happen to you is not to be tested as Abraham was; the worst would be if the Lord of the universe did not care about your love. I do not want the one who holds my life in his hand to be indifferent. I am glad my affection matters infinitely to him. What could be more flattering or give greater significance? Not success or fame. Not family. And not wealth. Not anything we withhold from him. God tests deeply because he loves deeply. He will prove true to those who prove true to him.
Such love is why we need not fear this trial. Fallen hearts avoid surrender. In some ways we want to be close to God and his blessings, yet at the same time we want to keep our distance lest he require us to surrender what we love most. We fear what he will ask from us. This is one reason people avoid God, the Bible, and church. They know they have something he wants, and they do not intend to release it. It has become their god, their supreme desire, the one thing they feel they cannot live without. If the choice is between God and Isaac, they choose Isaac.
Surprisingly it is this unsettling quality of God’s heart—his jealously of Isaac—that assures you can wholeheartedly draw near. For he requires surrender because he loves you greatly. He requires surrender because that love will satisfy infinitely more than your Isaac. He requires surrender because he knows his generous intentions to reward your sacrifice extravagantly. And he requires surrender because he is God; therefore he alone deserves your ultimate devotion. It glorifies him, and that glory will delight you forever.
In the end, we lose what we withhold from God and keep what we give. Abraham’s ultimate test ends with these words about him and his son: “They arose and went together to Beersheba” (Genesis 22:19).