Why would God need to test Abraham's faith? Doesn't God know what is in a person's heart?
God allowed
Abraham to demonstrate his faith of his own free will, in order to have a written record of it for our benefit. It was Abraham's choice to please his God. It was not forced or coerced in any way. He is one of our prime examples of faith in the Bible.
Job was tested to the very limit of human endurance and he also passed that test with flying colors. Why did God allow such an awful test? Because satan had made an accusation about this most faithful of men and by extension, all of us. He said that Job only served God because of the good things that God gave him....he said that if everything was taken away, that Job would curse God to his face. Satan took away everything that Job valued in his life, including his 10 children.....but he maintained his faith even though he had no idea that he was the subject of a test. But that wasn't enough.....he then said that Job would give up his God before he gave up his life.....he was wrong again. Job never wavered even though he mistakenly believed that the run of bad events was coming from God. He had no idea why these things were happening but he figured that there had to be a good reason. And on top of all that, three so called "comforters" came and accused Job of doing evil things to deserve this punishment. Why is that account in the Bible? Step back and see how many people are like Job right now, with one calamitous thing after another happening to them. How many are proving to be faithful like Job.....and how many are giving up on God just like satan said they would if the going got tough?
There is no information on the age of Issac. when God asked for his sacrifice.
If God was going to resurrect Issac anyway, why did God stop Abraham? Wouldn't it have been even a greater show of faith? A greater show of God's power?
Jewish tradition, recorded by Josephus, says that Isaac was 25 years old at the time. At any rate, he was old enough and strong enough to carry a considerable quantity of wood up a mountain. So, he could have resisted his 125-year-old father when the time came to bind him if he had chosen to be rebellious against Jehovah’s commandments. (
Jewish Antiquities, I, 227 [xiii, 2]) Instead, Isaac submissively let his father proceed to offer him as a sacrifice in harmony with God’s will. For this demonstration of Abraham’s faith, Jehovah then repeated and enlarged upon his covenant with Abraham, which covenant was transferred by God to Isaac after the death of his father.
It is stated that those who come back in the resurrection will not marry or have children. (Luke 20:34-36) So perhaps a resurrected Isaac would not have had the ability to have children. We really don't know.
When you understand that God wanted the earth "filled"....but not overpopulated, we can understand why there will be no marriage for the resurrected ones. Think of how awkward it would be for those who lost spouses and married again. I believe that a whole new kind of love will prevail then....one that we never got to develop due to sin.
In the big scheme of things, there would have to come a time when the earth reached its full limit of human population. Unlike the animals, we were not created to die, so when we have comfortably filled the earth, God will probably do one of two things.....he will either stop us from procreating...or he will make other planets habitable and allow some of us to go there as new Adams and Eves. ...who knows? Its a mighty big universe.
We will soon see I guess. Whatever God decides, it will be well received by those blessed with everlasting life in Paradise.
