When my son, Eli, was a little(er) boy, he'd sit on the edge of his seat as Jamie and I told grand stories of adventure and peril found within the pages of Scripture. For a while, his common question amid the most action packed or suspenseful parts was to stop me and ask, "Does it end good? Is it happy?" Not every story does end "happy," but in the ones that do, I was always happy to report, "Yes, buddy. It ends really good."
One such story was that of Abraham who was commanded by
God to sacrifice his only son, Isaac. (Genesis 22) Eli was understandably
troubled as he asked, and I explained, what a burnt offering was. I told him
how Abraham "rose early" to go and obey God's command (v. 3), and
that on the third day of their journey, Abraham told his servants, "Stay here with the donkey; I and the boy will go
over there and worship and come again to you." (v. 5)
At this point, Eli didn't seem too rattled...almost as if
he trusted that God would intervene. But, as Abraham built the altar, then "reached out his hand and took the knife to
slaughter his son," Eli reached out his hand to me and interrupted,
"Daddy! Does it end good...is it happy?!" I explained that not only
does this end happy, but this event helped make it possible
for Jesus to save the world from sin.
I found myself feeling so
thankful for God and for men like Abraham whose bold faith gives me hope. I
couldn't help but feel an extra measure of appreciation. See, it was hard for
me to look my son in the eye and tell the story, because it frightened him so.
But Abraham did "not withhold
his...only son" from God. (v. 22)
Then the pain pierced my
heart as I realized, as if for the first time, that my God "did not spare
his own Son but gave Him up for us all." (Romans 8:32) Because of Him, all
things "end good." Because of Him, there is hope.
