After starting with faith in God, and responding by seeking him, the next step was the invitation to lay down their lives, to sacrifice all for God.

While Satan introduced self-protection as the goal (Job was during Abraham’s time), Abraham was willing to sacrifice the very means for the promises of God to be fulfilled in his life.

In response God made his famous covenant with Abraham. We see the first answered prayers, the first time we’re saved by angels, and the first dreams and interpretations.

3) Abraham’s Time: “offered Isaac as a SACRIFICE” – Heb 11:17

• vs. self-protection – “God, I sacrifice my own comfort to know you”
  • “Does Job fear God for nothing?” Satan replied. “Have you not put a hedge around him and his household and everything he has? (Job 1:9-10)

• Covenanted With – “God, I sacrifice other covenants to be yours”
  • “I will make you into a great nation, and I will bless you” (Gen 12:2)

• Answered Prayers – “God, I sacrifice my time to pray for others”
  • “What if the number of the righteous is five less than fifty?” (Gen 18:28)

• Saved by Angels – “God, I sacrifice even the means for your promises to come true in my life”
  • But the angel of the Lord called out to him from heaven, “Abraham! Abraham!” “Here I am,” he replied. “Do not lay a hand on the boy,” he said. (Gen 22:12)

• Dreams from God – “God, I sacrifice my logic to follow your leading”
  • He had a dream in which he saw a stairway resting on the earth, with its top reaching to heaven (Gen 28:12)

• Dream Interpretation – “God I sacrifice my own judgement to follow yours”
  • Joseph said to them, “Do not interpretations belong to God? Tell me your dreams.” (Gen 40:8)