Day 7

“I couldn’t do it, I just couldn’t do it,” Abraham said to Sarah.  “Whatever do you mean, Abraham?” she asked.  “Well, God asked me to offer up Isaac as a burnt offering and I just couldn’t do it,” he said.
Aren’t you glad your Bible doesn’t read that way?  I have often wondered if it were my faith being tested, how the story would have turned out.  Abraham had an extreme faith in God.  It wasn’t that Abraham was calling God’s bluff or knew it was only a test.  No, he was ready to do exactly what God asked of Him.  Hebrews 11:19 says, “Abraham assumed that if Isaac died, God was able to bring him back to life again…”
Abraham had to trust God with Isaac’s life.  Are you willing to do the same?  Now, God isn’t asking you to physically sacrifice your life or the life of a loved one, but he is asking you to die to yourself and trust Him with your life.

General Questions for each day:
Summarize the day’s Bible passage in your own words.
What thoughts, actions, attitudes or beliefs are addressed in the passage?
How is the Holy Spirit leading you to apply this passage to your life today?

Bible Discussion Guide:

How do you define faith?

What examples of faith do we see in this week’s readings?

Are there any of these examples that you particularly relate with?

Have you ever known someone who has what you would call extreme faith like Abraham?

What was it about their faith that would cause you to refer to it as extreme?

Read Genesis 22 as a group.
How was Abraham’s faith tested?

How has your faith been tested?

How did you respond to the test?

What did you learn about God through that experience?

How has your faith been deepened as a result of the testing?

Are you having difficulty trusting God with a particular area in your life right now?  Are you willing to share that struggle with your small group?

Why are you struggling with trusting God in this area?

How has God shown Himself to be trustworthy in similar areas in the past?

Personal application: You can express your renewed faith and trust in God for this area of your life right now.
Heavenly Father, Thank you for your faithfulness in all areas of my life. Please forgive me for not fully trusting you with ____________________. I truly desire to trust you in all areas of my life, please help my faith grow by the power of your Holy Spirit. Amen.