We Will Come Back
BRD REFLECTION 2026
Genesis 22 and Psalm 81:8-16 (NIV)
(Jabez Fong, Former Pastoral Associate)
READ:
Genesis 22 (NIV)
OBSERVE:
Verse 5 intrigued me. Abraham knew that he had been asked to sacrifice Isaac, yet in his response to his servants, he said that after they had worshipped, “we will come back to you”. Not “I”, but “we”.
APPLY:
As I read this passage, the theme that stood out to me was “faith”. Isaac was the culmination of all of Abraham’s hopes and dreams – the fulfilment of God’s promise to him that he would one day be a great nation, and that this nation would come through Isaac and no other (Gen 17:19-21). Yet here, God seems to ask Abraham to sacrifice the very hope that he had for the fulfilment of God’s promise.
While certainly filled with fear and anxiety, Abraham holds on to his faith in God. He trusts that no matter what might happen, even if Isaac died, His faithful God would still somehow fulfil His promises. Indeed, in the Hall of Faith in Hebrews 11, one action attributed to Abraham’s faith was the belief that God could raise the dead – even Isaac, as a mark of his power.
Yet Abraham’s faith was not merely a human act or force of will. It was a response to God’s prior faithfulness — God calling him, leading him into a foreign land, caring for him, prospering him, and finally giving him Isaac. God had always been faithful to Abraham, and that was the basis of Abraham’s faith.
DO:
I will hold fast to my faith that God can do the impossible in my life, trusting that He will fulfil the promises He has given me in Christ. I will spend some time each day journaling, noting one way God has been faithful to me and giving thanks to Him for His great faithfulness.
PRAY:
God of everlasting faithfulness, I thank You that in Your goodness I have never been forgotten and that my fears, anxieties, hopes, and dreams are always before You and known by You. As I go through the uncertainty of life, help me to look to You and find assurance in Your goodness and faithfulness, and let them spur me on to faith as I run this race of life. Amen.
