The Faith of Abraham~

Faith.  A virtue that was without a doubt is present in the life of Abraham.  He spoke and walked intimately with God, and God considered him his friend.  He was visited by God in his home. Abraham had found a deep love for God, and with that love came obedience, and out of obedience, there was trust. Abraham trusted God so much, he was willing to sacrifice his son, Isaac, to prove his faith.  Abraham’s faith is recorded not only in the Old Testament, but also is brought up repeatedly in various passages in the New Testament because of the intense trust that kept him near to God.

During his life, Abraham evolved into a man that "believed the Lord, and he credited it to him as righteousness" (Genesis 15:6).  However, in his earlier years, Abraham was not a man who walked closely with God.  In fact, his father was an idol maker, and Abraham had grown up selling his fathers idols in marketplaces. When Abraham reached the age of, 75 years old, God told him to take himself and his family (including his nephew Lot) out of their homeland and travel to a place that God would later reveal. This is the first major act of faith or “trust fall” Abraham took with God. Abraham set out "even though he did not know where he was going" (Hebrews 11:8).

Eventually, Abraham and his nephew Lot parted ways.  Abraham allowed Lot to choose which direction he wanted to go, and Lot choose the land the he thought was better and would amount to more than the land in the direction he left Abraham to go.  While this is not commonly seen as a great act of faith, Abraham allowed Lot to choose his choice of land, knowing that he would probably take the land that looked the best.  Abraham trusted that God would take care of him, which enabled him to let his nephew take advantage of his generosity and go forth knowing that God would provide.

When they arrived in the land that God had intended for them to settle, God made a promise to Abraham. He promised Abraham that his descents would outnumber the stars in the sky.  However, Abraham was skeptical. His wife was barren, and Abraham had reached an age in which he could no longer have children.  Abraham tried to make God understand this in Genesis 15:1-3, but God said that he would keep his promise.  

Even though Abraham was a man of great faith, he lost patience with God, and tried to take matters on by himself.  With the encouragement from his wife, Abraham slept with Sarah’s Egyptian maid, Hagar.  Because of this, Hagar gave birth to a son named Ishmael.  God forgave Abraham of this, but as a result, he and Sarah had to wait many more years before God fulfilled his promise.

At the age of 100, Abraham and his 90 year old wife, Sarah gave birth to a son.  The book of Hebrews says that: "By faith Abraham, even though he was past age – and Sarah herself was barren – was enabled to become a father because he considered him faithful who had made the promise" (Hebrews 11:11).  They named the baby Isaac.

Abraham loved Isaac; he was a reminder of how God does keep and follow through on his promises.  However, years later, God called on Abraham to test his faith more than he had ever tested it before.  God told Abraham to travel to a distant mountain and offer his son as a holy sacrifice. Isaac- Abraham's promised heir. He had waited his life for a child, and now the God that had given him one, was asking him to give him up.

Abraham knew that God could raise Isaac from the dead.  God had given a child to barren parents, surely he could raise the child from the dead too. God had said the promises would be satisfied through Isaac, so Abraham choose once again to place his faith completely in God. (Paul later tells that ‘...he did not waver through unbelief regarding the promise of God, but was strengthened in his faith and gave glory to God, being fully persuaded that God had power to do what he had promised.")

Abraham prepared for the journey.  He took Isaac, telling him that they were going to make a sacrifice to the Lord.  When they arrived, Abraham had to make an altar, tie up his son and lay him down on altar.  Right as Abraham was about to kill his son, the voice of God intervened and said: "Now I know that you fear God, because you have not withheld from me your son, your only son" (Genesis 22:12).

We are told through Hebrews that "without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe, that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him" (Hebrews 11:6).  To live according to the ways of God requires daily acts of faith.  Sometimes God will ask us to do something scary, a situation in which we cannot see the end. Sometimes he will ask us to put others well beings above our own, knowing that he will take care of us.  Sometimes he will ask us to give up something that we love.  No matter what God asks, following him is what he desires most of us; to learn to trust in God, to allow him to shepherd our steps.

A Father's Love: Grapes of Wrath Photo Blog~

A theme that is littered through the novel Grapes of Wrath, is that of selfishness. It is shown through the way the banks take the lands of the struggling farmers. It is shown through the California farmers that would stop at nothing to crush the migrant farmers. It is shown in the way that Connie leaves Rose of Sharon. However, a contradictory theme (sadly, perhaps less prevalent) is love. Love is shown through Jim Casey's sacrifice. Love is shown through the Joad's loyalty to one another. Love is shown when Rose of Sharon nurses a starving man and prevents him from dying. However, perhaps the most raw form of love is that between a father and his son.  In the final part of The Grapes of Wrath, Steinbeck describes a father who gave up all of his food so that his son would be fed, even though he is now starving and nearly dead because of that decision. This image depicts the epitome of love because it shows a person, choosing to be completely selfless, for the sake of someone else. This example of the love that this father has for his child is made even more extraordinary because of how much selfishness and greediness there was at this point in time. It is used to show that their is still 'hope for humanity', and that there are still people who choose to take care of others, before they take care of themselves.

The picture above symbolizes this type of love. The cracked and seemingly old heart symbolizes the ability that some people have to hold onto love for one another even when that love is tested to its limits during the very hardest of times. Additionally, the heart has been placed on a pedestal, symbolizing that no matter what (whether it is facing starvation, lack of money, being forced to move, having to sell all of your belongings, having anything of value being taken from you, going through the pain of loosing loved ones to death, or being rejected and looked down upon by everyone), the love that someone holds for their family will endure through all tribulations.

I chose this theme because of the levels of depth that it contains. On the surface, it is easy to assume that, of course the father would do that for is son, because that is what parents are supposed to do. However, it became clear through reading this book, that when placed into the most physically, mentally and emotionally disruptive environments, even parents succumb to placing their own well being above that of their children's. This knowledge makes what the starving father did for his little boy even more heart-breaking. As the reader looks deeper, they begin to understand that, even though this man is starving to the point of death, his love for his son is stronger than his hunger and pain. This type of love is equivalent to the Hebrew word chesed, meaning unfailing and unbounded love, a love that covers all and will hold fast no matter what situation that it is placed into. I chose this theme for the raw beauty and simple wonder that it contains, and for the hope that it brings, both during the period it was written in, and today.