There was no hope that Abraham would have children, but Abraham believed God and continued to hope. And that is why he became the father of many nations. As God told him, “You will have many descendants.”
Abraham was almost a hundred years old, so he was past the age for having children. Also, Sarah could not have children. Abraham was well aware of this, but his faith in God never became weak. He never doubted that God would do what he promised. He never stopped believing. In fact, he grew stronger in his faith and just praised God.
Abraham felt sure that God was able to do what he promised. So that’s why “he was accepted as one who is right with God.”
These words (“he was accepted”) were written not only for Abraham. They were also written for us. God will also accept us because we believe. We believe in the one who raised Jesus our Lord from death. Jesus was handed over to die for our sins, and he was raised from death to make us right with God. (Romans 3:9-17 ERV)
Abraham stands out as an example of faith because of his persistent trust in God. He even had hope that looked beyond death.
God promised Abraham a son through his wife Sarah, which took twenty-five years to fulfill. Then God asked Abraham to sacrifice his son. Most of us can't get past this without questioning—Why would God do this?
But Abraham saw God for who He is—the Almighty One—so he could see beyond his son's death. Yet, God never intended Abraham to sacrifice his son, but wanted to see the genuineness of Abraham's faith.
Does this seem extreme? Genuine faith is extreme. It has to be in the midst of the doubt and darkness of this world.
God did sacrifice a son—His own son. Jesus, God's only son, was resurrected from death. It's our trust in Him that brings acceptance, even as God accepted Abraham. ©Word-Strong_2015