What to make of one of the most shocking stories in the Bible? On the one hand scholars urge us to hear this story as a “test of faith.” God did not want a human sacrifice; the key lies in God’s words to Abraham: “I know now how devoted you are to God.” But what kind of God would subject a person to such a test? We hear nothing of Abraham’s feelings; he doggedly took Isaac up the mountain and had the knife out and ready. Yet for the hearer the story is full of emotional tension, even horror. How can we read it impassively? In response to Abraham’s faith God makes a promise—but by seeming to call for the offering of the child who embodied God’s earlier promise. Why? How do you respond to these questions?

Seeing familiar things differently is not easy. This is no more evident than in family relationships. Your spouse is changing, as are you. Yet you expect the dynamic between you to remain the same as always. A renegotiation of terms may feel like a betrayal. Babies become toddlers, and children become teenagers and then adults. But the parents’ vision of them may be frozen at a more primitive and dependent stage. In the same way, parents are the ones who are there for us, reliable as rocks. Until the time that they become elderly and frail, and unexpectedly dependent on us to care for them.

Jesus took Peter, James, and John and led them up a high mountain. His appearance changed from the inside out, right before their eyes. His clothes shimmered, glistening white, whiter than any bleach could make them. Elijah, along with Moses, came into view, in deep conversation with Jesus.

South African professional golfer Retief Goosen admits he was a bad-tempered boy who used to smash his clubs in frustration—sometimes several per round. According to his mother, he was extremely outgoing in his youth—until he was 15 and he was struck by lightning while playing golf. The bolt knocked him unconscious and burnt all his clothes off his body; his shoes disintegrated and his watch melted to his wrist. Goosen spent two months recovering in the hospital, and after he emerged, his feisty emotions fizzled and his gregariousness gave way to calm. Now known for his cool reserve under pressure, Goosen’s nickname is “Iceman.”

O gracious and generous God, we ask you to hear our prayers and grant us salvation so that we may serve you better, through Christ our Lord.

"He who did not spare his own Son.” The Child of Promise, it seems, is never far from death. The near-sacrifice of Isaac, the son of the covenant and child of promise, leads to renewal of the covenant and a new promise. For Paul the gift of God’s Son means God will “give us everything else along with him.” Even the glorious event of Jesus’ Transfiguration was not to be revealed fully until “the Son of Man had risen from the dead.” What is to be the believer’s response to these life-giving sacrifices? Faith, service, and thanksgiving.

God is transfiguring the world right this very moment through us because God believes in us and because God loves us. —Abp. Desmond Tutu, God Has a Dream