The first is the question of child sacrifice, which God does not allow (Deut 18:10). Why, then, did God test Abraham by asking him to sacrifice his son Isaac (Gen 22:2)? Rob suggested that God wanted to teach something about the ultimate sacrifice that would later be made on the cross. Also, Abraham had earlier resorted to human schemes to try to help carry out God's promises (Gen 16), but proved in Gen 22 that he had come to trust God enough to give up trying to do God's work for him.
The second is the myth that hostility between Jews and Arabs goes all the way back to the days of Isaac and Ishmael. Though there was antagonism between Sarah and Hagar (Gen 16:4-7; 21:9-10), Abraham remained close to Hagar and Ishmael, and we know that Isaac and Ishmael got together after Abraham's death to bury their father (Gen 25:9). Hostility between Jews and Arabs dates back only to the founding of Islam in the seventh century AD.
The third is the tendency to equate Arabs and Muslims. But most Muslims are not Arabs, and some Arabs are not Muslims.
The fourth is the question of how people hear from God. Sometimes such communication is direct, other times more indirect---e.g., through human instruments. In general, we should be slow to judge claims about whether a particular message comes from a divine source.
The fifth is the question of Abraham's striking silence in Gen 22. The Bible does not tell us about Abraham asking any questions after God directs him to offer Isaac as a burnt offering. Should Abraham be admired for his willingness to obey or questioned for his apparent lack of interaction with God in this situation? This is another question that is difficult to answer, and people at Church of the Messiah have been contemplating it since Dr. Richard Middleton lectured on the subject in Dayton two years ago.
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