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DIARY OF THE FATHER OF FAITH – 8

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The inevitable happens! Sarah, Abraham’s beloved wife of many years, life companion, and mother of his promised son, Isaac, joins her ancestors in death. Father and son are heart-broken. Whereas, when the members of his household died, they were buried on the way (we can assume), Abraham negotiates to buy a tiny piece of real estate in a land where he is still a guest.

‭Genesis‬ ‭23:4‬ ‭NLT‬
[4] “Here I am, a stranger and a foreigner among you. Please sell me a piece of land so I can give my wife a proper burial.”…
[12] Abraham again bowed low before the citizens of the land, [13] and he replied to Ephron as everyone listened. “No, listen to me. I will buy it from you. Let me pay the full price for the field so I can bury my dead there.”…
[17] So Abraham bought the plot of land belonging to Ephron at Machpelah, near Mamre. This included the field itself, the cave that was in it, and all the surrounding trees. [18] It was transferred to Abraham as his permanent possession in the presence of the Hittite elders at the city gate. [19] Then Abraham buried his wife, Sarah, there in Canaan, in the cave of Machpelah, near Mamre (also called Hebron). [20] So the field and the cave were transferred from the Hittites to Abraham for use as a permanent burial place.”

Was Abraham’s purchase of this piece of real estate in the land of Canaan his way of confirming his commitment to God’s promise, something like the firstfruits that guaranteed the full harvest? By buying this piece of land was he laying claim to the whole land?

This cave and its adjacent land became the official burial place for Abraham’s final resting place, his immediate family, and his descendants, including Jacob whose body was brought back from Egypt.

‭Genesis‬ ‭49:29‭-‬32‬ ‭NLT‬
[29] “Then Jacob instructed them, “Soon I will die and join my ancestors. Bury me with my father and grandfather in the cave in the field of Ephron the Hittite. [30] This is the cave in the field of Machpelah, near Mamre in Canaan, that Abraham bought from Ephron the Hittite as a permanent burial site. [31] There Abraham and his wife Sarah are buried. There Isaac and his wife, Rebekah, are buried. And there I buried Leah. [32] It is the plot of land and the cave that my grandfather Abraham bought from the Hittites.”

‭Genesis‬ ‭50:12‭-‬13‬ ‭NLT‬
[12] “So Jacob’s sons did as he had commanded them. [13] They carried his body to the land of Canaan and buried him in the cave in the field of Machpelah, near Mamre. This is the cave that Abraham had bought as a permanent burial site from Ephron the Hittite…”

A sad but inevitable part of Abraham’s story ends a partnership of many decades, but opens a new chapter for Abraham and his son. It seems that Isaac was so devoted to his old mother that he delayed marriage until he was forty years old.

‭Genesis‬ ‭25:20‬ ‭NLT‬
[20] “When Isaac was forty years old, he married Rebekah, the daughter of Bethuel the Aramean from Paddan-aram and the sister of Laban the Aramean.”

Mourning for his mother seems to have closed isaac’s mind to the future. Abraham had to intervene to secure the way for God’s promise to be fulfilled.

To be continued…

Convinced Or Convinced?

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CONVINCED OR CONVINCED? 

“Jesus, once more deeply moved, came to the tomb. It was a cave with a stone laid across the entrance. ‘Take away the stone,’ He said. ‘But Lord,’ said Martha, the sister of the dead man, ‘by this time there is a bad odour, for he has been there four days.’

“Then Jesus said, ‘Did I not tell you that if you believe, you will see the glory of God?’ So they took away the stone. Then Jesus looked up and said, ‘Father, I thank you that you have heard me. I knew that you always hear me, but I said this for the benefit of the people standing here, that they may believe that you sent me.’ When He had said this, Jesus called out in a loud voice, ‘Lazarus, come out!’

“The dead man came out, his hands and feet wrapped with strips of linen, and a cloth around his face. Jesus said to them, ‘Take off the grave clothes and let him go.'” John 11:38-44 NIV.

What a moment! What went through the minds of the two sisters, of the bystanders when Jesus ordered them to remove the stone? ‘No! It can’t be! Is He out of His mind? Is He really going to go in there? What is He going to do?’ As the heavy stone was moved, so the stench of death wafted from the mouth of the cave and they involuntarily stepped backwards.

Jesus was oblivious to the smell of putrefying flesh. He took a step forward and turned His face heavenwards. In a strong, confident voice He addressed His Father, ‘Abba, we’ve already talked and you have heard my request. Now I want all these people around me to know and believe that it is you who sent me.’ When did He speak to the Father? All the time, no doubt.

Then, without hesitating He addressed the corpse — in a loud voice that Lazarus would hear wherever he was — ‘Lazarus, out!’ The bystanders watched and waited, hardly daring to breathe. Was this just a big show? The seconds ticked by, then…out of the darkness a figure emerged, naked but for the strips of cloth around his hands, his feet and his face and probably encasing his body as well. He shuffled towards the entrance, unable to walk because of the linen ties around his feet.

Miraculously, the odour had dissipated. Lazarus was very much alive but still wearing the evidence of his departure encasing his body. Instead of the stink of decay, the fragrant spices of his sisters’ loving preparation for burial still clung to him released by a fresh breeze which blew away the last vestiges of his untimely death.

Trying in vain to free himself of his encumbrances, Lazarus shuffled out of the tomb. The people stared at him, speechless with shock and disbelief. Only one person was with it enough to speak sense in the situation. I can imagine that Jesus was amused by the bizarre scene — dozens of people gawking like beached fish while a man tied up in burial cloths, hands and feet firmly immobilised, and unable to see where he was going, tries to get free of his bonds and speak to them!

‘For pity’s sake,’ I can imagine Jesus saying, ‘Untie the poor guy and let him go.’ With a jolt, someone would come to and take off the bandages from Lazarus’ feet and hands and untie the cloth around his face so that he could breathe freely again and see.

The Bible abruptly halts the story right there. John was not about telling a story. He was about providing convincing evidence that Jesus was the Son of God, sent by the Father to reveal His Father’s glory. What did the Jews think about that? Was this magnificent sign, the climax of the signs John had recorded to reveal the nature of the Father and convince his readers that Jesus was indeed God’s Son, perfectly reflecting Him in everything He did, enough to tip the scales?

We have to read on to the conclusion that unfolded in the next few days to discover the depth of wickedness in the hearts of Jesus’ opponents that drove them, not to believe but to plan their murderous end to the story!