"Even so Abraham believed God, and it was reckoned to him as righteousness. Therefore, be sure that it is those who are of faith who are sons of Abraham.
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What an amazing thought. Just because Abraham believed what You had told him, You declared him to be righteous! If You considered him righteous then what else matters? What did You say to him? And why was this so important to You?
It appears that David and Paul knew more about that conversation than was recorded in Genesis. David sang about the place where You asked Abraham to offer his son Issac as a burnt offering, and said that it was the place where You gave THE PROMISE of "Eternal Life" And then the New Testament book of Hebrews says that Abraham was looking for a city not made with human hands. So I assume You had told Abraham about the New Jerusalem that John later described in Revelation.
When Paul says "Abraham believed" You, it seems to me that You had already revealed to Abraham Your intent to ressurrect Your holy ones, because he seems to have stated rather clearly that he expected to return with a resurrected Isaac. (By the way, this should be the end of the discussion for those with hangups about cremation. A burnt offering is basically the same thing.) Sorry about that, that was free!
Father, You must have done something else long before this to have received such trust from Abraham. Had he not been walking with You for at least 25 years when You sent him on that errand? You put a lot of time into him, and tenderly built up his confidence in You. When it was time to find out if he really trusted You, You had enough confidence in him to ask the unthinkable. You knew he believed Your promise of the ressurrection and that he would follow through. That's why the Ram was pre-arranged. Yes, Abraham did not notice it before, how could he? He was about to kill the only son he had left. And he was over 100 years old! You put the Ram there and hid it from Abraham, not "just in case," but it was Your real plan all along.
No wonder You require all of Your children to be like Abraham. You want us to be like him specifically when the time comes for You to test our faith. Father, there is so much more I want to ask You about Abraham, and about his faith, and what You intend our faith to be like. But please, don't ask me to sacrifice my own son. Take my life instead.
Oh, umm... Jesus has already done that for me? ...You wouldn't ask...not because I shouldn't be tested like that, but because my son and I both have died on the cross with Him. That is the faith You ask of me, isn't it? And that will make us sons of Abraham. Wow....