10 Not only that, but Rebekah’s children had one and the same father, our father Isaac.
The world would be a very different place if Abraham had been obedient. The map would not have any Arab peoples. Perhaps Islam would not have come into existence, birthed in a time of turmoil and religious apathy. The freedoms that exists in the Gospel are absent in Islam. A Christian chooses to actively believe. Muslims are commanded to submit, and alternatives other than death do not exist. The freedom from religious tyranny is unique in Christianity. God freely choose us and we must freely choose Him, or our choice is no real choice. That does not mean that there are not influences in many directions. God is pulling on our hearts as well. But His pulling never violates our ability to choose. The choices the sons of Isaac made were choices that affected all of us, and yet they were their choices to make. And God used those choices for His purposes. That is especially hard to hear in this day and age as the battle with militant Islam is only beginning. How can God turn the choices of Esau to His glory? How can God turn our sinful choices into something that can bring glory to Himself? And how can he do that without compromising His character? The world will be a very different place if we are obedient. We have the opportunity to change the future for good rather than evil, for righteousness rather than decadence. What are you choosing today?
The Arnold Journey 