Genesis 24:5-6
And the servant said unto him, Peradventure the woman will not be willing to follow me unto this land: must I needs bring thy son again unto the land from whence thou camest?
And Abraham said unto him, Beware thou that thou bring not my son thither again.
The servant asks what sounds like a practical question.
What if she does not want to come?
What if she is not willing to leave what is familiar to her? What if she does not want to make the journey? Should Isaac be taken there instead?
Abraham shuts that down immediately.
Do not take my son there.
Not even for a moment is that to be the plan.
That is important, because the picture here is too beautiful to miss. The son is not the one who is relocated to fit the world of the bride. The bride is the one who is called to leave where she is and come to the son.
That is exactly how it is with us.
Jesus is not adjusting Himself to this fallen world so people can stay rooted in the old life and still have Him on their own terms. No, the whole direction of salvation is that we are drawn out, called away, and brought to Him. The Spirit does not come to make the old country feel like home again. He comes to make us willing to leave it.
That changes the way I read this entirely.
The question is not whether the son will move.
The question is whether the bride will come.
And that is really the issue in every life the Lord touches. Will I stay where I am, clinging to what is familiar, comfortable, and earthly? Or will I answer the call that draws me away to the Son?
That is the Christian life in one sense. It is a long learning to leave.
Leave the old loyalties.
Leave the old way of thinking.
Leave the idea that this present world is enough.
Leave the illusion that life can be found apart from Christ.
The Spirit of God starts working in a heart, and suddenly the things that once felt permanent begin to feel thin. The old country loses some of its charm. The old life does not fit the way it once did. Why? Because the bride is being made ready for the Son.
I love that.
Because it means the restlessness a believer feels in this world is not a mistake. It is part of the calling. We were never meant to settle down here as though this were the end of the story. We are being prepared for Someone. We are being drawn toward Someone. The life of faith is always moving in that direction.
And one day it will be complete.
One day we really will leave this land behind. One day we will join our greater than Isaac, our Bridegroom, Jesus Christ, in His kingdom. That is where all of this is heading. Not toward Christ being brought down into our terms, but toward us being brought home to Him.
That is why heaven matters so much.
Heaven is not just a comforting thought tacked onto the end of the gospel. It is where the Son is. It is where the Bridegroom is. It is where the story is moving. And the Spirit is even now preparing hearts for that day.
So when Abraham says, “Do not take my son there,” I hear something firm and glorious in it. The Son is not to be dragged back into the old realm. The Son remains where He is, and the bride must be brought to Him.
That is still the message.
Christ is exalted.
Christ is enthroned.
Christ is waiting.
And the Spirit is still at work in the world, calling people out and bringing them to the Son.
Beloved, I am glad the Lord did not leave us where we were. I am glad He unsettled us. I am glad He made this world feel less like home. I am glad He put something in us that keeps looking beyond the old country. Because the end of the journey is not here. The end of the journey is Him.