Why on earth is the story of Avrom being thrown into the furnace by Nimrod, NOT in the parsha, whereas the test of Lech Lecha (a seemingly LESS of a nisayon) IS in the parsha?
So I heard from Rabbi Wallerstein (Torah Anytime.com) that the explanation is lke this. The torah is not a history book, to tell us stories stam azoy. If a story is brought down in the torah it is to teach us something, and if a story is NOT brought down it is because Hashem didn’t want it in the torah.
Pshat here can be explained via a beautiful phrase:
It is easier to GIVE UP one’s life ‘al kiddush Hashem’ then for one to LIVE ‘al kiddush Hashem’.
To die ‘al kiddush Hashem’ is a tremendous act of bravery, courage, and strenghth. However it is all over in 1 minute. Once the person is dead, the game is over. That’s all nice, no doubt, and he will get Olam Habbah for that. But Hashem is not interested in putting the whole episode of Uhr Kassdim in His torah JUST to teach us that yeharog v’al ya’avor for Avodah Zora. What Hashem IS interested in, is the ‘lech lecha me’artzecha’, the ‘U’mibeis avicha’, the daily struggles of LIVING al kiddush Hashem. THAT’S what is special in Hashem’s eyes! The davening 3 tefillos EVERY SINGLE DAY with minyon, the wearing tzniyosdik clothing- even on a hot summer’s day, the setting aside time every day for your daily shiur or chavrusa, the times we stop ourselves from speaking L”H, or taking revenge. It is the LIVING ‘al kuddush Hashem’, that takes center stage in the torah. And that’s the lesson of Lech Lecha.