Genesis 22: 1 - 3, Now it came to pass after these things that God tested Abraham, and said to him, "Abraham!" And he said, "Here I am." Then He said, "Take now your son, your only son Isaac, whom you love, and go to the land of Moriah, and offer him there as a burnt offering on one of the mountains of which I shall tell you." So Abraham rose early in the morning... NKJV
On occasion, God may call on you to give up something or do something that will require His grace in order for you to be able to obey Him. We can see this in today's scripture when God requires Abraham to offer his only son upon an altar of sacrifice. We read in this story about how quickly Abraham responded favorably to God's request. However, we need to dig deeper and glean some truths from his obedience that will help us to submit to God when it's hard to do so.
We must realize that Abraham and Sarah endured pain and disappointment for twenty-five years while waiting on their promised son. When it's been hard, or you've waited a long time for God to supply a desire or need, and you finally acquire it, it becomes even more special to you because of the process that you had to undergo. Nevertheless, Abraham arose early in the morning and set out to fulfill God's will for his life.
How did this man muster up the strength that he needed to offer up his only son in order to be obedient to God's command? It's very obvious that Abraham had acquired great faith in God over the previous twenty-five years. It was his faith in God's character that empowered him with the grace that he needed to sacrifice his son.
We're living in a time when sacrifice isn't a popular subject. It's seems doing the "right thing" or fulfilling the purpose of God is difficult to find. Instead of paying the price to stand up for Godly principles that cause a change throughout the world, too many are succumbing to fleshly pressures and comprising their values and personal convictions.
Even though these are things that Christians have to confront and to overcome in this generation, we don't read where Abraham backed off from doing the right thing in God's sight in his day. You see; Abraham loved God more than Isaac or anything else, and he proved his love for God by offering Isaac up on Mt. Moriah.
As Christians, we are inundated by secular humanism and the exaltation of self, but if we truly desire to please the Lord through our faith, then we must choose to love God more than ourselves. I have found in my own walk with God that when He requires something that stretches my faith and challenges me to the core of my being, it is because the Lord wants to bless me even greater. It's in those moments of great tests that I have to decide to either please God in faith or please myself through unbelief.
Do you have the power to do the right thing in your walk with God? If not, then today God is giving you the truth from Abraham's story that will empower you to defeat the enemy and to step out in faith. You can do all things through Christ, who strengthens you. Nevertheless, you have to also be willing to sacrifice (obey) first.
Living the Blessed Life,
Pastor Asa Dockery
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