The Test of Faith

1 Some time later, God tested Abraham’s faith. “Abraham!” God called.

“Yes,” he replied. “Here I am.”

2 “Take your son, your only son—yes, Isaac, whom you love so much—and go to the land of Moriah. Go and sacrifice him as a burnt offering on one of the mountains, which I will show you.”

3 The next morning Abraham got up early. He saddled his donkey and took two of his servants with him, along with his son, Isaac. Then he chopped wood for a fire for a burnt offering and set out for the place God had told him about. 4 On the third day of their journey, Abraham looked up and saw the place in the distance. 5 “Stay here with the donkey,” Abraham told the servants. “The boy and I will travel a little farther. We will worship there, and then we will come right back.” Genesis 22: 1-3

Every time I read or think about this passage of scripture, I can't help but shake my head in amazement. God gave Abraham a son through whom His promises to him would be fulfilled, and then He asks him to sacrifice that son.

I know what my response to God would have been and I sure yours would probably sound something like mine! But Abraham proved his loyalty to God in a number of ways.

1. He was full of faith - To know that you are about to kill your promise and still go ahead and do it requires A LOT of faith. Abraham must have believed in his heart that God would some how provide him with another son or another means of blessing, so he went forth in blind faith. 
2.  He was very trusting - He knew that God always has his best interest at heart, so to be willing to sacrifice his promise, he was showing God that he trusted him to come through for him in the end. 
3.  He walked in complete obedience to God - God asked for something and he obeyed. There were no questions or periods of delay, he simply did what God asked. 
4.  He knew the voice of God - I know if I heard a command like that, I'd rebuke the devil. But Abraham knew the voice of his God because they were friends. Their relationship was so tight that he knew for sure that it was God speaking to him. (That came in very handy when God needed to stop him from killing his son!)

We can all take a page from Abraham's book. He trusted God completely and in the end he was blessed beyond measure. He passed God's test of faith with flying colours. God was so pleased that he stopped him from sacrificing his son and provided a ram for the sacrifice. Sometimes, God may be asking us to hand him something that is very dear to us, but we hold on to it because we love it so much. Our love for certain things supersedes our love for God, yet if we only surrender those things to Him, he will bless us with so much more.

My encouragement to you today is to trust your God like Abraham did. Have faith in him, obey him completely, not just when things are going good. And of course, develop a relationship with him that can withstand any test.

Joana James - Author of Nightmare at Emerald High & Alana and Alyssa's Secret