” … and said, ‘I swear by myself, declares the LORD, that because you have done this and have not withheld your son, your only son, I will surely bless you and make your descendants as numerous as the stars in the sky and as the sand on the seashore. Your descendants will take possession of the cities of their enemies, …’” (Genesis 22:16-17)
God won’t ask you for what you don’t have, but sometimes He will ask for the thing you really want to keep. Why? To see if there is anything you value or depend on more than Him. Abraham was tested like nobody else in history. But he passed the test and was blessed like very few others in history.
Imagine having God say to you, “Take now your son, your only son … 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” (v. 2). Can you envision the questions that would swirl through your mind? Little wonder Abraham was called “the friend of God” (James 2:23) and “the father of all them that believe” (Romans 4:11). And when the test was over, God said this: “Because you have done this thing, and have not withheld … your only son … I will bless you, and … multiply your descendants as the stars of the heaven and as the sand which is on the seashore … In your seed all the nations of the earth shall be blessed, because you have obeyed My voice” (Genesis 22:16-18).
So here is the question: What is God asking of you? Are you wrestling with it? Are you withholding what He wants, or are you “all in”? Isaac was the hardest seed Abraham ever had to sow. But that seed produced a harvest of blessing greater than anything Abraham ever dreamed or thought possible. What is God asking you to do today? When you say yes to Him, you will experience a whole new level of blessing in your life. Try it and see.
Prayer
Lord, You call on me to serve you in many ways. Guide me with Your presence, grace and mercy so that nothing prevents me from answering that call. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.
Stay encouraged!
Pastor Mike
