Living By Faith And Obedience

 Date: Thursday, January 08, 2015
Today's Chapters: Genesis 22-24
Message Title: Living By Faith And Obedience

Hello My Friend, 

Faith and obedience, while it is certainly not a requirement to be obedient to the Word of God to obtain our salvation, it is a requirement for us to have faith in the Lord, Jesus Christ in order to obtain it. Faith, it's believing in something that we cannot see or is impossible to human reasoning. Truthfully, it is living in obedience to the Word of God that increases our faith in seeing God do the impossible, as well as the things we will not see until God brings us home to Him. “Even so faith, if it hath not works, is dead, being alone. Yea, a man may say, Thou hast faith, and I have works: shew me thy faith without thy works, and I will shew thee my faith by my works. Thou believest that there is one God; thou doest well: the devils also believe, and tremble. But wilt thou know, O vain man, that faith without works is dead?” - James 2:17-20.

The word tempt means to entice someone to do something often regarded as wrong or immoral, but there is also another meaning for the word, and that is to be put to the test. After God blessed Abraham and Sarah with their promised son, God decided to test Abraham's faith, in a most peculiar and unimaginable way. “And it came to pass after these things, that God did tempt Abraham, and said unto him, Abraham: and he said, Behold, here I am. And he said, Take now thy son, thine only son Isaac, whom thou lovest, and get thee into the land of Moriah; and offer him there for a burnt offering upon one of the mountains which I will tell thee of. And Abraham rose up early in the morning, and saddled his ass, and took two of his young men with him, and Isaac his son, and clave the wood for the burnt offering, and rose up, and went unto the place of which God had told him. And Abraham stretched forth his hand, and took the knife to slay his son. And the angel of the LORD called unto him out of heaven, and said, Abraham, Abraham: and he said, Here am I. And he said, Lay not thine hand upon the lad, neither do thou any thing unto him: for now I know that thou fearest God, seeing thou hast not withheld thy son, thine only son from me.” - Genesis 22:1-3,10-12.

God was not tempting Abraham like the devil would, He was testing his faith, Abraham knew that Isaac must live since God said he would establish His covenant with him, so he continued, by faith, to offer up Isaac, in which, God immediately told him to stop. When temptations come, we must take a look at the entire picture, if we are being told to do something that goes against God you can be sure it is the devil. God would never have let Abraham kill his son, He would have stopped him some way. It is the devil that tempts people to actually kill, God will never tempt us with something that we cannot get out of. “There hath no temptation taken you but such as is common to man: but God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able; but will with the temptation also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear it.” - 1 Corinthians 10:13.

To fear God means to honor and respect Him, meaning to love Him and have faith in Him no matter what we are faced with. God reveals to Abraham why He tempted him. “And the angel of the LORD called unto Abraham out of heaven the second time, And said, By myself have I sworn, saith the LORD, for because thou hast done this thing, and hast not withheld thy son, thine only son: That in blessing I will bless thee, and in multiplying I will multiply thy seed as the stars of the heaven, and as the sand which is upon the sea shore; and thy seed shall possess the gate of his enemies; And in thy seed shall all the nations of the earth be blessed; because thou hast obeyed my voice.” - Genesis 22:15-18.

Abraham's offering of Isaac foreshadowed the most amazing act of obedience one could ever know, the act of Jesus Christ, God's only begotten Son, offering Himself on the cross on that same mountain. Because Christ gave Himself for us, multitudes become spiritual children of Abraham and joint heirs with Christ. You see, everything that we go through in life has a purpose, we do not always understand them, and sometimes we are faced with some really heartbreaking events, but something good always comes out of them. I got myself involved with a guy that pretty much turned my life upside down, it was so bad that I almost killed myself, not on purpose, but by mixing herbal supplements. It was during that time that God spoke to me and not only healed me, but got me to dedicate my life to Him. “Blessed is the man that endureth temptation: for when he is tried, he shall receive the crown of life, which the Lord hath promised to them that love him.” - James 1:12.

Sarah died and now, Abraham's health was deteriorating, he decided that it was time for Isaac to have a wife. He sent his servant to seek out a wife for him, with only one rule. “And Abraham was old, and well stricken in age: and the LORD had blessed Abraham in all things. And Abraham said unto his eldest servant of his house, that ruled over all that he had, Put, I pray thee, thy hand under my thigh: And I will make thee swear by the LORD, the God of heaven, and the God of the earth, that thou shalt not take a wife unto my son of the daughters of the Canaanites, among whom I dwell: But thou shalt go unto my country, and to my kindred, and take a wife unto my son Isaac. And the servant took ten camels of the camels of his master, and departed; for all the goods of his master were in his hand: and he arose, and went to Mesopotamia, unto the city of Nahor. And he said, O LORD God of my master Abraham, I pray thee, send me good speed this day, and shew kindness unto my master Abraham.” - Genesis 24:1-4,10,12.

Whether we are doing things for ourselves or others it is best to seek God for guidance, in fact, it is the only way you can know that you are even doing the right thing. History proves that when we seek God for guidance we always see the best outcome. “Thus saith the LORD, thy Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel; I am the LORD thy God which teacheth thee to profit, which leadeth thee by the way that thou shouldest go.” - Isaiah 48:17.

We all have been tempted, sometimes by God and sometimes the devil, the more faith you have in God, the more your faith will be tried by the devil, even Jesus was tempted, but God promises that good will always come out of every temptation. We must never confuse the tests of God with those of the devil, and while sometimes we really cannot tell who is the source of the test (think about Job) is, we can look to God by faith, continue obeying His Word, and when the time is right, you will be just as blessed as Abraham. “Behold, I go forward, but he is not there; and backward, but I cannot perceive him: On the left hand, where he doth work, but I cannot behold him: he hideth himself on the right hand, that I cannot see him: But he knoweth the way that I take: when he hath tried me, I shall come forth as gold.” - Job 23:8-10.

Today's Prayer: God, Your tests of faith are never without void, and while we do not always understand some of the ways in which You do test us, everything You do has a purpose and a meaning, and comes out good if we live by faith, and trust You completely. Lord, I will never forget the day You came to me and revealed Your purpose for my life. I want to fulfill that purpose, lead me and guide me, give me Your power to live by faith, and in obedience to Your Word, not because I have to, but because I love and respect You. Give me the strength to fight evil temptation, and let me not even be tempted to go against Your Word. In Jesus' name, Amen. 

God Bless You, I am praying for you,
Christina

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