1 00:00:09,360 --> 00:00:11,560 You have your Bible. Go and make your way to Genesis 2 00:00:11,560 --> 00:00:16,800 chapter 22 as we continue in our series answering the call of 3 00:00:16,800 --> 00:00:19,840 God. We took the 1st 11:00-ish 4 00:00:19,840 --> 00:00:22,160 chapters of Genesis a couple years ago. 5 00:00:22,720 --> 00:00:25,840 We've been embarking upon the second chunk of about 12 6 00:00:25,840 --> 00:00:30,680 chapters now for a few months and we'll conclude this series 7 00:00:30,960 --> 00:00:33,160 here in the next Sunday or two is we're going to turn our 8 00:00:33,160 --> 00:00:34,880 attention if you're interested in where we're headed. 9 00:00:35,120 --> 00:00:37,600 So you can be praying for me and us as a church about this but 10 00:00:38,200 --> 00:00:41,720 special time of the year and after 250 years in the light 11 00:00:42,040 --> 00:00:44,280 life of our nation is coming up. And I'm going to be doing a 12 00:00:44,280 --> 00:00:48,880 series at the end of June and month of July called under God 13 00:00:48,880 --> 00:00:53,680 Biblical truths that have forged our nation. 14 00:00:54,000 --> 00:00:57,320 And I just believe this is a moment to take an opportunity as 15 00:00:57,320 --> 00:01:01,600 believers to look at the at the Scriptures of what God has done 16 00:01:01,600 --> 00:01:04,680 in the life of our nation. What has God called us to do as 17 00:01:04,879 --> 00:01:09,160 citizens of heaven and of earth, of this nation and one day 18 00:01:09,160 --> 00:01:11,440 ultimately now and forever the Kingdom of God? 19 00:01:11,440 --> 00:01:13,960 How do we steward biblical citizenship? 20 00:01:13,960 --> 00:01:18,000 How do we stand for the truths of Scripture as believers in our 21 00:01:18,000 --> 00:01:21,280 country and beyond? So there, there's a lot there 22 00:01:21,280 --> 00:01:23,320 and we're going to we're going to be there for five or six 23 00:01:23,320 --> 00:01:25,920 weeks and I'm just praying the Lord would use that in the life 24 00:01:25,920 --> 00:01:28,960 of our church as we celebrate even a very special time as a 25 00:01:28,960 --> 00:01:30,320 nation. Then we're going to be turning 26 00:01:30,800 --> 00:01:32,520 our attention. I'm praying about the book of 27 00:01:32,520 --> 00:01:33,880 Titus. If you want to read ahead, we're 28 00:01:33,880 --> 00:01:37,040 going to spend in the first six weeks of the fall in the book of 29 00:01:37,040 --> 00:01:38,840 Titus going back to the New Testament. 30 00:01:38,840 --> 00:01:41,200 So which is our typical, we typically work in the Old 31 00:01:41,200 --> 00:01:45,040 Testament back to the new as we seek to preach the whole counsel 32 00:01:45,360 --> 00:01:47,960 of God's word. We want a steady diet of all the 33 00:01:47,960 --> 00:01:50,840 different parts of Scripture is all in every part point to 34 00:01:50,840 --> 00:01:55,000 Jesus, preach the gospel and instruct us in life and in 35 00:01:55,000 --> 00:01:57,200 living. So that's a little foreshadowing 36 00:01:57,200 --> 00:02:00,640 of where we're going today. I want to start with a question. 37 00:02:00,640 --> 00:02:04,560 What if? What if all you had to do to 38 00:02:04,560 --> 00:02:09,080 make an A in a class was complete all the homework and 39 00:02:09,680 --> 00:02:13,880 then simply to the teacher when you had completed all the course 40 00:02:13,880 --> 00:02:19,360 content and simply report, I've mastered the course curriculum. 41 00:02:20,000 --> 00:02:23,640 I deserve an A. What if that's all you had to 42 00:02:23,640 --> 00:02:25,960 do? We'd all have straight As, 43 00:02:25,960 --> 00:02:27,600 wouldn't we? Glory Hallelujah. 44 00:02:27,760 --> 00:02:30,640 Yeah. And yet that's not the world we 45 00:02:30,640 --> 00:02:33,800 live in. That's not the kind of teachers 46 00:02:33,800 --> 00:02:36,040 we've had or have. That's not the kind of schools 47 00:02:36,040 --> 00:02:38,960 that we go to. Teachers don't take our word for 48 00:02:38,960 --> 00:02:41,440 it. They administer tests to see 49 00:02:41,440 --> 00:02:44,680 what is in fact true. And test can come in all shapes 50 00:02:44,680 --> 00:02:47,240 and sorts and sizes. There can be small tests like 51 00:02:47,240 --> 00:02:51,520 these little pop quizzes. I never did like those. 52 00:02:52,520 --> 00:02:56,520 There can be medium sized tests that come about once 1/4 that 53 00:02:56,720 --> 00:02:58,760 contribute a little more to our grade. 54 00:02:59,640 --> 00:03:02,480 Then there's bigger tests that really make up the majority of 55 00:03:02,480 --> 00:03:05,120 our grade, kind of like midterms and finals. 56 00:03:07,320 --> 00:03:10,000 Tests come in all sorts of shapes and sizes. 57 00:03:10,000 --> 00:03:18,880 Genesis 22 is like a final exam in Abraham's life that doesn't 58 00:03:18,880 --> 00:03:24,680 come till almost the end of his life and is yet going to count 59 00:03:25,120 --> 00:03:31,800 for a lot of his final great. Genesis 22 is a test that's 60 00:03:31,800 --> 00:03:37,880 going to expose the deepest part of Abraham's heart. 61 00:03:38,320 --> 00:03:42,200 Now, if you cook it all, especially if you grill, you 62 00:03:42,200 --> 00:03:46,640 realize that you can see something that looks totally 63 00:03:46,640 --> 00:03:51,880 done on the outside, but yet be very undone on the on the 64 00:03:51,880 --> 00:03:54,640 inside. So unless you're a professional 65 00:03:54,640 --> 00:03:58,400 or just have lots of experience, of which I'm not a professional. 66 00:03:59,680 --> 00:04:03,040 In fact, I remember the days when I had the knife in hand and 67 00:04:03,040 --> 00:04:05,240 my hamburger, steak or chicken, especially chicken. 68 00:04:05,240 --> 00:04:08,800 What am I going to do before I take it off the grill, Cut into 69 00:04:08,800 --> 00:04:11,120 it, check and see? That's not what a professional 70 00:04:11,120 --> 00:04:14,680 does nowadays. There's things that have come 71 00:04:14,680 --> 00:04:17,240 along allowing me to think I'm a professional when I'm really 72 00:04:17,240 --> 00:04:19,040 not. But I don't have to have a knife 73 00:04:19,040 --> 00:04:22,280 in hand when I can have, if you have something like this called 74 00:04:22,560 --> 00:04:26,480 a thermopen. So this allows the amateurs to 75 00:04:26,480 --> 00:04:28,680 cheat. And what I can do is no matter 76 00:04:28,680 --> 00:04:31,520 what it looks like on the outside, I can instantly know 77 00:04:31,520 --> 00:04:35,760 what its exact condition is on the inside the moment I stick 78 00:04:35,760 --> 00:04:37,760 the needle in to the inside of my meat. 79 00:04:37,760 --> 00:04:41,200 And right now it's telling me the air is 70° right here where 80 00:04:41,200 --> 00:04:44,840 I stand. You know, if I was on a desert 81 00:04:44,840 --> 00:04:49,840 island and I can only have a few things, my Bible, a knife, a 82 00:04:49,840 --> 00:04:53,320 lighter, and maybe my thermapen, to know if the meat I just 83 00:04:53,320 --> 00:04:54,800 haunted and killed was ready for me to eat. 84 00:04:54,880 --> 00:04:57,160 All right, I wouldn't. I don't leave home without this 85 00:04:57,160 --> 00:04:58,120 thing. I camp with this thing. 86 00:04:58,120 --> 00:05:00,680 I live with this thing I love. I love this thing. 87 00:05:00,960 --> 00:05:05,880 You know, the deal is is Genesis 22 is going to be like God 88 00:05:05,880 --> 00:05:11,520 taking his spiritual thermapen and inserting it into Abraham's 89 00:05:11,520 --> 00:05:21,200 heart to test and see if his faith is rare, medium or well 90 00:05:21,200 --> 00:05:26,680 done, whether on the inside matches the maturity that it 91 00:05:26,680 --> 00:05:30,080 appears to have on the on the outside. 92 00:05:30,760 --> 00:05:33,600 And and then, just in case you're wondering, this test will 93 00:05:33,600 --> 00:05:35,880 not be easy. The test as as it as it looks is 94 00:05:35,880 --> 00:05:42,800 going to what it's going to hurt as God test his faith. 95 00:05:43,160 --> 00:05:46,480 Listen to Genesis 22 verses one through 8. 96 00:05:47,480 --> 00:05:54,680 After these things God tested Abraham and said to him Abraham 97 00:05:55,240 --> 00:05:59,480 he said here I am. He said take your son, your only 98 00:05:59,480 --> 00:06:06,000 son Isaac whom you love. Go to the land of Moriah, and 99 00:06:06,000 --> 00:06:10,080 offer him there as a burnt offering on one of the mountains 100 00:06:10,080 --> 00:06:14,480 of which I shall tell you. So Abraham rose early in the 101 00:06:14,480 --> 00:06:18,320 morning, saddled his donkey, and took two of his young men with 102 00:06:18,320 --> 00:06:21,720 him and his son Isaac, and he cut the wood for the burnt 103 00:06:21,720 --> 00:06:25,920 offering, and arose and went to the place of which God had told 104 00:06:25,920 --> 00:06:29,240 him. On the third day Abraham lifted 105 00:06:29,240 --> 00:06:32,760 up his eyes and saw the place from afar. 106 00:06:33,640 --> 00:06:36,320 And then Abraham said to his young men, Stay here with the 107 00:06:36,320 --> 00:06:41,600 donkey, I, and the boy will go over there and worship, and come 108 00:06:41,600 --> 00:06:45,080 again to you. And Abraham took the wood of the 109 00:06:45,080 --> 00:06:47,600 burnt offering, and laid it on Isaac his son. 110 00:06:48,200 --> 00:06:50,680 And he took in his hand the fire and the knife. 111 00:06:51,040 --> 00:06:53,400 And so they went, both of them together. 112 00:06:53,960 --> 00:06:56,680 And Isaac said to his father, Abraham, my father. 113 00:06:57,680 --> 00:07:02,160 And he said, Here I am my son. And he said, Behold the fire and 114 00:07:02,160 --> 00:07:07,520 the wood, but where is the lamb for a burnt offering? 115 00:07:08,800 --> 00:07:12,840 Abraham said. God will provide for himself the 116 00:07:12,840 --> 00:07:16,080 lamb for a burnt offering, my son. 117 00:07:16,400 --> 00:07:19,880 So they went, both of them together. 118 00:07:20,240 --> 00:07:24,480 After all this time, after all this waiting, after all these 119 00:07:24,480 --> 00:07:27,520 years, after all the blessings and protection and provision and 120 00:07:27,520 --> 00:07:31,320 the fulfilling of the promises of God, most of all that finally 121 00:07:31,320 --> 00:07:35,080 a son would be born to Abraham and Sarah in their old age had 122 00:07:35,080 --> 00:07:40,000 come to pass. The Bible says God tested 123 00:07:40,400 --> 00:07:43,160 Abraham. The word Nisa in the Hebrew 124 00:07:43,440 --> 00:07:48,200 means here, tested it is. The idea here is to reveal the 125 00:07:48,200 --> 00:07:52,960 authenticity, the genuineness of something to reveal reality. 126 00:07:53,200 --> 00:07:55,960 Now what I want you to keep in mind here right out of the gate 127 00:07:55,960 --> 00:08:00,480 is that we know something that Abraham doesn't know. 128 00:08:00,720 --> 00:08:05,280 God didn't shake Abraham awake on this day and say, Abraham, by 129 00:08:05,280 --> 00:08:07,640 the way, today I'm going to test you. 130 00:08:09,200 --> 00:08:12,040 Now how nice would that have been had Abraham known all 131 00:08:12,040 --> 00:08:16,000 along? It was a Abraham does not know 132 00:08:16,000 --> 00:08:19,480 that you and I know that he doesn't know that. 133 00:08:19,640 --> 00:08:24,800 All he hears is God calls his name and gives him instructions, 134 00:08:24,880 --> 00:08:28,640 to which he says, here I am. And then Abraham hears God say 135 00:08:28,640 --> 00:08:33,000 something that sends chills down his spine, that makes his 136 00:08:33,000 --> 00:08:37,760 stomach rise to his throat and causes him to break out in a 137 00:08:37,760 --> 00:08:46,440 cold, adrenaline driven sweat. What is it that makes this test 138 00:08:46,880 --> 00:08:49,200 so difficult? Well, there's a few things. 139 00:08:49,200 --> 00:08:50,880 Let me just name them so we're clear. 140 00:08:51,000 --> 00:08:55,480 Number one, what makes this test so difficult is who it involves. 141 00:08:55,480 --> 00:08:59,720 We're talking about the son, the only son, the son of promise 142 00:08:59,720 --> 00:09:03,880 after years of waiting, son, the son born to the impossible 143 00:09:03,880 --> 00:09:09,040 situation, son Isaac, the son whom he loves more than anything 144 00:09:09,040 --> 00:09:11,440 else in life. This test is difficult number 145 00:09:11,440 --> 00:09:14,880 one, y'all, because it involves the most valuable thing in 146 00:09:14,880 --> 00:09:21,280 Abraham's life #2 it's difficult because of what it involves. 147 00:09:22,480 --> 00:09:29,520 God, are you asking me to worship you by killing my son? 148 00:09:31,480 --> 00:09:34,480 God? Are you asking me to worship you 149 00:09:34,480 --> 00:09:38,880 by offering a child sacrifice like all the pagans do? 150 00:09:39,600 --> 00:09:40,840 Because that's what it sounds like. 151 00:09:42,120 --> 00:09:45,400 Not only is this test difficult because it involves the most 152 00:09:45,400 --> 00:09:49,120 valuable thing in Abraham's life, but this test is difficult 153 00:09:49,320 --> 00:09:53,040 because it involves the most unthinkable thing that Abraham 154 00:09:53,040 --> 00:09:57,520 could ever do in life. This flies in the face of 155 00:09:57,520 --> 00:10:00,520 everything Abraham has ever considered, never heard or 156 00:10:00,520 --> 00:10:02,720 thought about God. It's who it involves, it's what 157 00:10:02,720 --> 00:10:06,640 it involves, and it's how it doesn't make sense #3 it's how 158 00:10:06,640 --> 00:10:09,320 it doesn't make sense. It contradicts everything he 159 00:10:09,320 --> 00:10:12,560 knows about the character and nature of God. 160 00:10:12,760 --> 00:10:15,360 This test, if you will, involves the most valuable thing in his 161 00:10:15,360 --> 00:10:18,760 life, the most unthinkable thing in his life, and thirdly, the 162 00:10:18,760 --> 00:10:20,880 most confusing thing in his life. 163 00:10:20,880 --> 00:10:23,800 Do you see now why this test is so difficult? 164 00:10:23,800 --> 00:10:28,040 What's even more shocking to me is what you don't hear Abraham 165 00:10:28,040 --> 00:10:30,680 say. Because if I got God on the line 166 00:10:30,960 --> 00:10:33,680 and I heard something like that, I think I would say God. 167 00:10:33,800 --> 00:10:38,800 Could you repeat that again? God, I think you broke up. 168 00:10:39,960 --> 00:10:41,920 God, I think I misunderstood you. 169 00:10:42,680 --> 00:10:45,920 God, for the third time, could you simply say what the 170 00:10:45,920 --> 00:10:48,480 instruction was? Again, you don't hear Abraham 171 00:10:48,640 --> 00:10:52,200 question at all. It's obvious Abraham knows 172 00:10:52,200 --> 00:10:57,240 exactly who has spoken and he knows exactly what God has said. 173 00:10:57,280 --> 00:11:00,880 So verse 3, Abraham arose early in the morning, saddled his 174 00:11:00,880 --> 00:11:04,600 donkey and took two of his young men with him and his son Isaac. 175 00:11:04,800 --> 00:11:07,560 Now I'm just guessing here, but personally, I don't think 176 00:11:07,560 --> 00:11:10,400 Abraham said a word to Sarah before he left. 177 00:11:11,440 --> 00:11:15,120 Mamas, can I get an Amen? What if over, you know, laying 178 00:11:15,120 --> 00:11:16,640 on the pillow that night right before bed. 179 00:11:16,640 --> 00:11:21,200 Abrams, like honey, God and I talked today and here's what he 180 00:11:21,200 --> 00:11:25,200 said. I don't think he said a word. 181 00:11:26,920 --> 00:11:29,720 I also think it's probably fair to conclude this was the last 182 00:11:29,720 --> 00:11:33,040 father son outing Isaac ever took Abraham up on. 183 00:11:33,800 --> 00:11:35,880 Hey, Abraham, after all this was done. 184 00:11:36,120 --> 00:11:37,720 Hey Isaac, man, you want to go fishing today? 185 00:11:38,120 --> 00:11:40,200 Dad about died last time we hung out. 186 00:11:40,200 --> 00:11:41,840 Think I'm good you go right ahead. 187 00:11:41,880 --> 00:11:44,200 All right, so probably lots going on here. 188 00:11:44,400 --> 00:11:48,280 It's a it's a three day journey. The location was Mount Moriah. 189 00:11:48,720 --> 00:11:52,280 And what's significant here is this is potentially the exact 190 00:11:52,280 --> 00:11:55,840 same mount or at least the exact same region where second 191 00:11:55,840 --> 00:11:59,920 Chronicles 31 says Solomon built his very temple where God would 192 00:11:59,920 --> 00:12:01,360 be worshipped. I want you to see how then 193 00:12:01,560 --> 00:12:04,280 pictures, big pieces of the puzzle of the Bible, are going 194 00:12:04,280 --> 00:12:07,160 to come together and be foreshadowed in this text. 195 00:12:07,160 --> 00:12:09,920 This is going to be the place where God in His temple is going 196 00:12:09,920 --> 00:12:13,440 to dwell and be worshipped. And furthermore, this is not far 197 00:12:13,440 --> 00:12:15,120 away. This is extremely close to 198 00:12:15,120 --> 00:12:21,920 another place, a hill called Calvary, where Jesus the Son of 199 00:12:21,920 --> 00:12:27,960 God would die, would not be speared for you and for me. 200 00:12:29,000 --> 00:12:34,200 When Abraham finally sees the place that what God had told 201 00:12:34,200 --> 00:12:38,480 him, notice what he says to his young men travelling with him 202 00:12:38,480 --> 00:12:41,640 and Isaac. Verse 5 Stay here with the 203 00:12:41,640 --> 00:12:44,240 donkey. I and the boy will go over there 204 00:12:44,240 --> 00:12:47,200 and do what? What are they going to go do? 205 00:12:47,960 --> 00:12:53,520 Worship, Abraham says. And come again to you #1 notice 206 00:12:53,520 --> 00:12:55,120 how Abraham describes what they're going to do. 207 00:12:55,120 --> 00:12:59,120 He says what they're about to do is worship, because a burnt 208 00:12:59,120 --> 00:13:03,320 offering was in fact an act of worship through sacrifice. 209 00:13:03,320 --> 00:13:06,800 And quite honestly, this reminds us of a truth we ought to always 210 00:13:06,800 --> 00:13:10,960 remember as believers, that any type of true worship will always 211 00:13:10,960 --> 00:13:17,400 cost us something. It's interesting talk to some 212 00:13:17,400 --> 00:13:23,640 people about Sunday and they say, well, I just need one day a 213 00:13:23,640 --> 00:13:28,560 week to sleep in Pastor as if worship wasn't going to cost 214 00:13:28,560 --> 00:13:32,440 them something. Well, we're we're really busy. 215 00:13:32,440 --> 00:13:38,040 Pastor got a lot going on. As if worship is not supposed to 216 00:13:38,760 --> 00:13:43,280 cost us something. Sometimes we forget this and we 217 00:13:43,280 --> 00:13:47,680 allow things come into play, take us out of rightly offering 218 00:13:47,680 --> 00:13:51,760 to God on the first day of the week when we wake up, an 219 00:13:51,760 --> 00:13:56,920 offering that's a sacrifice of praise when we could be doing 220 00:13:56,920 --> 00:13:59,160 1001 other things during this time. 221 00:13:59,160 --> 00:14:03,480 But you've chosen to be here as worship always, right? 222 00:14:03,480 --> 00:14:06,160 Worship will always cost us something. 223 00:14:06,160 --> 00:14:09,800 We don't come to worship primarily to get, but to give. 224 00:14:10,280 --> 00:14:12,440 Then notice what Abraham is thinking. 225 00:14:12,440 --> 00:14:17,480 He says here I and the boy will not only worship but come again 226 00:14:17,520 --> 00:14:19,200 to you. Now that's fascinating right 227 00:14:19,200 --> 00:14:21,240 there, right? Because Abraham is giving you 228 00:14:21,240 --> 00:14:25,040 insight into what he's thinking. He's saying here that I believe 229 00:14:25,080 --> 00:14:28,320 even if I'm called to follow through with what God has called 230 00:14:28,320 --> 00:14:32,160 me to do, He's saying right now in faith that I believe if I'm 231 00:14:32,160 --> 00:14:34,560 speaking for Abraham, he's saying I believe God is not 232 00:14:34,560 --> 00:14:35,960 going to break his promise to me. 233 00:14:36,040 --> 00:14:39,000 Remember what that promise was. Your offspring will be named 234 00:14:39,000 --> 00:14:42,760 through Isaac. And if that promise is going to 235 00:14:42,760 --> 00:14:44,840 come true, who's going to have to be alive? 236 00:14:45,880 --> 00:14:47,840 Isaac. So no matter what's about to 237 00:14:47,840 --> 00:14:51,160 happen, Abraham is committed to it and willing to do it. 238 00:14:51,400 --> 00:14:54,080 But he believes no matter what's going to happen, I and the boy, 239 00:14:54,200 --> 00:14:56,200 he says I'm going to, we're, we're going to, we're going to 240 00:14:56,200 --> 00:14:59,880 come back somehow, some way. Abraham is believing God that 241 00:14:59,880 --> 00:15:02,360 Isaac is going to live. You get even more specifics in 242 00:15:02,360 --> 00:15:06,520 the New Testament when you turn to Hebrews Chapter 11, verse 17 243 00:15:06,520 --> 00:15:09,240 through 19, which says this by faith. 244 00:15:09,240 --> 00:15:13,000 Abraham, when he was tested, there's that word again, offered 245 00:15:13,000 --> 00:15:18,600 up Isaac, and he and he who had received the promises was in the 246 00:15:18,600 --> 00:15:22,880 act of offering up his only son, of whom it was said through 247 00:15:22,880 --> 00:15:24,840 Isaac shall your offspring be named. 248 00:15:25,120 --> 00:15:28,840 And he watch this. He considered that God was able 249 00:15:28,840 --> 00:15:34,880 even to raise him from the dead. Let me just remind you, God's 250 00:15:34,880 --> 00:15:40,320 not done that yet in Scripture. Abraham's never seen God raise 251 00:15:40,320 --> 00:15:44,000 anybody from the dead. Abraham's never heard of God 252 00:15:44,000 --> 00:15:47,640 raising anybody from the dead. But what did Abraham believe? 253 00:15:49,120 --> 00:15:52,120 The promises of God which meant no matter what he believed his 254 00:15:52,120 --> 00:15:57,960 son would live even if God had to raise him from the dead. 255 00:15:58,800 --> 00:16:03,920 Verse 6 Abraham straps the wood on his son's back and I just 256 00:16:03,920 --> 00:16:07,120 stop and say I can't help but look forward to a picture when 257 00:16:07,120 --> 00:16:10,640 wood would be laid on another son's back. 258 00:16:11,560 --> 00:16:16,120 Literally a wooden cross by which the Savior would bear on 259 00:16:16,120 --> 00:16:20,000 his back as he headed towards Calvary, where He would be 260 00:16:20,080 --> 00:16:22,760 nailed to. To suffer for you and for me, 261 00:16:22,760 --> 00:16:26,920 paying to send debt for my sin and for yours. 262 00:16:27,280 --> 00:16:32,120 Abraham has the torch of fire in one hand and the knife in the 263 00:16:32,120 --> 00:16:34,320 other. It's then that Isaac asked the 264 00:16:34,320 --> 00:16:36,480 awkward elephant in the room question. 265 00:16:37,280 --> 00:16:39,480 Aren't kids great about asking those kind of questions? 266 00:16:39,960 --> 00:16:41,720 You know they're not socially aware enough to know what 267 00:16:41,720 --> 00:16:43,840 questions not to ask, or they just blurt them out loud. 268 00:16:45,240 --> 00:16:49,120 Don't you know that for the last three days Abraham has wondered 269 00:16:49,120 --> 00:16:52,680 how he would answer this question once Isaac asked it. 270 00:16:53,720 --> 00:16:56,200 God, what am I going to say? God, what do you want me to tell 271 00:16:56,200 --> 00:16:57,720 him? God, what do you want me to do? 272 00:16:57,920 --> 00:17:00,040 I know he's going to ask. It's going to become obvious at 273 00:17:00,040 --> 00:17:01,400 some point. God, what is it? 274 00:17:01,400 --> 00:17:03,960 What am I going to say? And sure enough, God provides 275 00:17:03,960 --> 00:17:05,560 Abraham with exactly what to say. 276 00:17:05,720 --> 00:17:09,560 And his answer was, God himself will provide the lamb. 277 00:17:09,560 --> 00:17:13,680 Literally, it could be rendered. The Lord will see to it is what 278 00:17:13,680 --> 00:17:15,119 it means. God's going to see the need 279 00:17:15,200 --> 00:17:19,280 Isaac and the Lord himself is going to provide, and Isaac 280 00:17:19,280 --> 00:17:22,000 trusted the answer from his earthly father and Abrahams 281 00:17:22,000 --> 00:17:25,040 trusting the answer of his heavenly Father to answer. 282 00:17:25,319 --> 00:17:29,080 Now, if we just zoomed out for a moment from this single story in 283 00:17:29,080 --> 00:17:32,760 the Bible and got to the whole story of the Bible, the question 284 00:17:32,760 --> 00:17:38,560 that Isaac asked his father is the question of the entire Bible 285 00:17:38,920 --> 00:17:40,840 that I see the fire and I see the knife. 286 00:17:41,000 --> 00:17:43,360 But the question of Isaac was, where's the lamb? 287 00:17:43,600 --> 00:17:46,080 That is the question of the Bible. 288 00:17:46,120 --> 00:17:50,560 Where is the Lamb that could possibly take away the sins of 289 00:17:50,560 --> 00:17:54,080 the where? And who could possibly be a 290 00:17:54,080 --> 00:17:58,120 sacrifice that could fully appease the wrath of Almighty 291 00:17:58,120 --> 00:18:01,720 God for the sins of the entire world? 292 00:18:02,000 --> 00:18:03,680 And what is the answer to that question? 293 00:18:03,680 --> 00:18:06,040 The Bible gives the Lord Himself will. 294 00:18:06,040 --> 00:18:09,960 What the Lord himself will provide is the answer. 295 00:18:10,080 --> 00:18:12,800 How so? In that God would so love the 296 00:18:12,800 --> 00:18:17,000 world that he would give his one and only Son, so that whosoever 297 00:18:17,160 --> 00:18:20,400 would believe in him should not have to perish for their sin, 298 00:18:20,560 --> 00:18:24,480 but be saved by faith in him and have eternal life. 299 00:18:24,480 --> 00:18:27,080 That's the message of the Bible. That's the message of the 300 00:18:27,080 --> 00:18:31,040 gospel, that Jesus loves you, has been sent for you, has lived 301 00:18:31,040 --> 00:18:34,360 a sinless life for you, has died for your sin and your place for 302 00:18:34,360 --> 00:18:37,440 you, so that if you by faith could call on His name now, even 303 00:18:37,440 --> 00:18:42,480 now as I speak, you can be saved and made alive, born again and 304 00:18:42,480 --> 00:18:45,160 rescued from what you deserve and given what you don't. 305 00:18:45,200 --> 00:18:51,000 Heaven forever. Have you called on Jesus to save 306 00:18:51,000 --> 00:18:54,800 you because God has answered the question himself. 307 00:18:54,800 --> 00:19:00,280 Where is the Lamb in his one and only Son, y'all? 308 00:19:00,280 --> 00:19:04,640 The first thing that we learn here from this story is this, if 309 00:19:04,640 --> 00:19:11,560 you're taking notes, is that God will test the faith of his 310 00:19:12,000 --> 00:19:14,840 followers. You can mark it down and bet 311 00:19:14,840 --> 00:19:21,520 your life on it. God will test the faith of his 312 00:19:21,800 --> 00:19:22,600 followers. You call? 313 00:19:22,600 --> 00:19:25,640 What do you mean? God test our faith often by 314 00:19:25,640 --> 00:19:30,920 calling us to obey him in ways that may not make sense. 315 00:19:31,200 --> 00:19:35,760 You see those of us who believe in the Lord Jesus, yes, we claim 316 00:19:36,160 --> 00:19:39,720 to obey God's word, or at least we agree that we're willing to 317 00:19:39,720 --> 00:19:42,560 obey God's word. But guess what God often test to 318 00:19:42,560 --> 00:19:46,760 see To what extent are we willing to obey God's word when 319 00:19:46,760 --> 00:19:50,200 the Lord commands us to make some costly sacrifice or to do 320 00:19:50,200 --> 00:19:52,760 some task that he's called us to that we don't want to do that 321 00:19:52,760 --> 00:19:54,920 doesn't make sense. It may be confusing this 322 00:19:54,920 --> 00:19:56,800 impossible seeming or unreasonable. 323 00:19:57,000 --> 00:20:02,600 How willing are we to obey? Passing the test y'all looks 324 00:20:02,600 --> 00:20:06,960 like holding nothing back from. God but in total full fate and 325 00:20:06,960 --> 00:20:10,400 surrender just like Abraham did, looking to God to provide and 326 00:20:10,400 --> 00:20:14,400 saying yes, whatever God ask of us, trusting the Lord will 327 00:20:14,400 --> 00:20:18,520 provide, but God will test the fate of his followers. 328 00:20:19,320 --> 00:20:21,800 Follow along with me as we pick up in verse 9. 329 00:20:22,920 --> 00:20:28,840 When they came to the place of which God had told him, Abraham 330 00:20:28,840 --> 00:20:32,200 built the altar there and laid the wood in order. 331 00:20:32,880 --> 00:20:36,920 And he bound Isaac his son, laid him on the altar on top of the 332 00:20:36,920 --> 00:20:39,280 wood. And then Abraham reached out his 333 00:20:39,280 --> 00:20:42,440 hand, and he took the knife to slaughter his son. 334 00:20:42,920 --> 00:20:45,800 But the Angel of the Lord called to him from heaven, and said, 335 00:20:45,800 --> 00:20:50,000 Abraham, Abraham. And he said, Here I am. 336 00:20:50,960 --> 00:20:56,240 He said, Do not lay your hand on the boy, or do anything to him, 337 00:20:57,560 --> 00:21:02,240 for now I know that you fear God, seeing you have not 338 00:21:02,240 --> 00:21:06,040 withheld your son, your only son, from me. 339 00:21:06,880 --> 00:21:10,120 And Abraham lifted up his eyes and looked, and behold, behind 340 00:21:10,120 --> 00:21:13,560 him was a ram caught in a thicket by his horns. 341 00:21:14,320 --> 00:21:17,440 And Abraham went and took the ram, and offered it up as a 342 00:21:17,440 --> 00:21:19,440 burnt offering instead of his son. 343 00:21:19,960 --> 00:21:22,000 So Abraham called the name of that place. 344 00:21:22,000 --> 00:21:27,000 The Lord will provide, as it is said to this day, on the mount 345 00:21:27,000 --> 00:21:29,840 of the Lord, it shall be provided. 346 00:21:30,280 --> 00:21:32,800 Can you imagine with me just for a moment? 347 00:21:33,640 --> 00:21:40,480 At that time, when the altar was completed by Abraham, the wood 348 00:21:40,480 --> 00:21:45,640 had been arranged, the fire was ready, the knife was in his 349 00:21:45,640 --> 00:21:49,200 hand, but there was no obvious sacrifice. 350 00:21:51,120 --> 00:21:56,560 Now the Bible doesn't tell us this, but it doesn't read like 351 00:21:56,600 --> 00:22:01,120 Isaac was watching and Abraham there had to be cunning and sly 352 00:22:01,360 --> 00:22:03,760 to lay the last piece of wood and make sure Isaac was real 353 00:22:03,760 --> 00:22:07,320 close so he could just snatch him before he ran. 354 00:22:08,520 --> 00:22:11,960 It doesn't seem like Abraham has to do any jiu jitsu moves to 355 00:22:12,160 --> 00:22:15,680 take down his son and cuff him to put him as an unwilling 356 00:22:15,680 --> 00:22:17,400 sacrifice. And it doesn't read that way, 357 00:22:17,400 --> 00:22:20,560 does it? Surely young man could have fled 358 00:22:20,560 --> 00:22:22,320 or fought old man had he wanted to. 359 00:22:22,320 --> 00:22:29,280 Abraham's old right here. It reads as if there was no 360 00:22:29,280 --> 00:22:33,880 struggle, reads as if there was no fight or flight. 361 00:22:35,400 --> 00:22:40,800 It reads just like another Son of God would offer himself 362 00:22:41,600 --> 00:22:49,640 willingly on a cross, saying not my will, but thy will, 363 00:22:49,840 --> 00:22:53,280 Understanding fully what he was about to face, having sweat 364 00:22:53,280 --> 00:22:56,920 drops of blood the night before, having asked father if this cup 365 00:22:56,920 --> 00:23:02,640 could pass from me, Let it pass, but not my will, but thy will. 366 00:23:03,560 --> 00:23:06,520 It seems Isaac was a willing vessel. 367 00:23:07,200 --> 00:23:10,880 So with Isaac bound and with knife in hand, it's the moment 368 00:23:10,880 --> 00:23:12,600 of truth. Three days have led up to this 369 00:23:12,600 --> 00:23:13,840 moment. Abraham. 370 00:23:13,840 --> 00:23:17,320 There with knife in hand and arm extended, just before the death 371 00:23:17,320 --> 00:23:23,560 blow falls a voice from heaven. Abraham, Abraham, here I am. 372 00:23:25,760 --> 00:23:30,640 Don't lay your hand on the boy or do anything to him for now. 373 00:23:30,640 --> 00:23:36,680 I know that you fear God seeing you have not withheld your son, 374 00:23:37,240 --> 00:23:43,000 your only son, from me. From a human standpoint, Isaac 375 00:23:43,280 --> 00:23:47,440 was as good as dead. Zaca, what do you mean? 376 00:23:47,440 --> 00:23:49,880 What I mean is Abraham was absolutely and totally 377 00:23:49,880 --> 00:23:53,200 committed. The knife was milliseconds from 378 00:23:53,200 --> 00:23:55,760 dropping. Isaac was as good as dead. 379 00:23:55,920 --> 00:23:59,800 Abraham was all in, but from a divine standpoint, Isaac was 380 00:23:59,800 --> 00:24:03,080 protected from all harm. In fact, although he didn't 381 00:24:03,080 --> 00:24:06,560 suffer a scratch, he was essentially brought back from 382 00:24:06,560 --> 00:24:10,480 the dead by God's intervention. Abraham was completely obedient 383 00:24:10,480 --> 00:24:13,920 to God's command, even willing not to spare his own son in 384 00:24:13,920 --> 00:24:16,920 obedience to his heavenly Father, which his act 385 00:24:17,040 --> 00:24:19,280 highlights. The act of our heavenly Father, 386 00:24:19,440 --> 00:24:23,920 who was in fact not willing to spare his only son out of love 387 00:24:23,920 --> 00:24:26,200 for you. In fact, when Paul writes in 388 00:24:26,200 --> 00:24:31,520 Romans 832 is as if he writes it in light of Isaac being spared, 389 00:24:31,640 --> 00:24:34,040 but Jesus not being listen to what he says. 390 00:24:34,240 --> 00:24:38,280 He says he that's God the Father, who did not what spare 391 00:24:38,440 --> 00:24:44,040 his own son, but gave him up for who? 392 00:24:44,920 --> 00:24:49,640 Us all, including you and me. How will he not also with him 393 00:24:49,640 --> 00:24:54,520 graciously give us all things? You see, God spared Abraham's 394 00:24:54,520 --> 00:25:00,520 only son, but out of love for you and me, He did not spare his 395 00:25:00,520 --> 00:25:05,640 only son so that we could be sons and daughters of the King. 396 00:25:06,640 --> 00:25:11,480 That's what Paul means when and that's what he, John describes 397 00:25:11,480 --> 00:25:16,320 the depth of the love of God. Notice that as a result of his 398 00:25:16,320 --> 00:25:19,800 obedience to give God what was most precious to him. 399 00:25:19,800 --> 00:25:23,960 Notice what God says. He says, Abraham, now I know 400 00:25:24,240 --> 00:25:28,000 that you fear God. That's interesting, right? 401 00:25:28,440 --> 00:25:32,040 Because what I want to ask is, did Abraham not already fear 402 00:25:32,040 --> 00:25:35,200 God? Had he not been walking 403 00:25:35,200 --> 00:25:39,880 faithfully with God? What does it mean to fear God? 404 00:25:40,800 --> 00:25:44,360 Well, certainly it means to believe God, to have one's faith 405 00:25:44,360 --> 00:25:48,920 in God, to have one's loyalty and love and affection and 406 00:25:48,920 --> 00:25:53,240 surrender obedience and honor and respect and all the things 407 00:25:53,240 --> 00:25:55,840 right. It is to relate to God is God. 408 00:25:56,520 --> 00:25:57,680 That's what it means to fear God. 409 00:25:58,280 --> 00:26:03,880 And yes, certainly Abraham was a man who did fear God and was 410 00:26:03,880 --> 00:26:07,800 living according to that fear. But what does God mean when he 411 00:26:07,800 --> 00:26:11,080 says, now I know that you fear God, Let me tell you what he 412 00:26:11,080 --> 00:26:13,480 means. He means now I know because 413 00:26:13,480 --> 00:26:16,960 you've proven by your actions. And by the way, God already 414 00:26:16,960 --> 00:26:18,760 knows. So it's not so much just that 415 00:26:18,760 --> 00:26:21,640 God knows, it's that Abraham knows too. 416 00:26:22,520 --> 00:26:24,800 Now that I know, Abraham, by your actions. 417 00:26:24,960 --> 00:26:28,880 There's nothing truly higher, Abraham. 418 00:26:28,880 --> 00:26:32,960 There's nothing greater Abraham. There is nothing in your life 419 00:26:32,960 --> 00:26:39,360 you hold higher, bigger, better, more valuable than than me. 420 00:26:39,360 --> 00:26:43,000 In other words. Now, Abraham, I know you fear me 421 00:26:44,360 --> 00:26:47,200 and are more loyal to me. You love me. 422 00:26:47,280 --> 00:26:53,960 You value me more than you do anything else, more than what 423 00:26:53,960 --> 00:26:59,560 was most valuable to you. You've honored me, Abraham. 424 00:26:59,560 --> 00:27:07,360 You've passed the test. Friends, This is God's goal for 425 00:27:07,360 --> 00:27:11,720 every single one of us. What do I mean by that? 426 00:27:11,720 --> 00:27:15,880 I mean God's goal is for us to live at the point of absolute 427 00:27:15,880 --> 00:27:21,960 surrender to Him, that nothing higher, nothing greater, nothing 428 00:27:21,960 --> 00:27:26,480 more valuable in our lives than Him willing to follow at all 429 00:27:26,480 --> 00:27:28,920 costs. But can I be honest with you and 430 00:27:28,920 --> 00:27:30,120 you? And I know this is true. 431 00:27:30,120 --> 00:27:34,320 Unfortunately, many Christians don't live at that point, do 432 00:27:34,320 --> 00:27:37,520 they? Case in point reminded me, I was 433 00:27:37,520 --> 00:27:40,480 so encouraged by a young man that we baptized a week ago. 434 00:27:41,680 --> 00:27:45,520 Remember, if you were in that service, that young man's 435 00:27:45,520 --> 00:27:47,880 testimony was that he had been saved as an 8 year old boy. 436 00:27:47,880 --> 00:27:52,000 But it wasn't until he was 16, if I remember his age right, I 437 00:27:52,000 --> 00:27:56,400 think he's about 15 or 16. The December 22nd of 2025 is 438 00:27:56,400 --> 00:28:01,080 when he went all in with Jesus. So what does that mean? 439 00:28:02,880 --> 00:28:06,320 That means he went from just knowing Jesus as his Lord and 440 00:28:06,320 --> 00:28:10,960 Savior to saying, God, I'm going to live by holding nothing more 441 00:28:10,960 --> 00:28:14,880 valuable in my life than you, God. 442 00:28:14,880 --> 00:28:18,320 Everything in my life is going to be secondary to you, God. 443 00:28:18,320 --> 00:28:20,840 I'm going to Matthew 633. I'm going to seek first the 444 00:28:20,840 --> 00:28:24,880 Kingdom of God and your righteousness, and then I'm 445 00:28:24,880 --> 00:28:27,520 going to let everything else in life come secondary to that. 446 00:28:27,880 --> 00:28:31,640 That's what a lot of Christians don't do on the daily. 447 00:28:33,640 --> 00:28:36,600 And this is what God wanted to accomplish in Abraham's life. 448 00:28:36,600 --> 00:28:38,560 Abraham, you're fearing me, you're walking with me. 449 00:28:38,560 --> 00:28:40,320 We know each other. But guess what? 450 00:28:40,320 --> 00:28:43,840 I want you to know me more and I want you to prove through your 451 00:28:43,840 --> 00:28:46,120 actions to yourself and obviously to me. 452 00:28:46,120 --> 00:28:49,280 But I already know that you're a man who holds me as most 453 00:28:49,280 --> 00:28:54,320 valuable and most precious than anything else you could in life. 454 00:28:54,600 --> 00:28:58,360 Y'all sooner or later this type of test will come in your life. 455 00:28:58,360 --> 00:29:01,920 I can about guarantee it came for Abraham here. 456 00:29:01,920 --> 00:29:03,800 Do you remember when it came for Peter? 457 00:29:04,160 --> 00:29:07,360 Do you remember after Peter had denied Jesus three times and it 458 00:29:07,360 --> 00:29:10,040 was after the resurrection? And Jesus appears to the 459 00:29:10,040 --> 00:29:13,920 disciples on the beach after all night of fishing and Jesus walks 460 00:29:13,920 --> 00:29:17,800 up to Peter and they have a conversation in John 15, John 21 461 00:29:17,800 --> 00:29:20,080 verses 15 through 17. And he looks at Peter and says, 462 00:29:20,080 --> 00:29:25,760 Peter, do you love me more than all of these? 463 00:29:27,880 --> 00:29:29,960 Peter, are you going to be willing to walk away from 464 00:29:29,960 --> 00:29:32,720 everything and anyone else to do what I've called you to do? 465 00:29:33,920 --> 00:29:37,000 Peter, do you love me more than these three times? 466 00:29:37,800 --> 00:29:41,760 Peter, do you fear me more than you fear anything else in life? 467 00:29:44,640 --> 00:29:46,800 It came for me when I was a sophomore in college. 468 00:29:48,080 --> 00:29:49,600 For me, it involved my call to preach. 469 00:29:49,600 --> 00:29:51,840 It doesn't involve for everybody a call to preach, but it 470 00:29:51,840 --> 00:29:54,480 certainly did for me because again, I was a young man who had 471 00:29:54,480 --> 00:29:58,640 gotten saved at 9 years of age. I knew the Lord Jesus as my Lord 472 00:29:58,640 --> 00:30:00,400 and Savior. I was growing in my walk with 473 00:30:00,400 --> 00:30:03,160 Christ. But when God called me to give 474 00:30:03,160 --> 00:30:07,440 him my life's dreams and ambitions and goals, when God 475 00:30:07,440 --> 00:30:11,120 called me to entrust to him all the future that I could ever 476 00:30:11,120 --> 00:30:13,720 think, to hope and dream and pursue and have and say, God, 477 00:30:13,760 --> 00:30:16,320 I'm going to lay that secondary to your call on my life. 478 00:30:16,320 --> 00:30:22,160 Guess what I did not want to do is give God what was most 479 00:30:22,160 --> 00:30:25,880 valuable to me. In other words, I was living as 480 00:30:25,880 --> 00:30:29,600 a Christian, but holding on to something more valuable at the 481 00:30:29,600 --> 00:30:33,280 time, momentarily, than God's will in my life. 482 00:30:33,280 --> 00:30:35,440 That's where a lot of Christians get stuck. 483 00:30:36,920 --> 00:30:39,520 They know Jesus may be a sword and savior, but they're not 484 00:30:39,520 --> 00:30:43,720 willing to live like God is truly the most valuable thing on 485 00:30:43,720 --> 00:30:44,880 the planet. They're just not. 486 00:30:47,120 --> 00:30:51,680 And you could get stuck there and not pass this test, God told 487 00:30:51,680 --> 00:30:55,040 Abraham. Now I know that you fear me, 488 00:30:55,040 --> 00:30:59,040 Abraham. Now I know my will is being 489 00:30:59,040 --> 00:31:01,080 accomplished. Now I know what's on the inside 490 00:31:01,080 --> 00:31:04,080 is as mature and well done as what's on the outside. 491 00:31:04,080 --> 00:31:06,520 And let me just ask you, has this test come for you? 492 00:31:09,440 --> 00:31:14,000 How have you fared on the test? Do you realize that if you don't 493 00:31:14,000 --> 00:31:18,680 pass the test, God often will retest anybody? 494 00:31:18,680 --> 00:31:20,600 Like makeup test? I never liked makeup test. 495 00:31:23,960 --> 00:31:29,080 And God won't give other tests typically until we pass initial 496 00:31:29,080 --> 00:31:33,880 test number verse 13. Abraham lifted up his eyes and 497 00:31:33,880 --> 00:31:37,760 looked, and behold, behind him was a ram caught in the thicket 498 00:31:37,760 --> 00:31:40,440 by his horns. You could call it a coincidence, 499 00:31:40,440 --> 00:31:45,000 but you would be badly mistaken for there are no such things. 500 00:31:46,320 --> 00:31:48,560 I may be wrong, but I don't think the ram was there until 501 00:31:48,560 --> 00:31:50,920 the exact moment when Abraham needed it. 502 00:31:51,120 --> 00:31:52,360 And it's not like he had to get out. 503 00:31:52,360 --> 00:31:54,720 His binoculars had even had any of those in those days. 504 00:31:54,880 --> 00:31:57,840 He just had to look up and see. Just look up and notice he 505 00:31:57,840 --> 00:31:58,960 didn't have to go hunting for it. 506 00:31:59,200 --> 00:32:02,120 God's provision showed up right when he needed it. 507 00:32:02,480 --> 00:32:05,040 So Abraham takes the ram. God provided offers. 508 00:32:05,040 --> 00:32:07,680 Is it a burnt offering? Verse 14 he called the name of 509 00:32:07,680 --> 00:32:08,640 that place. Here it is. 510 00:32:08,640 --> 00:32:12,000 The Lord will provide as it is said to this day on the mount of 511 00:32:12,000 --> 00:32:15,720 the Lord shall be provided. Don't you remember how he 512 00:32:15,720 --> 00:32:18,640 answered his son's question when he asked, Hey, I see the fire, I 513 00:32:18,640 --> 00:32:20,800 see the wood. You got the knife, Dad, where's 514 00:32:20,800 --> 00:32:24,640 the lamb? God will provide himself the 515 00:32:24,640 --> 00:32:27,720 lamb, Abraham said. Abraham didn't know how God 516 00:32:27,720 --> 00:32:30,840 would provide, he just believed God would. 517 00:32:31,000 --> 00:32:35,000 And when he did, Abraham named the place Yahweh Yaira or as 518 00:32:35,000 --> 00:32:39,320 kind of transliterated a little bit more modern times, Jehovah 519 00:32:39,440 --> 00:32:44,040 Jireh, the word provide in the Hebrew literally to see perhaps 520 00:32:44,040 --> 00:32:45,400 best rendered literally like this. 521 00:32:45,400 --> 00:32:49,880 The Lord will see himself and provide himself. 522 00:32:52,000 --> 00:32:54,400 And then Abraham makes a statement that such a picture of 523 00:32:54,400 --> 00:32:56,120 the future on the mount of the Lord. 524 00:32:56,120 --> 00:33:01,040 It shall be provided on the mount called Calvary. 525 00:33:01,840 --> 00:33:05,920 God would provide for your greatest need and mine with His 526 00:33:05,920 --> 00:33:09,360 one and only Son whom He would not spare, for all who would 527 00:33:09,360 --> 00:33:11,280 believe and place their faith in Him. 528 00:33:12,280 --> 00:33:15,920 On that mount in Abraham's day, and on that mount when Christ 529 00:33:15,920 --> 00:33:19,960 gave His life for us. God has provided #2 in the midst 530 00:33:19,960 --> 00:33:23,120 of the test, God will always provide. 531 00:33:23,400 --> 00:33:26,000 In the midst of the test, friends, you can mark it down. 532 00:33:26,000 --> 00:33:30,840 God will always provide. Y'all. 533 00:33:30,840 --> 00:33:33,520 It's one thing to believe facts about God. 534 00:33:34,560 --> 00:33:38,280 Well, it is another thing to experience God first hand. 535 00:33:38,680 --> 00:33:42,200 This is really the reason why God test you say. 536 00:33:42,200 --> 00:33:44,120 Listen, it doesn't make sense to me. 537 00:33:44,360 --> 00:33:47,040 God doesn't need a Thermopen, does he, Kyle? 538 00:33:50,960 --> 00:33:54,560 No, but we do. So here's the deal. 539 00:33:54,560 --> 00:33:59,720 Like I could explain to you all the logical, rational reasons to 540 00:33:59,720 --> 00:34:02,880 believe in a creator. There's a lot of them. 541 00:34:04,400 --> 00:34:06,720 I mean, just being frank, I believe it takes far more faith 542 00:34:06,720 --> 00:34:08,719 to believe in a bang than it does in a Creator. 543 00:34:10,440 --> 00:34:13,360 I could explain to you the historicity of Jesus. 544 00:34:13,560 --> 00:34:17,239 Scholars don't argue that a man by the name of Jesus who 545 00:34:17,239 --> 00:34:19,440 impacted the world, walked this earth. 546 00:34:20,199 --> 00:34:23,560 That's not argued, changed history. 547 00:34:25,159 --> 00:34:27,840 I could talk to you about all the reasons why we ought to 548 00:34:27,840 --> 00:34:31,920 trust the reliability and the veracity and the authenticity of 549 00:34:31,920 --> 00:34:35,719 the Scripture. I I could, but you realize none 550 00:34:35,719 --> 00:34:39,000 of those reasons are the ultimate reason I call myself a 551 00:34:39,000 --> 00:34:41,920 Christian. Now all those have been 552 00:34:41,920 --> 00:34:43,639 instrumental. All those are vital. 553 00:34:43,880 --> 00:34:47,199 But the primary reason I call myself a Christian is not 554 00:34:47,199 --> 00:34:50,239 because of a set of facts, but because of a set of first hand 555 00:34:50,239 --> 00:34:54,520 experiences I've had with God himself calling me my by name. 556 00:34:54,520 --> 00:34:57,560 Not that I heard it audibly, but when he convicted me of my sin 557 00:34:57,560 --> 00:35:00,720 and I knew I needed a Savior. When I've seen Jesus be faithful 558 00:35:00,720 --> 00:35:03,840 to me and change me and make me somebody that I'm not naturally. 559 00:35:03,920 --> 00:35:07,280 When I've seen God provide for me and guide me and call me and 560 00:35:07,280 --> 00:35:11,040 all the things over 41 years, that's why I am who I am and why 561 00:35:11,040 --> 00:35:16,280 I believe what I believe. And so is your faith gone from a 562 00:35:16,280 --> 00:35:20,680 set of facts to first hand experience. 563 00:35:20,680 --> 00:35:25,040 This is why God will test you, not so that just He can know, 564 00:35:25,160 --> 00:35:27,120 but that you can know how good He is. 565 00:35:27,120 --> 00:35:28,280 In fact, let me just put it like this. 566 00:35:28,480 --> 00:35:31,080 This test was a test for Abraham, was it not? 567 00:35:32,400 --> 00:35:36,200 But consider this it was far more a test for God. 568 00:35:38,360 --> 00:35:44,880 Could God be trusted to provide? Could God be trusted not to 569 00:35:44,880 --> 00:35:47,640 break his promises when it looked like He was? 570 00:35:48,880 --> 00:35:53,360 Could God be trusted when life hurt When this was inserted in 571 00:35:53,360 --> 00:35:56,160 Abraham's heart? Could God be trusted that he was 572 00:35:56,160 --> 00:35:59,320 still good when he was undergoing pain a father 573 00:35:59,320 --> 00:36:02,000 probably could not express and didn't tell Mama about? 574 00:36:02,920 --> 00:36:06,600 Could God be trusted? God was the one ultimately on 575 00:36:06,600 --> 00:36:10,080 the line for the test. And this is often why God puts 576 00:36:10,080 --> 00:36:14,080 us in situations not so that we that he can so much know, but 577 00:36:14,080 --> 00:36:17,360 there's so we can experience how good he is even when 578 00:36:17,360 --> 00:36:20,240 circumstances want to appoint us or we want to be tempted to not 579 00:36:20,240 --> 00:36:23,400 believe or we want to be tempted to think God's God's, God's 580 00:36:23,400 --> 00:36:26,160 going AWOL, God's disappeared, God doesn't love me anymore, 581 00:36:26,160 --> 00:36:28,360 God's not really good. God's holding out on me. 582 00:36:28,480 --> 00:36:32,000 And we can find out just how good God is for ourselves. 583 00:36:33,960 --> 00:36:36,720 When God takes this and sticks it in our heart, it doesn't feel 584 00:36:36,720 --> 00:36:44,760 good, but we learn how good God is when he does and we see and 585 00:36:44,760 --> 00:36:47,760 realize that faith has been fully formed and who we truly 586 00:36:47,760 --> 00:36:51,840 fear in our lives. I'm going to read verses 15 587 00:36:51,840 --> 00:36:53,640 through 19. I'm going to make a couple 588 00:36:53,640 --> 00:36:54,840 comments and I'm going to be done. 589 00:36:55,240 --> 00:36:58,280 And the Angel of the Lord called to Abraham a second time from 590 00:36:58,280 --> 00:37:03,440 heaven, and said by myself, I have sworn, declares the Lord, 591 00:37:03,440 --> 00:37:06,040 Because you have done this, and have not withheld your son, your 592 00:37:06,040 --> 00:37:10,320 only son, I will surely bless you, and I will surely multiply 593 00:37:10,320 --> 00:37:12,840 your offspring as the stars of heaven and as the sand that is 594 00:37:12,840 --> 00:37:15,440 on the seashore. And your offspring shall possess 595 00:37:15,440 --> 00:37:17,600 the gate of his enemies. And in your offspring shall all 596 00:37:17,600 --> 00:37:20,360 the nations of the earth be blessed, because you have obeyed 597 00:37:20,360 --> 00:37:22,960 my voice. So Abraham returned to his young 598 00:37:22,960 --> 00:37:25,640 men, and they arose and went together to Beersheba. 599 00:37:25,800 --> 00:37:29,840 And Abraham lived in at beersheba #3. 600 00:37:29,840 --> 00:37:33,800 Obedience that passes the test brings blessing. 601 00:37:34,120 --> 00:37:38,400 Obedience that passes the test brings blessing. 602 00:37:38,560 --> 00:37:41,880 You see what God does here? Reaffirm all the promises that 603 00:37:41,880 --> 00:37:44,920 Abraham had already heard. And what's happening here is 604 00:37:44,920 --> 00:37:48,600 that Abraham's obedience by fate, there will no longer be, 605 00:37:48,600 --> 00:37:52,400 There won't be any obstacle to the full out pouring of God's 606 00:37:52,400 --> 00:37:55,720 promises and blessings in his life because he's simply chosen 607 00:37:55,720 --> 00:37:58,960 to trust God. Finally, in one sentence, here 608 00:37:58,960 --> 00:38:02,640 it is. God test our faith to prove our 609 00:38:02,640 --> 00:38:07,960 faith and his faithfulness. God test our faith to prove our 610 00:38:07,960 --> 00:38:11,440 faith and his faithfulness. Y'all. 611 00:38:11,440 --> 00:38:15,040 This passage in so many ways is like physical therapy. 612 00:38:15,040 --> 00:38:18,400 Nobody likes to show up for it. It hurts, but it's necessary, 613 00:38:18,400 --> 00:38:23,720 isn't it? This passage is a faith 614 00:38:23,800 --> 00:38:31,080 stretcher, one that may not feel good, but one that does US good. 615 00:38:31,520 --> 00:38:35,080 Tests from God are going to come in all shapes and sizes. 616 00:38:35,080 --> 00:38:38,160 When they do, listen instantly and fully obey. 617 00:38:38,680 --> 00:38:41,880 The longer we delay, the longer the test last. 618 00:38:42,120 --> 00:38:45,440 Let me let me say this. We often give God partial or 619 00:38:45,440 --> 00:38:49,240 delayed or no obedience and then we wonder why our relationship 620 00:38:49,240 --> 00:38:52,240 with God doesn't seem to be progressing. 621 00:38:54,040 --> 00:38:59,320 God's promises fulfilled in our lives flow as the obedience to 622 00:38:59,320 --> 00:39:02,080 God is given and they bring blessing. 623 00:39:03,480 --> 00:39:08,960 Let me finish like this. Often times in our lives when 624 00:39:08,960 --> 00:39:12,720 things from God are difficult or hard, they're confusing, maybe 625 00:39:12,720 --> 00:39:14,920 even unthinkable like Abraham experienced. 626 00:39:15,280 --> 00:39:17,680 And quite honestly, they don't feel good as God is inserting 627 00:39:17,680 --> 00:39:20,000 the needle of a spiritual thermopen in our hearts. 628 00:39:20,400 --> 00:39:23,040 What can happen to us whether we're new Christians or long 629 00:39:23,040 --> 00:39:24,920 time Christians? But especially I'll watch this 630 00:39:24,920 --> 00:39:28,360 with new Christians sometimes as they come to faith and find joy 631 00:39:28,360 --> 00:39:32,160 in life and forgiveness and hope in Jesus and you just watch them 632 00:39:32,160 --> 00:39:33,920 explode with the joy of salvation. 633 00:39:34,320 --> 00:39:39,240 But obviously what does eventually come in life, some 634 00:39:39,240 --> 00:39:43,440 trials, some hard things, and no matter where we are in our 635 00:39:43,440 --> 00:39:47,040 faith, we can wonder where God go. 636 00:39:50,680 --> 00:39:52,440 Is God as good as I thought he was? 637 00:39:54,000 --> 00:39:56,800 Is God really gracious? Is he really in control? 638 00:39:58,160 --> 00:40:01,920 Can I really trust God? Because right now I'm hurting. 639 00:40:02,280 --> 00:40:05,280 This thing's sticking in my heart and I don't even 640 00:40:05,280 --> 00:40:13,360 understand why. It's in those moments that we 641 00:40:13,360 --> 00:40:15,720 learn where we stand in our faith with Him. 642 00:40:17,240 --> 00:40:21,400 But most of all, what we learn if we simply trust Him, is not 643 00:40:21,400 --> 00:40:25,160 so much about our faith, but about His goodness. 644 00:40:26,440 --> 00:40:29,520 Because in those moments when the test comes, God himself is 645 00:40:29,520 --> 00:40:33,400 putting him to the to himself to the test, because He wants you 646 00:40:33,400 --> 00:40:38,280 to know first hand how good He is, how much he can be trusted, 647 00:40:39,280 --> 00:40:43,840 how his grace never fails and his promises never ever fail. 648 00:40:44,960 --> 00:40:47,240 So even when you feel like God's got his thermal pen in your 649 00:40:47,240 --> 00:40:51,560 heart, keep trusting. The test is ultimately more 650 00:40:51,560 --> 00:40:54,360 about his faithfulness to you than yours to him. 651 00:40:55,640 --> 00:40:59,040 But instantly in Philly, obey. God wants you to read, look down 652 00:40:59,040 --> 00:41:00,440 and see, hey, where's your faith? 653 00:41:01,520 --> 00:41:08,200 Medium rare as it is done on the inside, as everybody thinks it 654 00:41:08,200 --> 00:41:13,160 is on the outside, but the test will show as God test our faith 655 00:41:13,680 --> 00:41:18,720 to grow our faith and prove His faithfulness as John and Praise 656 00:41:18,720 --> 00:41:20,160 team lead us in the song of invitation. 657 00:41:20,160 --> 00:41:22,400 Just a moment, here's what I want to ask you to consider. 658 00:41:24,040 --> 00:41:26,760 If God were to stick this in your heart this morning, what 659 00:41:26,760 --> 00:41:34,960 would it say? What would it say depending on 660 00:41:34,960 --> 00:41:36,800 what it says, How do you need to respond? 661 00:41:38,680 --> 00:41:40,680 Is there something you need to give God that you're holding to 662 00:41:40,680 --> 00:41:45,320 more valuable than you hold him? Is it your life? 663 00:41:46,120 --> 00:41:48,680 Is it to receive forgiveness in Jesus as your savior? 664 00:41:51,320 --> 00:41:53,080 Is it maybe the test that has come? 665 00:41:53,080 --> 00:41:57,520 But quite honestly, maybe you need to retake it, or maybe the 666 00:41:57,520 --> 00:41:59,440 test hasn't come, but you just want to come tell God. 667 00:41:59,440 --> 00:42:00,920 God, I want to be ready for wherever you lead. 668 00:42:00,920 --> 00:42:02,800 Whatever you say, I'll go. Here I am. 669 00:42:04,040 --> 00:42:05,600 Help me not to hold anything more valuable than you. 670 00:42:06,600 --> 00:42:09,000 Help me to realize and trust your goodness. 671 00:42:09,280 --> 00:42:12,320 No matter what I go through. I'm going to ask you to respond 672 00:42:12,320 --> 00:42:13,400 as the Lord leads you this morning. 673 00:42:13,400 --> 00:42:17,200 Heavenly Father, God, I pray this morning that you would 674 00:42:17,960 --> 00:42:21,000 speak to each and every heart. God, I pray that you would just 675 00:42:21,000 --> 00:42:22,680 allow us to realize where we are. 676 00:42:23,520 --> 00:42:25,560 God, that if we're holding anything more valuable than you 677 00:42:25,560 --> 00:42:30,160 that we would turn it loose. We cling to you and you would 678 00:42:30,160 --> 00:42:34,680 have your way that you would form our faith fully, you would 679 00:42:34,680 --> 00:42:36,960 prove your faithfulness to us and we would know by first hand 680 00:42:36,960 --> 00:42:42,520 experience truly how good, how great, now awesome you are. 681 00:42:42,880 --> 00:42:45,240 In Jesus name I pray, Amen. Would you stand? 682 00:42:45,360 --> 00:42:46,880 I'll be here. I encourage yours to be close. 683 00:42:46,880 --> 00:42:48,200 We're going to sing and worship together. 684 00:42:48,440 --> 00:42:50,720 You come and respond to the Lord as He leads you this morning.