Christina – Page 1918 – I'm Following Jesus

KJB Daily Devotion – Following Jesus Through Every Chapter
Date: Saturday, January 19, 2019
Chapters: Genesis 22-24
Message: When God Tempts

Hello My Friend,

When the Bible tells us that we are to be a living sacrifice we have no problem giving up the worldly things for God, but when He asks us to give up the things that are dear to us, that can be challenging. We do not realize that many times when God asks us to give up something for Him it is not necessarily to take them away from us, rather to see if we are going to trust Him and His promises. After all Jesus did say, “If any man come to me, and hate not his father, and mother, and wife, and children, and brethren, and sisters, yea, and his own life also, he cannot be my disciple. And whosoever doth not bear his cross, and come after me, cannot be my disciple.” – Luke 14:26-27.

“and hate not his father,” Does God really want us to hate our family, especially when the Bible also tells us that we are to love one another? No He does not. What Jesus is saying here is, “If you are going to say that you follow me, than do it.” God takes our commitment to Him seriously, if we trust Him, He will bless us greatly, if we just muddle through, and all we ever do is get saved, with no effort to do anything else for Him than we are going to lose out on a lot. Abraham just received the very promise God made to him, a son, and he could not have been more excited. Imagine what he must have thought when God spoke to him and told him that he had to give his son as a sacrifice.

“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. Then on the third day Abraham lifted up his eyes, and saw the place afar off. And Abraham said unto his young men, Abide ye here with the ass; and I and the lad will go yonder and worship, and come again to you.” – Genesis 22:1-5.

“that God did tempt Abraham,” This is not the kind of temptation that would entice on to sin, this type of temptation to try us, prove us, or put us through a trial to test our faith in Him. Abraham told his servants to stay behind, that they would return to them, so right there he had faith that both of them would return down that mountain. Now, Abraham gathered everything for the sacrifice, and took Isaac with him.

“And Isaac spake unto Abraham his father, and said, My father: and he said, Here am I, my son. And he said, Behold the fire and the wood: but where is the lamb for a burnt offering? And Abraham said, My son, God will provide himself a lamb for a burnt offering: so they went both of them together. And they came to the place which God had told him of; and Abraham built an altar there, and laid the wood in order, and bound Isaac his son, and laid him on the altar upon the wood. 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. And Abraham lifted up his eyes, and looked, and behold behind him a ram caught in a thicket by his horns: and Abraham went and took the ram, and offered him up for a burnt offering in the stead of his son.” – Genesis 22:7-13.

“and behold behind him a ram caught in a thicket by his horns:” God provided the sacrifice, He has always provided the sacrifice. If we are serious about being a living sacrifice for God than we too have to first get the sacrifice that He has provided for us, and that is Jesus Christ. Which by the way, is why Jesus said, “If any man come to me, and hate not his father,….”, if we come to Him we will be blessed, and receive more than His promises. And God confirms this with Abraham. “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.

“because thou hast obeyed my voice.” Whenever God tempts us it is not for evil, rather obedience, I wish I could say that I have always obeyed His voice, but I have not. And yes, I have hindered God at times because I got impatient or did not understand, and instead of waiting I took things into my own hands. 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. Now, after all this, Abraham got word that his brother had some children, and we are given an account here. “And it came to pass after these things, that it was told Abraham, saying, Behold, Milcah, she hath also born children unto thy brother Nahor; Huz his firstborn, and Buz his brother, and Kemuel the father of Aram, And Chesed, and Hazo, and Pildash, and Jidlaph, and Bethuel. And Bethuel begat Rebekah: these eight Milcah did bear to Nahor, Abraham’s brother.” – Genesis 22:20-23.

“And Bethuel begat Rebekah:” Rebekah would play a key part in all of this later on, which is why her name is given an account in His Word. We do not realize it because the Old Testament is primarily about the Jews, but God has always found faithful people willing to sacrifice their lives in obedience to Him. God is no respecter of persons. “For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, saith the LORD, thoughts of peace, and not of evil, to give you an expected end. Then shall ye call upon me, and ye shall go and pray unto me, and I will hearken unto you.” – Jeremiah 29:11-12.

Whenever God tempts us, it is not for evil, rather obedience, I wish I could say that I have always obeyed His voice, but I have not. And yes, I have hindered God at times because I got impatient or did not understand, and instead of waiting I took things into my own hands. 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. Now Sarah lived over thirty years after she gave birth to Isaac, she lived to be a hundred and twenty-seven years old, and is the only woman in Scripture that God recorded the age of her death. Abraham grieved, then prepared to bury his wife in the city of Hebron which is where David would dwell years later.

“And Abraham stood up from before his dead, and spake unto the sons of Heth, saying, I am a stranger and a sojourner with you: give me a possession of a buryingplace with you, that I may bury my dead out of my sight. And he communed with them, saying, If it be your mind that I should bury my dead out of my sight; hear me, and intreat for me to Ephron the son of Zohar, That he may give me the cave of Machpelah, which he hath, which is in the end of his field; for as much money as it is worth he shall give it me for a possession of a buryingplace amongst you. Nay, my lord, hear me: the field give I thee, and the cave that is therein, I give it thee; in the presence of the sons of my people give I it thee: bury thy dead. And Abraham bowed down himself before the people of the land. And he spake unto Ephron in the audience of the people of the land, saying, But if thou wilt give it, I pray thee, hear me: I will give thee money for the field; take it of me, and I will bury my dead there. And the field of Ephron, which was in Machpelah, which was before Mamre, the field, and the cave which was therein, and all the trees that were in the field, that were in all the borders round about, were made sure” – Genesis 23:3-4,8-9,11-13.

“were made sure” Think about what it represented when he purchased the land that would be for not only his wife’s burial, but his and Issaac’s, first, it was bought and paid for with a price, second, was a sure place, meaning, the purchase was sealed, never to be sold again, and third, it was a token of Abraham’s belief and expectation of the resurrection. “Nevertheless the foundation of God standeth sure, having this seal, The Lord knoweth them that are his. And, Let every one that nameth the name of Christ depart from iniquity.” – II Tmothy 2:19.

Now, that Sarah died and 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, he did not give any specifics, only that she not be of his brothers kin.

“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 made his camels to kneel down without the city by a well of water at the time of the evening, even the time that women go out to draw water. 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. And it came to pass, before he had done speaking, that, behold, Rebekah came out, who was born to Bethuel, son of Milcah, the wife of Nahor, Abraham’s brother, with her pitcher upon her shoulder.” – Genesis 24:1-4,10-15.

“And it came to pass, before he had done speaking,” This is another one of those challenges that we wonder why we are even asked to do it. I mean, an employee picking out a wife for his employers son? His only option was to pray to God for guidance and before he even said Amen, God answered his prayer. God does not always answer our prayers in an instant, most of the time He will challenge us before He gives us the things we ask, but as long as we endure the challenge we will see it in some form. Whether we are seeking 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.

Jesus Christ Magnified: “And Isaac spake unto Abraham his father, and said, My father: and he said, Here am I, my son. And he said, Behold the fire and the wood: but where is the lamb for a burnt offering? And Abraham said, My son, God will provide himself a lamb for a burnt offering: so they went both of them together.” – Genesis 22:7-8.

Today’s Prayer: God, Although you tempt us by trying our faith, it never comes without void, and while we do not always understand some of the ways in which You do try our faith, everything You do has a purpose and a meaning, and comes out good if we simply trust You. Lord, I will never forget the day You came to me and revealed Your purpose for my life and I want continue to fulfill that purpose, lead me and guide me, give me Your power to trust You no matter what challenge You bring me, and keep me in obedience to Your Word, not because I have to, but because You chose me. Give me the strength to fight evil temptation, let me not be hindered from fulfilling Your will for my life, and fill me with Your love, mercy, and grace that I may accomplish all that You have for me to do. In the name of Jesus I pray, Amen.

God Bless You, I am praying for you,

Christina

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