Commitment on Trial - Part 1

Welcome to the intensified catheter family for Wednesday, September 21. Your dedication to Jesus gains or loses strength when it affected our series continues helping you understand why your commitment is often put on trial through those and making a difference. How committed you are to Jesus Christ. Your commitment is going to be tested somewhere along the way.

So the title of this message is commitment on trial, and if you turn the Genesis chapter 22 beginning in verse one we want to couch the title of this and this message in the life of Abraham.

A man who was surely committed to the Lord God.

And yet God gave him one of the most difficult task that any person could ever phase concerning their commitment to the Lord, and if you recall that God had chosen him back over the Chapter 11 out of a pagan society out of a pagan society. He gave him a command to leave his family go into the land that God would show him later and then, as the Lord challenged him. Time after time he brought him to the most crucial test of his life and chapter 22 beginning in verse one says it came about after these things that God tested Abraham and said to him, Abraham, listen and he said here I am. That's commitment, not waiting around here. I'll he said take now your son, your oldest son, whom you love, Isaac go to the land of Moriah, and offer him there was a burnt offering on one of the mountains of which I will tell you. So Abraham rose up early in the morning, settled his donkey took two of these young men with him and Isaac his son and he split wood for the burnt offering arose and went to the place which God had told on the third day Abraham raised his eyes and saw the place from a distance Abraham said to his young men stay here with the donkey, and I'm the lad will go yonder and we will worship and return to you and that Hebrew when it says we will worship and return to you. It says we will worship and we will return even though God told him you it's all for your son as a sacrifice so he says then Abraham took the wood of the burnt offering and laid on his son Isaac. He took in his hand.

The fire on the lives of the two of them walked on together and can you imagine what Abraham must've been thinking when he and his son Isaac were walking alone together and Isaac spoke Abraham and his father and said my father. He and he said here I am, my son, he said, behold, the fire and the wood but where is the lamb for the burnt offering and Abraham said God will provide for himself the lamb for the burnt offering, my son, so the two of them walked on together.

Then they came the place of which God had told him, and Abraham built the altar there and arrange the wood and bound his son Isaac and laid him on the altar on top of the wood.

Abraham stretched out his hand and took the knife to slay his son. But the angel of the Lord called to him from heaven and set Abraham, Abraham, and he said here I'll same response and he said do not stretch out your hand against the lad and do nothing to him. For now, I know that you fear God, since you have not withheld your son, your only son, from me.

And of course you know the rest of the story, God tested Abraham in a very unusual way. Often times people read this passage and they say well the reason God did. That is, that God wanted to find out how committed. Abraham was doing. He knew how committed. Listen, if God is omniscient God doesn't need to ask you a check you out for information. He knows exactly how you can respond to every situation so he didn't test Abraham's commitment in order to find out. So why does God test your commitment you committed as a believer and you committed different levels at different times in your life. But what is God's purpose for testing your commitment to him with the two things I want you to jot down in all these points start with a P so you can keep count of in the first one is purpose.

Now think of two reasons that God will test our commitment them even though he knows how we can respond. The first one is that God wants to reveal something sewers you say well what Norwood Galvin revealed was the first thing God wants us to know he wants us to discover some things to reveal something sewers. One of the first purposes for which God will test our commitment is in order. Listen, is in order to reveal to us that you and I may discover just how committed we are and you see you and I will never know how truly committed we are to Jesus Christ.

We will never know his Lordship in reality until we are tested. So one of the first purposes that God test is in our commitment for is the simple reason that we may discover not that God has the discover I discover how committed I am when I'm put to the test. The second thing at this point is this, that is. And when you and I are put to the task, and we say yes I'm committed to Jesus Christ. I'm committed to what God wants.

I'm committed to God's call in my life.

The second reason that God will test those is that God wants to reveal to us his faithfulness.

When we tested this in the only way in the world that you ever discover how faithful God is the you is for God to put you in the stretch in your life and then put you in a position where if God doesn't come through you just going to seek how would you not ever have discovered the faithfulness of God.

If we had not assume the responsibility of trusting him. God had not put is in that position been at the last moment. We were absolutely desperate and hopeless, saying, Lord, if you don't do it. It cannot be done. Those are difficult times in trying times, but the other times we discover the faithfulness of God with the something else that you and discover and this is one of his purposes is that in the testing of our commitment. God always teaches us new truth. I can look back in my life and going back through my darling, just looking at some times that God tested me at the end of every single entry after period of testing when I went back to write about it every time that I checked on I discovered that God taught me something new about himself about his ways away. The way he operates in our lives. So God's purposes are never to discover what will do. His purpose is always directed toward and are in our behalf and not disabled is the discover something, but God also wants us to grow. Here's how we grow when you and I are tested. What happens is we be again to understand the way God operates is absent you so many times one the best ways for you to instruct your children is to get them in the Old Testament get them into these biblical characters and go through with them and help them to see how God operated in the life of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob are Daniel David of Joseph of Joshua hadn't got operating their lives. It is a time of growing. You see, God puts us to the test in order to grow is up.

He will never allow you to rest to remain on some spiritual plateaus somewhere where ever you are in your spiritual life, you can bet your life that your commitment is going to be tested and as it is tested that God's ultimate motivation is the reveal to you something about yourself to reveal to you something about himself and to teach you, God's ways.

You see, the more you not understand the ways of God, then we get in these situations, we know how to respond because we've learned in the past that God does go by certain principles that you can put them in a box you can box them and say here's the way God's going to respond. He doesn't always respond in the same way, but the principles are the same. So what happens he wants us to grow in our understanding of how he operates. Second, let people chose to grow in our devotion to him. What makes his loving more than the put is in the stretch and I live with tried and tested, and God and his laws represent his arms enveloped was in himself overshadows with his love. Take us right through that time of testing and we come out victoriously, triumphantly, what does that do but deepen our devotion and I love to Jesus Christ you see he is in this in order that you and may grow one last thing about his purposes. As you can imagine this that God always is interested in growing your faith growing us an understanding of his ways growing us in our understanding of how he operates in a light, but growing up roughly 1 of my favorite songs is trust and obey, because I really believe you can wrap up God's purpose in your life and those two words trust and obey. When you learn to trust in you obey him.

And if you're obeying him it's because you trusting him and the more you obey him. The more you trust in the more you trust in the more you obey them, and that is a beautiful cycle for a believer to get into God always has a definite purpose for driving you to the very age in your Christian life and you think God I can't take anymore. He has something in mind in testing your commitment now. The second thing was the notice here is theirs and that is there is a promise that God gives as when we are tested in our commitment and here are two beautiful promises jot these two words down the first word is control and the second one is companionship when ever God test your commitment in mind the two things that he's promised us.

He's promised to control the testing and he's promised. He is companionship in the testing you recall if you will end up first Corinthians chapter 10 verse 13. Look at that for just a moment. You probably know this, my heart and if you don't, my friend is some verses that you need to learn out of emergences. You will not drive a car without a spare.

He is one of those verses you will not live without the sprayer first Corinthians chapter 10 verse 13 no temptation, no trial, no testing, no difficulty has overtaken you but such as is common to man, but God is faithful, who will listen who will not allow you to be trod beyond what you are able to bear. That is, God always puts a limitation on his trial so that when ever he test your commitment to him is a limitation to it because God knew how much Abraham can be tried this and he knows exactly how you can be tested.

One of the wonderful things God does not do is to show you as soon as you get save all that you going to have to experience all your life.

If he did most of us, it's a God take me home now forget it is no way for me to live through this now. Second wonderful thing about it is he promises his companionship in that he says I will never leave the know for thinking illicit the time when I need that the most.

The one thing I need to know is Lord. It all may look damn and all they look hopeless and I don't know how you going to bring me through this.

But the one thing I need to know God is that you are with me in illicit.

When you know that God is with you in a circumstance when you being tested, trod, if you know he's with you. You can take it a whole lot better you understand why people drink live on drugs and wreck and ruin their lives with that kind of escapism. They don't have God and when the tests comes from the trial comes this and if it's testing and trial minus God. What else do they have to go to with the emptiness of all of it. Looking Joshua chapter 1.

One of my favorite verses because here is one of the most beautiful promises that God ever gave any man. Joshua chapter 1 the next time you being tested and tried in your commitment to Jesus Christ and you say yes I'm going to be obedient to God whatever God calls me to do Lord you just name it, I'll do it.

God says all right let's see how you going to come out of this, not for God's information, but he wants to show us you see what that does that eliminates pride just about the time you think will listen God here I am, just call me and God calls on. Next thing you know you stressed out flat out looking up single my God be merciful to me, looking Joshua chapter 1. Look, if you will, in verse nine he says have not commanded you. Be strong and courageous. Do not tremble or be dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go. Listen to things that I need to know when I'm being tested. That is when my commitment to Jesus Christ is really being pushed to things you and I need to know I need to know that Almighty God has this trial on the is control and secondly that I have the promise of his companionship. He's going to walk with me through every step of this and sometimes I may be crying out to God, where are you, Lord. I don't feel you Lord. I don't see you. I haven't heard from you recently God, where are you one thing for sure, I know, not by my motions, but by the truth my God is as close as my heartbeat more intermittently than the blood that runs through my veins because he has become your life in my life. One last thing, what you jot them and that's profit always profits us when we are tested to obey and let me tell you what I think is the most exciting thing about getting tested in your commitment to Jesus Christ about were the most most exciting thing is the girl in the Lord will not that's exciting.

But let me just share this with you personally. As I go through tested mound life in God test my commitment here and what he'll do. He'll testing every area of your life, you bet your life will not to me.

Here's the greatest profit the greatest. The greatest reward of having our commitment tested. Is this in Inc.'s plucking bowl over well me probably abundant. Overflowing joy of simply knowing I obeyed the hot I'll tell you there's something about that to be able walk away and say Lord hallelujah. At least I obeyed you, you can tell him anything about wonderful net.

Listen, think about this.

To think that the God of this heaven and the God of this earth, and your God, the God of this Bible that he has challenged you personally and you been put in the crucible of the fiery test you've had to face the blowtorch of trial in difficulty and right through it all you decided you made a decision to obey God. I want to tell you I would hate to think that I had to die one of these days and stand before the Lord Jesus Christ and him have to say to me. Look what I would've done if you had just obeyed me at that crucial point in your life. You see, the more intimate you live with him, the less you can disobey and the more intimate you live in Jesus Christ. Listen the more intimately you live with him, the more sensitive you come become to grieving him and I walked through some difficulties in my own life whereby I look back and think. Suppose I had weakened at the moment Christ's mission. The greatest lesson you can teach your children, his son obeyed God at all cost. And God will you begin to look at this passage of Scripture and see what God said to Abraham look at this book if you will, in verse 16 of chapter 21 now the Lord has provided around caught in the thicket by his horns.

In verse 15 says then the angel of the Lord called Abraham a second time from heaven said, listen by myself. Can you imagine the overwhelming joy that must've swelled up in Abraham. I believe this is one of the highlights of his life for the Heisman moments of exhilaration Abraham's life. Listen to what the angel of the Lord said that's the Lord. Verse 16 by myself. God says I have sworn, declares the Lord, because you have done this thing and have not withheld your son, your only son.

Indeed, I will greatly bless you I will greatly multiply your seeds as the stars of the heavens and the sandwiches on the seashore and your seed shall possess the gate of your other enemies in your seed all the nations of the arrow shall be blessed, because you have obeyed my voice. I wish I knew how to tell you my friend. How very important it is that you simply obey God. I don't know what you being tested with right now, but this I do know that if you will obey. If you just trust him to take you through it and hang in there till he gets you through it. I guarantee you this, there will be an overwhelming relationship developed between you and Jesus Christ and intimacy, a sense of oval welding confidence and assurance about your own life when you can walk away from a fiery test and know that you may have been bloodied.

You may have been bruised and broken, but you obeyed Almighty God do something about that for which there is no substitute.

Thank you for listening to commitment on trial if you'd like to know more about her family were in touch ministries, not my intent started OIG this podcast is a presentation of in touch ministries Atlanta, Georgia