Encountering God's Promise, Part 1

That looks like the one thing in the opposite is Dr. Tony Evans as well were waiting for God to keep his promise. Things sometimes get worse before they get better as time all of us question this. This is the alternative with Dr. Tony have offered speaker, senior pastor of Oak Cliff Bible Fellowship in Dallas Texas and president of the alternative, even when all our Christian experience is telling us that God's promises are confidence can get shaken when it looks like he's doing just the opposite today.

Dr. Evans will tell us the story of a man in that very situation was forced to decide what he really believed.

Let's join him if the truth were told there are times Christian experience when we don't feel like God keeps his promises that times in our experience when it looks like God said one thing in the opposite is taking place and doing those times when all of us to varying degrees. Question how real this thing is when it comes to God's promises. We know the theology that he cannot but sometimes you feel like you glad you because what he said what you are seeing do not match, they will agree they're not coming together. Sometimes it looks like he bails out on us like the pilot to was on a small force the plane and the engine began their problem was only one person on the plane. The pilot took the parachute went to the door. He said to the four folks are going to play, don't panic. I'm just going to get some help. Sometimes it seemed like the one in charge of bailed out in his promises to take you from here to there to meet this situational address this need is not just happening that is not being fulfilled. What I will take you to a situation in Scripture that is going to stretch you if you're not familiar with it. If you are going to perhaps take you to a place to understanding God is confusing you with his promises. God's promises, to levels that the recorded promises in his word and then they all be applied promises and all experience that's where he takes a principal precept from the word but applies it to your situation. When the Holy Spirit lifts the print off the Bible.

And since this is for you when you and I were in school. The teacher did not take our word for it that we understood what they taught and remembered what they said leave it because you said I got I gave you a test test usually came in two forms one would be a quiz.

The pop quizzes also small test along the way. But then there was the big that was midterm and final tests and those usually carried the weight of the percentage of your grade because they were just so big to take you to one of the big test in Scripture and through this test we going to tell you and me and how we can have an encounter with God and his promises in Genesis 22 we have one of the most recorded events in history repeated over and over again in the New Testament, although it happened in the Old Testament, and that is Abraham offering up Isaac. Let me read the first two verses of Genesis 22 now it came about after these things that God tested Abraham and said Abraham and send them Abraham he said, here I am, he said now your son, your only son you love, Isaac go to the land of the rider and offer him there is a burnt offering on one of the mountains of which I will tell you somebody say this is a test as what he said God tested Abraham before I got any further, let me explain something when God wants to give you an encounter with him. It will typically involve a test… Did you say amen in church, say, praise the Lord, you know that you are in the building. He seemed like you just don't care. But he's not banking on that he will give you a text is not what it is I have something in the oven cooking for dinner and know that it can look brown on the outside that turkey that rose it can look well done. What you do you stick a fork in externally. If you look good in the still be wrong inside. God knows on Sunday morning his people can look good, but he got a stick a fork in to see whether it is well done and ready to go. So your encounter with God and his promises will in all our past, but this is not any current or past tense, different shapes and sizes. This is a test related to a promise I'll explain this task is unique because it involved a series of contradictions, a contradiction is when God says one thing and appears to be doing another 20 he says is not really doing the exact opposite over here. I don't know if you have that yet but when God says some clear any opposite is a carry you say, well, what's the contradiction number one there was a theological contradiction you seek God a promise way back in Genesis chapter 12 that he was going to make a great nation of Abraham, and it will come through the son of Sarah whose name was Isaac got it made a promise, but here in Genesis chapter 22. God tells them to kill promise.

Isaac is a teenager. He married what you said through Isaac.

The promise would come up building a sleeve that would become a great nation to become a great nation.

If you telling me to kill the very promise that you said it would come through a theological contradiction.

That's where you said one thing and you're telling me to do something that's opposite to what you said kill what you said should live. Not only is it a theological contribution is also a biblical contribution because that's murder, to offer your son on the altar as a burnt offering means to kill them, and that's not but if you said now shalt not kill you, God. Genesis chapter 9 verse six said if any man kills another man, he shall Batman be killed for man is created in the image of God did not hear you say that, why have you that over here asking me to kill him that some contradiction involved in the past is not only a theological contradiction is not only a biblical contradiction. It's an emotional contradiction because it says sacrifice your son, your only son, whom you love you love this boy. This was the only son through his wife Sarah, he says, and I want you to give them up and I want you to turn them over. This boy is the love of my life and you're asking me to take my life and give him up. My only son you asking me to turn over and even take his life that's killing my emotion. Worse of all spiritual contradiction, because he says I want you to offer him as a burnt offering, which is an act of worship is worship that is going to say I'm going to worship worshiping God in the crisis. I feel like going to church when you bless your body feel like worshiping God.

When God is meet nominees he could take care of everything in the bills are paid and the money is flowing to help with good in life's work in all that you want to work but how do you worship when you world is falling apart. You sing songs of praise when problems are killing you. He says I want you to sacrifice your son and worship even on calling on you to make the biggest decision in your life because what God wants to give you an encounter with him. It will be a test and the test will often involve something that doesn't make sense, it will often involve when God looks like he didn't know what he was doing and if you've never seen God confused you that you have been hanging with him long enough because this stuff makes sense. It goes against the very thing you thought about God, which is why it's not.

You cannot put God in the box because he often appears to be contradicting himself. So that's the problem. There is a test full of contradictions. But God has a habit of sorting out those contradictions in some pretty amazing ways that Dr. Evans will come back in a moment with more about that for so I want to tell you about his brand-new book is called kingdom encounters an intriguing collection of stories of biblical characters who found God at the times they least expect it. Quite often in the middle of trials and troubles you discover why sometimes when God feels farthest away your right where you need to be to have your life changed and would like to send you a copy as our gift when you make a contribution to help us keep the alternative, coming your way each day along with it will include all eight full-length messages in Tony's current series divine encounters.

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Dr. Evans will be back right after this was my first time meeting Wednesday after studying theology Tony Evans training center by renowned theologian Dr. Tony Evans online courses feature controlling and exclusive video and I am teaching an interactive scripture based curriculum you can access online or through the mobile app sign up now Tony is chaining Dr. Evans exploring the kingdom anytime, anywhere.

Tony happens to me, because this is firstly says rose up early in the morning, saddled his donkey took two of his young men with him and Isaac his son and he split the wood for the burnt offering and he arose and went to the place which God had told says when it was told to do this thing that he didn't want to do that it didn't make sense. He got up early. I got up early. He got up early to get up before Sarah got up been able to get a house sacrifice on well when he did this so we had now got up early. Sometimes man when you know your wife.

She not understand but you sure as God, you got to get up there you got up early begotten to serve as a young man got Isaac. He said let's go when God put you in the contradiction and he calls you to do something you don't want to do it and get it over with Jordan take care of it because the longer you delay the obedience.

The more often you have to take the same test God please and retesting you say okay go back to school. We will take the test over that some of us to take the same test for 50 years.

Rent gets up early to get young man he gets with his son. He says okay let's go now. What motivated him to do this. What what enabled him to do this thing, even though it didn't make sense to contradicted it wasn't in emotional thing to do. The love of the son, so something had to be there to help him get over something was there because Hebrews chapter 11 versus 17 to 19 says Abraham offered up Isaac and he considered that God was able to raise him from the dead. In order to keep his promise. Got up early is because such, but I think God that even if it didn't make sense. And even if he killed the son God would give them about the great see you have a bigger view of God, particularly when he doesn't make sense is that because they believed that God could raise him from the dead.

So what does he say to the young man he says to the young man in verse five Abraham said the young man staying here with the donkey lab will go. We will worship and we will return to you got just a yeah and we coming back. Hebrews 11 tells you what he was thinking. He considered God was able to raise the dead, so you have a view of God. When stop is not making sense that he can come up with some that is out of the norm to reverse the situation. You gotta have that kind of view of God. But why would he have that you why would Abraham believe that God could raise go back to history.

See Abraham was 100 years old when he had Isaac. Sarah was 90 years old when she had Isaac. The Bible says that Sarah was barren. All of her life, God closed and she could not get pregnant. She was biologically unable to conceive God now comes to Sarah and said Sarah you're gonna have a baby. The Bible says Sarah laughed. You got to be kidding, oh God yes all but 100 years old while she was 90 she conceived the New Testament that she conceived by faith God can bring life out of death when I was on is all in my wife was 90 years old. He can handle this new situation as well.

You have to learn to remember what God did yesterday for the new stuff you dealing with today. That's a problem. If you've never had God do anything for you have anything to remember. So this situation and now is your first memory. Abraham raised up his Outlook verse 13 behold, there was a ram caught in the thicket that is required is rampant history of rabbits caught in the thicket is front wheel is trying to get out the thicket. He does not see the solution until the obedience occurs a lot about looking for a ram when we haven't finished the obedience of God is keeping a ram quiet. The solution was already that it just wasn't revealed until after God so boss could be delay saying the ram because we are delaying the Dr. Evans will come back in a moment with a personal example of a past victory as he wraps up this message from his current teaching series divine encounters. Remember when you help us keep Tony's teaching on the station by making a contribution will send you all eight full-length messages in this sent, including material we won't have time to share with you on the radio is or thank you gift along with his brand-new book I mentioned earlier kingdom encounters this special double offer won't last long, so don't wait call one 800 832, 22, where resource team members are waiting to help you.

That's 1-800-800-3222, or drop by our website Tony Evans.org or you can check out Tony's huge collection of helpful biblical resources. Once again it's Tony Evans.org will tomorrow. More from Dr. Evans on how to not lose heart, waiting for God to come through. Even when your situation much more impossible by the minute.

Right now though he's back with a personal story to wrap up our time together today we only have one car back in the early 70s and it was a comma, the neighbors knew when you came home as a clunker, it desperately needed a tuneup.

I made $350 a month.

That's how much I made, so we were pulling the pole but we will always get $50 a month to the Lord and will be off the top. We get the first $50 which is a high percentage of the physics we get the first $50 to the Lord the tuneup back then. Cost $50. You can imagine attempting that was God would understand, but I guess I was really really spiritualized that I think God put you first got my back with this, I know how you can do it because we don't have any money but your first couple days later I'm driving down the road and smoke is coming about motherhood and when I pull over to the side. I looked up the engines on five I got a call the fire truck out embarrassed all on the street to put from so right now to concern I trusted you and you set my qualify man God were not in a good place that day, I put you first look, look, you make stuff worse insurance, but that was a $200. The people that had not yet been paid, and I did have a 200 to pay for that… And you know the deductible have to be paid first. They told the car ran. I went in the next day, only to discover they are working on, we settled insurance company proved that we call the insurance government approved. I said I didn't pay the double which he said what deductible children paper $200.please show me sheet of paper. It said.$200 in small print except for five. So we had charge of that dealership now worship service up and it was only $50 but I never forgot the point stance.

The change God has not.

So what God was something that makes that's what it was going on but that's how God sometimes it goes a little in order to fulfill his promises and demonstrate faithful to the alternative with Dr. Tony is made possible by the generous confusion