THURSDAY - 13TH JULY, 2023
MORNING WINGS DAILY DEVOTIONAL GUIDE - Olusola ADEJUMO
WHEN WILL HE ASK YOU BIG THINGS? - The Commanded Series 008
Genesis 22:1-2, KJV
"1 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. 2 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".
When the Bible says, "there's no temptation as taken you that's not common to man", it's actually true. That place again emphasizes that "God is faithful. He will not allow us to be tempted or tested beyond what we can bear. He also says but with every temptation/test, He will provide a way of escape" (I Cor.10:13). Mark the fact that "He will provide a way of escape". We shall deal with it in another issue or devotional.
Will you tell your three year old to go and lift a weight which by reason of understanding you know it's a seven year old who could lift such. Nobody does that. Not one. All of us have learnt how to give good gifts to our children and that's even revealed in the commesurate measure with which we measure unto them. Even that, as only as they could bear. However, if you're a task master like the Egyptians and those at hand are not your own, springing from your bowel, you may under that condition which is void of pity explore them by a great exploit. However, we're all reasonable human beings. Thank God we are. Hallelujah.
One day, God wanted to have a good laugh and teach us lessons on faith too. So, He beckoned unto a particular called man (Gen.12:1) who has been walking with Him and has learnt Him to a good degree to go give his only child to Him. Now, the way God came to instruct towards that act plainly reveals God as being mischievous though driving at a point too. You too may not be able to hold on but rather laugh by the time I expose to you how God delivered His message to him. God said, "take now thy son, your only son Isaac, whom you love and get you to the land of Moriah and offer him there for a burnt offering upon one of the mountains which I will tell you of".
This is a strange request but before we go there, let's raise some questions. Is it not enough to say, "take now thy son, Isaac and offer him as a burnt offering?" Will that not be clear to Abraham? It will be. So, why the repeated emphasis? Look at how God intentionally speaks to Abraham. God does in a way that He wants him to feel the entire import of that message. God wants him to have the full shiver; God wants him to bring forth all the sweat. The level God is calling Abraham to for which He is using this test must not be spared Abraham. He'll have the blessing right? Let him pass the test also. All in all, God just does not want to spare him from discipleship at all. So, the communication came point blank and even with a sort of hardness and a rubbing of gun powder into his wound. Imagine God saying, "your only son, Isaac whom thou lovest". Why would God have to be counting and deliberately choosing His words. This demand and emphasis shows how far Abraham has walked with God and how much God could ask of him or request him to submit to. What you're to sacrifice or what God demands of you to spare at times is a function of your secret growth and journey with Him. I know God won't say you should again go and offer your own child now. Jesus has become the better and final sacrifice but let's say you have an only child and God tells you to give it away to another parents to raise, just like Samuel was given away and Moses was adopted. Meanwhile, while Hannah had hope of giving birth and actually gave birth to more children, let's say, "you and God knows you will have none again". You haven't seen that? That instruction is not because you're poor and you're begging for life. As a matter of fact, you're enough and even have multitude of adopted children you're sponsoring to school as a well to do couple. But now that you have yours after years of waiting, will you turn your only child to another parents (whom God off course would have spoken to and settle matters with) to take the boy from you and nurse for Him (God). What will you do? You know that under such circumstance, those you're sent to can't come to tell you what God has said you should do. They're only waiting to confirm it. Let's quantify Abraham's sacrifice with that example I gave. Won't it be difficult doing that especially knowing that this is your only son? As in, somebody who came after all the fights of faith as a result of God's promise. It's such instance Abraham found himself. That's what God told him to go and give. Some of us may even pity him. Obviously we have many times but what God demands of Abraham is actually what he could bear. That's because God has afore matured him to that place where such instruction won't be too heavy for him. We didn't have any record that Abraham contests that demand. We should also ask, why didn't God ask Sarah of same? While Sarah isn't the man with the call to become a nation, I'm sure she may not be able to do it because the relationship of Abraham with God is not the same Sarah has with God. She knows God no doubt but Abraham has walked with God and grown in faith superiorly. Abraham also obeyed God and not because he knew (by saying) God will provide for Himself. No! The writer of Hebrews says, knowing that God can wake Isaac up to a better ressurection, he does it in faith.
Hebrews 11:17-19, KJV
"17 By faith Abraham, when he was tried, offered up Isaac: and he that had received the promises offered up his only begotten son, 18 Of whom it was said, That in Isaac shall thy seed be called: 19 Accounting that God was able to raise him up, even from the dead; from whence also he received him in a figure".
So, his reason for taking that step of faith is that stated in Hebrews above. He must have believed it can't but still be unto me according to God's Word (that says I'll give birth by Sarah and of that, He'll make me a multitude of nation). Nothing less. That could have informed why He accounted that even if he slaughters Isaac, God will raise him up from the dead since a promise has gone over him as the predicted child of promise. And I'll say that's even a greater faith than ultimately having known by fact that God will provide a ram from the start.
Listen to me. What God will request of you will correspond with your growth and journey with Him. If He ever asks anything bigger before He matures you to that extent, it's because He's seeking to make you change levels with Him into the next. So, He's teaching practical to you as a way of introducing the next level to you. If you have a house and you hear God clearly and truly telling you to give it to a particular family, you will easily hearken if over the years you have walked with God in faith to such an extent that He could now lay the burden of big things on you. Mind you, chronological age is different from spirit or spiritual maturity. Someone who has witnessed God and seen His almightiness; who has known His terror and the joy of obeying Him also will not count it much to give. He'll know God has His own back too and will supply his needs according to His riches in glory also. Even if you have same house and could give same, your first problem will be seeking to settle who has spoken to you. So, God doesn't just come to novices to begin to ask them things. That's why even when God came to Samuel the first time, he was confused as to who was giving him instruction (I Sam.3:4-5). God's will is that you'll have settled hearing and be assured of who speaks to you before demands ever begins to come. If not, and a big request comes, you will just be limp and not have faith for it. You'll be flat on the inside. For Christ's sake, it is only in a night dream, just one appearance of God that an angel of God told Joseph to take as wife Mary and receive responsibility over an equation in her womb that the angel said was the Holy Ghost (Matt.1:20). Do you know why that man didn't argue it? He has grown to that extent, has faith for that extent and has received grace for such extent. Joseph isn't a small boy spiritually. Your wife was caught in adultery, you said you'll put her away (though you'll be justified for that); what if you discovered you've been raising a bastard and God is saying, "receive him as a son" and "take the mother as a wife also?" What if God says keep shut about it? Now you know but let it be between you, your wife and I. What would you do? Do you have grace and faith for that? Have you grown to this extent? And I believe there are many unspeakables we won't learn about until we get to heaven.
You see, His dealings with us is in phases. Just like He knows we are dust and so bears with us (like we bear with our own kids), God also knows what and what not to communicate or command you to do. Everything will be commensurate to your faith (either the one you have now or that could be stirred at the demand). When the Bible says, "take my yoke upon you, for my burden is light" (Matt.11:29-30), do you think Jesus was speaking gibberish? Part of His yoke is what He will command as a revealed will for individuals occasionally. It will be a bitter cup but won't be too much of a bitter cup that you can't drink. When the sins of the whole world was laid on Jesus in Gethsemane, Jesus could feel the weight. He said, "let this cup pass over me but He submits when He says, "but as You will" (Matt.26:29). He drank it under grace. Jesus had grace, faith and help for that. God doesn't seek to break people's backbone. Christian, you must continue to flip and ascend the staircases of growth with God. If He tells you to forgive someone who has deeply hurt you and you eventually do because God persuades you to, you can proceed further to be more refined under greater demands and tasks until you get where without a revelation or request of the Holy Ghost, you forgive greater hurts (as already requested of you to do by God's Word). Many times, those who hears God expressly on a matter are those who have refused to be consoled or settled by God's revealed will as already stated in the Bible. If the Spirit places demands of little things on you in this your little days and you submit, you'll have grown much over the years that He could place the burden of great things on you. Even in your poverty or stringency, you'll meet it but with an assurance and revelation that He who ministers seeds to the sower will minister bread to your eater. For every bitter cup, there's an accompanying grace. Seek it. Take it!
PRAYER: May I grow in faith. I receive the grace, help and faith of acting and bearing it all.
BIBLE IN A YEAR: 1 Chronicles 9:1-10:14; Acts 27:21-44; Psalm 8:1-9; Proverbs 18:23-24
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