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THE KING'S BUSINESS
assures us that He will surely fulfill all to the letter. (3) THE CRUCIAL TEST, Gen. 22: 15-18; Heb. 11:18, 19, "Because thou hast done this and hast not withheld thine only son." Gen. 22: 16. God not only selects His servants, separates them and supplies their needs, but He also tests them. The history of the church abounds with il– lustrations. God tests in order that He may give triumph to faith. Abra– ham was to be a father of nations; therefore he was subjected to the su– preme test. God's tests differ from those of Sa– tan. Character, like armor, must be proven. The head must be well bal– anced; the heart must be fully fixed. Satan seeks to subvert. God seeks to strengthen. Satan uses a sieve (Luke 22:31) . God uses a fan (Matt. 3:12). We must remember that sometimes with suddenness the trials of faith come, but when God directs they come from a loving heart and a merciful hand (Rom. 5:8) . "But Go(l con1n1endeth his love ton•ard us jn that, '''hile '\Ve '\VCre yet sinners, Christ died for us." There is a splendid lesson for us in this story of the offering of Isaac well worth emphasizing. When we have a hard, difficult task to perform, let us do it at once. Abraham responded at once, "Here am I." He knew the Voice and obeyed the summons (John 10: 4) "Auel ·when he Jlutteth forth his own shee)l, he goeth before them., and the sheeu foll on" hhn; for they kno,v his voice/' The road may be rough, but the rec– ompense will be royal. "His eye is on the sparrow, and we know He watches us." Abraham did not understand the purpose of this transcbndent test, but he did know that he loved God more than h e did his own son. It would have been easier, by far, to lay down his own life. Re offered up Isaac by faith (Heb. 11;17)
15). God did not call Lot, but Ab– raham took Lot along and thereby broughL a good deal of trouble for him– self and for his family. Abraham responded to God's call, "not knowing whither he went." Real faith is always fixed upon God, and real faith finds peace in believing God, and is blessed in following where God leads (Rom. 16:26) . The third thing is support. When God separates, He selects and He sup– ports. "My God shall supply all your need." This is a great and a primary lesson for the missionary. "Need" is not confined to money. Need includes wisdom, grace, patience, courage, faith in God's purposes. Be sure you're right-then go ahead. GOD'S COMPACT WITH ABRA– HAM, Gen. 18:17, 18 "All the nations of the earth shall be blessed in him" v. 18. In this chapter we have one of the most wonderful scenes in the Bible. Jehovah pays a visit to Abraham's tent, dines with him, and then confidentially reveals to him His purpose concerning Sodom. We cannot dwell on this scene and the lessons growing out of it, ex– cept the one great outstanding prophecy that all the nations of the earth were to be the recipients of God's blessing through Abraham. The Jewish race is here declared and destined to be the medium through which God's favor is to be bestowed upon the earth. Involved in this prom– ise is the church, the Jewish nation, and the nations of the earth during this dispensation and the thousand years of the millennium. In eleven words of our,, text is em– bodied the most wonderful program covering thousands of years of history and relating to God's great purposes in Heaven and on earth. It takes faith to believe this, but what God has done toward the fulfillment of this program during more than four thousand years (2)
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