Genesis 22:1-2 – “Some time after these things, God tested Abraham.  He said to him, “Abraham!” “Here I am!” Abraham replied.  ² God said, “Take your son—your only son, whom you love, Isaac—and go to the land of Moriah!  Offer him up there as a burnt offering on one of the mountains which I will indicate to you.”

Our God reigns!   As I read, prayed, and mused on the Word of God today, the thought of tests and trials filled my mind.  We have all had them, and almost nobody likes them.  We prefer ease, calm seas, and everything working perfectly.  We enjoy having plenty!

Abram, who became Abraham by promise, was 100 when his promise came.  As he grew accustomed to the presence of the promise and the relative ease of life, he probably thought, “I have arrived!”

Genesis 22:1-2 reveals a truth hard to grasp for most –“The greater the Promise, the greater the Test.”  The greater the mission and promise, the greater the need for total trust.  Total trust is demonstrated in the heat of the battle.

God said, “Take your promise and kill it on the altar of sacrifice to Me.” Let your promise, dream, vision, and hope die!  Most would have said, “Get behind me, Satan.” Abraham believed God!   He understood Covenant!  He believed in God’s integrity.  He believed in God’s power.  His words to the servants and to Isaac revealed his trust.  Imagine explaining to Sarah if God did not come through!

Later, having been through that demonstration of complete obedience and miraculous provision, Isaac learned to trust completely.  In Genesis 26, God gave Isaac instructions.   Stay in the place of difficulty, and I will provide.  Genesis 26:12 – Wait!  A hundredfold return sounds like a blessing, but the addendum tells us that the blessings far exceeded the hundredfold.  Great promises bring great trials from which flow great blessings.

But we have to trust and obey!  It’s more than verbal or mental assent; it is actually doing what we are told.  It requires sacrifice and faith.  If God doesn’t, we fail.  It may seem like the abandonment of reason.  God is either totally trustworthy, or He is not.

Genesis 26:20-22 reveals this truth.  Isaac dug wells that were named in a way to reveal the process.  (Aska) – difficulty.  (Satana) – adversary (Rehoboth) – enlarge.  First is need, followed by difficulty; then comes opposition, and persistence brings enlargement.  We reap IF we don’t quit!  We win IF we don’t stop.  We harvest IF we don’t quit.  So, don’t even think about quitting!  Total obedience brings total blessing!

LORD, help us to embrace our tests and trials and press forward into the fullness of Your reward!