The Abrahamic Lifestyle 8

SEEING WITHOUT THE EYES

(As it is written, I have made thee a father of many nations,)

Before him whom he believed, even God, who quickeneth the

dead, and calleth those things which be not as though they were

-Rom 4:17

The creation story is that which should always continue to inspire us. The Scripture records that the earth was in chaos before God stepped in. It was without form, and void, and darkness was everywhere. The interesting thing to note is that in the midst of this chaos, God saw a beautiful planet that you and I inhabit today. He called those plants and animals into existence.

At the age of hundred, Abraham should have ruled out the possibility of Sarah conceiving and becoming a mother. By every human standard, both of them should be considered finished. But Abraham held on to the promise. He saw himself as a father when he was unfit biologically. He never allowed any discouragement or limitation to creep into his life. He believed when such a belief was totally hopeless. Eventually he got the physical manifestation of his dream.

Many in life have failed to rise above their present level because of limitations they have imposed on themselves. They have allowed themselves to be limited by the circumstances around them. They have looked at their educational background, age, economy, etc and muttered to themselves “It is no longer possible.” There is a need for us to see beyond our present status in life like Abraham did. The God that has called us His sons and daughters is not limited by anything. He is Infinity! We must learn to dream big of ourselves and believe totally that God can call those dreams into existence.

Remember the Tower of Babel. In our present day, people would probably have laughed and scorned such a project. They would have regarded it as the joke of the century. However, God did not see it that way. He said nothing can restrain those people from what they have imagined to do (Gen 11:6). Sometime ago, I heard a testimony of a brother who was visiting a particular multinational company for the first time. By the time he got there, he liked the place and started praying that God should open the door of that place to him. As at the time of writing this, he is a senior executive in that establishment. 

When you visit important places or meet important figures for the first time, what goes on in your head? Do you see yourself becoming relevant in such places? Do you see yourself rising to the status of those people? Or you rejoice because of another opportunity to take pictures that can be uploaded to your Facebook account? 

We must grow beyond the level of limiting ourselves. We must grow beyond wasting timeless opportunities. Our thought process must be worked upon. Somebody once said that whatever can happen in your head can happen in reality. The character of God has never changed and it will never change. With Him, nothing shall be impossible. 

The Scripture says He calleth those things which be not as though they were. May the Lord enlighten the eyes of your understanding and may He grant you the grace to see beyond your present condition.

The Abrahamic Lifestyle 7

DIVINE OWNERSHIP

And Abraham said, My son, God will provide himself

himself a lamb for a burnt offering; so they went both

of them together  - Gen 22:8

The birth of Isaac brought a season of celebration into the life of Abraham. He was full of joy because his long-awaited heir has finally come. So, when God told him to sacrifice the child, we would have expected him to question God for the rationale behind such a command. He could have resisted and told God why it was impossible to perform such a sacrifice. Isaac was more than a son to him: the fullness of the promise settled upon him. Sacrificing him means sacrificing all Abraham’s hope and the future of his descendants.

Rather, we saw Abraham exhibiting total obedience. On his way to the place of sacrifice, Isaac asked him for the lamb to be used for the burnt offering. His response was that God would provide for Himself a lamb for burnt offering. We may wonder why he uttered such a statement. He was the one that needed to perform a sacrifice, not God. How could he expect God to provide a lamb when He (God) was obviously not performing any sacrifice?

Abraham said this because he understood that there is Divine Ownership upon all he had. He knew fully well that God was the real owner of everything in his possession: he was just a custodian. The child was God’s property and if God required it, he was not in a position to deny the Owner His right. It was God who needed the sacrifice not Abraham. So, it was God’s responsibility to provide a lamb for His own sacrifice.

Like Abraham, we must come to the realization that there is Divine Ownership upon all that we have. Whatever is in our possession was given to us by God. A lot of Christians have problems with giving. They believe they own everything in their possession. Nothing in our life should be too much to give to God. God demanded the most important thing in the life of Abraham and he didn’t delay in offering it. We too must not delay in sacrificing that Isaac (time, money, resources, etc) when God demands.

As Abraham laid his son on the altar of sacrifice, God gave him a better substitute. Not only that, because of his total obedience, God poured upon him unending blessings. He received the blessings he never bargained for. He left home in grief but came back rejoicing.

Learn to obey and give to God without holding back anytime he demands. Total obedience is the key to greater blessings. Giving to God by helping that fellow in need without any attached conditions will bring about abundance of blessings that the finite human mind can never imagine.