Now I Know

The Bible tells us in Genesis 15 that Abram had believed God, and God counted that as righteousness. To put it in today's vernacular, Abram was made right with God (saved) because God had deemed his faith, good enough. Yet God continues to challenge and grow Abram's faith. Faith is not stagnant. In Genesis 17 Abram has a name change to Abraham along with the covenant God made to him that he and Sarai (Sarah) would have the child of promise (the covenant) together. But to show that is not where faith stops...that is, faith is a continuing development...God expects believers to grow, we read the challenge or test God puts to Abraham's faith in Genesis 22. --- God commands Abraham to take the child of promise (Isaac), his own flesh and blood, up on the mount to be sacrificed to God. God asks him to do something that totally doesn't make sense. Scripture makes it clear that this was not God intention, but a test. (God knew he was going to stop him.) Abraham did all the right things. He didn't question God. He got up early and took his son with him. He was willing to die to his own flesh. God stopped him in the act, and said "Now I know that you fear God." He was saying "Now I know that you take me seriously." God already considered him a genuine believer, but his love for God was displayed in this one obedient act for all to see. God knows that we love him when we obey him. Paul said that we are to be living sacrifices. We are to die to self, die to our own flesh and live for God---this is our spiritual act of worship. What do you need to die to? I believe that our pain and suffering is more profoundly realized when we die to self. It is in that moment that God says to us too, "Now I know..." *Reference: Genesis 15:6; 17:5; 22:1-12; Rom.12:1