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Church Pulpit Series.
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Square Church in Manhattan, New York City.
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Hallelujah, hallelujah.
We're all going to sing like that in
heaven, you know.
I want to speak to you tonight on
the subject of obedient faith.
Obedient faith.
And you should be cheering about that.
You know when we, the scripture says when
we first get saved, everybody has a measure
of faith.
So if you belong to the Lord Jesus
Christ here tonight, you have been given a
measure of faith.
You have faith.
Whether you feel like you do or not,
the scripture tells us you have been given
a measure of faith.
And now it is God's design that that
be a living faith.
Just like a little child, there's life in
that child.
And if that child doesn't exercise and move
and grow, it's designed to grow and to
have life.
And that's the way our faith is.
And I know that many of us, when
we first get saved, that incredible transformation from
darkness to light, and that God Almighty knew
us, saved us, knew our name.
It was like we came into the kingdom
and we knew we had to obey God.
And so many times when we first get
saved, the battles are to forgive people.
Or to tithe.
Sometimes that's even more of an ongoing battle.
But it's like the Holy Ghost has us.
And we begin to walk in a faith
that obeys Him.
But I've noticed that as we walk with
the Lord many times, it's maybe because when
we start in the little things to disobey
Him and the sky doesn't fall, and there
seems sometimes to be no consequence to not
obeying, that we begin to think that sometimes
that we would never consider ourselves as people
who do not obey.
But we begin to substitute many times coming
to the house of God and being in
a worship service and performing the sacrifices as
a substitute.
Or that's what we need to do.
But the Scripture tells us that obedience is
better than sacrifice.
And I know that by the shout here
tonight, that the Holy Spirit is putting something
in our spirit.
And that is that longing to strike out
and to obey God.
Because that is where absolute life is.
That's where miracles flow.
I really don't think that without an obedient
faith that we have the kind of faith
that the world can see.
I think that when we obey God...
You see, because you end up doing things
you'd never think of doing.
You'd end up doing things that you would
never do.
Unless God directed you to do it.
We wouldn't think those thoughts.
And we wouldn't do them because we wouldn't
have the power to do it.
But now because the Holy Ghost is in
us, He wants to build and He's going
to give us an excitement of God, what
is it like to live daily to obey
you?
That's an incredible thing.
And tonight we want to talk about that.
You know, in Romans, this is not the
text, but in Romans 1, 21, I came
across a Scripture.
And it says, Because that when they knew
God, they glorified Him not as God, but
became vain in their imaginations, and their foolish
heart was darkened.
And I began to think on that Scripture.
And it's talking about a people that do
know God, but because they glorified Him not
as God.
And here I think the crux of where
obedience lies.
Is that we feel that we can lay
aside obedience.
That we don't really esteem in our heart
who we are dealing with.
And that we glorify Him not as God,
and we sometimes take obedience as an option
in our life.
And it says that those that do that,
and neither were they thankful, they became vain
in their imaginations, and their foolish heart was
darkened.
And it's saying here that this is the
spirit of a darkened human spirit, that wants
to always go its own way.
And when you know God, and you're not
choosing His path, we begin to fill our
life with vain things.
Vain means empty and worthless.
Destitute of real wisdom.
And so you know what we'll do, is
that we have not set aside in our
heart, God, I am going to obey you.
My life as a Christian is going to
be defined by obedience to you.
It says that our mind, and our human
spirit, which will work against obeying God, a
deep resistance in us, will raise its head,
and we will start to be led by
vain empty things.
We'll begin to take in, you know, read
those trashy things, and watch trashy things, and
we'll begin to take the impress and the
imprint of the world around us.
Even though all the while we profess to
know God, we are moving in a direction
that is going to lead us to a
foolish darkened heart.
And these people with a foolish darkened heart
are going to say, I know God.
But it's because all along the way the
Holy Ghost was checking, no, not that, not
that, not there, not them.
But because obedience, we weren't obedient, we're going
down a path we had no intention when
we first followed Christ to go.
But there is, in the Old Testament, there
is a picture of such absolute and incredible
obedience by one man that staggers me.
And as I began to think on this
man's obedience, I said, Lord, how did he
get there?
How did he get that faith?
Because I know when I read Romans 121,
you tell us in the spirit of a
man that knows you but will not glorify
you as God, they're going to go in
a direction of a vain imagination and a
darkened foolish heart.
And so Abraham fought, and we're going to
talk about Abraham.
Abraham fought that battle.
So how was it that Genesis chapter 22
is in our Bible?
A story of incredible obedient faith.
And I believe that's why he's been called
the father of faith.
If you will turn with me to Genesis
22.
And that's the story, of course, of Abraham
in the latter part of his life.
He's over 100 years old, and he's being
asked by God to take his only son,
whom he loves, to sacrifice him.
And when Abraham obeyed in chapter 22, he
rightly earned that title of the father of
our faith.
You see, God had chosen this man from
all the men, all the tribes, all the
nations of the world, and said, Abraham, I
want to draw you to myself and your
descendants.
I'm going to pull my arms around, and
you will be my people.
And the Bible tells us that he believed
God, and it was accounted for him as
righteousness.
And because now he is our father Abraham,
the faith he had, because we're his children,
we're his seed, we can have a like
kind of faith.
His seed, that faith that typifies a belief
in God that can move us to an
obedience, his faith can be our faith if
we're his children.
There is the same seed that was in
that man that can be ours today.
And so Abraham learned to say, not, Lord,
let me hear your commands and let me
evaluate them.
But it's like he began to glorify the
Lord in opposition to what the people in
Romans 121 is.
And every time, there had to have been
something in his heart to say, God, I
honor you as God.
I want the fear of the Lord to
define my life.
I want you so set apart.
I don't just want you to be first.
I want you to be so high above
first in my life.
I want you to be completely other.
And when Abraham began to have that sense
and that revelation of God, he became to
have not just a faith that...
He became a man of exemplary faith.
Now that came through a trial by fire
testing of his faith.
That's what we're going to talk about tonight.
But he became a man that had a
lifestyle of faith that we're going to see.
Not a situational faith.
Not a faith just in crisis.
Not a faith just in blessing.
But a faith that through it all and
all time.
You see, his kind of faith was indifferent
to the season he found himself in.
It's like a compass that always points north.
And when we have that kind of faith,
the faith of our father Abraham, our heart
always looks to the Lord God Almighty for
our direction, for his yea, for his leading,
for his guiding.
And so he became a type for us.
And in Genesis 22, first three verses it
says, and it came to pass after these
things, that God did tempt or test Abraham
and said unto him, Abraham, and he said,
behold, here I am.
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.
And Abraham rose up early in the morning,
and saddled his ass and took two of
his young men with him, and Isaac his
son, and cleaved the wood for the burnt
offering, and rose up and went into the
place of which God had told him.
And what, I don't know about you, but
when I read those first three verses, I
am astounded by the immediacy, by how he
acted immediately upon that word.
You and I can know that word certainly
was a flesh crucifying word.
Take that son, thy only son that thou
lovest.
And yet swiftly, it tells us in verse
three, he did.
And the reason why he did, I believe,
is found in Hebrews.
And it tells us in Hebrews 11, 17.
Let me read it to you.
It says, By faith Abraham, when he was
tried, offered up Isaac.
And he that had received the promises, offered
up his only begotten son, of whom it
was said, that in Isaac shall thy seed
be called.
Accounting that God was able to raise him
up, even from the dead, from whence he
also received him in a figure.
And I believe that God had Abraham on
a journey of faith, so that at the
end of his life, in a mature faith,
he had a faith that had such a
vast, high and lofty concept of God, that
even though contained in this son, that he
was being called to offer, every promise made
to him, everything that God had ever said
he would do in his life and through
his life, was bundled up in the life
of this son.
That Abraham could get up and obey that
word.
Because deep in his heart was that God,
if he had to, he was going to
fulfill his promise.
Everything he knew about his God was God
was faithful to keep his promise.
How he did it was his concern.
Why he would do this, that's God's affair.
But he accounted that God was able to
raise that son, that he was going to
ask him to slay, and raise him from
the dead.
You see, beloved, this is the end result
of a fear of the Lord.
Of this high and lifted up and exalted
view of God that says, God, when you
speak to me, it's not an option to
obey.
It is the fruit that says, God, when
you speak, you are God.
And Lord, I want to have this high
view.
I want to be able to say by
your word, God, give me the grace, give
me the strength to obey it.
And the end result is a man with
a faith that knows no boundaries, that knows
no limitation on his God.
Because whatever God asked him to do would
never contradict what God had promised him.
Whatever God asked him to do would not
go against the incredible blessing in his life
that he had known since the day he
had walked with him.
You see, he did not fear to obey
God because he knew in his soul that
God was committed to blessing him.
That everything that God said and asked him
to do, there would be life in it.
There would be renewal.
There would be a resurrection if needed be.
But there would be something that would be
restored, renewed, given back, made whole every time
he obeyed his God.
And so he didn't even withhold a commandment
that seemed to go against everything he had
ever understood about his God.
He did not withhold that which seemed God
was contradicting himself.
But this incredible knowledge in his being, planted
there by trials, fiery trials of his faith,
that God was committed to blessing him, and
God was to be obeyed, produced this in
him.
In chapter 16, let's turn there of Genesis
16.
Genesis 16.
I want to look at three fiery trials.
Three tests that Abraham went through.
You see, when we first read Genesis 22,
I don't know if you noticed, but it
said in verse 1, and it came to
pass after these things that God tried Abraham.
It came to pass after these things.
What things?
You see, this was not just an arbitrary
test out of the blue, come sacrifice your
son.
But it was not a random thing.
But God had a plan.
And God knew how to take the faith,
a precious thing, more precious than gold, a
faith that he had planted in this man.
And now he knew he was going to
nurture it.
He was going to put it through a
fire.
But it was going to come out more
precious than gold.
And so there was this journey, this testings
of faith.
And all those that have a cry in
their heart, God, I want an obedient faith.
I want the kind of faith that Abraham
has.
Because you're telling me in your Word, that's
for every believer.
That's not to be unusual.
That's not to be unnatural.
But the Holy Ghost is in our midst,
and he's starting to burn in us, and
saying there is a faith, an obedient faith,
that his beloved bride can have here starting
tonight.
But we need to go God's way.
We need to be led by God.
That's how we honor God.
We say, you lead.
You know what you're doing.
I'm going to trust you.
It's going to be tested.
We're going to fail.
There's going to be times we don't understand
it.
But we're going to remember this precious man
and his life.
And it's going to give us courage.
And the first test, the first trap, that
Abraham encounters, previous to chapter 16, we see
that he has had trials.
He has had testings.
He has dealings with Lot, his nephew.
He has, God's talking about circumcision.
There are many things.
God is not all of a sudden just
dealing with him in chapter 16.
But beloved, there is a time in your
life, if you're committed to walking with Jesus,
there is a time of fiery trial.
As opposed to trials.
There is a time, many times, when we
are committed to walking with him, we are
going to start to feel the backlash of
the enemy because we are determined to walk
with him.
He will not be happy that we've set
our heart to a course.
And we know if we fail, we just
get up.
We know that if we blow it, we
have a Savior that forgives.
We begin to know that God is not
looking for us to be successful, but faithful.
And we're beginning to have this knowledge, so
we're beginning to walk this way.
And many times, the fiery trial is a
backlash because we've set our face towards him.
Many times, we're a Joseph company, that we're
being trained through trial.
Trained through trial.
And so here we have in chapter 16,
the start of this fiery trial in Abraham's
life.
Not that they've started, but the fiery season
has come upon him.
And it says in Genesis 16 too, And
Sarah said unto Abraham, Behold now, the Lord
hath restrained me from bearing.
I pray thee, go into my maid.
It may be that I may obtain children
by her.
And Abraham hearkened to the voice of Sarah.
And here we have a situation where his
wife says, God has restrained me.
Now, when you look up that word restrained,
it means withhold self.
It means resigned.
It means closed up.
And she does not realize with her speech
how much she's betraying her heart.
But she's saying, Abraham, I am withholding myself.
There have been promises made here, but I'm
losing patience.
I'm losing hope.
I'm resigned that the promises of God are
going to go, but I'm not sure that
they pertain to me.
I'm closed up.
I've been hoping, but I know time's marching
on.
I'm not a fool.
I have a mirror.
And she's saying to him that the promises
of God I'm closed up to, I'm withholding
myself from them.
I don't want to get hurt.
And Abraham is now in a spiritual circle.
He's in a spiritual place where there is
a people who could have the potential now
to blame God for their spiritual barrenness around
him.
And when you're close to people with less
of a spiritual understanding than you, that can
be family members or friends.
It can be leaders.
It can be fellow believers.
You have a faith that can still reach
up and believe, but those around you and
those intimately connected to you, they can't.
And they begin to influence you.
And the Scripture says he hearkened to her
voice.
Now, I know that Abraham had to have
misgivings because God had been dealing and speaking
to him so clearly, but the Scripture says
he hearkened to her voice.
He hearkened to the voice.
Not just her voice, but what was behind
those words.
What they were really saying he was perceiving
in his spirit man.
He hearkened to the voice.
And it says in the next verse, it
says, You
see, she was losing hope.
It had been ten years they had dwelt
in this promised land.
And she was beginning to lose hope.
I don't know if he was beginning to
lose hope.
I don't know if his faith at this
point was lessened.
But, beloved, he hearkened to the voice.
And so we see this influence.
And he went in and she conceived.
And, beloved, when you sow an unbelief, you
get a harvest you don't want.
And verse 4, it tells us, He went
in unto Hagar and she conceived.
And when she saw that she had conceived,
her mistress was despised in her eyes.
And now here is a harvest that Sarai
is beginning to reap in her life.
There is an unbelief growing in her.
And she has come up with this plan.
And her husband hearkened to her voice.
And now, all of a sudden, this serving
girl, the Bible says, is despised in her
eyes.
And that word despised in her eyes means
to be lightly esteemed.
To be of small worth.
And you see, when unbelief begins to get
a hold of us, we are no threat
to our enemy anymore.
And we begin to feel diminished and worthless.
Small and not esteemed.
And you begin to think that the people
around you that have faith are judging you.
You begin to feel that little worth.
You begin to feel that light esteeming of
the enemy.
And the Scripture says that she began to
blame.
She began to lash out.
And she says, she complains to her husband.
And in verse 5, Sarai said to Abraham,
My wrong be upon thee.
She is the one who has given her
maid.
But now, it's like as this horrible harvest
begins to happen in her life, and her
enemy begins to lightly esteem her, and she
begins to feel how unbelieving she was.
And now this woman isn't enjoying a child
that she had seemingly been promised.
And now the Scripture says that she says,
My wrong be upon thee.
But beloved, the trap for Abraham is that
he'd play the blame game back.
Feeling the sting of rebuke.
And in verse 6, he says to her,
Behold, thy maid is in thy hand.
Do to her as it pleases thee.
And he's basically saying, this is your problem.
Deal with it.
But the problem is, it's not just her
problem.
It's not just her problem.
It's now their problem.
And you know, beloved, this happens so many
times.
When the enemy, when we want to step
forth with all our heart and walk a
walk of faith, you're going to feel I
could be so much more if somebody, that
one wasn't there.
I could be so much greater in God
if I didn't have to deal with their
unbelief.
If I didn't have to deal with their
questions.
If I didn't have to deal with their
working against me.
I could be so much better if I
wasn't in this situation.
And this woman, this atmosphere that he lives
in, Abraham goes home to a home not
brimming with belief.
Abraham doesn't walk in the door and she's
singing Rock of Ages.
There is turmoil at the bottom of his
home.
And there is so much, he lives in
an atmosphere of unbelief.
And he lives in an atmosphere where they
would like to turn their sword on him.
That he becomes the problem if he begins
to show any sign of belief, speak belief.
And the child of this scheming, in verse
12 it says, And he will be a
wild man.
His hand will be against every man.
And every man's hand against him.
And here, I'm going to be speaking of
Ishmael back and forth in this message.
On one level, it's a spiritual type.
And another, it's a very human type.
And right now, in this spiritual type, Ishmael
is representing when we put our own human
effort forth to achieve the promises of God.
Abraham, I don't think at any thought, when
God gave him those promises, that he was
going to have to be the one to
fulfill it.
Because the Scripture says he believed God when
God said, I would give you this.
But as he's in this atmosphere and he
begins to say, you know, that does make
a lot of sense.
He does not realize that he can take
the impress and the print around him.
That is the design of the enemy.
He says that, you know what, you can't
survive spiritually in this atmosphere.
You can't hold on to my promises here.
With those ringed around you.
And now he has this Ishmael.
And God's saying, what you've set your hand
to, I cannot call mine.
God's saying, you brought this forth.
When I said, faith in me, I would
bring forth the promise.
But beloved, to overcome blame.
That is how Abraham was taught.
That God be God to me right now.
God be God to me right now.
I live in an atmosphere where everything is
working against a faith I long to have
in you.
And God, there's something that wants to rise
up in me and blame back.
There's something where I want to take my
sword out against them as surely as they
take their spiritual sword out against me.
But the Scripture, when we say, God, show
me truth.
And open my eyes and ears to hear
what you're saying right now.
And beloved, when we open our eyes to
our part in the folly, the blame chain
ceases.
When Abraham could begin to see, you know,
that atmosphere, this is your problem.
You deal with it.
No, no, no, no, no, no.
When he had to say, God, show me
here what is happening in my home.
Show me, you know, I have faith, I
don't believe they do.
God, show me.
And God begins to show them, Abraham, you
think you're more than you are.
You've had a part in this.
You have hearkened.
You have put your hand and more to
this.
And now you're responsible for this.
And when we begin, beloved, when we refuse
in our situation to play the blame game.
If only they weren't here, if only I
didn't live there.
God, you know I want faith, but you
know where I live.
You know what I face.
You know who the people are.
You know the situation.
And say, God, no.
Be God to me.
Show me what I need to see in
this situation.
Show me that so much I contribute by
my own hand to this situation.
That you cannot, you're prevented from working and
being God to me.
Because I was blinded to my own folly
and my own sin.
My own hand in this.
A true heart search and a true humility
when we can own our own sin breaks
that blame chain.
And, beloved, I'll tell you what else it
does.
We learn afresh and anew that sin is
hell.
Sin is hell.
To the believer, sin is hell.
When the Spirit of God lives in us
and we transgress the law.
Sin is hell.
It is those of Romans 1-7.
Not listening.
Not heeding.
Playing lightly with their sin.
They end up with a darkened heart and
a vain imagination.
But those that say, God, I want the
faith of Abraham.
Sin becomes hell.
And that is what that keeps us tender.
That keeps saying, God, I run to you.
Open my eyes.
Show me there's not something right.
And he does.
God is faithful.
And those that want the faith of Abraham
are going to experience sin as hell.
And we thank God for it.
We thank God for that.
And then with repentance we experience a new
beginning.
And that's exactly what happened to Abraham in
chapter 17.
In verses 1-3, it says, And when
Abraham was 90 years old, he was 86
when Ishmael was born.
But when Abraham was 90 years old and
nine, the Lord appeared to Abraham and said
unto him, I am the almighty God.
Walk before me and be thou perfect.
And I will make my covenant between me
and thee.
And will multiply thee exceedingly.
And Abraham fell on his face.
And God talked with him.
And here we see that wonderful fruit of
God.
You're God to me.
I bow my knee to you.
I bow my head to you.
When you talk, I listen.
I'm humbled.
I'm humbled you know me.
You speak to me.
You want to use me.
I'm humbled, God, that I blew it.
And you still speak to me.
I'm humbled, God, that when I was haughty
and I wanted to blame people as much
as they blamed me.
When I wanted to go in another direction,
you opened my eyes.
I'm humbled, God, you're still going to use
me.
And the promises were still right on track.
You're an awesome God.
And it begins to see, God, your heart
is so to bless me.
God, everything you deal with me is to
bless me.
God's first words to Abraham in Genesis 12
was, I will bless thee.
I will make thee exceedingly great nation.
I will multiply thee.
And through thee all the nations of the
world will be blessed.
God's first word to him was blessing, blessing,
blessing, Abraham.
And he never forgot that.
And so God's showing his heart.
I'm going to bless you, Abraham.
The promise is still on track.
You learned the lesson through the blame game.
And you're honoring me.
But now a second trial of faith is
coming to Abraham.
And that is he must learn to refuse
to live in regret.
To refuse to learn to live in regret.
You see, when God gave him that promise
and spoke to him, And he said in
verse 16 and 17 of chapter 17, Genesis
17.
In verse 16 and 17.
When God talked to him, he said, I
will bless Sarah.
I will bless her and give thee a
son also of her.
I will bless her and she shall be
a mother of nations and kings of people.
Then Abraham fell on his face and laughed.
And he was knowing this blessing, but now
something is happening now.
And he says in verse 18.
He says, And Abraham said unto God, All
that Ishmael might live before thee.
You see, his sin had a consequence.
You know, many times you will find this
true.
We will sin and God in his graciousness
will cancel the consequence.
I've had that happen many times.
But God in his sovereignty, and he's allowed
to do that.
God in his sovereignty, there will be times
there will be sin.
The consequence will follow.
The consequence won't be wiped away.
And in this case, the consequence was Ishmael.
And here, the Bible says that Sarah, this
relationship has been renewed again.
Sarah has been told she's going to have
a child.
But the problem is he has a son
already.
And now, he says, Oh, that Ishmael might
live before thee.
And that word live means, Oh, that Ishmael
to have a life anew.
Oh, that you could rebuild his life.
That's what that word live right there means.
That you would rebuild and give a life
anew to him.
And Sarah could easily reject Ishmael.
But Ishmael was Abraham's son.
He was flesh of his flesh.
And although Ishmael is a spiritual type, of
when we try to fulfill God's word to
us, and promise to us, and God's work
to us in our own flesh with our
own sweat.
He also was a very human young boy.
He also was a real child who grew
up in Abraham's midst.
And he grew up into Abraham's heart.
It was his son.
And the cry, Oh, that a life, a
purpose, and a place before you, oh God,
might be for Ishmael.
God, my life is in you.
And God, I don't want any less for
him.
Oh, that he could be brought anew before
you.
And this child is growing up.
And this child is not his wife's child.
And he's stigmatized.
And the realization that his life is diminished
because of his failure.
That this boy has a diminished life as
a consequence of his sin.
And that cry, Oh, that he might live
before thee.
And that cry that God says, Beloved, only
when you let God be God to you
can you hear this answer.
When God says no.
Can God say no to you?
Can God say no to your heart cry
and your faith doesn't fall apart?
Can God say no to you and with
all your being you believe you're right?
Can God say no to you and you
have no understanding why he would give you
a no?
When everything you knew about him should be
saying yes.
Can God say no to you?
And now with God's no you can just
begin to feel how the regret wants to
deepen in him.
How that regret wants to dig in.
And how sensitive we are, beloved, when it
comes to failure with our children.
When raising them we didn't have the light.
Raising them we didn't have the light.
And now we look at them and we
feel that they are diminished because of our
failure.
And it's like a worm in us eating
and turning.
And we're feeling that regret.
But, beloved, there's a way out.
And the scripture tells us that in acceptance,
where it says, where God says, I have
another plan, Abraham.
And in Genesis 17, verse 18 he says,
Oh that Ishmael might live.
And verse 19, and God said, Sarah thy
wife shall bear thee a son and thou
shalt call his name Isaac.
And I will establish my covenant with him
for an everlasting covenant.
And with his seed after.
God is saying, this is what I've ordained.
This is what shall be.
And the first step to moving out of
a regret that churns and eats like worms
inside you.
That forever wants to bring that heaviness.
That forever wants you to stay low.
Forever wants us to keep us out of
that joyfulness of walking with Christ.
That keeps us from truly being able to
joyfully obey Him.
Where we always feel the condemnation and the
sting and the power of it.
Where it says, when God says, this is
how it shall be.
This is my plan, Abraham.
First there must come acceptance.
I have a plan, Abraham.
But then, there needs to be trust.
Because although we can't change the past and
the failure.
God can change things.
I said, God can change things.
We can't change that past, but God changes
things.
And because we're beginning to understand it's hard
to bless us.
And because we're beginning to say, God I
want to honor you.
And I don't have a right to dictate
to you, to tell you how you'll do
it.
That the way you choose will be the
way I will accept.
But God, I have a hope.
Because you say that it is in your
heart to bless.
And it says in verse 20, God speaks
to him.
And as for Ishmael, I have heard thee.
Behold, I have blessed him.
And I will make him fruitful.
And will multiply him exceedingly.
Twelve princes shall he beget.
And I will make him a great nation.
God is saying, look at, on this real
level with this real boy.
I have blessed him.
You've been crying out for me to do
something that's been in my heart all along
to do.
But I have blessed him and I will
bless him.
And beloved, I take such comfort in that.
Because God's plan goes on in our life
when we choose to follow him.
But his blessings can rest on our regrets.
His blessing can rest on our regrets.
You know how that happens?
It's like the Lord gave me a picture.
That regret is like a branding iron.
At first season, when this branding iron comes
down, there is pain.
There is pain.
And it's like regret needs to sometimes do
a full work in us.
Sometimes that's the way we open our eyes
and look.
It's sometimes the way God gets our attention.
It's some ways that we face up to
things we'd rather not.
But when there comes a time when that
mark has been impressed.
There's a time where God says, enough.
And that branding iron lifts.
And beloved, we're marked with the cross.
That speaks to me, there's a cross on
our regrets.
And beloved, there's no more pain.
There's a scar, but there's no more pain.
But the cross on the regret says, grace.
Grace on that situation.
It says, I will change it.
I have the power.
I'll do it my way.
But I'll tell you something.
My heart is, I have blessed that boy.
And I am blessing that boy.
And I will continue to bless that boy.
Only God can do work on so many
levels like that.
God can work on the level of his
plan, go forward with Isaac.
But he says, Ishmael is still precious to
me.
That boy is still precious.
Although he will forever be the type of
the kind of choice we are not to
make.
Grace, grace marks our regrets.
And finally, the third lesson of a fiery
trial that Abraham had to go through.
That third lesson is found in Genesis 21.
And here in this chapter is where God
asks, commands Abraham to send Ishmael away.
That Ishmael in the spiritual type now is
where we are called to give up all
our plans of our own.
Leaving every preconceived idea of how and when
and why and where we are going to
serve God.
We have to every hidden motive and every
unsurrendered love.
And all that is entwined in our heart
that God says has to go.
We need to obey him in it.
And in Genesis 21, 8 to 11.
It says, And the child grew and was
weaned.
And Abraham made a great feast in the
same day that Isaac was weaned.
And Sarah saw the son of Hagar, the
Egyptian, which he had borne unto Abraham, mocking.
Wherefore she said unto Abraham, Cast out this
bondwoman and her son.
For the son of this bondwoman shall not
be heir with my son, even with Isaac.
And the thing was very grievous in Abraham's
sight because of his son.
And I believe, you know, there's so many
reasons why it's grievous.
One is Abraham knows it's got to be.
Beloved, you know when God's putting his finger
on something.
It must be.
You see this son was mocking.
These things mock that holy desires that God
is beginning to build into you.
A fire that he himself is kindling in
your heart.
For a faith that is obedient.
A faith that's extravagant.
A faith that God can someday along the
journey of your walk.
There is nothing you will withhold from him.
That's Abraham's faith at the end of his
life.
And God knows he's putting things on his
finger on things in our lives.
That mock.
That fire.
That spirit he's giving.
They will forever come against what God is
building in your life.
You may think you can live with them
for a season.
In your own understanding, you can see why
there has...
You see no reason why there needs to
be a parting.
But God knows what's at the base of
that thing.
That thing that you loved.
You know we love our Ishmael's.
They're flesh of our flesh.
We love them.
And they're entwined in our hearts.
But it will mock and it will go
against.
It will constantly come against that spirit that
God has put in you.
And God says it has to go.
And Abraham knew that.
And it was grievous in his sight.
And that word grievous.
Very grievous means an attitude that rejects God's
authority.
An attitude that rejects God's authority.
Now if we look up to Abraham in
his life.
He's not going to just one day turn
on a switch and say I think I
will reject God's authority.
This man has not walked with his God
that long.
That he wakes up one day and that's
what he faces.
No beloved.
The enemy is far more subtle than that.
Because the command is cast out the son.
Cast out the son.
And the subtlety will be how could God
ever ask you to do a thing like
that.
There's going to be a separating come in
your heart.
And everything within you is going to say
that's not God's voice.
That can't be God.
God would not do that.
God would never put out of his presence
his son.
Or so Abraham could think.
But God will never be fully God to
you and I.
Till we can trust him and obey him
when he does not make sense to us.
God will never be fully God to us.
Where we have to constantly reserve the big
why.
Explain it to me.
I don't understand that.
When we demand to know.
When we demand to say God I have
to understand this.
You know how precious this is to me.
You know what this is going to cost
me.
So you need to explain this to me.
I need to understand this before I will
obey you.
Now we may never be so bold as
to put it in those clear terms.
But I'll tell you Jesus told the parable
about two sons.
There was a son who they were both
asked to go work in the vineyard.
Jesus used it as a parable.
And one son said I go father but
he never went.
And the other son said I'm not going.
But then conviction came upon him.
And he repented and he went in the
field.
And he turned to his disciples and he
said which one did the will of the
father?
You see because we'll never be so bold
say I will not obey you.
Tell.
We'll say I'm going to obey you.
I'm going to obey you.
Just tell me why.
I'm going to obey you.
But we'll never go.
I'm going to obey you.
But it will never happen.
Because beloved delayed obedience is not obedience.
Delayed obedience is not obedience.
Partial obedience is not obedience.
That is what we'll hide behind and say
I'm going to the field.
And I'll never do the will of my
father.
I will have myself so convinced that I
obey him.
But I will never begin to move into
the glory of an obedient faith.
I will never begin to know what it
is to love him with all my heart,
soul, mind and strength.
Because he says those that love me obey
me.
I will never know what it is to
work in a miracle working realm.
Because when we step out one foot after
another to obey him.
Something incredible takes place.
And I'm going to show.
I'm going to close with what that is.
But we will be deluded.
And I'll tell you something.
The enemy will be so subtle on this
point.
Because he so fears an obedient faith.
That's what shakes his kingdom.
When we determine in our heart.
Lord God I will obey when you speak.
I will have the fear of you in
me.
And I will be so convinced your heart
is to bless me in it.
No matter what you ask me to do.
That when we've got that in our heart.
And we begin to step forward.
I'll tell you something.
It's like you're on a conveyor belt.
You just get into the divine flow.
Because it all happens here in the heart.
When we determine we'll do this.
We step on that conveyor belt of God.
And we move forward.
That's why Abraham got up early the next
morning.
And he just set his face to Moriah.
He could do it because he determined in
his heart he would obey.
Beloved we can determine in our heart we
will obey.
But the enemy needs to deceive us on
this point.
I'll obey you God.
I'm obeying you God.
Just give me a why.
Just give me time.
Just give me understanding.
Just do a few things for me.
Then I'll obey you.
And we'll never be convinced otherwise that we're
not.
But we're not.
And so it was very grievous to Abraham.
An attitude that wanted to reject God's authority.
Not an outright one.
But how can this be you God?
Explain this to me before I obey you.
A grievous temptation to reject.
And then on top of it all.
In chapter 21 verses 12.
It says and God said unto Abraham.
Let it not be grievous in thy sight.
He's saying I'm understand.
Because of the lad.
And because of the bond woman.
In all that Sarah has said unto thee.
Hearken unto her voice.
Now here is the woman.
And the exact attitude that got him into
trouble in the first place.
And here along the way.
As we begin to follow God.
I'll tell you something.
He seems to give contradictory advice.
Or so it seems.
But beloved it's a test.
Am I God to you when it doesn't
make sense?
Am I God to you when it contradicts
everything that you think?
Now beloved there is another voice that will
try to deceive us.
I am talking about when you know.
Like you know.
God is telling you speak to her.
God is saying confess to that thievery.
You'll know.
Because I'll tell you something.
Your flesh would never do it.
And when we say God.
You've got.
I am determined to obey you in this.
And you're going to show me in your
word.
It is the most incredible thing.
But the Bible says that Abraham obeyed.
Abraham obeyed.
And there was a separating in his life.
And then it brings us to chapter 22.
And he's been learning all this.
Lessons.
He now takes his son up.
And one of my most favorite verses in
the whole Bible.
Is says.
Verse seven.
And Isaac spake unto Abraham his father and
said my father.
And he said here am I my son.
And he said behold the fire and the
wood.
But where is the lamb for a burnt
offering.
And Abraham said.
You see beloved.
When you begin to obey God.
God will fill your mouth with wisdom.
You will not have to be explaining yourself
to people on the left and on the
right.
And Abraham said.
My son.
God will provide himself.
A lamb.
For a burnt offering.
So they went both of them together.
And it said.
You know.
You know the story.
How he laid the wood out.
And then he lifted up his hands.
And then an angel of heaven stopped his
hand.
And said Abraham.
Don't do it.
Because now I know that thou fearest God.
Because you've not withheld your only son.
Of course it's spoken from a God.
Who would not withhold his only son.
And it says.
In verse 14.
And Abraham called the name of that place
Jehovah Jireh.
The name of that place where God spared
his hand.
But would not spare his.
Jehovah Jireh means God sees.
God knows.
God provides.
And beloved.
When we said to our face.
To say God I want that faith.
Lord I have been disobedient in so many
areas.
And wanted to give it another name.
But Lord I know that the moment that
I set myself.
To say God.
I put my hand in yours.
Right on King Jesus.
And that we begin to walk that walk
of faith.
An obedient faith.
He says that he will be to us
on that Mount Moriah.
Because that's a picture of type.
Of what it is to walk in an
obedient faith.
It costs something.
But I'll tell you something.
God will only bless you through it.
God will only provide through it.
And all the while we will have the
strong consolation.
That as we turn all the struggle to
him.
As we begin to say God I cannot
do this.
Unless you walk with me.
He says I know.
I see it.
And I will provide.
But I love what it says.
When I meditated on this.
What is God going to provide?
He says right in that verse.
He says in verse 9.
He says.
No verse 8.
My son.
God will provide himself.
See we read God will provide himself a
lamb.
But beloved in the New Testament.
God will provide himself.
When we set our heart to obey.
And he asks us to give up things.
He says I'll replace it with myself.
When he says I want to lay down
the blame.
I'm going to teach you a new way
to walk and live in your home.
He says I'm going to provide myself to
be the strength.
He says when I ask you to give
me that regret.
Because I'm going to give you a future
and hope.
It's because I'm going to provide myself.
And everything I ask you to do.
That you do in obedience.
You're going to walk in the glory realm
of myself being provided for you.
Hallelujah.
Because when we choose an obedient walk.
We can go every step of the way.
Jehovah Jireh.
God himself.
God will provide himself for me.
And a new revelation of Jesus Christ comes
into our heart with an obedient faith.
He knows what an obedient faith costs.
He knows what it means.
But he says a glory will come into
your soul.
Because I'll give you myself.
Beloved in this day and age.
We don't need more clever people.
We need people that bear Jesus Christ.
That they are the revelation of Christ.
But it comes no other way than we
set our faith to say.
Lord God.
The most fearful thing I've ever said.
Lord I would have an obedient faith.
I just quickly want to close with.
I probably have told this story before.
But forgive me if you've heard it.
But you know.
This one time when I was a young
Christian.
I was in a church.
And I had to take care of the
nursery.
And take care of all the kids.
And I had not been in church a
long, long time.
And finally one Sunday I got to be
in church.
And I was so delighted to be there.
And a young preacher was going to preach.
And I'd never heard him before.
And as the kids got up to go.
I looked in the back.
And I saw that the lady who was
teaching that.
Was the wife.
Was the preacher's wife.
And it was funny because I had a
fleeting thought.
And I thought.
I wonder what it would be like to
hear your husband speak.
But of course that was ridiculous.
I'd married a police officer.
Just like.
He would never think.
I wonder what it's like to hear my
wife speak.
Because that's ridiculous.
He married a housewife.
But.
I looked back and it was the preacher's
wife.
And I thought.
You know.
That's terrible.
They shouldn't have scheduled her to teach.
While he's speaking.
And we're getting ready.
You know.
To hear the word.
And I'd been in church so long.
I was just drinking and everything.
And the Lord spoke to me.
And says.
Go back and take her place.
And I thought.
This can't be God.
I mean.
God.
Do you have something about me being in
church?
And.
It wouldn't go away.
So I thought.
I know.
I'll turn to my husband.
And I'll say.
Dear.
I think I'm supposed to go relieve her.
And of course.
He'll say.
No.
You.
You need to be here.
And he said to me.
Well.
You know.
If it's God.
Do it.
So.
I thought.
Oh.
Brother.
So I'll go down.
And I'll knock on her door.
And say.
Excuse me.
Marga.
I'm supposed to teach for you.
And she's going to say.
And.
Do you have something about being in church?
I don't know.
It's so ridiculous to me.
But it wouldn't go away.
And so I got up.
And I left.
I did not want to do it.
This was my Sunday in church.
And I walked down the hall.
And I knocked on the door.
And I said.
Marga.
I think I'm supposed to teach for you.
And she threw the book at me.
And ran down the hall.
And Jehovah Jireh.
We had a lesson.
We had a great time.
But I did not know.
That that man was dying of cancer.
And that was the last sermon he ever
preached.
And she knew that.
And you know beloved.
If.
God is never asking us to do hard
things.
It's probably because we won't.
I wish that was my story all the
time.
But just three short years ago.
I was sitting in a Bible study.
And someone was sharing their testimony.
And when they finished speaking.
I was rooted to my chair with my
head down.
Because that woman was sharing a testimony.
And what she said she did for the
Lord.
I knew I would never do.
God could never ask me to do that.
Never.
Because I wouldn't do it.
And many of us are sitting here tonight.
And God's not asked you to do anything
for a long while.
And that's because he knows you won't.
Beloved tonight can be a new night.
We can step into a realm.
Of a glory.
And obedience we never thought we could do.
But when we say God I need the
fear of you.
I need to set you apart in my
heart.
That when you speak I give it the
value.
Of God almighty speaking to me.
And it's not an option.
I'll tell you something.
We will be revolutionized.
He will be God to us.
Would you stand?
As the musicians come.
I'm trusting that the Holy Ghost.
Has lit a cry for an obedient heart.
In many here tonight.
Where you would honestly say.
I really feel I have been one of
the deluded ones.
Saying I obey you God.
But you know in your heart of hearts.
There's many things he can't ask you to
do.
Because you won't.
Or delayed obedience you've been telling yourself.
Or partial obedience is good enough.
God will provide himself.
To all those that will.
Walk in Abraham.
Walk of faith.
You come.
The Lord is speaking to you.
About walking in obedience.
Like you have never done before.
When you walk up here what we do.
Is we bring our fears to the altar.
And we bring our failures to the altar.
We bring all the times.
That we he has asked.
And we have not.
Because he does not despise our struggle.
And he's not limited.
By how unfaithful we are.
He is not limited.
By how weak we are.
God always operates on the level.
What's your heart?
Because it's with the heart.
That's how you find me and seek me.
That's where I move through.
That's where I change you.
That's where it all happens.
That this is the heart cry.
Oh God.
We put our very little hand.
In your crucified one.
And we say right on.
King Jesus.
No man can hinder you.
Hallelujah.
And Lord we thank you that our fear.
Our failure.
And Lord that times of our reluctance.
Will not hinder you.
From God being merciful to us.
Being gracious to us.
Being long suffering with us.
Until you form an obedient.
Faith in us.
And then Lord.
We'll give you all the glory.
Because Lord we know.
That you would bless us tonight.
With this heart.
That we may glorify you.
In a way we never thought possible.
In Jesus name we pray.
Amen and Amen.
This is the conclusion of the message.