“After these things God tested Abraham and said to him, “Abraham!” And he said, “Here I am.” He said, “Take your son, your only son Isaac, whom you love, and go to the land of Moriah, and offer him there as a burnt offering on one of the mountains of which I shall tell you.” So Abraham rose early in the morning, saddled his donkey, and took two of his young men with him, and his son Isaac. And he cut the wood for the burnt offering and arose and went to the place of which God had told him. On the third day Abraham lifted up his eyes and saw the place from afar. Then Abraham said to his young men, “Stay here with the donkey; I and the boy will go over there and worship and come again to you.” And Abraham took the wood of the burnt offering and laid it on Isaac his son. And he took in his hand the fire and the knife. So they went both of them together. And Isaac said to his father Abraham, “My father!” And he said, “Here I am, my son.” He said, “Behold, the fire and the wood, but where is the lamb for a burnt offering?” Abraham said, “God will provide for himself the lamb for a burnt offering, my son.” So they went both of them together. When they came to the place of which God had told him, Abraham built the altar there and laid the wood in order and bound Isaac his son and laid him on the altar, on top of the wood. Then Abraham reached out his hand and took the knife to slaughter his son. But the angel of the Lord called to him from heaven and said, “Abraham, Abraham!” And he said, “Here I am.” He said, “Do not lay your hand on the boy or do anything to him, for now I know that you fear God, seeing you have not withheld your son, your only son, from me.” And Abraham lifted up his eyes and looked, and behold, behind him was a ram, caught in a thicket by his horns. And Abraham went and took the ram and offered it up as a burnt offering instead of his son. So Abraham called the name of that place, “The Lord will provide”; as it is said to this day, “On the mount of the Lord it shall be provided”
(Genesis 22)
We are all designed to function within the parameters of God’s body – the church.
None of us can be who God intended us to be without the help of others. We have all received a specific grace to do what we are called to do (Ephesians 4:7; Romans 12:3).
God will make the Call, but He won’t put us on the ALTAR OF CHANGE. This is something that we need to do. God also never entrusts us with the knife God will always entrust the “cutting” to someone else; someone who loves us enough to not allow us to stay the same.
If we are not discipled, we are in danger of submitting to the reality of our own definition of who God is and what He wants.
As long as Isaac was on that Altar, God was birthing His promise – the lineage of Christ. If Isaac had gotten off too soon, he would have missed the Promise of God. He would have gone on to live his life, but he would never have experienced the full plan God had for him because of the lack of shaping into that plan.
Because Isaac stayed on the altar, God provided a way out at the right time. Because God made the way ISAAC became a legitimate son, one that was PROVEN (Philippians 2:22).
– If you look at your own life; are you a disciple?
– Are you a person who is committed to the cause of learning and change?
– Or have you become comfortable somewhere in your walk with God?
People that become comfortable always produce the same fruit over and over again! It is not easy to change. We all dislike the process of change but the end result is always worth the pain. I once sat in a meeting with two young people who had tremendous gifting and anointing, but they lacked one thing: discipleship. As they talked on and on about their great plans and dreams, I became aware of how much they needed discipleship in their lives. My conversation with them ended with me challenging them to a process of being willing learners. Sadly, they never learnt and that talented couple left the church. Everything that was good is now full of rebellion, bitterness and offence. How sad! Encouragingly, I have sat with young and old people who do learn, who do change and who embrace the challenge of discipline. These people normally shine forth in God’s Kingdom and become influencers wherever they go. I always say, an open rebuke is much better than secret love. I would rather take a thousand rebukes than a thousand kisses that send me to hell. As long as you and I have breath we have the ability to change. It is never too late.
I want to challenge you to look deep and hard into your own heart and ask yourself what needs to change. For most of us we know very well what needs to change, we are not ignorant! However, even with this knowledge, very few of us embrace the need to change. Do not be like that! Change and keep on changing. Every follower of God is called to a life of change and/or transformation into the image of Christ. When we became a Christian, we enrolled into the School of Change. Sit quietly with God and ask Him: ‘Father, what needs to change in my life?’ Listen to what He says and do it.
Then, make sure you are connected to a Local Church and become actively involved in a Life Group!
PRAYER:
Dear Father, I know that I need to change and transform into the image of Christ. Please help me by the power of Holy Spirit to continuously draw closer to You as I keep on changing more and more. Father, I want to be a disciple. I want to learn, please assist me to learn quickly and easily! Thank You that You have given me enough grace for this process of change. In Jesus’ name I pray. Amen.
This EXTRACT was taken from my book, “The Dunamis of God: 21 Days of Power”
We are here to help you!
Reach out to us via email: charmaine@empowerchurch.co.za
Leave A Comment