Hebrews 11:17-19

I've found that a shelf of uplifting books helps me keep my thoughts tilted positively, so I have quite a collection of volumes both religious and secular. But I don't recall even one of these books devoting as much as a single chapter to the primary requirement and condition necessary for claiming the optimism of Romans 8:28 - loving God.

Yet this is the greatest of all the commands. Jesus Himself summarised all the requirements of the Old Testament by telling us to love God and to love people. When we genuinely fall in love with the Lord, we naturally keep His commands and do what pleases Him. That's why the Bible says that loving God is tantamount to fulfilling the Law...

Have you ever had an experience in which God measured or verified your love for Him? I'm sure you have, and so have I. The Lord is a master teacher who gives periodic exams to His followers to see how they're doing in the most critical subjects. The scary thing is that sometimes we may not even recognise when God is testing us. Not only do we fail the test, we don't even know it's being given!

Here are some hints. Have you had a financial reversal? Have you had health issues? Have you experienced challenges in a treasured relationship? Have things been bumpy at work? Has a valued client changed firms? Has a longed-for goal vanished into thin air? Have your goals evaporated before your eyes despite intense efforts on your part?

Deuteronomy 13:3b says, "'The LORD your God is testing you to know whether you love the LORD your God with all your heart and all your soul.'"

Perhaps God is watching your reaction to see if your devotion to these things eclipses your heartfelt and burning devotion to Him. He's waiting to see if your all-encompassing love and trust in Him keeps your soul buoyant amid the passing concerns of life...

[Of course, God knows what we would freely do in every possible situation in every possible world. Indeed, He uses this knowledge ("middle knowledge") to work all things according to His good, pleasing and perfect will.]

In Genesis 22, God tested Abraham's love by asking him to sacrifice Isaac, his only son whom he loved. Isaac was the longed-for son of Abraham's old age, the boy he had prayed about for many years. He was the light of Abraham's life, and we can visualise the old fellow kneeling over his sleeping son, stroking his hair, and loving him with all his heart. Young Isaac represented all of Abraham's hopes for the future. He was the promised lineage through whom the entire world would be blessed.

Abraham's love for his earthly son was so intense it could easily have crowded out his love for his heavenly Father. In one of the most unusual chapters of the Old Testament, God tested Abraham to see if perhaps his love for Isaac was greater than his love for the Lord...

We commit ourselves to Him like a husband and wife making their vows at the altar, and we learn the joy of living with Him each day, talking to Him in prayer, listening to His Word, worshipping Him, thanking Him for His blessings, trusting Him with our burdens, proving His faithfulness, and walking in His presence. We are called the "bride of Christ" and the "friends of God". In any marriage, the partners are either growing close or further apart each day. The same is true for our relationship with Christ.

- Robert J. Morgan, The Promise: God Works All Things Together for Your Good

Have you ever had a Bible verse/passage which keeps coming back to you? Over the past year, God has been drawing my attention to the story of Abraham being tested in Genesis 22. When Abraham's Dilemma (killing his son vs disobeying God's clear command to sacrifice his son as a burnt offering) even comes up in one of your philosophy modules, you know that God is convicting you of something!

Apart from Romans 8:28 and Matthew 6:33, Hebrews 11:17-19 is probably the Bible verse/passage which I have spent the most time meditating upon over the past year.

"By faith Abraham, when God tested him, offered Isaac as a sacrifice. He who had received the promises was about to sacrifice his one and only son, even though God had said to him, "It is through Isaac that your offspring will be reckoned." Abraham reasoned that God could raise the dead, and figuratively speaking, he did receive Isaac back from death." - Hebrews 11:17-19 (NIV)

Ok, maybe Romans 12:1-2 isn't too far behind.

"Therefore, I urge you, brothers, in view of God's mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God - this is your spiritual act of worship. Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is - his good, pleasing and perfect will." - Romans 12:1-2 (NIV)

As well as Philippians 4:6-7.

"Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus." - Philippians 4:6-7 (NIV)

Links: Romans 8:28 (27 Aug 10), The Real Question (10 Sep 10)