Trust and Obey

This was the closing hymn at my church's prayer meeting last night. The fourth verse in particular was a timely reminder that God is sovereign and works all things for His glory and our good - if only we would trust and obey Him!

But we never can prove
The delights of His love
Until all on the altar we lay

For the favour He shows
And the joy He bestows
Are for them who will trust and obey

Trust and obey
For there's no other way
To be happy in Jesus
But to trust and obey

"Better is one day in your courts than a thousand elsewhere; I would rather be a doorkeeper in the house of my God than dwell in the tents of the wicked. For the LORD God is a sun and shield; the LORD bestows favour and honour; no good thing does he withhold from those whose walk is blameless. O LORD Almighty, blessed is the man who trusts in you." - Psalm 84:10-12 (NIV)

Is your all on the altar of sacrifice laid?
Your heart does the Spirit control?
You can only be blest
And have peace and sweet rest
As you yield Him your body and soul

"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)

Abraham's Dilemma

"Some time later God tested Abraham. He said to him, "Abraham!" "Here I am," he replied. Then God said, "Take your son, your only son, Isaac, whom you love, and go to the region of Moriah. Sacrifice him there as a burnt offering on one of the mountains I will tell you about."" - Genesis 22:1-2 (NIV)

"Much would depend on whether we could see the author of the command as the supreme Good. If we could, then perhaps trusting obedience might seem the right course." - Robert Merrihew Adams, Finite and Infinite Goods

"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)

"You foolish man, do you want evidence that faith without deeds is useless? Was not our ancestor Abraham considered righteous for what he did when he offered his son Isaac on the altar? You see that his faith and his actions were working together, and his faith was made complete by what he did. And the scripture was fulfilled that says, "Abraham believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness," and he was called God's friend. You see that a person is justified by what he does and not by faith alone." - James 2:20-24 (NIV)

YOU ARE NOT ACTING IN FAITH IF YOU ARE NOT COMMITTING YOUR FEELINGS TO GOD!

Trust and obey. Trusting obedience. Faith and works. Faith works.

By the way, "justification by faith alone" means "justification by faith alone [as the sole means by which we are united with Christ]", not "justification by faith alone [apart from works]". After all, 'a person is justified by what he does and not by faith alone' (James 2:24, NIV).

*****

I just noticed the link between Genesis 22:2 and John 3:16, the biblical theology of Abraham's Dilemma.

"Then God said, "Take your son, your only son, Isaac, whom you love, and go to the region of Moriah. Sacrifice him there as a burnt offering on one of the mountains I will tell you about."" - Genesis 22:2 (NIV)

"For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life." - John 3:16 (NIV)

Amazing!

Links: Abraham's Dilemma and Believing God for His Best (12 May 10), Abraham's Great Reward (16 May 10)