When our Heavenly Father asks us to do the impossible... what would your answer be?
NOTE: This is the extended version before I trimmed down the message to fit our time slot - AMAZING what the Word provides to us, so I wanted to ensure you had all my notes for the evening... ENJOY!
We discussed last time His incredible attributes that He has shared with us through His Word… His complete sovereignty, a God who knows all, who has created all, who is Spirit being everywhere at all times, who is all powerful, who is eternal, and all His ways are right. We discussed how to live in the way He intended us to live… through Christ’s perfect example… giving Hope to the Hopeless and Help to the Helpless.
Knowing what we do about our Father… our Good Good Father, we know we can fully trust in the One to Whose ways are ALWAYS right. His ways higher than our ways and His thoughts than our thoughts, He sees a MUCH bigger picture than we could ever imagine.
Deuteronomy 32:4 tells us – “The Rock, His work is perfect, for all His ways are JUSTICE. A God of faithfulness and without iniquity, just and upright is He.”
God instructs us, as we discussed last month, what he requires of us… “He has told you, O man, what is good; and what does the Lord require of you but to do justice, and to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God.” – Micah 6:8
When our Good Father asks us to do the impossible to show our unwavering devotion to Him, would we be willing to do just that?
Prime example - Abraham and the Lord’s ask of him…
Genesis 22:1 (CJB) - After these things, God tested Avraham. He said to him, “Avraham!” And he answered, “Here I am.” He said, “Take your son YOUR ONLY SON, WHOM YOU LOVE, Isaac; and go to the land of Moriyah. There you are to offer him as a burnt offering on a mountain that I will point out to you.”
Then let’s take a look at what God says at Jesus’s baptism…
Matthew 3:16-17 (CJB) – As soon as Yeshua had been immersed, He came up out of the water. At that moment heaven was opened, He saw the Spirit of God coming down upon Him like a dove, and a voice from heaven said, “This is MY SON, whom I love; I am well pleased with Him.”
Abraham had waited 25 years to have his “promised” son by Sarah… this was not his ONLY son but it was THE son that he so longed for as the fulfillment of God’s promise to him. It was THE son that GOD had wanted to Bless Him with, and would have been HIS first and ONLY son at that time, if they had waited for God’s plan instead of trying to do things on their own. The point is it was Abraham’s CHERISHED and LOVED son, his miracle child, most likely the most important earthly “possession” if you will in Abraham’s life. God wanted to test Abraham to see if his devotion and obedience to Him was unwavering… TOTAL BLIND FAITH.
God didn’t ask Abraham to do something that GOD HIMSELF was not going to be willing to do for all of us.
While Isaac, unknowingly carried the wood to be the sacrifice on the altar, Yeshua, knowing carried the cross and was crucified as our ultimate sacrifice that GOD made on our behalf… showing His unwavering LOVE for us.
Abraham was willing to obey what God had asked of him because He knew who His God was… a God who is Holy, Pure, and Right in every way. Abraham knew the power of God and trusted him in every way. He knew that even if he must go through with this ask of God… God would provide in one way or another, even if it meant resurrecting Isaac – Hebrews 11:17-19 (ESV) “By faith, Abraham, when he was tested, offered up Isaac, and he who had received the promises was in the act of offering up his only son, of whom it was said, “Through Isaac shall your offspring be named.” He considered that God was able even to raise him from the dead, from which, figuratively speaking, he did receive him back.”
God was willing to make the sacrifice for us while we were still SINNERS.
Romans 5:7-8 (CJB) – 7 Now it is a rare event when someone gives up his life even for the sake of somebody righteous, although possibly for a truly good person one might have the courage to die. 8 BUT God demonstrates HIS OWN LOVE for us in that the Messiah died on our behalf while we were still sinners.”
When someone asks if there is any other way to God except through Yeshua, Jesus Christ our Lord… the answer is a HARD NO!
Here are some reasons (there are plenty more) why it is a HARD NO!
1) BECAUSE JESUS Himself tells us -
John 14:6 “I am the Way and the Truth and the Life. No one comes to the Father except through me”
Matthew 7:13-14 followed by John 10:9 - “Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it.” "I am the gate; whoever enters through Me will be saved.”
1 John 5:12 - “Whoever has the Son has life; whoever does not have the Son of God does not have life.”
Acts 4:12 - “Salvation is found in NO ONE ELSE, for there is no other name under heaven given to mankind by which we must be saved”
1 Timothy 2:5 - “For there is one God and one Mediator between God and mankind, the man Christ Jesus."
2) As far as I know, Jesus is the only One (no other prophet over time or religious leader) that claims to be 100% man and 100% God.
The following is from the book How (Not) to Read the Bible - I like how the author (Dan Kimball) laid it out in there...
The Hindu Vedas say, “Truth is one, but the sages speak of it in many different ways.”
Muhammad said, “The truth has been revealed to me.”
JESUS SAID, “I AM the TRUTH”
He also states in the book that he heard a quote once that stuck with him that goes as follows:
“Founders of other religions claim they are a prophet to help you find God. Jesus came to say, ‘I am God come to find You!”
3) Jesus the night of his arrest prays in Gethsemane -
Matthew 26:36-46 –
where 3 times the Bible tells us he prays the same words to the Father…
“My Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me; nevertheless, not as I will, but as You will.” - verse 39
“My Father, if this cannot pass unless I drink it, Your will be done.” - verse 42
So, leaving them again, He went away and prayed for the third time, saying the SAME WORDS again. - verse 44
If there was ANY other way to the Father, the Father would have taken the cup from Him and provided a different option… there was NO OTHER OPTION.
4) Jesus’s death is a recorded historical event. THERE IS NO DENYING IT HAPPENED.
5) Jesus appeared to over 500 people in the days after his resurrection - (1 Corinthians 15:1-11) before ascending to the Father.
6.) Those that saw and witnessed to this and who were led by the Spirit died for their faith and belief in Jesus and the Gospel message that has carried throughout all time… No one would die the death of these martyrs if they did not truly know that Jesus was the only Way, Truth, and Life.
7.) Knowing the personal SACRIFICE THAT THE FATHER and SON made on our behalf, ultimately anyone that asks this question should get the response that it is because of our FAITH that we hold fast to these truths.
Furthermore, NOTHING can separate us from the Love of God for those that believe Yeshua is Lord and Savior –
Romans 8:31-35, 37-39 (CJB) – 31 What, then, are we to say to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us? 32He who did not spare even his own Son, but gave him up on behalf of us all — is it possible that, having given us his Son, he would not give us everything else too? 33So who will bring a charge against God’s chosen people? Certainly not God — he is the one who causes them to be considered righteous! 34Who punishes them? Certainly not the Messiah Yeshua, who died and — more than that — has been raised, is at the right hand of God and is actually pleading on our behalf! 35Who will separate us from the love of the Messiah? Trouble? Hardship? Persecution? Hunger? Poverty? Danger? War?
37No, in all these things we are super conquerors, through the one who has loved us. 38For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor other heavenly rulers, neither what exists nor what is coming, 39neither powers above nor powers below, nor any other created thing will be able to separate us from the love of God which comes to us through the Messiah Yeshua, our Lord.
God, the Father, loves us beyond measure. He gave His EVERYTHING for us to be saved. Sometimes I think it is hard for our minds to grasp God making a sacrifice like that for us… I fully believe that His Word provides us with example after beautiful example of circumstances we can wrap our minds around…. If any one of us were in Abraham’s shoes and God commanded us to take the most precious thing in our lives, what we hold nearest and dearest in our heart of hearts and sacrifice it to Him out of blind faith and obedience…To give OUR EVERYTHING. I’m not sure how many could do this and face the “ask” with no hesitation or procrastination.
God asked Abraham to do this in Genesis 22:1-2… the very next verse, verse 3 tells us…
3 Avraham got up early in the morning, saddled his donkey, and took two of his young men with him, together with Yitz’chak his son. He cut the wood for the burnt offering, departed and went toward the place God had told him about.
Just a few Chapters earlier (Genesis Chapter 19) we see God intervening to save Lot and his family from utter destruction. God literally sends angels to Lot to ensure that they make it out of Sodom safely with their lives. Look at the contrast of obedience between Abraham and the way Lot reacted, and their respective “asks”… Abraham to sacrifice his loved son (almost an impossible unthinkable ask), and Lot to simply move his family out of a place that was to be destroyed (to save his life and the lives of his family)
Genesis 19:12 – 22
12 Then the men said to Lot, “Have you anyone else here? Sons-in-law, sons, daughters, or anyone you have in the city, bring them out of the place. 13 For we are about to destroy this place, because the outcry against its people has become great before the Lord, and the Lord has sent us to destroy it.” 14 So Lot went out and said to his sons-in-law, who were to marry his daughters, “Up! Get out of this place, for the Lord is about to destroy the city.” But he seemed to his sons-in-law to be jesting.
15 As morning dawned, the angels urged Lot, saying, “Up! Take your wife and your two daughters who are here, lest you be swept away in the punishment of the city.” 16 But he lingered. So the men seized him and his wife and his two daughters by the hand, the Lord being merciful to him, and they brought him out and set him outside the city. 17 And as they brought them out, one said, “Escape for your life. Do not look back or stop anywhere in the valley. Escape to the hills, lest you be swept away.” 18 And Lot said to them, “Oh, no, my lords. 19 Behold, your servant has found favor in your sight, and you have shown me great kindness in saving my life. But I cannot escape to the hills, lest the disaster overtake me and I die.
20 Behold, this city is near enough to flee to, and it is a little one. Let me escape there—is it not a little one?—and my life will be saved!” 21 He said to him, “Behold, I grant you this favor also, that I will not overthrow the city of which you have spoken. 22 Escape there quickly, for I can do nothing till you arrive there.” Therefore the name of the city was called Zoar.
WOW… that is almost hard to read, knowing what Abraham suffered and the absolute lack of timely obedience on Lots part when he was literally being saved from utter destruction himself.
God was so merciful to Lot and his family because of His love for Abraham, and Lot still could not obey in a timely manner.
Genesis 19:29 (CJB) - But when God destroyed the cities of the plain, He remembered Avraham and sent Lot out, away from the destruction, when he overthrew the cities in which Lot lived.
There may be times in our lives where God asks us to make ultimate sacrifices to Him in BLIND OBEDIENCE and FAITH because we know He has a greater plan and purpose in mind. We may not know why He is asking this of us, but if we DO know Him, truly know Him, we know He is doing it for the greater good, for the good of the Kingdom.
The gift of Salvation is Free to all who want to accept it, but being a Talmid (disciple) may cost us everything. God nor Jesus ever said it would be easy to follow Him. To walk in His ways, to obey His commandments. Jesus actual tells us the hard, honest truth… and let’s face it, when he gave this talk it was shortly before He knew he would be crucified… He didn’t have time to lighten the message or sugar coat. He needed folks to know…
Matthew 16:24-27 (CJB) - 24Then Yeshua told his talmidim (disciples), “If anyone wants to come after me, let him say ‘No’ to himself, take up his execution-stake (cross), and keep following me. 25For whoever wants to save his own life will destroy it, but whoever destroys his life for my sake will find it. 26What good will it do someone if he gains the whole world but forfeits his life? Or, what can a person give in exchange for his life? 27For the Son of Man will come in his Father’s glory, with his angels; and then He will repay everyone according to his conduct.
And again we hear this same type of message from Jesus in Luke 14:25-35 (CJB) – where He also warns us about calculating the cost of discipleship - it is not something to be taken lightly, it is a commitment to the end.
25Large crowds were traveling along with Yeshua. Turning, he said to them, 26“If anyone comes to me and does not hate his father, his mother, his wife, his children, his brothers and his sisters, yes, and his own life besides, he cannot be my talmid (disciple). 27Whoever does not carry his own execution-stake (cross) and come after me cannot be my talmid (disciple).
28“Suppose one of you wants to build a tower. Don’t you sit down and estimate the cost, to see if you have enough capital to complete it? 29If you don’t, then when you have laid the foundation but can’t finish, all the onlookers start making fun of you 30and say, ‘This is the man who began to build, but couldn’t finish!’
31“Or again, suppose one king is going out to wage war with another king. Doesn’t he first sit down and consider whether he, with his ten thousand troops, has enough strength to meet the other one, who is coming against him with twenty thousand? 32If he hasn’t, then while the other is still far away, he sends a delegation to inquire about terms for peace.
33“So every one of you who doesn’t renounce all that he has cannot be my talmid. 34Salt is excellent. But if even the salt becomes tasteless, what can be used to season it? 35It is fit for neither soil nor manure — people throw it out. Those who have ears that can hear, let them hear!”
Jesus gave His ALL for us… who are we to tell God “NO” when He asks us to do things we feel are not right, or fair, or even in our perception JUST at times?
Does The Creator not have the right to ask anything of His Creation?
Taking that even one step further… sometimes His asks, His tests, His trials for us are so incredibly hard to comprehend that we might look at someone like they are NUTS if they tell you that they are doing it out of blind obedience to the Father…
The Bible did not give us any detail on the conversation between Abraham and Sarah that morning that he packed up and took Isaac to head to Moriyah. Matter of fact, we don’t even know if Abraham told Sarah what was being asked of him by God. Can you imagine what that conversation would have been like??? Sarah may have said… “Are you NUTS… you are taking this conversation with God thing TOO FAR!” OR “You are taking Isaac over my dead body!” OR “There is no way God would ask you to do that… it must be a different voice you are hearing from.”
Same thing we see in Job with his so called “friends” – when the unexplained is happening to Job and it is so horrific… they assume it is JOB who is the problem, his sins that are bringing about all of these afflictions, and they presume to know the mind of God.
And when JOB, who knows His God intimately, looks beyond what his “friends” are trying to give him as an explanation and makes an earnest plea to God to explain the “WHY”?
God knowing that Job would not be able to comprehend the “why” asks Job to explain the creation to the Creator. (Job, Chapters 38-41) God doesn’t need to provide us with explanations.
When we were young or for those of you with young children… when you ask your kids to do something… and they retort back… “I don’t want to do that…”. And you answer them back. “I don’t care what you want, you will do what I am asking.” And they cry out “but why??” You swifty tell them…”Because I told you so.”
How much more authority does our Sovereign God who gave up HIS SON, WHOM HE LOVED For us… have to ask us whatever He so sees fit. We know HE is GOOD, we know all his ways are JUST and RIGHT… and if we know WHO the ask is coming from… we should not have to question the WHY. Our response should always be a humble and timely Yes…
If you ever think that God has just asked TOO MUCH of you or you think what He is asking is unfair or overwhelming… pause and really think about His Faithfulness and Complete Love for us… God Blessed Abraham and the nations through him. HE AKSED THE IMPOSSIBLE OF ABRAHAM… sacrifice your son, whom you love… and knew after testing Abraham that he would be fully devoted, that Abraham’s obedience was unwavering.
Genesis 22:11-12 (CJB) - 11But the angel of Adonai called to him out of heaven: “Avraham? Avraham!” He answered, “Here I am.” 12He said, “Don’t lay your hand on the boy! Don’t do anything to him! For now I know that you are a man who fears God, because you have not withheld your son, your only son, from me.”
And in verses 15 – 18 (CJB)
“The angel of Adonai called to Avraham a second time out of heaven. 16 He said, “I have sworn by myself — says Adonai — that because you have done this, because you haven’t withheld your son, your only son, 17 I will most certainly bless you; and I will most certainly increase your descendants to as many as there are stars in the sky or grains of sand on the seashore. Your descendants will possess the cities of their enemies, 18 and by your descendants all the nations of the earth will be blessed — BECAUSE YOU OBEYED MY ORDER.”
God BLESSED THE WHOLE WORLD through His unwavering LOVE for us. But this time it wasn’t a test or a trial… God literally put Himself in the flesh form of HIS SON, WHOM HE LOVED on that cross to cover us and our iniquities. There was NO OTHER OPTION… and Jesus, unlike Isaac, knew what he had to do for us. Jesus knew it would be Himself as the perfect sacrificial lamb. I don’t know of a greater sacrifice that could have ever been made.
John 3:16-17 (CJB) – 16 “For God so loved the world that he gave his only and unique Son, so that everyone who trusts in him may have eternal life, instead of being utterly destroyed. 17 For God did not send the Son into the world to judge the world, but rather so that through him, the world might be saved.
Talk about the GOODNESS OF GOD!
Now let’s stop and pause to think about what Jesus had to willingly give up… to be that perfect sacrificial lamb.
Philippians 2:6-11 (CJB) -
6Though he was in the form of God,
he did not regard equality with God
something to be possessed by force.
7On the contrary, he emptied himself,
in that he took the form of a slave
by becoming like human beings are.
And when he appeared as a human being,
8He humbled himself still more
by becoming obedient even to death —
death on a stake as a criminal!
9Therefore God raised him to the highest place
and gave him the name above every name;
10that in honor of the name given Yeshua,
every knee will bow —
in heaven, on earth and under the earth —
11and every tongue will acknowledge
that Yeshua the Messiah is Adonai —
to the glory of God the Father.
How much we are fully loved by our God.
Above the “holy ark” where the Torah Scrolls are placed at the front of synagogues there is at times a Hebrew phrase inscribed above - דע לפני מי אתה עומד (“Da Lifnei Mi Atah Omed”; “Know Before Whom You Stand”). Knowing before Whom we stand should be done in full awareness and humility.
While this phrase is taken from the Talmud (Tractate Berakhot 28B) and not the Bible, per se, it has been referenced in relation to Moses standing in front of God’s presence with the Burning Bush.
Before getting into our worship time together, Let’s really know before Whom we are sitting/standing in front of. Try to let go of all extraneous thoughts and any life distractions that may be weighing us down, and with full mindfullness, intention and purpose let’s really “be present” before God our Father. The One who loved us and gave His ALL for us.
What I have come to experience in my own life… is that the more we obey what He asks from us individually and with a willing heart… the more we seek His desires for our lives instead of our own… the more BLESSED we truly are. He is our Provider God, and He is steadfast in His mercy and grace.
Psalm 103 (CJB) – beautifully describes our Good Father who loves us so deeply, He forgives us fully, He heals us, He redeems us, He embraces us with His grace and compassion, He is slow to anger, He does not dish out to us what we deserve and He loves us as a Perfect and Good Father would.
Psalm 103 (CJB)
1By David:
Bless Adonai, my soul!
Everything in me, bless His holy name!
2Bless Adonai, my soul,
and forget none of His benefits!
3He forgives all your offenses,
He heals all your diseases,
4He redeems your life from the pit,
He surrounds you with grace and compassion,
5He contents you with good as long as you live,
so that your youth is renewed like an eagle’s.
6Adonai brings vindication and justice
to all who are oppressed.
7He made his ways known to Moshe,
His mighty deeds to the people of Isra’el.
8Adonai is merciful and compassionate,
slow to anger and rich in grace.
9He will not always accuse,
He will not keep His anger forever.
10He has not treated us as our sins deserve
or paid us back for our offenses,
11because His mercy toward those who fear Him
is as far above earth as heaven.
12He has removed our sins from us
as far as the east is from the west.
13Just as a father has compassion on his children,
Adonai has compassion on those who fear Him.
14For He understands how we are made,
He remembers that we are dust.
15Yes, a human being’s days are like grass,
he sprouts like a flower in the countryside —
16but when the wind sweeps over, it’s gone;
and its place knows it no more.
17But the mercy of Adonai on those who fear Him
is from eternity past to eternity future,
and His righteousness extends
to his children’s children,
18provided they keep His covenant
and remember to follow His precepts.
19Adonai has established His throne in heaven;
His kingly power rules everything.
20Bless Adonai, you angels of His,
you mighty warriors who obey His word,
who carry out His orders!
21Bless Adonai, all his troops,
who serve Him and do what He wants!
22Bless Adonai, all His works,
in every place where He rules!
Bless Adonai, my soul!
Songs Sung in Worship September 30th, 2023 -
God Really Loves Us (Crowder)
Goodness of God (Bethel Music & Jenn Johnson)
Good Good Father (Chris Tomlin)
Great is Thy Faithfulness (Hymn)
Too Good To Not Believe (Cody Carnes & Brandon Lake)
Run to the Father (Cody Carnes)
Promises (Maverick City Music)
The Ancient Path (11th Hour Worship)
How Great Thou Art (Hymn)
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