God will provide for Himself the lamb for the burnt offering. – Genesis 22:8

God will sometimes test the depth of your devotion to Him. In Genesis 22, He tested Abraham’s faith beyond anything imaginable. The Lord instructed Abraham to offer his son Isaac as a sacrifice.

For a moment, draw this parallel in your mind: God sent His own Son to earth and willingly offered Him as a sacrifice for our sins. Was God’s request of Abraham a foreshadowing of what would come? Perhaps. At any rate, Abraham was willing to obey God no matter what. He didn’t talk back, make excuses, or turn away from God. He just obeyed—knowing in his heart that the Lord would provide the right sacrifice.

When they had reached their destination, Abraham spoke with words of faith as he told his servants, “I and the lad…will worship and return to you” (verse 5). Then when it came to the actual moment of sacrifice, God stopped him. “Abraham! . . . Do not stretch out your hand against the lad, and do nothing to him; for now I know that you fear God, since you have not withheld your son, your only son, from Me” (verses 11-12). God did not want Abraham to harm his son. He was just checking Abraham’s devotion.

How often have you faced a difficult situation and thought, “Lord, You can have anything, but please, just don’t take ______” ? In this situation, Abraham would have filled the blank with the name of his son Isaac—the answer to the promise God had given him years earlier.

Are you withholding anything from God? A relationship, dream, idea, or pursuit?

Worship begins in the heart. Therefore, always be willing to obey the Lord by letting go of anything you deem more valuable than your relationship with Him. When you do, His goodness and mercy will be poured out in abundance for you.

Check out more from Reasons to Believe @Reasons.org