The Pleasantville press. (Pleasantville, N.J.) 1912-1929, 1916-01-22

life" Abraham
had been tried by the Lord many
times, but this last supreme trial has
some characteristics which are COM
mon to many Christians experience.
Unexpected.
1t is said that after these things
God did try Abraham" After a life
journey of nearly one hundred and
twenty-five years. After all the expert
ences which were packed into his life.
After the birth and coming to age OF
the promised son. At a time when it
would perhaps seem as though the life
was completed and only needing the
final touch of being taken away from
the scene around him. He may have
felt that now he could rest a little in
his old age and, like Job, die in his
nest" But there never is perfection
in this life and therefore the training
is never done. Today's goal is but the
starting point for tomorrow. Many OF
the Lords people come to a time when
they feel as though their life were COM
plete. They have come over rough
paths and hard ways Trying expert
ences have been met, but it seems that
these are all in the past and now, hav-
ing passed them, they settle down as
though there were an end of the test
ings and they had come to rest. But
suddenly, in sweeps a harder test thai
any before. 1t all unexpected.
Or they think they have conquered
some part of the old nature and need
not watch 1t longer. Then n day
there comes the fierce attack, unlocked
for and unexpected. But blessed is the
man that endureth the unexpected
temptation.
Unexplained.
As far as the record goes, the Lord
gave Abraham no word of explanation
concerning the offering up of Isaac.
God simply told him to take his son
whom he loved and offer him a burnt
offering. Abraham was human, like
ourselves, so we can readily believe
that into his mind, as so often into our
own, there sprang the question, Why?
We desire to know so much of the
Lords doings before we are ready to
obey him. What a mark of unconscious
unbelief it is when we try to inquire as
to why God does this or that in his
dealings with us. He applies the test
and then, before we meet it, we want
to know the why" for it. We show so
much of distrust when hanging back
from doing as he says because we do
not understand. But Gods trials are
not all explained. He seldom let's us
know why, for If we knew there would
be little opportunity for faith to ope'
rate.
Unreasonable.
God had promised Abraham that in
isaac should his seed be called. Isaac
was the heir of the promises. Through
the years of Isaac's youth Abraham
knew that nothing could possibly take
away Isaac's life. In Isaac was CEN
tered the promise of a great multitude.
If anything happened to him, there
fore, the promise of God would be of
none effect. We can imagine Abraham
saying, when sickness or accident
threatened the life of his boy, that it
was impossible for him to die or be
killed, for how then could the promise
be fulfilled? How unreasonable then
it seemed for God to tell him to take
this boy and STAY him. Would he not
be tempted to ask, How then will the
promise be kept?" Would not the
tempter suggest that either God had
forgotten his word or he was making
a mistake, or that Abraham had mis-.
understood the message? How often
we are tempted to question the reason
ableness Of Gods actions. But here
again, if we understood all that God
was doing, the walk by faith would be
changed to sight. God wants not rea-
soners but believers. And blessed is
the man who endureth temptation
even when it seems unreasonable.
And Abraham met this test with su
preme faith. The book of Hebrews dc
clares it was by faith he obeyed. His
obedience was prompt, unquestioning
accomplishing, deliberate. He did not
hesitate to obey, there was no inquir'
ing into the reason for offering Isaac
strange as such a thing would seem
He did not wait to see how God would
fulfill his promise, but by faith he of
fered up Isaac, of whom it was said
that Gin Isaac shall thy seed be called
The secret of such faith leading tc
such obedience is found when the test
has been met and the victory won
God said to Abraham, Lay not thine
hand upon the lad; for now know
that thou fearest God, seeing thou has
not withheld thy son from me-" The
fear of the Lord is the secret OF obedi
. ence.