Belington progressive. [volume] (Belington, W. Va.) 1912-1927, 1923-07-05

ness Abraham staggered not, but be-
lieved God and it was counted to him
for righteousness. Wonderful faith
Upon Abraham's word of confession,
God sealed the covenant with strange
ceremony while the patriarch slept.
What a mountain-top experience with
God In the life of faith. Yes, but peril
lay in wait in the valley. The voice Of
God In promise had scarcely died away,
when another voice-not of be-
witching world, but of the flesh, said:
1T is utterly impossible for me to ever
give birth to son. Make my maid
Hagar your wife that ! may obtain
children by her. "And Abram heark-
ened unto the voice of Sarai." The
hero, who had defed Satan, and had
been delivered out Of the world, now
fell prey to the snare Of the flesh.
Instead of trusting God-he yielded to
the entreaties of his unbelieving wife
and denied his faith in God. There
are some valuable lessons here in the
life and walk of faith.
]. The Snare of the Flesh Is Laid for
the Man of Faith When He is Urged
to Work Out Gods Plan by His Own
Methods.-A snare is an artfully con-
cealed device to entrap the I'M
wary. Abram was most unsuspect-
ing. 1t seemed so necessary, so
natural, so providentially arranged
for him to act upon Sarai's pro-
posal. Coming from one who loved
him so devotedly, was this not the rea-
sonable thing to do to secure what God
had promised? All, how subtle and at
tractive was this snare! 1t is a most
common temptation. There is fa-
miliar saying that appeals to us all
|. GOD helps them that help them
selves" But this is the surest him
drance in the life Of faith. young
girl had found work in factory, weav-
ing cloth. She was instructed to send
for the boss weaver if the threads in
her loom broke and tangled. She did
so, until a day came when she felt
she could correct the situation herself.
Her attempts only made matters
worse until in sheer desperation, she
summoned help. When he saw the
awful mess she had made, he said:
why did you try to do this?" She re
piled: II did the best could" YES"
said he, sbut doing your best is to send
for me-" This is the real secret of the
walk of faith sending for Christ He
will disentangle the threads in life's
loom and save us from spelling the
pattern. "He is the God that worketh
for them that wait for Him. The les
son is, Let Him, for He is able to per-
form that which He has promised.
Commit thy way unto the Lord, trust
also in Him; and He shall bring it to
pass"
II. The Man Of God Is Ensnared by
the Flesh When He Grows Impatient,
Thinking Gods Delays Are DeniaIs.--
Man is always in hurry; God never.
"A thousand years to Him are but a
day." Faith is tempted to work by
mans calendar of days-God would
teach us to count time by millenniums.
The brief span of earth is important
only as related to eternity. We but
exist as born of the flesh; we truly
live when born of the Spirit Our
plans, our schemes, our way of doing
things always require haste. But Gods
promises can never fail, and He will
work them out in the minutest detail.
Being confident of this very thing,
that He which hath begun a good work
in us will perform it unto the day of
Jesus Christ" How heartening such
assurance 1t is through faith and
patience we inherit the promises"
I'VE are His workmanship, created in
Christ Jesus unto good works which
God has aforetime prepared that we
should walk in Them God knows lust
what is in us all. He leads He waits,
He tests, He delivers, that the gold
may be refined-that faith may grow
strong and do exploits. Absolute de-
pendence upon God is the sure path for
our feet. No snare is ever laid there
in. 1t is a protected highway. pa
trolled by Gods angels and kept safe
for all who walk by faith, not by sight.
unto Him who is able to do exceed
ing abundantly above all we ask or
think" we direct our eyes for guidance
and help.