The God Test
I have to be honest; I have never liked tests. It’s a long time since I last took a ‘formal’ test of any description! I can remember the spelling tests at Junior school. My parents were very patient and creative as they helped me to think of ways to visualise the spelling of words like ‘uncomfortable’. in the test, the following day, I frantically tried to recall that image and write the word when the teacher called it out. Then there were my GCSEs, the formal and serious ‘national exams’. What pressure! Would I read the paper correctly, answer the right questions and get it done in time? The worst of all was my driving test. I still remember my heart racing as my ‘turn in the road’ took far longer that it should have done! What a relief when the examiner informed me I had passed. I could have kissed him (but I restrained).
In the first book of the Bible, Genesis, in chapter 22 God tested Abraham. He asked him to sacrifice his Son. This is a terribly shocking thing to read! But God was after something in Abraham; was he a man who was going to be obedient to God or not? If you read on, you discover that Abraham ‘passed the test’ as God intervened right at the last minute...
“‘Do not lay a hand on the boy,’ he said. ‘Do not do anything to him. Now I know that you fear God, because you have not withheld from me your son, your only son.’ Abraham looked up and there in a thicket he saw a ram caught by its horns. He went over and took the ram and sacrificed it as a burnt offering instead of his son. So Abraham called that place The Lord Will Provide. And to this day it is said, ‘On the mountain of the Lord it will be provided.’”
God provided what was needed for Abraham. But this only came after the ‘test’ of obedience. The nature of the ‘test’ is horrific, but I believe there is something for us to discover. Hopefully God will not take us to the extreme place as he did with Abraham, however, I do think that today He is still looking for people who will be obedient to Him. I know there have been times in my Christian walk that I know God has challenged and test my heart and my motives. I also know that behind it is a loving God who wants me to be sold out for Him more than anything else. And here’s the great thing: When you and I are obedient to God, He will provide what we need, just as he provided the ram for Abraham!
God bless you
Gary Bastin - Hope Community Church leader