How to Pass Tests, Part Three

We are studying the life of Abraham, especially how he passed or failed the tests of faith. All who believe in Jesus Christ will be tested in their faith throughout their lives. The tests will end only when we die in faith.

Abraham, who is described as the father of all believers, had to go through many tests of life. He lived by the obedience of faith. Without this obedience of faith, it is impossible to please God. Friends, it is not enough to confess our sin. Some people believe that confession is all that is necessary. That is not true. We must forsake our sin and do what is right.

So Abraham believed in the God of glory who appeared to him. He obeyed, feared, and loved the Almighty God, El Shaddai, the God for whom nothing was impossible, the just, righteous, merciful, forgiving, and faithful God. He believed in the God who raises the dead, the God who justifies the ungodly and makes them godly.

Let us then look at Genesis 20–22 and the tests Abraham passed or failed.

The Tenth Test (Gen. 20)

The first test in this section is found in Genesis 20. There we see Abraham and Sarah living in Philistine territory of Gerar, which was ruled by a powerful king named Abimelech. Abraham did not seek any direction from God to go to Gerar, even as he failed to seek direction to go to Egypt twenty-five years before (Gen. 12:10–20). Notice, Abraham and Sarah were not progressing in their spiritual life; rather, they were regressing. So in this passage, we see them lying to King Abimelech about their marriage.

Much earlier, before this couple had even left Haran, they entered into an agreement to lie about their marriage wherever they encountered danger. Sarah was very beautiful (Gen. 12:11, 14); thus, she would attract attention wherever they went. Abraham was a very fearful person. So this agreement to lie was their life insurance policy. Sarah was Abraham’s half-sister, and he was her half-brother, because both had the same father, Terah. Thus, they would solemnly declare they were brother and sister. In this way, if Sarah was taken as a wife for the ruler of the land, she would save the life of Abraham and her own life also. And not only would Abraham’s life be spared, but his property also would be safe. Additionally, he would receive cattle, sheep, slaves, and large amounts of money as a dowry payment. In fact, in this way, Abraham acquired great wealth from both Pharaoh of Egypt and King Abimelech of Gerar.

So the lie they used in Egypt was used again in Gerar after twenty-five years of spiritual journey. They never canceled this covenant of lie, this insurance policy, even as they followed the God of truth.

Abimelech took Sarah as his wife in innocence. He acted righteously. In fact, he was more righteous than Abraham and Sarah. There are very moral pagans in the world, who act according to the works of God’s law written on their hearts. Paul states: “They show that the requirements of the law are written on their hearts, their consciences also bearing witness, and their thoughts now accusing, now even defending them” (Rom. 2:15). Every pagan has the works of the law written in his conscience.

In Gerar, Abraham reverted to fear, even though he had once fought against four mighty kings and won. He was afraid now, even though God had told him, “Fear not; I am your shield and very great reward. I am El Shaddai. Walk before me and be blameless.” Yet now Abraham was going backward.

But in Abraham’s unfaithfulness, God in his faithfulness did not abandon Abraham. Our God is always faithful to his covenant of love. He appeared to Abimelech and threatened him and his household with death; then he afflicted them with horrible and painful diseases. He ordered Abimelech to return Sarah to Abraham to avert total disaster. The Lord even honored Abraham, calling him his prophet. He told Abimelech that Abraham’s prayer would heal Abimelech and his household. Abimelech obeyed the Lord, but rebuked Abraham and Sarah for lying and deceiving him. Abraham had become a lying prophet.

But when Abimelech rebuked him, Abraham did not confess his sin; instead, he justified it, saying he lied due to extenuating circumstances. He said he thought there was no fear of God in Gerar, implying that he, Abraham feared God. Yet it was Abraham himself who lied. What a contradiction! Fear of God must keep us from lying. Abraham even incriminated God, saying, “We agreed to lie when God had me ‘wander’ from my father’s household.” But our God will never make us wander aimlessly. God leads us to a destination of safety and salvation. He leads us in the paths of righteousness for his name’s sake.

Thank God, he kept the moral Abimelech from sinning! Yet consider this: he did not prevent Abraham and Sarah from sinning. He allows his people to sin. Nevertheless, God came to deliver his sinning servants. God will chasten us for our sins; yet not even our sins can separate us from the love of God!

We learn from this episode that sin still dwells in us, in our flesh, until we die. Look at the life of David, how this saint sinned against Bathsheba and murdered her husband! Friends, the Bible always speaks truth; it does not cover up our sins.

Yet, saints of God, we do not have to sin. In regeneration, God has given us divine nature. God’s laws are written in our hearts, and God’s Holy Spirit dwells in our hearts, empowering and guiding us in the way of God. We possess in our hands the word of God, and we belong to God’s holy church. We are planted in the house of the Lord, and we receive daily God’s abounding grace so that we may abound in every good work. Therefore, we need not surrender to sin. By the Spirit, we can put to death the misdeeds of the body. We do not have to walk according to the flesh, but according to the Holy Spirit. When tempted, we will be shown a way out so that we pass the test of faith. The fear of God will keep us from sinning. Jesus taught us to watch and pray that we may not enter into temptation.

How did Abraham and Sarah do in this test of Genesis 20? They failed miserably, and his failure should serve us as a warning.

The Eleventh Test (Gen. 21)

The next test came in Genesis 21. In this chapter we see the faithfulness of God. What God had promised twenty-five years before came to pass. A year earlier the Lord had promised that Isaac would be born: “Next year at this time Sarah would conceive and bring forth a son.” In Genesis 18 we read, “Then the Lord said, ‘I will surely return to you about this time next year, and Sarah your wife will have a son. . . . Is anything too hard for the Lord? I will return to you at the appointed time next year and Sarah will have a son’” (vv. 18:10, 14; see also 17:21).

This promise was fulfilled, at the exact time God had stated. We read, “Now the Lord was gracious to Sarah as he had said, and the Lord did for Sarah [that is, “the Lord visited Sarah”] what he had promised. Sarah became pregnant and bore a son to Abraham in his old age, at the very time God had promised him” (Gen. 21:1–2).

The Lord was gracious. He visited Sarah to bless her. God raised up the dying bodies of eighty-nine-year-old Sarah and ninety-nine-year-old, worn out Abraham, and enabled them to have a son. God is a miracle-working God. All things are possible for him. Only believe!

By a divine miracle, Abraham became the father of Isaac, whom Sarah bore to him. It is true that Sarah was barren and worn out. But this posed no problem for God Almighty. God’s plan never changes. We must wait for God to fulfill his plan for us. Never try to help God out by a sinful plan of creating an Ishmael.

When Isaac arrived, Abraham’s household was filled with laughter and happiness. This old couple loved their son Isaac. When he was weaned at age three, his parents gave a great feast of celebration. The sixteen-year-old Ishmael was there, mocking, because the celebration was not in his behalf. Sarah could not put up with his mocking. She determined to cast out the slave woman, Hagar, and her son.

Now Abraham faced another test. Sarah demanded that he expel both Hagar and Ishmael immediately. This greatly distressed Abraham. Remember, originally it was Sarah’s plan to build a family for herself through Hagar. But that was not God’s plan; it was a sinful plan, and now it was backfiring.

Sarah wanted Hagar and Ishmael thrown out, but Abraham did not want to do this very painful thing. Sin always brings pain with it. We all must pay for our sins (Lev. 26:41, 43). We do so in this life: “Be not deceived; God is not mocked. What you sow, that you will reap” (Gal. 6:7; author’s wording).

But God told Abraham to listen to Sarah and do the painful: cast out Hagar and Ishmael. Abraham did, and passed the test. He gave them only some water and bread and sent them away. No inheritance for Ishmael. All must go to Isaac, the son of promise. Abraham obeyed God, though it was painful and distressing. We must obey the will of God. Hagars and Ishmaels are in the visible church today. But in due time, God will cast them out to purify the church.

The Twelfth Test (Gen. 22)

Isaac brought much happiness to the household of Abraham, and Abraham loved him dearly. As Isaac grew up and became a young man, father and son were always doing many things together. They were inseparable.

Now, in chapter 22, God came with a demand that Abraham must submit to. It was an advanced spiritual test of faith to see whether he would love God with all his heart, whether he would give up all things for God. It was like the test God gave Peter when Christ asked him, “Do you love me more than these, even more than your own life?” (John 21:15–19). But Abraham’s test was more severe. The Lord told him to kill his darling son and burn him up in worship to God. So the question was: would he withhold his Isaac and fail the test of love? Or would he give him up for God? This is the test for all God’s children.

God told Abraham, “Take your son.” Then he said, “Your only son, your beloved son.” Finally, the climax: “Isaac.” What was he to do with Isaac? “Go to a mountain, and there offer him up as a burnt offering to me.” For some time, Abraham had been growing in faith. Now he immediately obeyed God. As the psalmist says, “I will hasten and not delay to obey your commands” (Ps. 119:60).

This was the hardest test Abraham ever faced. It is the hardest that any human father could face. You may ask, “Was not human sacrifice forbidden?” That is true, but God has the right to destroy sinful men. It is the just thing. And not another man, but father Abraham himself must kill his son and burn him up in holy worship of God.

Abraham obeyed God without wavering. With the servants and Isaac and the wood, he set out for Mount Moriah. It was a journey of three days. Abraham was resolute to obey God’s command. We must ask, “How could he do this?” The answer is found in Hebrews 11:17–19, where we read: “By faith Abraham, when God tested him, offered Isaac as a sacrifice. He who had received the promises was about to sacrifice his one and only son, even though God had said to him, ‘It is through Isaac that your offspring will be reckoned.’ Abraham reasoned that God could raise the dead, and figuratively speaking, he did receive Isaac back from death.”

Abraham, in other words, exercised his spiritual reasoning capacity. There is a right way of reasoning and there is a wrong way. Only a true Christian who believes in the God of glory, in El Shaddai, the Creator of heaven and earth, the God of miracles, can reason correctly and consistently. Divine reasoning has the God of the Scriptures in the center—the God of truth, the God who cannot lie, the God for whom all things are possible. (PGM) Those who reason falsely are those who refuse to believe in the God of the Bible.

Centuries ago, great centers of learning like Oxford, Cambridge, Harvard, Yale, and Princeton championed this type of presuppositional reasoning, which comes from the Holy Scriptures. I would encourage you to read Dr. Cornelius van Til’s book, The Defense of the Faith.

Authentic Christianity is the only reasonable faith in the whole world. The fear of God is the beginning of wisdom. So Abraham reasoned based on God’s word to him: “The Lord promised me a son when I was seventy-five. He waited until both Sarah and I were as good as dead. Then he visited us and promised to give us a son, Isaac. ‘Next year at this time,’ he said. And when the next year came, he visited us, and we had Isaac. Therefore, God can be trusted.”

Abraham continued to reason, “Now Isaac is a young man. We threw out Ishmael according to God’s own order. Isaac is the only son I have, and I love him. I would rather die than to see him die. And God promised that he would establish his covenant in Isaac and in his descendants. He said that it is through Isaac that my offspring will be reckoned. It is through Isaac that God will build a great nation. It is through Isaac that the Messiah, the Savior of the world, will come. God is truth; he has never lied to me. His promise of Isaac was fulfilled; therefore, the rest of the promise must also be fulfilled. Isaac must marry and have many descendants. God will surely build a great nation through him, and through Isaac the Messiah will surely come, in whom all nations would be blessed. Yes, God is now demanding that I must kill Isaac and sacrifice him in worship of God. This demand seems to contradict his promise. But there is no real contradiction in the true and living God. This apparent contradiction can be resolved when reasoned correctly.”

What was Abraham’s final line of reasoning? He reasoned that God must raise Isaac up from his ashes. This would be a greater miracle than that which Lazarus experienced. Then Isaac could come home with Abraham, in time get married, and have children.

This was the reasoning of Abraham as he traveled to Mount Moriah. This is why he told his two servants, “We will go up the mountain, we will worship God, and we will come back to you.” I surmise Abraham said the same thing to Sarah before he left Beersheba.

Isaac asked his father one question: “The fire and the wood are here, but where is the lamb for the burnt offering?” (Gen. 22:7). And the answer came: “Jehovah Jireh.” God himself would see to it. God himself would provide the lamb for the burnt offering. This is the answer of faith. So Isaac carried on his head the wood that was to consume him (v. 6).

They climbed up the same mountain where Jesus later carried his cross: “Carrying his own cross, he went out to the place of the skull” (John 19:17). Our salvation is not manmade. God alone must provide for man’s salvation. Centuries after Abraham and Isaac, on the same mountain God provided, not a ram, but his eternal Son to accomplish our salvation.

Once they were on Mount Moriah, Abraham built an altar, arranged the wood on it, and placed on top of the wood the bound, submissive Isaac. As Abraham lifted his knife to kill Isaac, God stopped him. “But the angel of the LORD called out to him from heaven, “Abraham! Abraham!” (v. 11). Note the urgency. We see it elsewhere: “Moses! Moses!” “Samuel! Samuel!” “Saul! Saul!” “I have something to say.” Urgent!

Abraham spoke to the angel: “‘Here I am,’ [Abraham] replied. ‘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’” (Gen. 22:11–12). Abraham looked, and there it was—the Lord’s provision of a ram in the thicket, caught by its horns. This was God’s substitute offering. Abraham unbound Isaac, and Isaac watched Abraham kill and sacrifice the ram in his stead. Then God said, “Now I know that you fear God.”

What is fear of God? Professor H. W. Wolfe tells us that it is “obedience which does not hold back even what is most precious, when God demands it, and commits to God even that future which he himself has promised.”¹

Abraham passed this most severe test of faith most gloriously, by God’s grace. The obedience of faith always issues in further divine blessings. So we read, “The angel of the Lord called to Abraham from heaven a second time and said, ‘I swear by myself, declares the Lord, that because you have done this and have not withheld your son, your only son, I will surely bless you and make your descendants as numerous as the stars in the sky and as the sand on the seashore. Your descendants will take possession of the cities of their enemies, and through your offspring all nations on earth will be blessed, because you have obeyed me’” (Gen. 22:15–18). There was the promise of the Messiah.

Friends, Isaac, like us, was a sinner. He cannot be our substitute. But as we said, God has provided for us a divine substitute, the God/man, Jesus Christ, the son of Isaac, the son of Abraham.

“Jehovah Jireh!” Abraham declared. This was my parent’s motto, and it is my motto also. God has provided for us the Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world. We read, “The next day, John saw Jesus coming toward him and said, ‘Look, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world. . . .’ When he saw Jesus passing by, he said, ‘Look, the Lamb of God!’” (John 1:29, 36). Paul writes, “The promises were spoken to Abraham and to his seed. The Scripture does not say ‘and to his seeds,’ meaning many people, but ‘and to your seed,’ meaning one person, who is Christ” (Gal. 3:16). Elsewhere Paul says, “He who did not spare his own Son, but gave him up for us all—how will he not also, along with him, graciously give us all things?” (Rom. 8:32).

God did not spare his own Son but gave him up to the death of the cross on Calvary, on Mount Moriah, also called Jehovah Jireh. Abraham saw his son Jesus by faith as his substitute when he saw the ram provided by the Lord. Remember, Jesus himself said, “Your father Abraham rejoiced at the thought of seeing my day. He saw it, and was glad” (John 8:56).

Abraham rejoiced in his own salvation, that was accomplished by his Son, not Isaac, but Jesus. Jesus has become both priest and victim. He accomplished redemption for all elect sinners, for all who believe in him. And he does provide for all our needs, both physical and spiritual. The psalmist declares, “Praise be to the Lord, to God our Savior,” and we read, “who daily loadeth us with good things” (Ps. 68:19, KJV). Jesus taught us to pray to God, “Give us today our daily bread” (Matt. 6:11). He said, “Seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you” (Matt. 6:33, KJV). Whether physical or spiritual, all our needs are given to us in his Son.

You may ask, “Has God provided for me a Lamb?” The answer is, “Yes.” Paul says in Romans 10, “For there is no difference between Jew and Gentile—the same Lord is Lord of all and richly blesses all who call on him, for, ‘Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved’” (Rom. 10:12–13).

Therefore, come with me! Let us all go to Mount Moriah, which is Mount Calvary, the mount of God’s provision. Come with me to Calvary—not to be crucified for our sins, but to believe in the One who was crucified, dead, buried, risen from the dead, ascended into heaven, is seated on the right hand of God, and is coming again to judge the living and the dead. Let us believe in Jesus, who took away our sin by his atoning death. This is good news of mega-joy for all people in the world!

Application

Let us apply some of this truth:

1. Have you experienced the miracle of new birth, a greater miracle than the birth of Isaac? Peter says, “For you have been born again, not of perishable seed, but of imperishable, through the living and enduring word of God” (1 Pet. 1:23). Paul writes, “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come” (2 Cor. 5:17). No one can pass any test unless he has experienced the unilateral, divine, monergistic miracle of regeneration.

2. When you believe in Jesus Christ, you will give up everything you have for Christ’s sake. There is no negotiation. Jesus himself said, “In the same way, any of you who does not give up everything he has cannot be my disciple” (Luke 14:33). Remember the rich young ruler? He refused to give up his wealth and follow Christ. His face fell, and he went away sad. He was an idolater. You must give up your most precious Isaac. You must lay him upon the altar.

3. Know that you will be chastened for your sins. But even your sins cannot separate you from God’s love and God’s salvation.

4. God remains faithful even when we sometimes fail the test of faith.

5. Obedience of faith leads to greater divine blessing here and now.

6. Jehovah Jireh will meet all our needs in Jesus Christ.

7. Learn to reason biblically, and you will prosper and praise the Lord.

May God have mercy on us and help us to apply his word. May we obey him exactly, immediately, and with a glad heart. May he grant grace to all of us to do it even this day.

¹Quoted by Victor P. Hamilton, The Book of Genesis, Chapters 18–50, New International Commentary on the Old Testament (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1995), 112, n. 56.