May 6^th, 1961                                                     "Growing in Faith"                                                 Late Mr. N. Daniel

Genesis 22:1-22

Genesis 22:3, "And Abraham rose up early in the morning, and saddled his ass, and took two of his young men with him, and Isaac his son, and clave the wood for the burnt offering, and rose up, and went unto the place of which God had told him."

I simply wonder at the tremendous faith Abraham exhibits. It took 50 years for Abraham to grow to this level of faith. As a person develops in faith, one has to take several steps. Faith may begin, but it will take time to develop. The first step Abraham had to take was to leave his own people and their gods. At conversion, the step we took seemed a big step then. For young people, it means giving up relatives, and worldly pleasures. It is a great step and God values it. If you are always thinking of your sacrifice you will not develop.

When I gave up my job and obeyed God to come into this work, God told me not to think of what I had done but what I have to do in the future, and to watch and pray. After leaving his country and people, Abraham had to take many other steps. God gave him a promise, "I will bless them that bless you and curse them that curse you." Soon after that, a famine arose and he went down to Egypt without consulting God. That was inexperience. When you leave all, and follow God, you have to keep yourself in the perfect will of God. Philippians 3:13, "Brethren, I count not myself to have apprehended: but this one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind, and reaching forth unto those things which are before." St. Paul did not think of what he had done.

God gives you many blessings because you have given up all to follow Him. Abraham got himself into a disgraceful situation by going to Egypt. It was Abraham who brought himself into that disgrace, but God punished the King of Egypt and delivered him. In your falterings in your spiritual life, others may suffer. The righteousness of faith that you got from God will bear fruit. Your enemies will be punished. By necessity they will suffer. When people go against you, pray that they may not suffer. We must not rejoice in the death of a wicked man.

Abraham missed God’s will in another matter. He brought a maid servant from Egypt and took her for his wife. Those days it was not considered wrong. But it was not God’s will. It brought a schism into his house. But God told him to obey his wife and send Hagar away with her son. He obeyed and after that great blessings came to him. He made mistakes; but Abraham grew. His faith was mighty. It is good to examine our mistakes. I am suffering for matters in which I missed God’s will. When we miss God’s will in a matter, the repercussions follow us for many years. Abraham grew till he was able to offer up his son.

We must grow steadily, God’s call may come suddenly. We must be prepared. The work He gives you may be risky for your life. If you faithfully follow God even with your mistakes, God will give you promotions in faith. I am sorry to say that at certain times I was not prepared for the commands of God. May you never be so! You must make use of every opportunity to grow in faith. Then God will give you a wonderful training. God said Abraham would be a blessing to the whole world.