Gabriel Agbo | The power of sacrifice – Part 2

WHAT QUALITY of worship and service are you giving to your Creator? Yes, sacrifices have degrees and qualities. Your level of commitment to God will always also determine His level of commitment to you. That’s why He said that whatever you sow is exactly what you shall reap.

If you want to get the best from God, then, throw yourself totally into Him and His cause. Abraham knew this very well and that was why he obediently took his only son (whom he loved so much) to sacrifice as a burnt offering to God. Yes, he was stopped at the point of slaughtering the boy, but heaven had already endorsed him for that total, complete, willing and prompt obedience to the divine directives.

You move God when your obedience is total and prompt. True! What is God asking you to do? What is He asking you to sacrifice to Him? Is it your time, your talent, career, finance, your life, your property, your comfort? That which you love so much? And what are you still waiting for? Do it immediately!

The Bible said: “Later on God tested Abraham’s faith and obedience. ‘Abraham!’ God called. ‘Yes,’ he replied. ‘Here I am.’ ‘Take your son, your only son – yes, Isaac, whom you love so much – and go to the land of Moriah. Sacrifice him there as a burnt offering on one of the mountains, which I will point out to you” (Genesis 22: 1-2). Wow! Take the only thing you have, which you love so much, and go to where you don’t know, to do what? My God! That was an extremely risky one! Yes, if it is not painful, if it is not tasking and risky, then it is not yet a sacrifice.

Remember, that old man and his wife had waited all their life to receive this particular miracle son. He had built all his hope, future, aspiration, expectations, promise and name around this Isaac; and now he is being asked to give him up. Truly, this was a very risky one. And worse, he was not even told what would happen after he has given the child, and the particular place the sacrifice would be taking place. But on his own resolve, because of his level of faith, love and obedience to God, he believed that even if he sacrificed Isaac, that God was able to bring the boy back to life again! Every dead thing, vision, part of your life is coming back to life as you read this message in the name of Jesus! Yes, he loves doing that. That was why Jesus said, “I was He that was dead but now I am alive!”

This particular act of complete and prompt obedience will remain a model throughout the ages. And it was a prototype of what God himself was going to do hundreds of years after by sacrificing His only begotten son, Jesus Christ, for the redemption of mankind. And God always expects us to behave like Him. He made us in His image – tenacious, courageous, faithful, committed, unwavering, hopeful, confident and single-minded. Abraham manifested all these, not just in this particular incident, but throughout his life. No wonder God declared him a righteous man and also promised to raise a nation of uncountable worshippers and the Messiah through him; just because of his absolute faith.

Now, let’s see what followed after this rare act of obedience.

As Abraham was about to slaughter Isaac, the angel of the Lord called him from Heaven and asked him not to kill or harm the boy in any way. He was provided with a ram for the sacrifice. And not just that, his action triggered a deluge of divine pronouncements. Just listen to this, “This is what the Lord says: Because you have obeyed me and have not withheld even your beloved son, I swear by my own self that I will bless you richly. I will multiply your descendants into countless millions, like the star of the sky and the sand of the seashore. They will conquer their enemies, and through your descendants all the nations of the earth will be blessed – all because you have obeyed me” (Gen 22:16-18). Wow! All these, just because of an act of sacrifice! We will dig deeper into these pronouncements next week. God bless!

Rev Gabriel Agbo is the author of the books/audiobooks: Power of Midnight Prayer, Receive Your Healing, Breaking Generational Curses: Claiming Your Freedom, N ever Again!, I Shall Not Die, Move Forward, Power of Sacrifice, and many others.Facebook: Power of Midnight Prayer Fans Email: gabrielagbo@yahoo.com Website www.authorsden.com/pastorgabrielnagbo Twitter: pastorgabagbo