Trials and Tests Precede Promotion

Then God said, “Take your son, your only son, whom you love – Isaac - and go to the region of Moriah. Sacrifice him there as a burnt offering on a mountain I will show you.” Genesis 22:2 God provides tests as measures of progress and as proving grounds for every person He calls to lead. Genesis 22 begins with a divine test. God called Abraham to climb Mount Moriah and sacrifice his beloved son. Not only was this his son whom he loved, but he was also the son through whom God’s promises to Abraham were to be fulfilled. If Abraham would resolve to give up Isaac, God knew Abraham would be willing to do anything He asked of him. Therefore, he would be the perfect candidate to become the father of the Hebrew people. Leadership tests differ from one another, but all have the following five points in common: (1) Leaders get tested at each stage of growth. (2) The leader’s goal is to pass the test. (3) Testing always precedes promotion. (4) Promotion requires sacrifice. (5) Self-promotion or promotion by others can never replace divine promotion. In addition, Abraham’s test foreshadowed what God intended to do with His own Son, Jesus Christ, thousands of years later. Please comment below or email me directly at curtis.songer@gmail.com