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bigmike

DAILY DEVOTION
The Blessings of Obedience
And the angel of the LORD called unto Abraham out of heaven the second time, And said, By myself have I sworn, saith the LORD, for because thou hast done this thing, and hast not withheld thy son, thine only son: That in blessing I will bless thee, and in multiplying I will multiply thy seed as the stars of the heaven, and as the sand which is upon the sea shore; and thy seed shall possess the gate of his enemies; And in thy seed shall all the nations of the earth be blessed; because thou hast obeyed my voice.
Genesis 22:15-18
Abraham waited many years for the son God had promised, and he rejoiced when Isaac was born. But Abraham's love for his son did not keep him from obeying when God commanded him to offer Isaac as a sacrifice. He went to the mountain as God directed him and had Isaac on the altar when God told him to stop. Abraham's obedience to prepare to make what must have seemed an overwhelming sacrifice was a result of his faith. Even though there is no account of anyone being resurrected before, Abraham believed God would bring Isaac back to life to fulfill His promise. "Accounting that God was able to raise him up, even from the dead; from whence also he received him in a figure" (Hebrews 11:19). Instead, God stopped Abraham from making the sacrifice, providing a substitute ram instead.
Obedience is always tied to faith. If we do not believe God, we will not do as He says. And if we do not obey God, we will miss out on blessings-not just for our own lives, but for our families, others we impact, and then the lives of those they impact as well. We today are still being blessed and are benefiting from Abraham's obedience. Often we do not realize the implications of our choices and actions, especially as they relate to those who come after us. But every day we are setting a pattern and leaving an example that will impact those around us as well. As we follow God in faith, our obedience will influence others to trust God as well.
Doing what God says brings blessings to us, but also to others in ways beyond what we can immediately see.
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