The Consequences of Not Trusting God - Part 2 — David Wilkerson

Abraham's Definition of Faith and Obedience

Abraham have nothing to do with that. Abraham simply say faith is simply trusting your life your future fully into the hand and care of the heavenly Father. And obedience. To a call to yield my life fully into his hands that just so live by faith.

He went out not knowing where he went. All right. You can check your map it was about a 300 mile trip and it was a rough trip. No doubt there there were a few watering holes or all kinds off there were hot Sun beating upon him and he finally gets to a wilderness an abandoned awful-looking wilderness.

Abraham's Famine in the Promised Land

Called Canaan and the Lord stops him. Now, what do you get? When you set out to walk by faith. So I'm going to give everything into the hands of God. I'm not going to call this out some. I'm going to pray and trust God to lead me the rest of my life.

I'm going to obey him. I'm going to love him. I'm going to be intimate with him. I'm going to get into his word. I'm going to seek him. It's never before. What does it get you? She's right. You know what?

He got a famine a Severe famine. God says Abram. This is the land That I have promised you now no trees now. Everything is withered. There's no water for the cattle. There's no pastor. There's nothing and God said it's all yours everywhere.

You put your foot. He's yours and he's thinking I don't want it. We know he's thinking that because of what he did next. He built an altar and I can tell you knowing human nature know what he did next, you know what he's praying Lord.

I don't understand this. I Have walked in holiness before you. I have built an altar. I'm a worshiper. I'm intimate with you. He's called a friend of God he has intimacy he walks with God he's in righteousness.

He's in total obedience to the Lord. He's doing exactly what God tells him to do and he winds up in a severe famine. Mm-hmm. He's He's looking around and he's saying to his wife. I Must have heard the wrong voice.

We can't eat here. There's nothing here There there's no food we have children lot was with him and his family he had servants. He had he had all this cattle his this a range full of cattle and he said what are we going to do?

The famine was grievous in the land. It says if you ever Prayed that he said Lord Never in my life if I obeyed you more than I have now I've been in your word. I've loved you. I've walked by faith the best I know how and suddenly you're face to face with a crisis and you God says I'm leading you and finding when you get to the place where the Lord just says stop and then suddenly you are face to face with an absolutely Impossible situation there's trouble.

When Obedience Leads into a Crisis

There's there's a crisis right in front of you. And this man must be thinking did I miss it somewhere? Did I get out of his will? Did I listen to the wrong voice? How can a dry barren? unfulfilling place be a reward for obedience after all I've desired after you Lord, how Could I end up in a famine?

How many of you here tonight right now in this building at this very place? You know that you love God with all your heart and you've been faithful to him and after all your fasting and all your praying.

And your devotion to the Lord your cry for holiness. You're being led into a crisis. And doesn't make sense. It seems contrary to everything, you know about the Lord and his leading now. Let me give you an exam few examples of that.

Here's Someone that's been praying for a better paying job and and believing God and through prayer God opens it and you get that better paying job and in you you begin to think and thank you Lord. You are leading me it does pay to pray and read the word look God's given me this wonderful job.

Two weeks later the company downsizes and the last hired first fired and suddenly you're out without a job face to face with a crisis. What about? That telephone call that somebody gets. From someone close to them in the family and there's somebody Hysterical and the other the line and says I I don't know how to tell you but I Have cancer.

Inoperable cancer and I've been given six months to live. And You say wait a minute. That's my family and I've been walking in covenant with God and I've been praying. I've been fasting been seeking the Lord.

And now I'm led into this. Is this the reward for faithfulness? To store there's a young lady who prayed and prayed for God to bring somebody into her life a Spiritual man because she wasn't lusting or anything up.

But she had spent a lot of time been faithful Lord. And she knew God would answer and she met a spiritual young man and that young man. And she seemed to be get that seemed to be so right and she felt good about it.

She thought this was the answer to her prayer. He just walks away one day and gives no explanation. He says I don't care anymore. You can be holy obedient devoted walking in faith. Walking in the major faith.

God is let give you and be led by God right into the test of your life. He was led by God to this severe famine. It was God's leading wasn't a devil. Alright, you're ready for the next step. Whatever measure of faith Abram had up to this time.

The Greater Leap of Faith

It still lacked a dimension and Many of us are lacking this dimension. God led him into a crisis that demanded an even bigger leap of faith. He had to take a leap of faith to leave everybody everything and make the decision to commit his life and his future and his direction in the hands of the Lord to take directions from the Lord and To totally yield his family his future and everything into the hands of God and now God is Brought him into a situation that demanded another leap of faith.

God has brought Abram now to place Where he was going to bring Israel to the rim of the Red Sea. Where it was humanly impossible to be delivered outside of a miracle. Abraham had been led into a place where his very life is now at stake the life of his family his children all of those people with him.

Nothing to eat no way to survive. Do you remember what the devil said about Job? The devil said skin for skin. He all that a man has will he give for his life? But you put forth your hand now you touch his bone and you touch his flesh and he'll curse you to your face.

And that's the same accusation. The devil flings at God concerning every one of his children today. He said oh, yeah God. Your brother your sister that child of yours they'll serve you until you touch their belly.

You start putting him in a hard place. You bring a depression you bring hard times. And when there's no food in the belly, they feel their hunger pains. They feel pain in there in a hard time and you you allow some crisis come into their life.

They'll turn on you and curse your face God. That's still the accusation from the pits of hell. Abram is brought to a place. He's either got to move into the miraculous and believe God for the impossible or take matters in his own hands and Folks, that's why God brings us to this point to see whether you're going to absolutely believe him to be the miraculous God of the impossible or You're going to take matters into your own hands and do it your way in the flesh.

Abraham's Failure and God's Provision in Famine

Did Abraham pass the test? No, he miserably miserably failed. And Abraham went down to Egypt to sojourn. He wasn't willing to stand still and see the salvation of the Lord. He's not ready to take that leap of faith into Believing that God can do the impossible.

Know what David said about people in a famine. He said God delivers his people from death and he keeps them alive in famine. David said now this this is later, but see this is the heart of God. David was revealing.

It was always the heart of God in the days of famine. They shall be satisfied or they shall be fed in the days of famine. In fact a hundred years later his own son Isaac is in another famine. And the Bible says there was a famine in the land and you'll find this generation.

Genesis 26 chapter. This is a hundred years later. This is his son Isaac there was a famine in the land beside the first famine that was in the days of Abraham and The Lord appeared unto Isaac and said do not go down to Egypt.

God said to Isaac if you'll just stay here. I'll feed you. I'll take care of you and God is that God fed him. God kept him through the famine. He learned to hold on by faith, but you see Abram faith began to shake.

Faith as Active Trust in the Impossible

You see faith begins with a total abandon oneself into God's hands. But faith is never passive. But it's always active. There must be full confidence that God can and will do the absolute impossible the impossible.

Jesus said with God all things are possible and in Luke 137 for with God Nothing nothing say it folks. Nothing shall be impossible. Nothing shall be impossible. Faith says God's enough. God's enough see the Lord here is making a man of faith.

He's trying to make a man of faith. He's he's led this man into a hopeless crisis now. Hoping he'll just give up all Human thinking and say God live or die. You sent me here. You have been leading me.

I've been living by your word. I've been living honestly before you take over. Live or die. I'm the Lord's that's what God wanted. God wanted totally Lord here I am. If I have to sit here and die, I'll die in your will.

I'm not moving. I'm gonna stand still and see the salvation of God folks. There's listen to me now. There's no greater peace on the face of the earth than to trust God for everything in everything. There's no greater peace Than to have had to have absolutely abandoned yourself.

Faith Changes the Heart in the Hard Place

To faith and God's power to do the impossible when you've given up control of everything in your life to him. It's here and dot overwhelmed Abram and now he's crying Lord get me out of this. Get me out of here.

But you see the truth is faith is not meant to get you out of a hard place. But to change your heart in the hard place. It's not about changing your conditions by changing you and changing me. God most likely is not going to change any of our circumstances.

Occasionally he does. But you see if you are not changing if God just plucks you out of it. You have not learned to trust him. You've not learned the lesson at all. You've not really learned the grace of faith at all.

You see the Hebrew children met Jesus in the furnace. Daniel saw the grace of deliverance in the lion's den. If he'd have been suddenly pulled out he've never known the miracle. He'd have never seen the miracle.

He would have never had a faith built on knowing that God does the impossible. Jesus remember is in the back of the boat when the storm hit the disciples boat and In panic they wake him up said master.

Don't you care that we're about to drown? Jesus is fast asleep. The wind is blowing howling the waves water coming into the boat and Jesus is fast asleep. Probably a beautiful smile on his face. Jesus is awakened and he stands up and says peace.

The wind stops the rain. Everything is a calm. What kind of man is this? And they're marveling at this great miracle, but they missed the biggest miracle. They missed the greatest Evidence of faith. They missed the real miracle.

The miracle was the man asleep in the storm. There's the testimony That some so resting in the hands of God. He's committed everything to God.