{"id":466,"date":"2012-10-04T12:14:31","date_gmt":"2012-10-04T17:14:31","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/gpc.168prayer.org\/?p=466"},"modified":"2013-02-07T17:42:24","modified_gmt":"2013-02-07T23:42:24","slug":"to-gain-the-world-%e2%80%93-abraham%e2%80%99s-testimony","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/gpc.168prayer.org\/?p=466","title":{"rendered":"To Gain the Whole World \u2013 Abraham\u2019s Testimony"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"<\/a>Please continue to intercede for the upcoming <\/strong><\/em>MTC 2012<\/a> <\/em><\/strong>gathering in Chicago over November 21st<\/sup>-25th<\/sup>. \u00a0Please click here <\/a>for the Week 2 Prayer Guide<\/a>.\u00a0 You can also find the Prayer Guides<\/a> for all seven weeks leading up to <\/strong><\/em>MTC 2012<\/a><\/em><\/strong> here<\/a>.<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n

This Week\u2019s Audio Message<\/strong><\/a><\/span><\/span><\/h2>\n

When they reached the place God had told him about, Abraham built an altar there and arranged the wood on it. He bound his son Isaac and laid him on the altar, on top of the wood. \u00a0Then he reached out his hand and took the knife to slay his son. \u00a0But the angel of the LORD called out to him from heaven, \u201cAbraham! Abraham!\u201d <\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cHere I am,\u201d he replied. <\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cDo not lay a hand on the boy,\u201d he said. \u201cDo not do anything to him. Now I know that you fear God, because you have not withheld from me your son, your only son.\u201d<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

Genesis 22:9-12<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

Last week<\/a>, we said that one of the most precarious (not precious) places to stand is where our ambitions seem to \u201cline up\u201d with Christ\u2019s Kingdom agenda.\u00a0 In such a place, we can easily find ourselves riding on God\u2019s agenda to forward our own ambition, justifying as \u201cdoing God\u2019s work\u201d, the neglect of family, the circumventing of leadership cover, the abuse of relationships, and even the breaking of rules.\u00a0 Striving after \u201ckingdom authority\u201d with such a heart condition will not only cause us to \u201cforfeit ourselves\u201d as we gain the world, but we will do so fooling ourselves thinking that we are \u201cserving\u201d God\u2019s Kingdom purpose.<\/p>\n

The death of our ambition is the key to kingdom authority.\u00a0 God showed His heart concerning this principle through that famous test of Abraham.\u00a0 Isaac came about with the full fanfare of a miraculous pregnancy and the fulfillment of God\u2019s Kingdom passion.\u00a0 When God asked for the sacrifice of Isaac, His intent was to take Abraham out of that precarious place of \u201cambition lining up with Kingdom agenda\u201d. \u00a0With the great call of becoming the seed that will produce the fruits like the sand of the seashore, God must impart to Abraham a heart that \u201cruns after God, and not just after God\u2019s blessings\u201d.\u00a0 God would rather forgo His Kingdom agenda than to see us \u201cgain the whole world but forfeit ourselves\u201d.<\/p>\n

For many of us going through the stripping away of everything that God has promised \u2013 the capability, influence, and resources that we need to fulfill our call, the contradiction can be confusing and can cause us to fight against the very test intended to elevate us. \u00a0Let\u2019s examine our hearts, take up self-denial, and sacrifice that ambition. \u00a0It may mean giving up a promotion or a market opportunity for more family time or slowing down a project to honor the inputs of colleagues or being teachable to get the blessings of elders and leaders.<\/p>\n

Ultimately, God\u2019s greatest concern lies with our hearts.\u00a0 As Abraham\u2019s testimony has shown, when we \u201cpass the test\u201d, He will not only provide the sacrifice, but He will bless, beyond our imagination, the very things we are willing to give up.<\/p>\n

Market Place Reflection and Prayer<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n

What is the test of Isaac in your life today?\u00a0 How has Abraham\u2019s testimony lifted your faith to \u201cgive up your ambition\u201d?<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Please continue to intercede for the upcoming MTC 2012 gathering in Chicago over November 21st-25th. \u00a0Please click here for the Week 2 Prayer Guide.\u00a0 You can also find the Prayer Guides for all seven weeks leading up to MTC 2012 … Continue reading →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[1],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/gpc.168prayer.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/466"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/gpc.168prayer.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/gpc.168prayer.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gpc.168prayer.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gpc.168prayer.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=466"}],"version-history":[{"count":7,"href":"https:\/\/gpc.168prayer.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/466\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":469,"href":"https:\/\/gpc.168prayer.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/466\/revisions\/469"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/gpc.168prayer.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=466"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gpc.168prayer.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=466"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gpc.168prayer.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=466"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}