April 25

Read: Genesis 22:1-14

He that loveth son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me (Matthew 10:37).

Consecration Of Loved Ones

What does entire consecration mean to a devoted parent? Daniel S. Warner gives us a glimpse into God’s dealing with him at this point. As a part of his consecration prayer he recorded:

“Levilla Modest, whom we love as a dear child bestowed upon us by Thy infinite goodness, is hereby returned to Thee. If Thou wilt leave us to care for her and teach her… we will do the best we can by Thy aid to make her profitable unto Thee. But if Thou deemest us unfit to rear her properly or wouldst have her in Thy more immediate presence, behold, she is Thine, take her. Amen and Amen.”

Does God give us these dearest possessions only to take them from us and leave us bereft and broken? No, but in mercy He teaches us how to possess them. If we cannot voluntarily trust our loved ones to God today, in the hour of consecration, our faith in His goodness is not likely to be strong enough to sustain us in the dark hour of bereavement. It is His concern for us that makes Him require the consecration of our loved ones.

The call for this consecration is only a test but it is a real test. God said to Abraham, “Take now thy son, thine only son Isaac, whom thou lovest… and offer him… for a burnt offering.” It is soul-moving to see the tortured father in an agony of obedience for three days: But it is overwhelming to hear God at the crucial moment reverse the order: “Lay not thine hand upon the lad… for now I know that thou fearest God, seeing thou hast not withheld thy son, thine only son from me.”

After such a test of devotion God could trust His man-and a man can forever trust God.