Dear Reader
“I have lift up mine hand unto the Lord, the most high God, the possessor of heaven and earth, that I will not take from a thread even to a shoe-latchet, and that I will not take anything that is thine, lest thou shouldest say, I have made Abram rich” (Genesis 14:22, 23).
Abram would not even take a string. What a nice state he is in! He has done with the world. He will get on.
If you, too, break with the world, you will get on with the Lord!
What is the result of this refusal of reward from the world?
Let us see: “After these things the word of the Lord came to Abram in a vision, saying, Fear not Abram: I am thy shield and thy exceeding great reward” (Genesis 15:1). What a wonderful word to encourage a man!
The Lord draws near to you. You have had a great temptation, and you have resisted it. You receive a blessing. You have met some temptation—for the devil always sprinkles the path with temptations; all along the road he drops them and sets traps for you—and you have been able to say, “No!” You will find that the Lord will give you a blessing.
He says here, “Fear not, Abram.” Beautiful words! Are you troubled? Fear not! Are you anxious? Fear not! Are you in distress of soul? “Fear not.”
These two lovely words you will find sprinkled like diamonds throughout the pages of the Bible. You cannot go far through God’s Book without finding the Lord drawing near to some trembling, timid soul with these words, “Fear not!” “Fear not: I am thy shield, and thy exceeding great reward.”
Did Abraham lose anything by saying “No” to the king of the world?
“I am thy shield,” says God, and if you know God as your shield, the devil can throw as many of his darts as he likes, but they will have no effect. If you have God for the shield of your soul, you need never fear.
Thank you for the encouraging e-mails that we often receive. I trust that you will enjoy the great articles in this issue during the summer months. It is our prayer that the Lord will use Toward the Mark to help you to grow in grace and in the knowledge of Him. Please visit our website for the previous articles.
Yours in our soon-coming Lord,
Emil S. Nashed
Please send your questions and comments to:
Toward The Mark
c/o Wayne Christian Assembly
60 Smith Lane
Wayne, NJ 07470-5354
Attention: Emil S. Nashed
www.towardthemark.org
