When Faith Is Tested | The Called - Abraham

As we step into a new year, there are moments when God does something deeply personal. Not distant. Not general. But intentional. He calls people by name.

At the beginning of 2026, there is a strong sense that God is calling many of us personally. Scripture shows us that on several occasions, God doesn’t just call someone once—He calls them twice. It’s a moment of intensity, intimacy, and purpose. Over the coming weeks, we’ll be looking at these moments in the Bible, beginning with the story of Abraham.

A Promise Given Against All Odds

God spoke to Abraham and his wife Sarah and promised them a son—even though they were well past the age where that seemed possible. Against all odds, God fulfilled His promise. Isaac was born, and the promise was finally in Abraham’s hands.

But faith doesn’t end when the promise arrives.

Abraham was a great man of faith. He obeyed God when he was told to go, even when he didn’t know where he was going. He believed God would give him a son. Yet there came a moment when his faith was put to the ultimate test.

When Faith Is Tested

God spoke to Abraham and asked him to take his son—his only son, whom he loved—and go to the region of Moriah. There, he was told to offer Isaac as a sacrifice.

It’s hard to comprehend the anguish Abraham must have felt. Isaac wasn’t just his son; he was the promise. The fulfillment of everything God had spoken.

Many of us know what it’s like to walk through seasons like this—long journeys of obedience where the cost feels heavy and the anguish deepens over time. Sometimes it’s not a short journey. Sometimes it’s years of carrying what God has spoken while wondering how it will all make sense.

Yet Scripture tells us something remarkable: early the next morning, Abraham got up. He didn’t argue with God. He didn’t delay. He obeyed.

Trusting God When It Doesn’t Make Sense

On the journey up the mountain, Abraham said something extraordinary to his servants: “We will worship, and then we will come back to you.”

Not I will come back. We will come back.

This was a statement of faith. Abraham trusted God so completely that he believed—even if Isaac were sacrificed—God was able to raise him back to life.

As they climbed, Isaac asked a simple but piercing question: “Where is the lamb?”

Abraham’s response has echoed through generations: God Himself will provide.

From Struggle to Surrender

The greatest trust Abraham showed wasn’t just in his words, but in his actions. He built the altar. He laid the wood. He bound his son. And as he lifted the knife, God called out to him:

“Abraham, Abraham.”

At that moment, Abraham stopped struggling and fully surrendered. He was willing to give God everything—even the promise.

For many of us, God asks the same question He asked Abraham: Do you love Me more than the promise you’re holding onto? Will you trust Me even when it doesn’t make sense?

God Provides—and Restores

God stopped Abraham and provided a ram in place of Isaac. The test was over. Abraham’s obedience revealed a deeper truth: God is faithful, and He provides at the exact moment we need Him to.

Sometimes God asks us to lay things down—and sometimes He asks us to pick them back up again. Dreams. Ministries. Hopes we thought were finished. What feels dead is not always done. God is a God of resurrection.

We often want the testimony without the test. But the testimony is always born through obedience.

Abraham and Isaac came down the mountain with a story to tell. And so will we.

He Is Still Calling

God still calls His people by name. And when He does, He invites us into deeper trust, deeper obedience, and deeper faith.

The question is not whether God is calling—but how we will respond.

Will we trust Him?

Will we surrender?

Will we believe that He will provide?

Because the God who called Abraham is still calling today.

And He is calling you—by name.

Pastor Jon Skelton