What is testing vs. temptation?
Abraham is one of the most recognizable characters in the Old Testament, and what God builds in Abraham is what He wants to build in us – endurance.
Have you ever attended a gift exchange? They usually happen around Christmas time and can conjure up some intense emotions. There’s always the scenario where you have the gift you want and someone gets the opportunity to steal it, and sure enough, they do.
And you’re forced to smile politely, but inside you’re reeling. It’s that realization that what you thought was a gift is now gone. It was temporary. It has to be given back. So, what do you do when you’re asked to give back the gift you’ve been given? Do you fight it or surrender it over, realizing it was never yours in the first place?
Sometimes we treat God’s gifts – His blessings, provision, promises – like they’re ours to own and protect. But what happens when God asks for the thing He gave you back?
We often confuse what God has given to us with God Himself.
Many of the gifts God gives are ones we’ve prayed for. He’s met us in those desires that these gifts now become tied to our identity, meaning the things that God has given us as gifts in our lives have become the things that define us.
This is why it’s challenging when we’re asked to give it back. We’ve tied ourselves and who we are to the good thing that God has given us. So, if we give it back, we don’t know who we are. And Abraham is going to be tested in this as well.
The Story of Abraham
God made a covenant with Abraham – a promise that would provide him with land, descendants, and that through him, all nations would be blessed. But there was a problem – Abraham had no children.
The thing that God told him would happen comes true. Abraham’s identity becomes connected to the gift God gave him, fatherhood. Isaac wasn’t just a son, he was the fulfillment of a miracle. So, imagine being in Abraham’s shoes when God asks him to lay that down and sacrifice the very thing he had waited his whole life for.
Genesis 22
1 Sometime later God tested Abraham. He said to him, “Abraham!”
“Here I am,” he replied. 2 Then God said, “Take your son, your only son, whom you love—Isaac—and go to the region of Moriah. Sacrifice him there as a burnt offering on a mountain I will show you.”
Test: (n.) – the means by which the presence, quality, or genuineness of anything is determined.
It’s when we put something through trial and assess its ability to endure. It’s a good thing, so why don’t we like it? Because we think we don’t need testing.
But God isn’t being cruel or unnecessary, He’s testing Abraham to build something in him, but also to bring the best out of him.
And it’s really easy to confuse God’s testing with temptation, but they’re not the same. Scripture tells us that God can’t be tempted, nor does He tempt anyone. God doesn’t tempt us, He tests us. What’s the difference?
Temptation is from the enemy to bring out the worst, and testing is from God to bring out the best.
It’s hard for us to tell the difference, but ironically, all temptation has testing and all testing has temptation. Whether it’s testing or temptation, both ask the same question, “Do I trust the sovereignty of God?”
If the enemy is trying to bring out the worst in me, do I trust God enough to walk away from it, fight it, and see Him as my source? If God is testing me, do I trust that He knows what He’s doing in my life, that my faith has value and can endure? Do I see Him as my source?
You don’t know what’s on the throne of your heart until God asks for it.
A test reveals what’s true in our lives. It’s easy to say we “trust” God, He’s first in our lives, and we’ve surrendered everything, but real surrender isn’t proven in our words, it’s revealed in our willingness to let go. God doesn’t ask for what’s easy, He asks for what’s ultimate, not to take it from us, but to show us where our hope lives.
Abraham’s Response
Genesis 22
3 Early the next morning Abraham got up and loaded his donkey. He took with him two of his servants and his son Isaac. When he had cut enough wood for the burnt offering, he set out for the place God had told him about. 4 On the third day Abraham looked up and saw the place in the distance. 5 He said to his servants, “Stay here with the donkey while I and the boy go over there. We will worship and then we will come back to you.”
This is horrible and confusing. This test strikes at Abraham’s deepest nerve – his identity. So how did Abraham actually obey?
Abraham turned his worst moment into a worship moment.
It was unimaginable, but instead of resisting, complaining, or running, he obeyed, not by lifting his hands, but by laying it down. He’s not singing a worship song, he’s surrendering the very thing he loves most. That’s what true worship looks like.
True worship is when we take the thing that costs us everything and give it back to God.
This isn’t done because it makes sense, it’s done because He trusts that God is still good. Abraham’s worst moment became a holy moment, not because it was painless, but because it was offered to God.
Genesis 22
7 Isaac spoke up and said to his father Abraham, “Father?”
“Yes, my son?” Abraham replied.
“The fire and wood are here,” Isaac said, “but where is the lamb for the burnt offering?”
8 Abraham answered, “God himself will provide the lamb for the burnt offering, my son.” And the two of them went on together.
How does Abraham come to this conclusion? Did he know that God would provide a substitute for Isaac?
Hebrews 11
17 By faith Abraham, when God tested him, offered Isaac as a sacrifice. He who had embraced the promises was about to sacrifice his one and only son, 18 even though God had said to him, “It is through Isaac that your offspring will be reckoned.” 19 Abraham reasoned that God could even raise the dead, and so in a manner of speaking he did receive Isaac back from death.
How did he know that? Did he see a resurrection before? No, but he has seen God move in the past, so his conclusion based on previous experience built his endurance and faith.
Faith isn’t blind, it’s built.
Faith for today’s test is built on yesterday’s testimony. And if He was faithful then, He’ll be faithful now. The God who carried you through job loss, heartbreak, depression, illness, and uncertainty is the same God who stands with you in whatever you’re facing today.
Genesis 22
10 Then he reached out his hand and took the knife to slay his son. 11 But the angel of the Lord called out to him from heaven, “Abraham! Abraham!”
“Here I am,” he replied.
12 “Do not lay a hand on the boy,” he said. “Do not do anything to him. Now I know that you fear God, because you have not withheld from me your son, your only son.”
13 Abraham looked up and there in a thicket he saw a ram caught by its horns. He went over and took the ram and sacrificed it as a burnt offering instead of his son. 14 So Abraham called that place The Lord Will Provide. And to this day it is said, “On the mountain of the Lord it will be provided.”
So here we have a father who deeply loves his only son, who’s willing to sacrifice him, believing that there is power over the grave. Remind you of anything? Genesis 22 is the first instance of the word love being used in Scripture. And the first time it’s used is in the context of a father loving his son and being willing to sacrifice him.
God’s story is bigger than our sacrifice.
Abraham brought his best – his son, his future, his everything – but even that wasn’t the centerpiece. The focus ultimately isn’t on what Abraham gave up, but what God was preparing all along. It’s not about how much faith we can muster, but how faithful God has always been.
Obedience and surrender matter deeply because they build endurance in us and reveal God’s working in our lives, but they are always part of a much larger redemptive story where God is the true hero. He’s drawing us into a narrative where we see time and time again that He provides.
He provides for Abraham, Isaac, and through Jesus, us. And more than that, God invites us into the same sacrificial laying down in our lives to build endurance in us.
Love is measured in what you’re willing to lay down.
So, what is God asking you to lay down? Laying it down is how faith becomes endurance. That’s where God shapes us – not in the ease of having everything, but in the willingness to give Him anything. This is our act of worship, and when we do, we’ll see we’re still standing.
Want to play catch-up, or are you looking for a specific topic? Check out our collection of sermons!
For more LHC content, subscribe to our newsletter or follow us on Instagram.
Have you ever attended a gift exchange? They usually happen around Christmas time and can conjure up some intense emotions. There’s always the scenario where you have the gift you want and someone gets the opportunity to steal it, and sure enough, they do.
And you’re forced to smile politely, but inside you’re reeling. It’s that realization that what you thought was a gift is now gone. It was temporary. It has to be given back. So, what do you do when you’re asked to give back the gift you’ve been given? Do you fight it or surrender it over, realizing it was never yours in the first place?
Sometimes we treat God’s gifts – His blessings, provision, promises – like they’re ours to own and protect. But what happens when God asks for the thing He gave you back?
We often confuse what God has given to us with God Himself.
Many of the gifts God gives are ones we’ve prayed for. He’s met us in those desires that these gifts now become tied to our identity, meaning the things that God has given us as gifts in our lives have become the things that define us.
This is why it’s challenging when we’re asked to give it back. We’ve tied ourselves and who we are to the good thing that God has given us. So, if we give it back, we don’t know who we are. And Abraham is going to be tested in this as well.
The Story of Abraham
God made a covenant with Abraham – a promise that would provide him with land, descendants, and that through him, all nations would be blessed. But there was a problem – Abraham had no children.
The thing that God told him would happen comes true. Abraham’s identity becomes connected to the gift God gave him, fatherhood. Isaac wasn’t just a son, he was the fulfillment of a miracle. So, imagine being in Abraham’s shoes when God asks him to lay that down and sacrifice the very thing he had waited his whole life for.
Genesis 22
1 Sometime later God tested Abraham. He said to him, “Abraham!”
“Here I am,” he replied. 2 Then God said, “Take your son, your only son, whom you love—Isaac—and go to the region of Moriah. Sacrifice him there as a burnt offering on a mountain I will show you.”
Test: (n.) – the means by which the presence, quality, or genuineness of anything is determined.
It’s when we put something through trial and assess its ability to endure. It’s a good thing, so why don’t we like it? Because we think we don’t need testing.
But God isn’t being cruel or unnecessary, He’s testing Abraham to build something in him, but also to bring the best out of him.
And it’s really easy to confuse God’s testing with temptation, but they’re not the same. Scripture tells us that God can’t be tempted, nor does He tempt anyone. God doesn’t tempt us, He tests us. What’s the difference?
Temptation is from the enemy to bring out the worst, and testing is from God to bring out the best.
It’s hard for us to tell the difference, but ironically, all temptation has testing and all testing has temptation. Whether it’s testing or temptation, both ask the same question, “Do I trust the sovereignty of God?”
If the enemy is trying to bring out the worst in me, do I trust God enough to walk away from it, fight it, and see Him as my source? If God is testing me, do I trust that He knows what He’s doing in my life, that my faith has value and can endure? Do I see Him as my source?
You don’t know what’s on the throne of your heart until God asks for it.
A test reveals what’s true in our lives. It’s easy to say we “trust” God, He’s first in our lives, and we’ve surrendered everything, but real surrender isn’t proven in our words, it’s revealed in our willingness to let go. God doesn’t ask for what’s easy, He asks for what’s ultimate, not to take it from us, but to show us where our hope lives.
Abraham’s Response
Genesis 22
3 Early the next morning Abraham got up and loaded his donkey. He took with him two of his servants and his son Isaac. When he had cut enough wood for the burnt offering, he set out for the place God had told him about. 4 On the third day Abraham looked up and saw the place in the distance. 5 He said to his servants, “Stay here with the donkey while I and the boy go over there. We will worship and then we will come back to you.”
This is horrible and confusing. This test strikes at Abraham’s deepest nerve – his identity. So how did Abraham actually obey?
Abraham turned his worst moment into a worship moment.
It was unimaginable, but instead of resisting, complaining, or running, he obeyed, not by lifting his hands, but by laying it down. He’s not singing a worship song, he’s surrendering the very thing he loves most. That’s what true worship looks like.
True worship is when we take the thing that costs us everything and give it back to God.
This isn’t done because it makes sense, it’s done because He trusts that God is still good. Abraham’s worst moment became a holy moment, not because it was painless, but because it was offered to God.
Genesis 22
7 Isaac spoke up and said to his father Abraham, “Father?”
“Yes, my son?” Abraham replied.
“The fire and wood are here,” Isaac said, “but where is the lamb for the burnt offering?”
8 Abraham answered, “God himself will provide the lamb for the burnt offering, my son.” And the two of them went on together.
How does Abraham come to this conclusion? Did he know that God would provide a substitute for Isaac?
Hebrews 11
17 By faith Abraham, when God tested him, offered Isaac as a sacrifice. He who had embraced the promises was about to sacrifice his one and only son, 18 even though God had said to him, “It is through Isaac that your offspring will be reckoned.” 19 Abraham reasoned that God could even raise the dead, and so in a manner of speaking he did receive Isaac back from death.
How did he know that? Did he see a resurrection before? No, but he has seen God move in the past, so his conclusion based on previous experience built his endurance and faith.
- Abraham was given land after God said it was going to happen
- Abraham was protected in Egypt after God had intervened
- Abraham was given victory in battles over kings after God had moved
- Abraham was miraculously given a son from his 90-year-old wife after God spoke it
Faith isn’t blind, it’s built.
Faith for today’s test is built on yesterday’s testimony. And if He was faithful then, He’ll be faithful now. The God who carried you through job loss, heartbreak, depression, illness, and uncertainty is the same God who stands with you in whatever you’re facing today.
Genesis 22
10 Then he reached out his hand and took the knife to slay his son. 11 But the angel of the Lord called out to him from heaven, “Abraham! Abraham!”
“Here I am,” he replied.
12 “Do not lay a hand on the boy,” he said. “Do not do anything to him. Now I know that you fear God, because you have not withheld from me your son, your only son.”
13 Abraham looked up and there in a thicket he saw a ram caught by its horns. He went over and took the ram and sacrificed it as a burnt offering instead of his son. 14 So Abraham called that place The Lord Will Provide. And to this day it is said, “On the mountain of the Lord it will be provided.”
So here we have a father who deeply loves his only son, who’s willing to sacrifice him, believing that there is power over the grave. Remind you of anything? Genesis 22 is the first instance of the word love being used in Scripture. And the first time it’s used is in the context of a father loving his son and being willing to sacrifice him.
God’s story is bigger than our sacrifice.
Abraham brought his best – his son, his future, his everything – but even that wasn’t the centerpiece. The focus ultimately isn’t on what Abraham gave up, but what God was preparing all along. It’s not about how much faith we can muster, but how faithful God has always been.
Obedience and surrender matter deeply because they build endurance in us and reveal God’s working in our lives, but they are always part of a much larger redemptive story where God is the true hero. He’s drawing us into a narrative where we see time and time again that He provides.
He provides for Abraham, Isaac, and through Jesus, us. And more than that, God invites us into the same sacrificial laying down in our lives to build endurance in us.
Love is measured in what you’re willing to lay down.
So, what is God asking you to lay down? Laying it down is how faith becomes endurance. That’s where God shapes us – not in the ease of having everything, but in the willingness to give Him anything. This is our act of worship, and when we do, we’ll see we’re still standing.
Want to play catch-up, or are you looking for a specific topic? Check out our collection of sermons!
For more LHC content, subscribe to our newsletter or follow us on Instagram.
Posted in Story of Abraham, Temptation
Posted in Christian Blog, Long Hill Chapel, Chatham New Jersey, Christian Church NJ, Long Hill NJ, Christian Sermon Series, Christian Sermons Online, Bible Sermons, Story of Abraham, Pastor Joey Monteleone, Temptation, Testing, Difference between testing and temptation
Posted in Christian Blog, Long Hill Chapel, Chatham New Jersey, Christian Church NJ, Long Hill NJ, Christian Sermon Series, Christian Sermons Online, Bible Sermons, Story of Abraham, Pastor Joey Monteleone, Temptation, Testing, Difference between testing and temptation
Recent
What is testing vs. temptation?
August 5th, 2025
How God Uses Our Struggle
July 31st, 2025
What if the very thing God uses to keep you enduring is the work He’s already put in your hands?
July 23rd, 2025
The Book of Joshua – What Faithfulness Looks Like
July 15th, 2025
The Book of Joshua - If/Then
July 14th, 2025
Archive
2025
January
February
March
April
May
June
July
2024
May
June
July
August
September