Gods Sabbath

H OW A BRAMAND S ARAI BECAME A BRAHAMAND S ARAH

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own empires, and there are other people devoted to building God’s kingdom. Abraham’s fathering of Ishmael falls into the latter classification.

Attempt to build a king dom according to man’s way

God’s king dom is build God’s way

in a church in the world

Is Our Work Acceptable?

Professed Christians and church-goers are dedicated to what they assume to be service to God. They tend to stand apart from “worldlings” whom they see as being selfishly devoted to hedon ism. They know that there should be a decided difference be tween the church member and the “heathen”, and they believe that this difference is the opposing aims on which each is respec tively expending his or her energies and resources. Most fail to see that it is not enough for Christians to have different objec tives. They must also follow different procedures. It is the ways of God’s people which must differ from the ways of others. “‘For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways,’ declares the L ORD .” Isaiah 55:8. As Christians, we need to learn that until our ways have been changed into harmony with God’s procedures, our works, no matter how beautifully clothed with zeal, self-sacrifice, and ded ication, have no more hope of being accepted by God than was Ishmael recognized as the child of promise. Of course, most professed children of God believe that their ways are different from those of the wordling. They are conscious