If we only had Abraham without Isaac, we would be very disappointed with Abraham’s record. We would say, “What is the good of being the father of faith if it is only a matter of suffering loss?” But once we see the experience of Isaac, we shall say, “Now I understand why Abraham suffered the loss of so much. All the negative experiences of Abraham were for the positive enjoyment with Isaac.” Abraham was for Isaac. Abraham acquired a great deal, having been blessed and having become enlarged, but he gave all that he had to Isaac (24:36; 25:5). Abraham suffered for Isaac’s gain. The more Abraham suffered, the more Isaac gained. I would say, “Poor Abraham, you are just a suffering person. All that you have gained through your suffering is not for you but for Isaac.” We all must realize that today we are not only Abrahams but also Isaacs. If you say to me, “Brother, you are a poor Abraham always suffering,” I would reply, “Don’t you know that I’m also an Isaac? I have suffered loss that I might gain. I lose as Abraham and I gain as Isaac. I’m not just Abraham. My name is Abraham-Isaac. On the loss side, I am Abraham; on the gain side, I am Isaac.”

We are both Abraham and Isaac. As Abraham, we have been called by God, have learned to live by faith in God, and have learned to live in fellowship with God. At the same time, as Isaac, we do nothing except enjoy all we have gained from Abraham’s experience. Which kind of experience do you appreciate more-Abraham’s or Isaac’s? Without Abraham’s experience we cannot have Isaac’s. God is dealing with us as He dealt with Abraham that we might have the experience of Isaac.

The matter of grace has been hidden, concealed, and veiled throughout the years. What is grace? Grace is something of God which is wrought into our being and which works in us and does things for us. It is nothing outward. Grace is God in Christ wrought into our being to live, work, and do things for us. In 1 Corinthians 15:10 Paul says, “By the grace of God I am what I am; and His grace unto me was not in vain, but I labored more abundantly than all of them, yet not I, but the grace of God with me.” This word is quite deep. Paul did not say, “By the grace of God I have what I have. I have a good car, a good job, and a good wife by the grace of God.” He did not even say, “By the grace of God I do what I do.” It is not a matter of doing, having, or working; it is absolutely a matter of being. Hence, Paul says, “By the grace of God I am what I am.” This means that the very grace of God had been wrought into his being, making him that kind of person. In Galatians 2:20 Paul says, “No longer I who live, but Christ lives in me.” If we put this verse together with 1 Corinthians 15:10, we see that grace is simply Christ living in us. It is “not I, but the grace of God,” “no longer I, but Christ.” Grace is not outside of us or beside us. It is a divine Person, God Himself in Christ, wrought into our being to be the constituent of our being. Because of the lack of revelation, Christians have misunderstood and misinterpreted grace, thinking of it as something outside of them. But grace is just the Triune God wrought into our being to be what we should be and to live, work, and do things for us so that we may say, “I am what I am by the grace of God. It is not I, but the grace of God.”

We all have been taught to have good behavior and to love one another. As a result, we try to behave ourselves and to love others. But it does not matter whether we can love others or not, for God will never recognize our love. Abraham succeeded in bringing forth Ishmael, but God rejected him. God seemed to say, “No, Abraham, that is not what I want. I want something that has been wrought into you and worked out from you. You brought forth Ishmael without My visitation. I was in heaven and you were on earth bringing forth Ishmael. Because he was unrelated to Me and to My visitation, I will never recognize him. One day, I shall visit Sarah and My visitation will bring forth Isaac. I will recognize only him.” If we love others in ourselves, God will never recognize that love, because it does not come from His visitation. God wants to visit us, get into us, live for us, and even love others for us. He will only recognize that kind of love. Your love is an Ishmael; the love by God’s visitation is an Isaac. Whether you are humble or proud, crooked or straight, means nothing. God does not recognize anything which comes out of you apart from His visitation. Whatever is not of grace is not recognized, not counted, by God. We all must say, “O Lord, I will not do anything without Your visitation. Lord, if You will not visit me and work something through me and out of me, I will do nothing. I will neither hate nor love, be proud nor be humble. I want to be blank. Lord, without Your visitation, I am nothing.” God’s visitation is the practical grace. When I love others and am humble by God’s visitation, not by my self-effort, that is the enjoyment of grace.
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