November 26, 2014 by
One of the hardest things of the Christian life is obedience. By nature, most of us like to rebel; we don’t want to be told what to do, because we always know what is best. Besides, why should anyone else other than me dictate what I should or should not be doing? And, even if you sincerely do want to be obedient, you still find yourself struggling in succeeding at it. To help with obedience, let’s look at 5 great Bible lessons on obedience. Of course, there are many more out there, so do some digging for yourself, too!
“And Samuel said, ‘Has the LORD as great delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices, as in obeying the voice of the LORD? Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice, and to listen than the fat of rams.’” 1 Samuel 15:22
The context in this passage deals with Saul’s inability to follow the Lord’s commands. Although made king, Saul was supposed to destroy everything in the lands he conquered. However, he decided to take matters into his own hands. Instead of destroying the cattle of the land, he had the brilliant idea of sacrificing them for God. But, was it really for God? Obviously not! In doing this, he deliberately rebelled against what God told him to do.
“But Peter and the apostles answered, ‘We must obey God rather than men.’” Acts 5:29
The early church certainly had many opportunities to please man. They could have accepted gifts, worship, etc. At other times, they could have simply told men what they wanted to hear to avoid getting beaten. But, they were firm in their resolve; they knew they ought to obey God rather than men.
“Only be very careful to observe the commandment and the law that Moses the servant of the Lord commanded you, to love the Lord your God, and to walk in all his ways and to keep his commandments and to cling to him and to serve him with all your heart and with all your soul.” Joshua 22:5
God specifically commanded this of Joshua, the leaders, and the Israelites as a whole. If they had listened and obeyed, things would have gone very well for them. Unfortunately, they rebelled and forgot about God, which lead to many misfortunes later on. Although the book of Joshua is full of conquests and victory, the book of Judges show how far they had fallen.
“By faith Noah, being warned by God concerning events as yet unseen, in reverent fear constructed an ark for the saving of his household. By this he condemned the world and became an heir of the righteousness that comes by faith.” Hebrews 11:7
Stop for a moment and think of the story of Noah. He did everything that God commanded him to do, even if it seemed bizarre to everyone else. After all, it hadn’t even rained before—but he was predicting a worldwide flood that would destroy everything! Then, he builds a massive ship and collects animals—all because God told him to. Now, if that’s not firm obedience than I don’t know what is!
“Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven.” Matthew 7:21
This passage should teach us to examine our motives carefully. Who are we really serving? What do we really treasure? There are many people out there who seem to “serve the Lord,” but are really serving for ulterior motives. Perhaps is gains them money, notoriety, or simply fills some kind of void within their lives. Those people, Jesus says, might seem to serve Him, but really are not; it is those people who Jesus will tell to depart because He never knew them. Let’s search our hearts carefully regarding this one! Who are we really serving?
Conclusion
Obedience is difficult. You may have to be obedient to a boss, a parent, a pastor, and definitely to God, but they are all very hard to do. Our natural instinct is to do what we feel and think is right (just like the Israelites in the book of Judges!). When something doesn’t make sense to us or is difficult to comprehend, we immediately put it away as something that we should not do. The Bible has many passages about obedience, and they can all be used as lessons for obedience. Although five are given above, there are so many more. So, take some time to search them out!
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