OBEYING GOD
OBEYING GOD
“To obey is better than sacrifice.” 1 Samuel 15:22 KJV
God is a fiercely loving and very jealous God. He has high expectations of us doing exactly as He says we should. And in return He will hold nothing back from us. After all, He gave His only begotten Son, Jesus Christ, to die on the cross for sinners like you and I.
Whenever we disobey God, He is not pleased with us and it can cost us a lot. Even our very lives could be in grave danger if care is not taken. The truth is that disobedience to God is as good as signing one’s own death warrant. It will separate us from God and once we are no longer under His loving protection, the devil can do with us as he pleases. I pray that this will not be our lot, in Jesus name.
When we obey God, He preserves us. Noah we are told found grace in the sight of the Lord and was obedient to what the Lord commanded him when he was asked to build an ark and “take two of every living thing of all flesh” along with his whole family into the ark. And God preserved them all. “Thus did Noah according to all that God commanded him” Genesis 6:22 KJV
In obedience there is deliverance. When God called out to Moses from the burning bush, little did he know that he would have the charge of leading God’s people out of slavery, bondage and oppression. And notice that “the anger of the Lord was kindled against Moses” when he tried to talk his way out of doing the job. And as Moses obeyed…. The rest is history in Exodus 4 – 14. God does not cut us any slack. When Jonah tried to get out of running an errand for God, he ended up in the belly of a fish for three days and nights until he cried out to God and repented. God gave him a second chance and this time he obeyed promptly. And as Jonah obeyed, “God repented of the evil He had said that He would do unto them.” (The people of Nineveh) Jonah 3:10 KJV
In Exodus 12, it is remarkable how God protects the people who obey Him. “And the children of Israel went away, and did as the Lord had commanded Moses and Aaron, so did they.” Exodus 12: 28 KJV .God had commanded all the Israelites to mark their lintels with the blood from the Passover lamb so that He would not allow the destroyer to come into their homes. And as they obeyed Him, He shielded them from harm.
In obedience to God, there is safety and security. Joseph the earthly father of baby Jesus, was warned in a dream to flee into Egypt from the wickedness that Herod had purposed in his mind to carry out against all the children in Bethlehem under the age of two. He obeyed immediately and they were kept safe. “When he arose, he took the young child and his mother by night, and departed into Egypt.” Matthew 2:14 KJV
Ultimately, obedience brings salvation. Jesus Christ, our Lord and Saviour, was obedient to the Father and went all the way to Calvary. “But made himself of no reputation, and took upon Him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men: And being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross.” Philippians 2: 7-8 KJV. Jesus is God the Son; but he did not argue with God the Father or refuse the brutal and torturous death of crucifixion.
When we obey God, He is pleased with us and He is able to reveal His glory through our obedience.
Yet when we disobey Him, he calls us rebellious, stubborn and idolatrous. And we are no better than those who practice witchcraft. 1 Samuel 15:23. In the book of Deuteronomy Chapter 28, we are warned about the curses that abound when one walks in disobedience and the many blessings that are ours when we obey God.
The choice is yours. Choose obedience today and be blessed.
Oluyinka Ego-Martins ©