Obedience

On March 5, 2020   /   Word of the Day   /   Leave a comment

Exodus 24: 7

Then he (Moses) took the book of the covenant and read it in the hearing of the people; and they said, “All that the Lord has spoken we will do, and we will be obedient!’

We know that the Israelites did not always do everything as God directed. In addition, they often complained bitterly to Moses. And yet, they did have the best intentions at this point in time. Is this like many of us? We have the very best of intentions but somehow, we get off track. Then we need a reminder so that we can renew our conviction. The quote in the above message is really strong and it would be great if we would all live up to it all of the time but sometimes we do lose our way.

What was the last thing that God told you to do? Are you doing it or did you get side tracked along the way? Renew yourself to doing all that God has directed. This, of course, includes all that we see in His Word. As you will notice, Moses read to the people the words that God had given him. We have those words and more. You cannot do all that God has spoken if you aren’t spending some time in the word finding out what he has said. Re-commit yourself today just like it is January 1st again. Every day you get the chance to start over, so take advantage of it. Commit yourself to reading His Word and doing all you find there. Let the Holy Spirit guide you. Let Him show you passages you need for your life and journey and then declare that you will do all He said and be obedient.

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Self-inflicted Injury

On June 12, 2019   /   Word of the Day   /   Leave a comment

Ephesians 4: 25

Therefore, laying aside falsehood, speak truth, each one of you, with his neighbor, for we are members of one another.

Now that we have put on the new self that Jesus bought for each of us, we are to interact with each other in the holiness that He has provided. Look, it is time we stopped acting like the devil, especially in our relations with one another. But, do you know what it takes for us to stop acting like the devil? It takes surrender. God, through Jesus and the Holy Spirit, has provided everything we need in order to overcome the world and the ways of the world, but we have to receive it.

We need to bow our knees to our God. Yeah, He is my best friend, but He also is God Almighty, The Great I AM, the creator of heaven and earth. We need to humble ourselves and deal with our egos once and for all. Settle this question once and for all, who is going to be the God of your life, you or Yahweh? If you decide you are sincere about giving your life to the Lord, then you need to find humility and bow your knee and your ego to Him. When you sincerely yield to Him then He is able to help you to walk as Jesus did. But you are the one who must take the necessary steps. That is why Paul importuned the Ephesians to “put on the new self.” Even though Jesus had already bought and paid for the new self for each of us, Paul knew that it was going to take an act of will from each and every devotee of Christ to become Christ like.

Jesus will help you with every single thing in your life but you must bury the old man. Let that old cuss die and quit digging him up each time someone bothers you a little or every time it is inconvenient to walk in truth and holiness. Make a commitment that you are going to live, walk, breathe and speak in holiness and truth.

Lastly, if we are in Christ Jesus, then everything you do to or for your brother, you have done to Jesus because we are all of one body, His. How then do you sin against yourself to your benefit? You cannot. And when you are kind and generous to your brother, you have blessed yourself. Let us put away the old self and begin to really see the world and each other through the eyes of our dear Lord.

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Jesus is Lord?

On March 14, 2018   /   Word of the Day   /   Leave a comment

Romans 10: 9         NIV

If you declare with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.

Do you call Jesus Lord? Do you worship him as Lord? Do your daily behaviors reflect his lordship? Do you obey him as lord?

The first question is easy, but I find each subsequent one gets harder. First, I must ask myself what it means to worship him, obey him and reflect him as Lord. We do not live in the feudal Europe of the past, so the idea of lordship is a bit foreign to us. Add to that the high value we place on individuality and independence and we become even further removed. Yet, we are called upon to serve him as our lord. In fact, wasn’t it a prerequisite of your salvation? Didn’t we accept him and confess him as our lord?

The best tool I have is movies. I think about the medieval era movies I have watched and that adds texture to my thoughts. Jesus’ obligation is to care for me. He is to defend me against my enemies and I owe him fealty. I owe him obedience, respect and honor. In return, all my problems become his. I am his responsibility.

Jesus is certainly our brother and our best friend, and we should not lose sight of that, but he is also Lord. His lordship is weighty and should be. He takes his responsibility towards us seriously. We must bear our responsibility towards him just as soberly. His commands are life and death. They are not just wishes. He gives them to us to impart abundant life to us, but obedience is a value unto itself. We should hearken to his word even when we do not understand. His having spoken should be enough.

What is Jesus saying to you today? What has he told you in the past? What are the goals and directives he has given for your life? Has he given you something to do that is yet undone? We are all given this day to begin anew. Each day we have the opportunity to improve upon yesterday. Each day is new and carries new promise. We are not called into condemnation but rather reevaluation. Are we where we want to be in our walk with Jesus? What does he wish to speak to us? Where is he leading us?

Jesus is Lord. He is our leader. His word is command even though it is also blessing. He is a benevolent lord and that is a worthy statement. He is worthy of honor and service. We should enter his court with high praise. He is our lord and our king.

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Trust and Blessing

On May 25, 2017   /   Word of the Day   /   Leave a comment

Jeremiah 17: 7

Blessed is the man who trusts in the Lord and whose trust is the Lord.

In a conversation last week, the theme about trusting God kept coming up. Time and time again the circle seemed to close on our learning to trust the Lord. I believe with the people in the conversation last week that this is a critical lesson for us.

Today’s verse says plainly that blessing is in trusting the Lord. Why is that? How can God lead us in the paths of blessing if we do not trust Him enough to follow Him? He can’t. He can point out the way to go but if we do not believe that He is always leading us to the land of plenty then we will hesitate.

Abraham is known for his faith but it was really obedience that made him the Father of the nation of Israel. His father, Terah, received instruction to take his family and go to the land of Canaan but he got comfortable and stopped before accomplishing what God told Him to do. He saw a good land and did not trust God to take him to a better place. Eventually God spoke to Abram telling him to leave his family and go to the place where God would show him. Abram complied and now we know Abraham as the Father of the faith and you didn’t even know Terah’s name. It was through simple obedience that Abram learned that God was on his side. Through obedience, he learned he could always trust God. Through trust and obedience, he became the Father of faith.

Sometimes the big revelations are in the little messages. There is no great message in obedience other than just do it. However, obeying God gives us the evidence and belief that we really can trust Him. As we move over into trust, we find blessing. The blessing has already been provided by our Father. We have to learn to trust Him so that He can lead us to the blessing. Otherwise, we end up wandering around in the tall weeds like the Israelites wandered around in the desert.

How do you learn to be blessed? You learn to trust God daily for the small things. You must learn to hear God for yourself . If you cannot hear God speak to you, how can you trust Him? How can you do what He says if you can’t hear Him. This is ground zero. Practice hearing His voice. Contact this ministry if you need help hearing Him because this is where you must start. Then you can live the life of the blessed person, blessed coming in and blessed going out.

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Obedience

On November 15, 2016   /   Word of the Day   /   Leave a comment

Isaiah 1: 19

“If you consent and obey, you will eat the best of the land.”

Pastor, this is one of the quickest ways to empty out the pews; talk about obedience. The very fastest is to teach on tithing, which I did yesterday. However, we must move into what I call “Grown-up Christianity” and I pray that all of the pastors who read today’s devotion are blessed with mature Christians who can hear the Word of God.

Look, there is good news attached to obedience. That is why Isaiah has sent us this word. We don’t have to cringe when we hear the word “obey” because there is blessing tied to it. Hooray! Now let’s just apply some simple logic to this. If I obey God; if I do what He instructs me to do, is it reasonable to expect that good things are going to happen for me? Well of course! Whenever we walk down the path He directs us to, it will always lead to provision and blessing. I have said this before but I imagine the old Pony Express in the American west. Those riders followed a prescribed path. Why? Their provision was there. They had the freedom to go any way they chose but the waystation with the food and fresh horse was on the suggested trail. That is what this passage means to me. When we consent and obey, when we do as the Father has instructed, then the natural consequence of that action is that we eat the best of the land. Isaiah is just trying to get us blessed. He is simply saying that if we will do what God has said, we will benefit.

Now, doesn’t that make obedience a bit more palatable?

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Check-up

On November 11, 2016   /   Word of the Day   /   Leave a comment

Luke 6: 46

And why do you call Me “Lord, Lord,” and do not do what I say?

I have this verse highlighted in my Bible and every now and again it just jumps out at me. I kind of wish I had not highlighted it. Then again, it is a good question the Lord Jesus poses and one that is worthy of repeated consideration. How am I doing, today, at following his words?

I am not the only Christian who stumbles here. It is quite easy to settle into a comfortable, if a bit apathetic, routine with the Lord. We are supposed to zealously follow Jesus but it is difficult to retain that zeal on a day by day basis if we are not purposeful about it. The world and life intervene. There are many things we must do and it is so easy for that myriad of obligations and just daily life to take our eyes off of our first love. Then we have to wake ourselves up and look at our priorities. When that event occurs, I think the question we must ask ourselves is, “Am I truly doing what Jesus said?” It seems to me that this question must be answered at two levels. The first and most obvious as well as most important is, “Am I doing all that is recorded in the Bible?” Some people might ask that question differently to essentially limit the assessment to the red letter portion of the New Testament. I believe that to be error because Jesus is the Word. He is the whole Word so when the Bible says in the Psalms to trust the Lord that is every bit as strong an edict as something printed in red ink. So, are we, am I, doing all that Jesus has directed me to do in the Bible?

The second inquiry is into those things God has specifically spoken into my life. Am I following the dietary instruction He has given me? Am I following the course He has laid out for me? Did I give what He told me to give? Did I apologize to that person He told me to apologize to? Basically, this question represents the directions God has given to you pertaining directly to your life.

How are you doing? This is a challenging process but it helps us get back on track if we have slipped a little and it helps us refocus on whom we actually serve as our Lord. As Jesus says, if I am not following what He has told me to do, then how can I really say He is my Lord? It hurts a bit to realize how disobedient I have been but oh, it feels so much better once I realize the truth and apologize to Jesus. We get to start again and he holds no grudge. He is so good.

So, give yourself a check-up. Regardless of the answers, it really does bring life and light into your life and we all need that.

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Eternal Life Secret

On July 15, 2015   /   Word of the Day   /   Leave a comment

John 3: 36

He who believes in the Son has eternal life; but he who does not obey the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God abides on him.

I’ve said it before – Christianity is more than the one time utterance of a salvation prayer. When Jesus went to the cross he had in mind the building of a family. He delivered himself up so that every person could be restored to the family of the Father. What Jesus did for us was very personal and as such, it was meant to bring us individually and collectively into a that very personal experience.

Yahweh is very proud of his son and all that he accomplished. He has raised him to the highest of all pinnacles. He is the first of all children and our lord and high priest. It is important, therefore, that we obey his word, not only to honor him but also because he is leading us into the light and to victory.

We call Jesus Lord and that should imply that we do what he says. First, though, we must know what his words, teachings and commands are. We can know this through our Bible and Bible teaching ministries. To say that we are under his lordship and yet we do not do what he says is to lie to ourselves. He who does not obey the Son will not inherit eternal life because Jesus is the way and he is showing us the way.

Second, we’ve got to learn to listen to his voice speaking in our spirits. How do we do that? How, if you’ve never heard God speak before, do you begin to hear and recognize his voice. Fortunately, there is an easy way and my friends at www.cwgministries.org will show you. 

Eternal life is in the Son. We must hearken to him and to his words. It is not enough to say that we are Christians. That isn’t the secret password to get through the gates. The secret is no secret at all – it is adherence, yes, obedience, to the Lord Jesus. Hear what he has to say, read his word and follow.

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