Deuteronomy 28:1
“Now it shall come to pass, if you diligently obey the voice of the Lord your God, to observe carefully all His commandments which I command you today, that the Lord your God will set you high above all nations of the earth.
As we start this message we want to talk about obedience to God.
In the rest of this passage Deuteronomy 28:1-14 was by Moses and was written in his old age, it is a series of a farewell note to Israel. At this time they were still on their way to Canaan, in the plain of Moab. He was trying to give them advice before they went into the Promised Land.
If we look closely we will notice that this letter is all about obedience.
We all know that we must obey God, but somehow we still act in rebellion and usually end up in trouble as a result to our disobedience.
Even when we know what God wants us to do we still do the opposite.
Our disobedience can cost us a blessing, or our lives. We must be careful to obey the word of God and what He often tells us to do.
Obedience is hearing the word of God and acting on it. It is when we completely surrender ourselves to His authority. Obedience is very important that if we don't follow God then we are acting out in rebellion.
John 14:23-24
Jesus answered and said to him, “If anyone loves Me, he will keep (obey) My word; and My Father will love him, and We will come to him and make Our home with him. 24 He who does not love Me does not keep (obey) My words; and the word which you hear is not Mine but the Father’s who sent Me.
Another words you are disobeying God.
Can other people around you say that you are a child of God? People around you see whether are not you obey the word of God and if not then they would probably say by your works you do not belong to God.
We often times are told to talk to someone about Christ and yet we will disobey those words.
He may tell us to pay for someone's meal, or give them some money. Whatever it is if God tells us and we do not do exactly what He says then we are like children that disobey their parents and we do not get a reward.
Obedience may require us to sacrifice, making our self do something that is outside of our comfort zone.
Hebrews Chapter 8 gives an account of God's men from the Old Testament who are recognized as heroes of faith as a result of their acts of obedience.
- 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 faith Abraham obeyed when he was called to go out to a place that he was to receive as an inheritance. And he went out, not knowing where he was going.
- By faith Abraham, when he was tested, offered up Isaac, and he who had received the promises was in the act of offering up his only son, of whom it was said, “Through Isaac shall your offspring be named.“
- By faith Joshua and the children of Israel obeyed and went round the walls of Jericho before they went crumbling on the 7th day.
Sometimes when we disobey we will not only not get blessed, but we may even have many regrets.
Yesterday my grandson (Isaac) was at the house while his Dad and Mom was at work. At some point he became very intrigued by my shed and what might be in it. I walked out to the shed and right behind me was Isaac. When I unlocked the shed and walked in, he followed. While I had my backed turn he began to pick up a bucket of paint and when I turned around he was trying to pick up another bucket. I told him to put them back in which he did.
Then he proceeded to pick up a piece of plywood that was just barely big enough for him to carry. After he picked it up I told him to put it down because, you are going to get hurt. Then after that he still tried to carry it outside the door. I repeated again that he might get hurt and to put it back. Before he could get it back he dropped it and ended up with a cut on his toe.
If Isaac had only listen and put the plywood back the first time then he might not have gotten hurt.
If we obey God and His word then we show God we love Him which in turn activates His power in our lives, but most importantly there is a reward for obedience.
Joshua 1:8
This Book of the Law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate in it day and night, which you may observe to do according to all that is written in it. For then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have good success.
This indicates that if I want success then I must follow what God commands in his word. I have said this before and that is if you want to be a millionaire then you follow all of the millionaire you can. If you want to be a race car driver then go and hang out with one and gain their knowledge.
If you want to serve God and you love God then spend a lot of time with God. And submit to his authority and you will be bless.