Obedience Today!

This morning the Lord instructed me to write about obedience. When I was a young Christian and was seeking the Kingdom of God with all my heart, the Lord taught me some principles of study. As I alone am responsible for my salvation, GIGO (Garbage in, Garbage out), learn it right the first time and you won’t have to re-learn or undue. Without trusting God and taking Him at his word you will never get understanding of what the Kingdom of God is in truth, or rather factually, by God's standard. First, last and always, look for the leading of the Holy Spirit, who leads into all truth. Then He bears witness of that truth, lets you know it is truth. From then on, don't let go, trust God and only be added to.

Adding discipline to truth, which is OBEDIENCE is a foremost principle of getting more from God, faith without works (which is the product of active belief, believing in your heart and confessing with your mouth), is dead. If you are not obedient, you cannot be trusted with more, or what are the “True Riches”. If you are not obedient, bringing your body and thoughts under subjection, you cannot be taught by the Holy Spirit because He is MEEEEEK. The still, small, unimposing voice must be heard above the roar of your will, your pride, your heart, what you were taught, what your flesh wants to believe, and every other voice there is, now that’s a toughie. But it can be done, God made a way where there was no way. Many build line upon line, precept upon precept. The ones built by mans intellect won’t stand and only bring confusion and unbelief of truth to themselves and others. The ones built by God enter His rest (Isaiah 28). Unless God builds the house/temple, if we are that house/temple, it was built, maybe even with good intentions, in vain.


A few other key principles are, not in a particular order are; We are in the very last days. So when reading and seeking, any time the last days are mentioned, the understanding is that most of what we see and hear in the world and church are that time. Mans opinions are nothing, and cause separation from truth. God is, and always was the same and will be. His likes and dislikes haven’t changed. He didn’t make a mistake or change His mind, so what you see is what you get. Fear and unbelief cause a double minded, double standard of faith. This life style of saying one thing and accommodating another, contrary to what are written truths, ultimately brings the second death. God won’t force you to do anything, it’s all your choice. God sent the Holy Spirit so we don’t need to lean to our own understanding. If you don’t judge for yourself you will get blown away with the crowd, I mean, chaff. Judging becomes important because you don’t want to follow the blind and fall in a pit, do you?


So here is the dilemma, how can we be obedient if we don’t know what to be obedient to? If faith pleases God, and it does, if our “faith” or beliefs keep us from doing His will, can we please Him? Salvation, believing in Jesus in our heart and confessing with our mouth that Jesus is Lord, the Son of God the Father, is the start of the way to truth and life in the Spirit (John 1:12). If we depart that way by error, or by being lead astray, or willfully choosing not to do Gods’ will, the end is all the same, separation from truth and eventually, death. We all are judged and measured by words, Gods’ words, our words, every idle word we speak. We all are judged by our actions, because by our fruit we are known of God and man. Fruit of works of the flesh (of the Lord, Lord didn't I do many wonderful works in your name, infamy), or fruit of the Spirit by obedience or works.


Much hinges on the understanding of the word “faith”. In fact, obedience hinges on “faith”. If what you believe is your faith you better be right in what you believe or it will be your death. That is why we work out our salvation with fear and trembling. If you have “Faith” or trust in God, and His word, and it leads you to “Life in the Spirit”, full of the Holy Ghost, ears to hear, gifts of the Spirit, signs following (by God), the Holy Spirit bearing witness, then you got it right, you were obedient to God’s words and will, you please Him. You will get to hear, “Well done My good and faithful servant, enter into My rest”. If you get it wrong, what you get is not so good (See the above infamy). Misplaced faith, and obedience to it, is the blind being lead by the blind. BTW the “rest” of Isaiah 28 and the rest of Luke 11, John 11, Matthew 27 are all different.

Luke 16:10 He that is faithful in that which is least (like obedience) is faithful also in much (God’s will): and he that is unjust (careless) in the least is unjust (careless) also in much. 11If therefore you have not been faithful in the unrighteous mammon (the simplest things), who will commit to your trust the true riches (Gifts of the Holy Spirit)? 12And if you have not been faithful in that which is another man's (God’s words), who shall give you that which is your own (Prophecy, ears to hear, thing to come)? 13No servant can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to the one, and despise the other. You cannot serve God and mammon (yourself, the world, false doctrine).


1 Samuel 15:22 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 hearken than the fat of rams.


Romans 6:16 Know you not, that to whom you yield yourselves servants to obey, his servants you are to whom you obey; whether of sin unto death, or of obedience unto righteousness?


2 Corinthians 10:5 Casting down imaginations, and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ;(The Anointed/Holy Spirit)

1 Peter 1:22 Seeing you have purified your souls in obeying the truth through the Spirit unto unfeigned love of the brethren, see that you love one another with a pure heart fervently:

2 Corinthians 4:2 But have renounced the hidden things of dishonesty, not walking in craftiness, nor handling the word of God deceitfully; but by manifestation of the truth commending ourselves to every man's conscience in the sight of God. 3But if our gospel be hid, it is hid to them that are lost:


Whose servant are you? Should you obey God by believing His simplest form of communication, His written word? Should you obey a man who says anything contrary to what is written, or explains away the power of God? Should you make your own choices or should you hold God to His?

Remember Matthew 11:12 And from the days of John the Baptist (The giving of the Holy Spirit) until now (20 to 30 years after John died) the kingdom of heaven suffers (allows) violence, and the violent (those who will not be denied, the hungry and thirsty, those who make their calling and election sure) take it by force. (Knock and the door will be open, seek and you will find.)

L,J,P&HG
Dave