"Therefore thus says the LORD: 'You have not obeyed Me in proclaiming liberty, every one to his brother and every one to his neighbor. Behold, I proclaim liberty to you,' says the LORD 'to the sword, to pestilence, and to famine! And I will deliver you to trouble among all the kingdoms of the earth.' "
~ Jeremiah 34:17 (NKJV)
"I call heaven and earth as witnesses today against you, that I have set before you life and death, blessing and cursing; therefore choose life, that both you and your descendants may live."
~ Deuteronomy 30:19 (NKJV)
Do not be deceived, God is not mocked; for whatever a man sows, that he will also reap.
~ Galatians 6:7 (NKJV)
At it's core, disobedience doubts God. He sets before us life and death. He says we will be blessed if we obey. Faith believes God is all-loving, all-wise, and all-knowing—and obeys. If we disobey, believing we'll otherwise miss out on some gain, we declare the Lord less than God and a liar.
Obedience is neither a means to earn salvation nor prove righteous. Salvation through the blood of Jesus cannot be purchased with works. And once clothed in the righteousness of Jesus Christ, there is no greater righteousness to be obtained by works.
For the Christian, obedience is both an expression of faith and a choice to receive life. Disobedience must result in some form of death, for sowing seeds of death simply cannot bear the fruit of life. The wages of sin is death. We cannot reap something other than what we've sown.
Even so, praise be to God that because His Son's blood covers us, we receive blessing and grace in the face of our sin!
Good Father in heaven, You surely wish to bless us and are wise. You ask nothing of us which will cause us harm or deny us what is truly good. Please give us discerning hearts to understand Your ways. Please give us strong hearts to pursue fullness of life.
Your feedback is appreciated. Post to BuildingHisBody.com "Comments" or e-mail to BuildingHisBody@gmail.com. Copyright 2009, Anne Lang Bundy, all rights reserved.
What a timely post for me, thank you Anne! Sometimes not understanding God's will feels like a struggle that pushes me to contemplate disobeying. It feels like a push in the opposing direction. I guess it all boils down to patience and obedience!
ReplyDeleteTrust and obey, there is no other way.
ReplyDeleteThinking on this..."For the Christian obediance is expression of faith and choice to receive life."
ReplyDeleteI'll be thinking on that all day.
~ Wendy
"We cannot reap something other than what we've sown."
ReplyDeleteThe world would be a better place if more people understood this.
Great post, Anne.
T. Anne, I do understand. It is my faith in His will that compels me to push ever closer to it.
ReplyDeleteDenise, indeed, there is no other way that to keep those two together.
Wendy, can't you just feel His life breathed into you in obedience?
Billy, at least each one of can make our own world a better place as we increase in understanding and faith. Having said that, I think I failed to balance truth with sufficient grace. I edited the post to add a needed line of praise.