Obedience

Question: Are you obedient or disobedient most of the time?  Disobedience seems to be the norm these days with so many people.  Disobedience and rebelliousness seem to go hand in hand in today’s culture with many acting out in defiance in many areas of life.  I know that these attributes stem from the fall of man from the beginning of time.  God’s word says that the heart is deceitfully wicked and who can know it.  I think everyone knows that the prisons, jails and reformatories are full of rebellious, defiant and disobedient people.

If I were to ask, I believe many people would say we were born this way so we can’t help being this way.  It is true, we were born that way because this relates to all of us being born with a sin nature.  God’s word says, “All have sinned and fell short of God’s glory, there is none righteous no not one.”  

Please read Romans 3:9-12, “What then? Are we better than they? Not at all. For we have previously charged both Jews and Greeks that they are all under sin. As it is written: ‘There is none righteous, no, not one; there is none who understands; there is none who seeks after God. They have all turned aside; they have together become unprofitable; there is none who does good, no, not one.’”

But I have some good news.  We all have choices to make and a free will to choose how we end up in life.  

There are many people struggling with believing that God exists.  Sometimes I feel so far away from God it seems like He isn’t there and He doesn’t exist, but I know beyond a shadow of doubt that He does exist and that He is real.  I know that without even using God’s word to back me up and have known it for many years.  There was a time when I felt like a total freak in the lifestyle I chose for myself.  I was nothing but an alcoholic and a drug addict and a rotten person with a rotten attitude.  I figured I had a warped mind and no commonsense.  I was also addicted to porn and an all-around jerk who hated most things unless it had to do with partying.  Alcohol and drugs poisoned my life for many years, along with other things I was destroying my life with.  After close to thirty years of this I came to the end of myself and repented and recommitted my life to the Lord and was born-again and almost immediately I was delivered and set free of the drugs and alcohol and porn.

Then I started changing in other areas also.  God’s word says this, “If any man be in Christ, he is a new creation, the old things have passed away and all things are become new.”  That was the beginning of a whole new life for me, praise the Lord!!  It has been around forty years now and there is no way anyone can thank or praise the good Lord enough for the experience that I had.  I haven’t had a drink of alcohol or popped any pills or smoked any reefers since this born-again experience took place. As time went on, I noticed I wasn’t cursing or getting angry near as much and instead of hating things and people I started caring about things and people and I was so excited about what was happening in my life, for which I give the Lord all the glory.  I was still far from perfect, but the changes were so dramatic that others noticed the change too.  Praise the Lord I was finally free but still had a lot of growing to do.  

Then I realized I would never be perfect this side of heaven, but I could strive for perfection, which I tried to do.  So, knowing what happened to me through the Lord after being a rebellious, angry person, I know there is good news for the non-believer.  God loves you and wants to have a relationship with you so much that He sent His only begotten Son into the world that you might have eternal life and be set free just as I was, praise the Lord!!  Jesus wasn’t sent into the world to condemn the world but to set free the captive, plus other things.

Please read John 3:17-19, “For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved. He who believes in Him is not condemned; but he who does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God. And this is the condemnation, that the light has come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil.”

I said before that we all have a free will to choose.  We can choose to rebel and disobey, or we can choose to repent and obey.  I will give you some verses that will take place by the choices each person makes.  Read Romans 2:1-16, “Therefore you are inexcusable, O man, whoever you are who judge, for in whatever you judge another you condemn yourself; for you who judge practice the same things. But we know that the judgment of God is according to truth against those who practice such things. And do you think this, O man, you who judge those practicing such things, and doing the same, that you will escape the judgment of God? Or do you despise the riches of His goodness, forbearance, and longsuffering, not knowing that the goodness of God leads you to repentance? But in accordance with your hardness and your impenitent heart you are treasuring up for yourself wrath in the day of wrath and revelation of the righteous judgment of God, who ‘will render to each one according to his deeds’: eternal life to those who by patient continuance in doing good seek for glory, honor, and immortality; but to those who are self-seeking and do not obey the truth, but obey unrighteousness—indignation and wrath, tribulation and anguish, on every soul of man who does evil, of the Jew first and also of the Greek; but glory, honor, and peace to everyone who works what is good, to the Jew first and also to the Greek. For there is no partiality with God. For as many as have sinned without law will also perish without law, and as many as have sinned in the law will be judged by the law (for not the hearers of the law are just in the sight of God, but the doers of the law will be justified; for when Gentiles, who do not have the law, by nature do the things in the law, these, although not having the law, are a law to themselves, who show the work of the law written in their hearts, their conscience also bearing witness, and between themselves their thoughts accusing or else excusing them) in the day when God will judge the secrets of men by Jesus Christ, according to my gospel.”

I think these verses are self-explanatory, now read John 3:16, “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.”

God loves all people and He wants a relationship with all of us, but some choose to be disobedient, but others choose to repent from the heart.  The humble and contrite heart is what God is seeking for, so humble yourself before the Lord and He will lift you up.

And for those who would like a personal relationship with the Lord please read 2 Corinthians 7:10, “For godly sorrow produces repentance leading to salvation, not to be regretted; but the sorrow of the world produces death.”  

Godly sorrow is being sorry that you sinned against a righteous God; repentance, is a heartfelt desire to forsake your sins to turn away from your sins and to turn to God and to confess that you are a sinner in need of forgiveness.  Then ask Jesus to be your Lord and Savior.  I believe if your heart is right before the Lord you will be born-again!!  Then you will rejoice also like many, many before you have!!  

Enough said, my prayer is that this was an encouragement and a blessing to all who read it.  May the good Lord bless each of you with His perfect peace, love and joy and health and happiness and may you all have a super day!!  May all of you thank and praise the Lord today for He is worthy!!