Obedience is a Forever Command
Obedience is carrying out the word and will of another, especially the will of God.
Obedience is a positive, active response to what a person hears. God summons His
people to an active obedience to His revelation; and the Bible is the best source of
finding His revelations (Deuteronomy 7:11-15) says “you shall therefore keep the
commandments, and the statutes, and the judgments, which I command you this
day, to do them. Wherefore it shall come to pass, if you hearken to these
judgments, and keep and do them, that the Lord Yahweh your God shall keep to you
the covenant and the mercy which He swear to your fathers. And He will love you,
and bless you, and multiply your; He will also bless the fruit of your womb, and the
fruit of your land, your corn, and your wine, and your oil, the increase of your kine,
and the flocks of your sheep, in the land which He swear to your fathers to give you.
You shall be blessed above all people, there shall not be male or female barren
among you, or among your cattle. And the Lord Yahweh will take away from you all
sickness, and will put none of the evil diseases of Egypt, which you know, upon you;
but will lay them upon all them that hate you”; (Deuteronomy 11:1) says “therefore
you shall love the Lord Yahweh your God, and keep His charge, and His statutes,
and His judgments, and His commandments, always”; (Deuteronomy 13:4) says “you
shall walk after the Lord Yahweh your God, and fear (reverence) Him, and keep His
commandments, and obey His voice, and you shall serve Him, and cling to Him”.
The prophet Samuel told king Saul “now go and smite Amalek, and utterly destroy all
that they have, and spare them not, but slay both man and woman, infant and
suckling, ox and sheep, camel and donkey” (I Samuel 15:3), yet king Saul and the
people spared the king and the best of the spoil, saying that they wanted to sacrifice
the animals to the Lord Yahweh their God. It grieved God that Saul had turned back
from following Him. In verses 22-24 it says “and Samuel said, Has the Lord Yahweh
as great delight in burned offerings and sacrifices, as in obeying the voice of the
Lord Yahweh? Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice, and to hearken than the fat
of rams. For rebellion is as the sin of witch-craft, and stubbornness is as iniquity
and idolatry. Because you have rejected the word of the Lord Yahweh, He has also
rejected you from being king. And Saul said to Samuel, I have sinned; for I have
transgressed the commandment of the Lord Yahweh, and your words; because I
feared the people, and obeyed their voice”. This action caused king Saul to lose his
kingdom.
Isaiah 1:19-20 displays a promise from God; it says “if you be willing and obedient,
you shall eat the good of the land. But if you refuse and rebel, you shall be
devoured with the sword; for the mouth of the Lord Yahweh has spoken it”. And we
know that God’s word does not return to Him void.
Evidence that a person is a child of God is continued obedience to the
commandments of God. Jesus said “why call you Me, Lord, Lord, and do not the
things which I say”? (Luke 6:46). Jesus also says “not every one that says to Me,
Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that does the will of My
Father which is in heaven. Many will say to Me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not
prophesied in Your name? And in Your name have cast out devils? And in Your
name done many wonderful works? And then will I profess to them, I never knew
you; depart from Me, you that work iniquity. Therefore whosoever hears these
sayings of Mine, and does them, I will liken him to a wise man, which built his house
upon a rock. And the rain descended, and the floods came, and the wind blew, and
beat upon that house; and it fell not for it was founded upon a rock. And every one
that hears these sayings of Mine, and does them not, shall be likened to a foolish
man, which built his house upon the sand. And the rain descended, and the floods
came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house; and it fell, and great was the
fall of it” (Matthew 7:21-27).
Jesus goes on to show those that love Him (John 14:15,21-24) “if you love Me, keep
My commandments. He that has My commandments, and keeps them, he it is that
loves Me; and he that loves Me shall be loved of My Father, and I will love him, and
will manifest Myself to him. Judas said to Him, not Iscariot, Lord, how is it that You
will manifest Yourself to us, and not to the world? Jesus answered and said to him, if
a man love Me, he will keep My words; and My Father will love him, and We will come
to him, and make Our abode with him. He that loves Me not keeps not My sayings;
and the word which you hear is not Mine, but the Father’s which sent Me”.
The early church understood that their obedience didn’t stop when grace came in.
Peter and John obeyed Jesus command to “lay hands on the sick and that they
would recover”, they went to the temple and saw a man lame from birth and
commanded in the name of Jesus for him to rise up and walk, and taking him by the
hand, he arose and went leaping and praising God. The elders and rulers
commanded them not to preach anymore in that name, but they answered “then
Peter and the other apostles answered and said, we ought to obey God rather than
men. The God of our fathers raised up Jesus, whom you slew and hanged on a
tree. Him has God exalted with His right hand to be a Prince and a Savior, for to
give repentance to Israel, and forgiveness of sins. And we are His witnesses of
these things; and so is also the Holy Spirit, whom God has given to them that obey
Him”.
The apostle Paul writes to the church of the Romans in Romans 6:11-18 “reckon
you also yourselves to be dead indeed to sin, but alive to God through Jesus Christ
our Lord. Let not sin therefore reign in your mortal body, that you should obey it in
the lusts thereof. Neither yield you your members as instruments of
unrighteousness to sin, but yield yourselves to God, as those that are alive from the
dead, and your members as instruments of righteousness to God. For sin shall not
have dominion over you; for you are not under the law, but under grace. What
then? Shall we sin, because we are not under the law, but under grace? God
forbid. Know you not, that to whom you yield yourselves servants to obey, his
servants you are to whom you obey, whether of sin to death, or of obedience to
righteousness? But God be thanked, that you were the servants of sin, but you
have obeyed from the heart that form of doctrine which was delivered you. Being
then made free from sin, you became the servants of righteousness”. We are told to
give no place for the devil.
In II Corinthians 10 we are told how to fight the battle with the devil (verses 4-5) says
“for the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling
down of strong holds. 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”. We have to line up all of our thoughts and make the Bible, the
word of God the final authority over all our thoughts. Just the way that Jesus
defeated the devil when He was tempted, He said “it is written”. He spoke the word
of God against every thought that the devil brought to Him, and we must do the
same.
The early church called themselves “servants of Christ” and even “bondservants of
Christ”. In Colossians 3:22-24 it says “servants, obey in all things your masters
according to the flesh; not with eye service, as men pleasers, but in singleness of
heart, fearing God. And whatsoever you do, do it heartily, as to the Lord, and not to
men. Knowing that of the Lord you shall receive the reward of the inheritance, for
you serve the Lord Christ”.
The book of Hebrews tells us that eternal salvation belongs to all them that obey
Him, Jesus (Hebrews 5:8-9) “though He were a Son, yet learned He obedience by
the things which He suffered. And being made perfect, He became the author of
eternal salvation to all them that obey Him”. And in II Thessalonians 1:8-9, we are
warned, we are told that when Jesus shall be revealed from heaven with His mighty
angels “ in flaming fire taking vengeance on them that know not God, and that obey
not the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ. Who shall be punished with everlasting
destruction from the presence of the Lord, and from the glory of His power”.
We don’t obey out of the law, God said that the Israelites obeyed with their mouth,
but their heart was not with Him; but we obey out of our love for the Almighty God
(Romans 2:4) says “the goodness of God leads you to repentance”.
John writes in I John 2:3-6 “and hereby we do know that we know Him, if we keep His
commandments. He that says, I know Him, and keeps not His commandments, is a
liar and the truth is not in him. But whoso keeps His word, in him verily is the love of
God perfected; hereby know we that we are in Him. He that says he abides in Him
ought himself also so to walk, even as He walked”.
Sermon by: Harriet Bond
Date: July 9, 2010
Obedience is carrying out the word and will of another, especially the will of God.
Obedience is a positive, active response to what a person hears. God summons His
people to an active obedience to His revelation; and the Bible is the best source of
finding His revelations (Deuteronomy 7:11-15) says “you shall therefore keep the
commandments, and the statutes, and the judgments, which I command you this
day, to do them. Wherefore it shall come to pass, if you hearken to these
judgments, and keep and do them, that the Lord Yahweh your God shall keep to you
the covenant and the mercy which He swear to your fathers. And He will love you,
and bless you, and multiply your; He will also bless the fruit of your womb, and the
fruit of your land, your corn, and your wine, and your oil, the increase of your kine,
and the flocks of your sheep, in the land which He swear to your fathers to give you.
You shall be blessed above all people, there shall not be male or female barren
among you, or among your cattle. And the Lord Yahweh will take away from you all
sickness, and will put none of the evil diseases of Egypt, which you know, upon you;
but will lay them upon all them that hate you”; (Deuteronomy 11:1) says “therefore
you shall love the Lord Yahweh your God, and keep His charge, and His statutes,
and His judgments, and His commandments, always”; (Deuteronomy 13:4) says “you
shall walk after the Lord Yahweh your God, and fear (reverence) Him, and keep His
commandments, and obey His voice, and you shall serve Him, and cling to Him”.
The prophet Samuel told king Saul “now go and smite Amalek, and utterly destroy all
that they have, and spare them not, but slay both man and woman, infant and
suckling, ox and sheep, camel and donkey” (I Samuel 15:3), yet king Saul and the
people spared the king and the best of the spoil, saying that they wanted to sacrifice
the animals to the Lord Yahweh their God. It grieved God that Saul had turned back
from following Him. In verses 22-24 it says “and Samuel said, Has the Lord Yahweh
as great delight in burned offerings and sacrifices, as in obeying the voice of the
Lord Yahweh? Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice, and to hearken than the fat
of rams. For rebellion is as the sin of witch-craft, and stubbornness is as iniquity
and idolatry. Because you have rejected the word of the Lord Yahweh, He has also
rejected you from being king. And Saul said to Samuel, I have sinned; for I have
transgressed the commandment of the Lord Yahweh, and your words; because I
feared the people, and obeyed their voice”. This action caused king Saul to lose his
kingdom.
Isaiah 1:19-20 displays a promise from God; it says “if you be willing and obedient,
you shall eat the good of the land. But if you refuse and rebel, you shall be
devoured with the sword; for the mouth of the Lord Yahweh has spoken it”. And we
know that God’s word does not return to Him void.
Evidence that a person is a child of God is continued obedience to the
commandments of God. Jesus said “why call you Me, Lord, Lord, and do not the
things which I say”? (Luke 6:46). Jesus also says “not every one that says to Me,
Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that does the will of My
Father which is in heaven. Many will say to Me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not
prophesied in Your name? And in Your name have cast out devils? And in Your
name done many wonderful works? And then will I profess to them, I never knew
you; depart from Me, you that work iniquity. Therefore whosoever hears these
sayings of Mine, and does them, I will liken him to a wise man, which built his house
upon a rock. And the rain descended, and the floods came, and the wind blew, and
beat upon that house; and it fell not for it was founded upon a rock. And every one
that hears these sayings of Mine, and does them not, shall be likened to a foolish
man, which built his house upon the sand. And the rain descended, and the floods
came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house; and it fell, and great was the
fall of it” (Matthew 7:21-27).
Jesus goes on to show those that love Him (John 14:15,21-24) “if you love Me, keep
My commandments. He that has My commandments, and keeps them, he it is that
loves Me; and he that loves Me shall be loved of My Father, and I will love him, and
will manifest Myself to him. Judas said to Him, not Iscariot, Lord, how is it that You
will manifest Yourself to us, and not to the world? Jesus answered and said to him, if
a man love Me, he will keep My words; and My Father will love him, and We will come
to him, and make Our abode with him. He that loves Me not keeps not My sayings;
and the word which you hear is not Mine, but the Father’s which sent Me”.
The early church understood that their obedience didn’t stop when grace came in.
Peter and John obeyed Jesus command to “lay hands on the sick and that they
would recover”, they went to the temple and saw a man lame from birth and
commanded in the name of Jesus for him to rise up and walk, and taking him by the
hand, he arose and went leaping and praising God. The elders and rulers
commanded them not to preach anymore in that name, but they answered “then
Peter and the other apostles answered and said, we ought to obey God rather than
men. The God of our fathers raised up Jesus, whom you slew and hanged on a
tree. Him has God exalted with His right hand to be a Prince and a Savior, for to
give repentance to Israel, and forgiveness of sins. And we are His witnesses of
these things; and so is also the Holy Spirit, whom God has given to them that obey
Him”.
The apostle Paul writes to the church of the Romans in Romans 6:11-18 “reckon
you also yourselves to be dead indeed to sin, but alive to God through Jesus Christ
our Lord. Let not sin therefore reign in your mortal body, that you should obey it in
the lusts thereof. Neither yield you your members as instruments of
unrighteousness to sin, but yield yourselves to God, as those that are alive from the
dead, and your members as instruments of righteousness to God. For sin shall not
have dominion over you; for you are not under the law, but under grace. What
then? Shall we sin, because we are not under the law, but under grace? God
forbid. Know you not, that to whom you yield yourselves servants to obey, his
servants you are to whom you obey, whether of sin to death, or of obedience to
righteousness? But God be thanked, that you were the servants of sin, but you
have obeyed from the heart that form of doctrine which was delivered you. Being
then made free from sin, you became the servants of righteousness”. We are told to
give no place for the devil.
In II Corinthians 10 we are told how to fight the battle with the devil (verses 4-5) says
“for the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling
down of strong holds. 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”. We have to line up all of our thoughts and make the Bible, the
word of God the final authority over all our thoughts. Just the way that Jesus
defeated the devil when He was tempted, He said “it is written”. He spoke the word
of God against every thought that the devil brought to Him, and we must do the
same.
The early church called themselves “servants of Christ” and even “bondservants of
Christ”. In Colossians 3:22-24 it says “servants, obey in all things your masters
according to the flesh; not with eye service, as men pleasers, but in singleness of
heart, fearing God. And whatsoever you do, do it heartily, as to the Lord, and not to
men. Knowing that of the Lord you shall receive the reward of the inheritance, for
you serve the Lord Christ”.
The book of Hebrews tells us that eternal salvation belongs to all them that obey
Him, Jesus (Hebrews 5:8-9) “though He were a Son, yet learned He obedience by
the things which He suffered. And being made perfect, He became the author of
eternal salvation to all them that obey Him”. And in II Thessalonians 1:8-9, we are
warned, we are told that when Jesus shall be revealed from heaven with His mighty
angels “ in flaming fire taking vengeance on them that know not God, and that obey
not the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ. Who shall be punished with everlasting
destruction from the presence of the Lord, and from the glory of His power”.
We don’t obey out of the law, God said that the Israelites obeyed with their mouth,
but their heart was not with Him; but we obey out of our love for the Almighty God
(Romans 2:4) says “the goodness of God leads you to repentance”.
John writes in I John 2:3-6 “and hereby we do know that we know Him, if we keep His
commandments. He that says, I know Him, and keeps not His commandments, is a
liar and the truth is not in him. But whoso keeps His word, in him verily is the love of
God perfected; hereby know we that we are in Him. He that says he abides in Him
ought himself also so to walk, even as He walked”.
Sermon by: Harriet Bond
Date: July 9, 2010
