Every parent knows the challenge of teaching obedience.\nChildren must learn to respect our authority and follow our instructions.\nObedience is not optional. That\u2019s also expected of life with our heavenly\nFather. We must respect his authority and follow his instructions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Looking back, we can attribute most mess-ups to failure in\nthose two areas. We didn\u2019t respect his authority. We didn\u2019t follow his\ninstructions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
When Moses confronted Pharaoh requesting permission to lead the Israelites out of Egypt to worship their God, Pharaoh asked a significant question. \u201cWho is the Lord, that I should obey him?\u201d (see Exodus 5:2 NIV).<\/p>\n\n\n\n
He wanted to know: what authority does the Lord have to\nrequire my obedience?<\/p>\n\n\n\n
God answered that question in his own words in an encounter with Moses. \u201cThen the Lord came down in the cloud and stood there with him and proclaimed his name, the Lord. And he passed in front of Moses, proclaiming, ‘The Lord, the compassionate and gracious God, slow to anger, abounding in love and faithfulness, maintaining love to thousands, and forgiving wickedness, rebellion and sin. Yet he does not leave the guilty unpunished; he punishes the children and their children for the sin of the fathers to the third and fourth generation\u201d (Exodus 34:5-7 NIV).<\/p>\n\n\n\n
God\u2019s standard has not changed. Way back in history, he planned that his people would be different. And he promised they would reap great benefits from obedience.<\/p>\n\n\n\nGod\u2019s standard has not changed. Way back in history, he planned that his people would be different. And he promised they would reap great benefits from obedience. <\/a><\/span>Click To Tweet<\/a><\/span>\n\n\n\n The\nLord said, \u201c\u2026Obey my voice, and I will be your God, and ye shall be my people: and\nwalk ye in all the ways that I have commanded you, that it may be well unto\nyou\u201d (Jeremiah 7:23). He didn\u2019t leave us stumbling through the dark, wondering\nwhat he expects. He clearly laid that out in his Word.<\/p>\n\n\n\n He still requires us to live a separated life. Choosing separation is an obedience issue, and obedience is an authority issue. If God, my authority, commands me to live a life of separation (holiness), my response is obedience.<\/p>\n\n\n\n I still remember the moment when the voice of God spoke shocking truth in my heart. I was in a large arena listening to a well-known Christian leader. I thought I was a committed Christian with strong moral values. After all, I was attending this conference! As the speaker began describing worldly<\/em> Christians, I heard God speak. You are a worldly Christian.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n If anyone else had said that, I would have put on the boxing gloves. No way was I a worldly Christian! But when God speaks, I tend to remain silent. He started showing me all the places where I thought<\/em> like the world. I had no clue I\u2019d been contaminated with worldly thinking. That moment changed me.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Choosing God as my authority meant choosing to follow his instructions. That meant my life would be different. That meant standing against popular thinking. That large decision eliminated many small (yet crucial) decisions. <\/p>\n\n\n\n List the challenges in your life and identify the places where the world’s thinking has crept in. Ask God to do a thorough cleansing. <\/p>\n\n\n\n One big decision settles everything: I choose to respect God and follow his instructions.<\/p>\n\n\n\nOne big decision settles everything: I choose to respect God and follow his instructions. <\/a><\/span>Click To Tweet<\/a><\/span>\n\n\n\n Delayed obedience is disobedience. Partial obedience is disobedience.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Have you thought righteousness was beyond you? I found this\ndefinition in the Amplified Bible: conforming to God\u2019s will in purpose,\nthought, and action. That\u2019s the life God intends for us. The life he will\nbless.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Bill Bright, founder of Campus Crusade for Christ, said, \u201cI do not know anyone who loved this world who has ever been used by God in any significant way\u201d (How to Walk in the<\/em> Spirit<\/em>).<\/p>\n\n\n\n If you’re interested in changing your life, memorize this. “Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world. And the world passeth away, and the lust thereof: but he that doeth the will of God abideth for ever” (1 John 2:15-17).<\/p>\n\n\n\n What authority does the Lord have to require my obedience? What obstacles prevent my following his instructions?<\/p>\n\n\n\n Lord, I choose to live by decision. Show me the \u201cunclean things\u201d in my life. I confess my failure and claim your forgiveness and cleansing. Today, I am setting my heart to seek the Lord and to obey you in everything, trusting the awesome power of your indwelling Holy Spirit to enable me to live a life of separation that pleases my Father\u2019s heart.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n Has there been a time when you struggled with worldly thinking? Tell me about it. And please share this article with your friends!<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u00a9 Dianne Barker 2020<\/p>\n\n\n\n (Scriptures from KJV unless noted)<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Every parent knows the challenge of teaching obedience. Children must learn to respect our authority and follow our instructions. Obedience is not optional. That\u2019s also expected of life with our heavenly Father. We must respect his authority and follow his instructions. Looking back, we can attribute most mess-ups to failure in those two areas. We […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":false,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[3],"tags":[9,502,438,497,501,500],"class_list":["post-1265","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-general","tag-dianne-barker","tag-holiness","tag-living-the-maximum-life","tag-obedience-how-important-is-it","tag-righteousness","tag-worldly-thinking"],"yoast_head":"\n