Obedience
Seems to be the main theme in my life right now. It is all over the place in what I am reading:
“But why do you call Me ‘Lord, Lord,’ and not do the things which I say? Whoever comes to Me, and hears My sayings and does them, I will show you whom he is like: He is like a man building a house, who dug deep and laid the foundation on the rock. And when the flood arose, the stream beat vehemently against that house, and could not shake it, for it was founded on the rock. But he who heard and did nothing is like a man who built a house on the earth without a foundation, against which the stream beat vehemently; and immediately it fell. And the ruin of that house was great.” Luke 6:46-49
But He answered and said to them, “My mother and My brothers are these who hear the word of God and do it.” Luke 8:21
And it all comes down to this: hearing from God isn't enough, just as believing isn't enough. We are required to respond, to do whatever it is God is asking of us. But I am discovering that there is a real pull in my human nature to try to revise whatever it is God is asking of me, to try to reason it out to find a way where I am still technically obeying but not having to do all that God is requiring. Just like a little kid. Ever notice how some kids are always attempting to push the limits, to see just how far they can go before crossing the line? Yeah unfortunately that is like me with God sometimes, even when I recognize that I am doing it I still need a major kick in the butt to just obey. Quite stupid of me, really, because between me and God it is obvious that He knows better. So why do I have such a difficult time just being obedient?
“But why do you call Me ‘Lord, Lord,’ and not do the things which I say? Whoever comes to Me, and hears My sayings and does them, I will show you whom he is like: He is like a man building a house, who dug deep and laid the foundation on the rock. And when the flood arose, the stream beat vehemently against that house, and could not shake it, for it was founded on the rock. But he who heard and did nothing is like a man who built a house on the earth without a foundation, against which the stream beat vehemently; and immediately it fell. And the ruin of that house was great.” Luke 6:46-49
But He answered and said to them, “My mother and My brothers are these who hear the word of God and do it.” Luke 8:21
And it all comes down to this: hearing from God isn't enough, just as believing isn't enough. We are required to respond, to do whatever it is God is asking of us. But I am discovering that there is a real pull in my human nature to try to revise whatever it is God is asking of me, to try to reason it out to find a way where I am still technically obeying but not having to do all that God is requiring. Just like a little kid. Ever notice how some kids are always attempting to push the limits, to see just how far they can go before crossing the line? Yeah unfortunately that is like me with God sometimes, even when I recognize that I am doing it I still need a major kick in the butt to just obey. Quite stupid of me, really, because between me and God it is obvious that He knows better. So why do I have such a difficult time just being obedient?
2 Comments:
At 6:41 PM,
Sherene said…
hey Sarah
I know what you mean. It's so easy to say I'm obeying, but then realize that I'm trying to analyze and figure out at better way. haha. As if I can do things better than God. I think we all have a difficult time being obedient. His persistence is what gets me to realize that I'm not wholely listening to Him. He never gives up on us Sarah. No matter how much we try to do it our own way, He brings us back to His way. I'm so thankful for that.
At 7:11 PM,
Ryan said…
I love the imagery of a child always pushing to see how much he can get away with. Its sort of easy for me to manipulate God as well. I can begin to spout off a bunch of stuff about what I "heard from the Lord" that I really never did, but people will believe me, get off my back, and think that I am really holy. Pretty jacked up eh? I want to strive to listen only to God and not myself.
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