There was once a boxer named Joe. "Sweet Joe" to be exact. Sweet Joe had trained for 5 solid months for an upcoming fight that could (if he won) make him a top contender for the heavy weight title. After 5 grueling months of training not only was Joe in the best shape of his career, he had also worked out a solid strategy to defeat his upcoming opponent. Actually it was Joe's trainer (who had been in the boxing business for 30 years) that had come up with a solid game plan to help him be victorious. His trainer had told him many times to be patient and stick with the plan. "It will work." He would say. "Just stick to the plan."
Joe's trainer was totally convinced that if Joe listened and "stuck with the plan", he would win and be next in line for a title fight.
On fight night Joe's adrenaline was pumping. He had never felt so confident and prepared for a fight like he did tonight. During the fight, Joe was controlling the tempo and was winning the after the first 5 rounds of the 12 round bout. He had stuck with the game plan and thus far, was doing rather well.
About 1 minute into the 6th round, Joe slightly dropped his hands and took a hard jab that broke his nose. Joe immediately knew his nose was broken and became furious. He fought back with a vengeance and in his fury nearly knocked his opponent down before the end of the round.
Joe won the 6th round.
In between rounds Joe's trainer evaluated the break and told Joe to settle down and stick with the game plan. Basically, the plan was to conserve his energy and not throw more than 25 punches for the first 2 1/2 minutes of each round. The idea was to conserve as much energy as possible up until the last 30 seconds of each round and then get really aggressive. The conservative game plan had worked up to this point, as it was really frustrating his opponent. Joe's opponent was stronger, had more knockout power, and did not fight well against conservative opponents.
Joe's strategy was to stay light on his feet, move around, and limit his punches. The strategy was to wear down his opponent and knock him out in the late rounds.
As the bell rang for round 7, Joe was reminded to stick to the plan. After a few exchanges Joe got caught (rather lightly) in the nose again. It didn't take much force to aggravate his already broken nose as the fresh break was swollen and extremely tender. At that moment Joe decided he had enough. He wasn't going to let his opponent continue to tear his nose up for the next 5 rounds...he was going to end this now.
As Joe hurled a flurry of punches at his opponents head, he could hear a distant voice from his trainer yelling, "Stick to the plan....stick to the plan, Joe!"
Joe blinked his eyes several times and was suddenly startled at the sight of his trainer kneeling beside him only inches away. "You okay, Joe?" The trainer asked.
It was then that Joe realized he had been knocked out. In his fury, he abandoned his strategy and got caught with an uppercut. Joe was knocked out cold before he ever realized what happened.
* * *
We all get advice. Sometimes we ask for it and sometimes we don't. Some advice is good and some...eh...not so good. Then there's advice that we just really need to listen to regardless of what/how we feel. Sweet Joe's story above ties into the Story of the Wise and Foolish Builders in the Gospel of Matthew...
"Therefore everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house on the rock. The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house; yet it did not fall, because it had its foundation on the rock. But everyone who hears these words of mine and does not put them into practice is like a foolish man who built his house on sand. The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell with a great crash."
Matthew 7:24-27
Sweet Joe trained for 5 grueling months and had a solid game plan that should have aloud him to defeat his opponent. Then in the midst of adversity (and thinking he knew better than his trainer), he abandoned the plan and paid the price. He was knocked out and lost a chance to fight for the heavyweight title.
If we are to listen, remain obedient, and put God's word into daily practice then we emulate the wise man that built his house on the rock. Meaning that when the storms of life come (temptation, impatience, selfishness, greed, etc.) we are grounded in the foundation God's word and remain steady. However, if we abandon, get out of practice, or alter our path because we think that we have a better way...then we will soon meet a similar fate to Sweet Joe and the man who built his house on the sand.
There's only one way to salvation... and it's not your way... and it's not my way.... it's God's way.
Jesus answered, "I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.
John 14:6
God bless you. And this is for His Glory!
Showing posts with label Obedience. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Obedience. Show all posts
Thursday, April 29, 2010
Thursday, March 11, 2010
Obedience and Consequence
If you were to go to the doctor and he were to tell you that you had high cholesterol and that you had to change your diet or risk a heart attack, chances are you would follow his advise. The consequences would just be too great to ignore.
If you were driving down the road and noticed flashing blue lights in your rear view mirror you would probably pull over without giving it a second thought. The consequences of not doing so would be too great to ignore.
If you were at work and your boss gave you a due date to complete an assignment, chances are you would complete the assignment by the date requested. The consequences would be too great to ignore
During Jesus' first miracle at the wedding feast in Cana, His mother, Mary, set a very early example for us to follow….to do whatever Jesus tells us to do.
Once the wine was completely gone, Mary told the servants…
"Do whatever He tells you."
John 2:5
It was a very simple request.
This one little statement of faith showed us the love and dedication Mary had for Jesus. Mary knew, without a shadow of a doubt, that Jesus would do something special even though He had not performed a single public miracle up to that point.
Mary’s simple request still holds true today. "Do whatever He tells you."
Since we should be fully obedient to God and obey every one of His commands, then basically we should “do whatever He tells us to do”. Therefore, by reading the Bible we know exactly how God desires us to act and treat others. The Bible is The Word of God and it provides us with His unquestionable laws for mankind.
Of course, out of convenience, there are many decrees in the Bible that people would rather ignore. Some of the scriptures can be down right disturbing or even unsettling. However, no amount of denial on our part will make the reality of God’s Word disappear. We do not get to pick or choose the convenient parts of the Bible that we want to follow. Whether we like it or not, the truth is exists on each and every page. We certainly may have several favorite passages, but that does not provide us with the luxury of ignoring the rest of the truth.
"At the end, forever, you and I will either be in Heaven or Hell. Period."
-Father John Corapi
This post was inspired by a message delivered by Father John Corapi.
God bless you. And this is for His Glory!
If you were driving down the road and noticed flashing blue lights in your rear view mirror you would probably pull over without giving it a second thought. The consequences of not doing so would be too great to ignore.
If you were at work and your boss gave you a due date to complete an assignment, chances are you would complete the assignment by the date requested. The consequences would be too great to ignore
* * *
During Jesus' first miracle at the wedding feast in Cana, His mother, Mary, set a very early example for us to follow….to do whatever Jesus tells us to do.
Once the wine was completely gone, Mary told the servants…
"Do whatever He tells you."
John 2:5
It was a very simple request.
This one little statement of faith showed us the love and dedication Mary had for Jesus. Mary knew, without a shadow of a doubt, that Jesus would do something special even though He had not performed a single public miracle up to that point.
Mary’s simple request still holds true today. "Do whatever He tells you."
Since we should be fully obedient to God and obey every one of His commands, then basically we should “do whatever He tells us to do”. Therefore, by reading the Bible we know exactly how God desires us to act and treat others. The Bible is The Word of God and it provides us with His unquestionable laws for mankind.
Of course, out of convenience, there are many decrees in the Bible that people would rather ignore. Some of the scriptures can be down right disturbing or even unsettling. However, no amount of denial on our part will make the reality of God’s Word disappear. We do not get to pick or choose the convenient parts of the Bible that we want to follow. Whether we like it or not, the truth is exists on each and every page. We certainly may have several favorite passages, but that does not provide us with the luxury of ignoring the rest of the truth.
* * *
If you were to pick up your Bible and read God’s Word, chances are you would follow His commands for the rest of your life. The consequences would just be too great to ignore."At the end, forever, you and I will either be in Heaven or Hell. Period."
-Father John Corapi
This post was inspired by a message delivered by Father John Corapi.
God bless you. And this is for His Glory!
Sunday, November 15, 2009
The Fear of God
The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge
Proverbs 1:7
Some redefine the fear of God for believers to “respecting” Him. While respect is definitely included in the concept of fearing God, there is more to it than that. A biblical fear of God, for the believer, includes understanding how much God hates sin and fearing His judgment on sin—even in the life of a believer. Hebrews 12:5-11 describes God’s discipline of the believer. While it is done in love (Hebrews 12:6), it is still a fearful thing. As children, the fear of discipline from our parents no doubt prevented some evil actions. The same should be true in our relationship with God. We should fear His discipline, and therefore seek to live our lives in such a way that pleases Him.
Believers are not to be scared of God. We have no reason to be scared of Him. We have His promise that nothing can separate us from His love (Romans 8:38-39). We have His promise that He will never leave us or forsake us (Hebrews 13:5). Fearing God means having such a reverence for Him that it has a great impact on the way we live our lives. The fear of God is respecting Him, obeying Him, submitting to His discipline, and worshiping Him in awe.
-Excerpt from gotquestions.org
By steadfast love and faithfulness iniquity is atoned for,
and by the fear of the LORD one turns away from evil.
Proverbs 16:6
God bless you. And this is for His Glory!
Proverbs 1:7
Some redefine the fear of God for believers to “respecting” Him. While respect is definitely included in the concept of fearing God, there is more to it than that. A biblical fear of God, for the believer, includes understanding how much God hates sin and fearing His judgment on sin—even in the life of a believer. Hebrews 12:5-11 describes God’s discipline of the believer. While it is done in love (Hebrews 12:6), it is still a fearful thing. As children, the fear of discipline from our parents no doubt prevented some evil actions. The same should be true in our relationship with God. We should fear His discipline, and therefore seek to live our lives in such a way that pleases Him.
Believers are not to be scared of God. We have no reason to be scared of Him. We have His promise that nothing can separate us from His love (Romans 8:38-39). We have His promise that He will never leave us or forsake us (Hebrews 13:5). Fearing God means having such a reverence for Him that it has a great impact on the way we live our lives. The fear of God is respecting Him, obeying Him, submitting to His discipline, and worshiping Him in awe.
-Excerpt from gotquestions.org
By steadfast love and faithfulness iniquity is atoned for,
and by the fear of the LORD one turns away from evil.
Proverbs 16:6
God bless you. And this is for His Glory!
Friday, October 30, 2009
Pain versus Pleasure
World renown motivational speaker Anthony "Tony" Robbins often talks about a Pain versus Pleasure principle that seems to be ingrained in each and everyone of us. Basically, it goes like this...
If we ask ourselves the question "Why do we do the things we do?", it seems complicated, but actually, it has a very simple answer. The answer is to either avoid pain or gain pleasure. Think about this for a minute.
For example - If the only way that I can go to the gym and workout would be to get up at 4am versus 6am, then the question I will ask myself is "Is it worth it?" But, what I'm really determining is whether or not the pain of getting up two hours earlier is worth the pleasure of working out. Not only that, but do I want to do this on a consistent basis?
If the pain is greater than the pleasure, then I will stay in bed. If the pleasure of working out is greater, then I will force myself to get up. It's really that simple.
The same can hold true in terms of eating. For example, will I get more pleasure from eating a candy bar or a carrot...or would I rather just eat nothing at all?
The Bible talks about how Pain and Pleasure keep us from entering through the narrow gate. Many times this comes into play when people start going outside of the status quo and talking more openly about Jesus. There are many Christians "in this boat" (I should know, I use to be one of them) that don't like talking about Christ and either get embarrassed, angry, or turned off.
20The one who received the seed that fell on rocky places is the man who hears the word and at once receives it with joy. 21But since he has no root, he lasts only a short time. When trouble or persecution comes because of the word, he quickly falls away.
Mathew 13:20-21
To elaborate, this verse from Matthew is basically pointing out that many hear the Word, but then tribulation, persecution, isolation, etc. occur on account of the Word and they fall away. This is where the pain versus pleasure principle kicks in. Because we are either thinking short term and trying to please men. Or we are thinking long term - standing firm and carrying forward with God's Word.
28Do not be afraid of those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Rather, be afraid of the One who can destroy both soul and body in hell.
Matthew 10:28
Sometimes we may think that people are driven away from God by pain. I'd argue that more people are lured away by pleasures. Earthly pleasures are very unlikely to push people closer to God. When things are going well, we tend to forget who is pulling the strings and even when things are not going so well, we often lose faith and may not try as hard as we should to rectify our situation through prayer.
There are always going to be perils in life. The temptation to receive praise or acceptance from others will remain a constant challenge. Especially if it means that you have to take sides. It's only through faith and prayer that courage is granted and perseverance will win.
33But whoever disowns me before men, I will disown him before my Father in heaven.
Matt10:33
In my humble opinion, a little bit of pain now is worth an eternity's worth of pleasure. What do you think?
God bless you. And this is for His Glory
If we ask ourselves the question "Why do we do the things we do?", it seems complicated, but actually, it has a very simple answer. The answer is to either avoid pain or gain pleasure. Think about this for a minute.
For example - If the only way that I can go to the gym and workout would be to get up at 4am versus 6am, then the question I will ask myself is "Is it worth it?" But, what I'm really determining is whether or not the pain of getting up two hours earlier is worth the pleasure of working out. Not only that, but do I want to do this on a consistent basis?
If the pain is greater than the pleasure, then I will stay in bed. If the pleasure of working out is greater, then I will force myself to get up. It's really that simple.
The same can hold true in terms of eating. For example, will I get more pleasure from eating a candy bar or a carrot...or would I rather just eat nothing at all?
The Bible talks about how Pain and Pleasure keep us from entering through the narrow gate. Many times this comes into play when people start going outside of the status quo and talking more openly about Jesus. There are many Christians "in this boat" (I should know, I use to be one of them) that don't like talking about Christ and either get embarrassed, angry, or turned off.
20The one who received the seed that fell on rocky places is the man who hears the word and at once receives it with joy. 21But since he has no root, he lasts only a short time. When trouble or persecution comes because of the word, he quickly falls away.
Mathew 13:20-21
To elaborate, this verse from Matthew is basically pointing out that many hear the Word, but then tribulation, persecution, isolation, etc. occur on account of the Word and they fall away. This is where the pain versus pleasure principle kicks in. Because we are either thinking short term and trying to please men. Or we are thinking long term - standing firm and carrying forward with God's Word.
28Do not be afraid of those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Rather, be afraid of the One who can destroy both soul and body in hell.
Matthew 10:28
Sometimes we may think that people are driven away from God by pain. I'd argue that more people are lured away by pleasures. Earthly pleasures are very unlikely to push people closer to God. When things are going well, we tend to forget who is pulling the strings and even when things are not going so well, we often lose faith and may not try as hard as we should to rectify our situation through prayer.
There are always going to be perils in life. The temptation to receive praise or acceptance from others will remain a constant challenge. Especially if it means that you have to take sides. It's only through faith and prayer that courage is granted and perseverance will win.
33But whoever disowns me before men, I will disown him before my Father in heaven.
Matt10:33
In my humble opinion, a little bit of pain now is worth an eternity's worth of pleasure. What do you think?
God bless you. And this is for His Glory
Saturday, October 3, 2009
The belief and obedience connection
I believe in many things...
But, either by choice, happenstance, or lack of intention I may not always follow through and do what I'm supposed to do. Here's a short Q&A to expand upon what I mean...
Q1. Do I believe that if I drive too fast I might get pulled over by the police?
A. Yes. But, do I always obey the speed limit? Certainly not all the time.
Q2. Do I believe that I should to do what my boss tells me to do?
A. Yes. But, I may not always follow his/her line of thinking and sometimes feel that I should do things differently.
Q3. Do I believe that if I exercise and eat better, that I will be heather?
A. Yes. But, I don't always follow through and do it.
Q4. Do I believe that ignorance of the law is no excuse?
A. Probably in some cases.
Q5. Do I believe in the Lord Jesus Christ?
A. Yes. But, do I always obey His word? No. I am a sinner.
"for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God"
Romans 3:23
When we talk about belief and obedience as it pertains to God's word, it's nearly impossible to separate the two. I hear many people say, "I believe in God," then actions portray something entirely different from how the bible illustrates we should act.
Envyings, murders, drunkenness, revellings, and such like: of the which I tell you before, as I have also told you in time past, that they which do such things shall not inherit the kingdom of God.
But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, Meekness, temperance: against such there is no law.
Galatians 5:21-23
Being obedient to God means obeying His word. In order to obey His word we first must know what His word says (and understand the meaning). In order to know what His word says we must read the bible. How else are we to understand God's word if we don't read it? His words are not hidden from us, they are very easily accessible. Just as it is with today's legal system, I believe it will be the same at the day of judgement... "Ignorantia legis neminem excusat" meaning "Ignorance of the law excuses no one."
Many people become both delighted and surprised when they begin reading God's word. The Holy Spirit begins to penetrate and suddenly a whole new perspective on life and faith come rushing in.
Remember - we are responsible for seeking the Lord and gaining knowledge of His word.
Author, Betty Miller sums it up quite nicely when she illustrates how a change must occur on our end, not on God's end. Here is a small snippet from her book titled Extremes or Balance?
"If we are not receiving the answers to our prayers, we need to allow the Word of God to change us. The Word of God never changes, and Jesus never changes; so if there is any changing to be done, it must be on our end."
-Betty Miller
For I am the Lord, I change not
Malachi 3:6a
"Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and for ever"
Hebrews 13:8
Remember - The Lord wants us to seek Him out and find Him.
So, let us go out and find Him.
I love those who love me,
and those who seek me find me.
Proverbs 8:17
But if from there you seek the LORD your God, you will find him if you look for him with all your heart and with all your soul.
Deuteronomy 4:29
God bless you. And this is for His Glory!
Wednesday, September 9, 2009
Obedience
In the book of Genesis, God places what could be called the "test of all tests" upon Abraham. God tells Abraham to journey into the land of Mount Moriah. There Abraham was to build an alter and kill his son Isaac as a sacrifice to God.
"Take your son, your only son, Isaac, whom you love, and go to the region of Moriah. Sacrifice him there as a burnt offering on one of the mountains I will tell you about."
Genesis22:2
Without hesitation Abraham left the next morning with his son and two other servants. After a 3 day journey he came to the place where the Lord told him to go.
Then Abraham took his son up the mountain, built an alter for the Lord, bound his son, and set him on the alter. Before Abraham was able to deliver the death blow an angel of the Lord called out to him...commanding him to stop.
"Do not lay a hand on the boy," he said. "Do not do anything to him. Now I know that you fear God, because you have not withheld from me your son, your only son." Abraham looked up and there in a thicket he saw a ram caught by its horns. He went over and took the ram and sacrificed it as a burnt offering instead of his son.
Genesis22:12-13
Does this selfless act sound familiar?
"For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life."
John3:16
Just like Abraham was willing to do, God offered up His own son to die on the cross in order to wash away our sins. Jesus paid the ultimate price in order for us to be cleansed and have an opportunity for eternal salvation. God was willing to do this out of love for us, even though man was consistently disobedient to Him.
How many times have we decided not to give our our time and efforts to God? How many times have we decided to either skip church, not pray before a meal, go to bed without saying a prayer, or be selfish when we know we shouldn't? God doesn't ask us to sacrifice a loved one in order to prove our love for Him. All He asks is that we obey Him. How do we do this? We do it by following Gospel. Some might respond to that by saying, "Well the Bible is a big book, how do I know where to start?"
Start with refreshing your mind with the 10 commandments. See Deuteronomy 5:6-21 to review the Commandments.
"Jesus Christ came to fulfill the law of Moses (Matthew 5:17) and create a new covenant between God and His people. The old covenant was written in stone, but the new covenant is written on our hearts, made possible only by faith in Christ, who shed His own blood to atone for the sins of the world. Luke 22:20 says, "After supper, [Jesus] took another cup of wine and said, 'This wine is the token of God's new covenant to save you – an agreement sealed with the blood I will pour out for you.'"
Final Thoughts:
In the days to come, let's try to free ourselves from the heavy pressures and stale promises of the world. Instead, let's revisit the 10 commandments and really think about how we can obey/apply each commandment in our daily lives. If we don't know God's laws then how can we obey them?
You've probably heard the old saying... "The only thing certain in life are taxes and death." We all know that 10 out of 10 people will die. But, will 10 out of 10 people enter into eternity? Not likely if we don't read, repent, and release ourselves to follow God's laws.
On the day of judgment how will you respond if God asks you if you wholeheartedly followed His commandments?
Blessed are they that do his commandments, that they may have right to the tree of life, and may enter in through the gates into the city.
Revelation 22:14
God bless you. And this is for His Glory!
"Take your son, your only son, Isaac, whom you love, and go to the region of Moriah. Sacrifice him there as a burnt offering on one of the mountains I will tell you about."
Genesis22:2
Without hesitation Abraham left the next morning with his son and two other servants. After a 3 day journey he came to the place where the Lord told him to go.
Then Abraham took his son up the mountain, built an alter for the Lord, bound his son, and set him on the alter. Before Abraham was able to deliver the death blow an angel of the Lord called out to him...commanding him to stop.
"Do not lay a hand on the boy," he said. "Do not do anything to him. Now I know that you fear God, because you have not withheld from me your son, your only son." Abraham looked up and there in a thicket he saw a ram caught by its horns. He went over and took the ram and sacrificed it as a burnt offering instead of his son.
Genesis22:12-13
Does this selfless act sound familiar?
"For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life."
John3:16
Just like Abraham was willing to do, God offered up His own son to die on the cross in order to wash away our sins. Jesus paid the ultimate price in order for us to be cleansed and have an opportunity for eternal salvation. God was willing to do this out of love for us, even though man was consistently disobedient to Him.
How many times have we decided not to give our our time and efforts to God? How many times have we decided to either skip church, not pray before a meal, go to bed without saying a prayer, or be selfish when we know we shouldn't? God doesn't ask us to sacrifice a loved one in order to prove our love for Him. All He asks is that we obey Him. How do we do this? We do it by following Gospel. Some might respond to that by saying, "Well the Bible is a big book, how do I know where to start?"
Start with refreshing your mind with the 10 commandments. See Deuteronomy 5:6-21 to review the Commandments.
The following quoted excerpt was taken from gotquestions.org and explains the difference between the 10 Commandments and the new covenant that Jesus gave us.
"Many people mistakenly look at the Ten Commandments as a set of rules, that if followed, will guarantee entrance into heaven after death. In contrast, the purpose of the Ten Commandments is to force people to realize that they cannot perfectly obey the Law (Romans 7:7-11), and are therefore in need of God’s mercy and grace. Despite the claims of the rich young ruler in Matthew 19:16, no one can perfectly obey the Ten Commandments (Ecclesiastes 7:20). The Ten Commandments demonstrate that we have all sinned (Romans 3:23) and are therefore in need of God’s mercy and grace, available only through faith in Jesus Christ.""Jesus Christ came to fulfill the law of Moses (Matthew 5:17) and create a new covenant between God and His people. The old covenant was written in stone, but the new covenant is written on our hearts, made possible only by faith in Christ, who shed His own blood to atone for the sins of the world. Luke 22:20 says, "After supper, [Jesus] took another cup of wine and said, 'This wine is the token of God's new covenant to save you – an agreement sealed with the blood I will pour out for you.'"
Final Thoughts:
In the days to come, let's try to free ourselves from the heavy pressures and stale promises of the world. Instead, let's revisit the 10 commandments and really think about how we can obey/apply each commandment in our daily lives. If we don't know God's laws then how can we obey them?
You've probably heard the old saying... "The only thing certain in life are taxes and death." We all know that 10 out of 10 people will die. But, will 10 out of 10 people enter into eternity? Not likely if we don't read, repent, and release ourselves to follow God's laws.
On the day of judgment how will you respond if God asks you if you wholeheartedly followed His commandments?
Blessed are they that do his commandments, that they may have right to the tree of life, and may enter in through the gates into the city.
Revelation 22:14
God bless you. And this is for His Glory!
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