Have you ever been grounded or disciplined because of bad behavior? I believe at some point we all have. When we are disobedient it usually results in doors closing. The child who failed to get their homework done was not allowed to have a friend over. The student who did not study failed to graduate which closed job opportunities. The person’s criminal behavior resulted in jail time and destroyed their future. People with hardened hearts thought they had plenty of time to ask Jesus into their heart as their Savior but died unexpectedly.
In all these cases, disobedience closed doors. That is what disobedience does. We are only fooling ourselves when we think we can disobey God and somehow be blessed.
When the Hebrews came out of Egypt, the Lord wanted them to obey Him. The Lord knew that their obedience would enable them to fulfill His plans for their life, especially eternal life. God speaks to Moses on the Mountain about His plans for the Hebrews. Ex. 19:4 ‘You have seen what I did to the Egyptians. You know how I carried you on eagles’ wings and brought you to myself. 5 Now if you will obey me and keep my covenant, you will be my own special treasure from among all the peoples on earth; for all the earth belongs to me. 6 And you will be my kingdom of priests, my holy nation.’ This is the message you must give to the people of Israel.” [1]
Their obedience would result in the Hebrews being the Lord’s special treasure of all the peoples on earth. What a gift the Lord was trying to give to them. As a kingdom of priests, they were to represent God and His character to the world. They would also take the world’s concerns back to God. In this way, they would become agents of God’s blessings. The only thing they had to do was obey. This meant they needed to give up their own agenda to follow God.
To obey God would open untold doors for the Hebrews. They were all given free will. Would they choose obedience?
We are given a similar choice today. God has given each person a purpose and gifts to use to carry out this purpose. But to accomplish this, we must die to our desires and replace them with God’s desires. Just as Jesus took up the cross and died to Himself, we, as followers of Jesus are the do the same. When we place our faith in Jesus and pick up our cross, there are many blessings that await us. The riches of this world are replaced with the riches of God. These are riches that carry on into eternity. Like the Hebrews, we too have free will and can choose to obey or not.
Is the Lord calling you to take a step of obedience today? Remember, we can’t carry out the purpose God has for us if we aren’t obedient. The good news is that we can ask God to help us obey. The Apostle Paul writes in Philippians 4:13, “For I can do everything through Christ, who gives me strength.” [2] Pray to the Lord and ask Him to help you take that step of obedience today!
Our ministry loves to connect with our readers. If you have a prayer request or a comment, please let us know. Also, if this devotional helped you, please share it with others. To hear more about the Hebrew people and the choice they were given, listen here: https://podpoint.com/light-of-christ-church-podcast/series/the-footsteps-of-moses/god-wants-to-meet-with-you
Dastardly Plots – Light of Christ Radio
[1,2] Tyndale House Publishers. (2015). Holy Bible: New Living Translation Carol Stream, IL: Tyndale House Publishers.