The crux of this article is that we have to live a life of obedience here and now in this world in order to be successful at the end of our respective life journeys.
Please, try to read through this writeup and consider the challenge at its end.
This article reviews obedience in both the Old and New Testaments. It considers its application in the conversion of Saul to Paul. It then wraps up with the Challenge.
We start with obedience in a few verses in the New Testament. The Lord Jesus Christ states in John 10: 27-28: “27 My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me: 28 And I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish, neither shall any man pluck them out of my hand”
His sheep follow Him because they hear His voice and obey Him. They cannot follow Him if they do not hear His voice and obey Him.
In John 15: 14, The Lord says: “ You are My friends if you do what I command”.
These two passages, and many others, emphasise obedience as pivotal in our walk with the Lord.
Going to the Old testament, starting from Genesis: 17: 9 – 11: Then God said to Abraham, “As for you, you must keep my covenant, you and your descendants after you for the generations to come. 10 This is my covenant with you and your descendants after you, the covenant you are to keep: Every male among you shall be circumcised. 11 You are to undergo circumcision, and it will be the sign of the covenant between me and you.
Genesis 17: 23 – 26 On that very day Abraham took his son Ishmael and all those born in his household or bought with his money, every male in his household, and circumcised them, as God told him. 24 Abraham was ninety-nine years old when he was circumcised, 25 and his son Ishmael was thirteen; 26 Abraham and his son Ishmael were both circumcised on that very day.
How do you rate this on the scale of obedience, a 99 year old man, getting circumcised because God told him to do so?
The first instruction to Joshua as he succeeded Moses in leading the Israelites was, recorded in Joshua 1: 8: “This Book of the Law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall read it day and night, so that you may be careful to do [everything] in accordance with all that is written in it; for then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will be successful”.
From passages of both the Old and New Testament, it can be seen that obedience is a common thread running through the Bible. The Lord states clearly that we should walk in obedience to Him. The Lord has not left us in any doubt of what He wants us to do. In Proverbs 23:26, he says: “ My son, give me thine heart, and let thine eyes observe my ways.”
Considering the conversion of Saul, I would suggest that we may learn some lessons on the importance of obedience from this review,. Now, let us take a look at Saul who became Paul as we read from Acts, 9: 1- 15:
1 And Saul, yet breathing out threats and slaughter against the disciples of the Lord, went unto the high priest,
2 And desired of him letters to Damascus to the synagogues, that if he found any of this way, whether they were men or women, he might bring them bound unto Jerusalem.
3 And as he journeyed, he came near Damascus: and suddenly there shined round about him a light from heaven:
4. And he fell to the earth, and heard a voice saying unto him, Saul, Saul, why persecutest thou me?
5 And he said, Who art thou, Lord? And the Lord said, I am Jesus whom thou persecutest: it is hard for thee to kick against the pricks.
6 And he trembling and astonished said, Lord, what wilt thou have me to do? And the Lord said unto him, Arise, and go into the city, and it shall be told thee what thou must do.
7 And the men which journeyed with him stood speechless, hearing a voice, but seeing no man.
8 And Saul arose from the earth; and when his eyes were opened, he saw no man: but they led him by the hand, and brought him into Damascus.
9 And he was three days without sight, and neither did eat nor drink.
10 And there was a certain disciple at Damascus, named Ananias; and to him said the Lord in a vision, Ananias. And he said, Behold, I am here, Lord.
11 And the Lord said unto him, Arise, and go into the street, which is called Straight, and enquire in the house of Judas for one called Saul, of Tarsus: for, behold, he prayeth,
12 And hath seen in a vision a man named Ananias coming in, and putting his hand on him, that he might receive his sight.
13 Then Ananias answered, Lord, I have heard by many of this man, how much evil he hath done to thy saints at Jerusalem:
14 And here he hath authority from the chief priests to bind all that call on thy name.
15 But the Lord said unto him, Go thy way: for he is a chosen vessel unto me, to bear my name before the Gentiles, and kings, and the children of Israel:
16 For I will shew him how great things he must suffer for my name’s sake.
17 And Ananias went his way, and entered into the house; and putting his hands on him said, Brother Saul, the Lord, even Jesus, that appeared unto thee in the way as thou camest, hath sent me, that thou mightest receive thy sight, and be filled with the Holy Ghost.
Can we see that statement of repentance and surrender by Saul: “Lord, what wilt thou have me to do?”
Saul repented of his former zealous but ill-advised ways and completely surrendered to the Lord, leading to his conversion.
I suggest we can also learn from the response of Ananias to the Lord’s instruction to go and minster to Saul.
He told the Lord frankly that it was a dangerous journey to make. Hear him, from verse 13 “Lord, I have heard by many of this man, how much evil he hath done to thy saints at Jerusalem: 14 And here he hath authority from the chief priests to bind all that call on thy name”.
Yes, Ananias was correct. But was he telling the Lord what He, the Lord, did not know? He was not. He knew a little bit of Saul’s situation but the Lord knew the total picture about what had happened to Saul which Ananias did not know and could not have known of.
Can we see our problem? We know a bit and build our actions on that bit. But the Lord knows the whole picture and invites us to trust Him and do what He commands us to do but often we refuse; failing the Lord and ourselves by basing our actions on the little we know. Faith in the Word of God is the basis of obedience.
The Lord greatly used Paul and he trusted the Lord through thick and thin and he could say in I Corinthians 9: 27: “But I keep under my body, and bring it into subjection: lest that by any means, when I have preached to others, I myself should be a castaway”. Philippians 1: 21: “For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain”. Should this statement be strange, it should not. The Lord Jesus warned:
Matthew 7:22-24 (KJV)
22 Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name? and in thy name have cast out devils? and in thy name done many wonderful works?
23 And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity.
24 Therefore whosoever heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them, I will liken him unto a wise man, which built his house upon a rock.
25 And the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house; and it fell not: for it was founded upon a rock.
26 And ever one that heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them not, shall be likened unto a foolish man, which built his house upon the sand:
27 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.
The challenge:
Upon what am I building my life? Are you building your life? Irrespective of how we answer, the Lord knows how each of us is building our lives.
From the foregoing analysis, it is clear that when someone prays: “ Jesus, I know that no matter what I do, you will still accept me.” This is wrong and does not suggest any repentance, surrender and conversion because a converted person will desire to do what the Lord wants all the time. It should not be a case that “since I am a child of God,” I can do whatever I like and be accepted.” I know a church where some people made this statement at the time, I spoke against it but my view was not considered. Sadly, I am not sure of the attendance at fellowship now of some of the persons who were making the statement. Should this be a surprise? No, when people are led to believe that whatever they do, the Lord will accept them, why should it be worrying that they stop attending church service?
It needs to be clearly spelt out that we cannot be children of God if we choose to do what we like and have not repented of the rule we have over ourselves, and surrendered to obey the Lord completely and unconditionally as Saul confessed at his conversion. The Lord requires this of His sheep, who hear His voice and follow Him. The Lord Jesus Christ warns: “No, I tell you; but unless you repent, you will all likewise perish”, Luke 13:3.