UNDERSTANDING OBEDIENCE WITH PR. DENIS KALUNG1

KIREKA CHRISTIAN FELLOWSHIP

OBEDIENCE

Obedience is the practical acceptance of the authority and will of God. It includes both submitting to Him and then expressing that submission in actions, words, and thoughts. To be obedient is to agree with God. To be in agreement with God is to be in a position of power in Christ.

Disobedience is caused by rebellion and distrust of God. To be disobedient is to yield to self-will instead of surrendering to God and desiring His will in all things.

EXAMPLES OF PEOPLE WHO WERE OBEDIENT TO THE LORD

JESUS

Jesus always did the Father’s will, even when it was painful, like when He expressed in the Garden of Gethsemane the desire to have this cup pass from Him, but Jesus said, “Nevertheless, not my will, but yours, be done” Luke 22:42. Jesus knew that “the one who sent him was with him. He had not left me alone, for I always do the things that are pleasing to him” John 8:29. In fact, Jesus said my food is to do the will of him who sent me and to accomplish his work

ABRAHAM 

When God called Abraham in Genesis chapter 12, we see absolutely no hesitation on his part to obey God. It says “the Lord said to Abram, “Go from your country and your kindred and your father’s house to the land that I will show you. And I will make of you a great nation, and I will bless you and make your name great so that you will be a blessing” Gen 12:1-2

Imagine this: Abram was to leave

1, His family

2, His friends

3, His occupation

4, His home, and his worshiping of false gods to go to a land that he’d never seen before and called by a God who he had never known about before, but we see no hesitation in Abraham at all. He didn’t stop to think about it, Stop to count the cost, or ask God, “Why.” simply accept, “So Abram went, as the Lord had told him” Gen 12:4. How many of us would have dropped everything and left it all behind to go to a strange land and be called by a God that was unknown to him? Abraham also went to the most extreme ends possible in proving that he would obey when God asked him to sacrifice his only son of promise, Isaac. That is the best example of obedience that there is in the Bible, next to Christ’s.

MARY THE MOTHER OF JESUS

Luke 1:29-30 Gabriel told Mary, “you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus. He will be great and will be called the Son of the Highest. And the Lord God will give to him the throne of his father David” Luke 1:31-32. What was Mary’s reaction? Did she hesitate to believe it? Was she perplexed because she was still a virgin? All Mary said was “Behold, I am the servant of the Lord; let it be to me according to your word.” And the angel departed from her” Luke 1:38. Mary never wavered in unbelief, but simply told Gabriel, “let it be to me according to your word.” She understood that she was a “servant of the Lord. 

We cannot forget Noah 6:1-20

1, He was told to build the ark and he did as God had told him

2, Noah did not question God

3, He was mocked by so many but he never gave up

4, Noah was mattress away from the ocean but believed

5, Noah spent over 120 building the ark

6, Noah did not ask anyone to obey God or not, it takes obedience to do what Noah did.

EXAMPLE OF THE PEOPLE WHO WERE DISOBEDIENT TO GOD

ADAM & EVA

Genesis 2 and 3 tell the story of Adam and Eve, and their fall into sin. In Chapter 2, God specifies certain restrictions on what they may and may not do in the Garden, specifically saying that they must not eat from the tree of knowledge because if they do they will certainly die Genesis 2:15. Saint Thomas Aquinas explains that when Adam and Eve chose to eat the fruit of the tree they did so freely. Aquinas asserts that since man freely disobeyed God, the man finally knew evil.

LOT, S WIFE

Genesis 19: 26. In the story of the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah, two angels give Lot instructions on how to flee the city. The verse states that the angels said to Lot, "Flee for your lives! Don't look back, and don't stop anywhere on the plain." Lot's wife did look back, and the Bible says that she was turned into a pillar of salt. The significance of this event, and the apparent existence of the pillar for years afterward, stands as a symbol of defiance against God.

THE CHILDREN OF ISRAEL 

After the Jews were freed from bondage in Egypt, the Bible says that they were led to the holy land. Moses sent twelve men to scout the land, and all but two returned with stories of the challenges they would face. After rebelling against Moses, God punished the Israelite's by condemning them to wander the desert for forty years. In verse 34 God says to the Israelite's that for forty years they will suffer for their sins and know what it is like to have him against them. According to Numbers, none of the men over the age of twenty who had rebelled against God would live to see the Promised Land. Instead, according to the Bible, those who had rebelled would "meet their end in this wilderness; here they will die" Numbers, 14: 35.

WHAT DOES THE LORD SAY ABOUT OBEDIENCE AND DISOBEDIENCE? 

God expects obedience Deuteronomy 11:26-28 see I am setting before you today a blessing and a curse, the blessing if you obey the commands of the Lord your God that I am giving you today.

Punishment 

Curse if you disobey the commands of the Lord your God and turn from the way that I command you today by following other gods which you have not known before.

Isaiah 1:19-20

If you be willing and obedient, you shall eat the good of the land BUT PUNISHMENT

If you refuse and rebel, ye shall be devoured with the sword: for the mouth of the Lord has spoken it.

Leviticus 26:3-9

If you walk in my statutes, and keep my commandments, and do them; We see general blessings 

But Leviticus 26:14-13

But if ye will not hearken unto me, and will not do all these commandments; We also see the punishment 

BLESSINGS FOR OBEDIENCE

Deuteronomy 28:1-4 If you fully obey the Lord your God and carefully follow all his commands I give you today, the Lord your God will set you high above all the nations on earth.

All these blessings will come on you and accompany you if you obey the Lord your God:

1, You will be blessed in the city and blessed in the country.

2, The fruit of your womb will be blessed, and the crops of your land and the young of your livestock—the calves of your herds and the lambs of your flocks.

3, Your basket and your kneading trough will be blessed.

4, You will be blessed when you come in and blessed when you go out.

5, The LORD will grant that the enemies who rise against you will be defeated before

6, They will come at you from one direction but flee from you in seven directions.

7, The LORD will send a blessing on your barns and on everything you put your hand to. The LORD your God will bless you in the land he is giving you.

8, The LORD will establish you as his holy people, as he promised you on oath if you keep the commands of the LORD your God and walk in his ways.

9, Then all the peoples on earth will see that you are called by the name of the LORD, and they will fear you.

10, The LORD will grant you abundant prosperity--in the fruit of your womb, the young of your livestock, and the crops of your ground--in the land he swore to your forefathers to give you.

11, The LORD will open the heavens, the storehouse of his bounty, to send rain on your land in season and to bless all the work of your hands. You will lend to many nations but will borrow from none.

12, The LORD will make you the head, not the tail. If you pay attention to the commands of the LORD your God that I give you this day and carefully follow them, you will always be at the top, never at the bottom

13, Do not turn aside from any of the commands I give you today, to the right or the left, following other gods and serving them.

Each time you think of these blessings go back to Deuteronomy 28:1-2 which says if you fully obey the LORD your God and carefully follow all his commands I give you today, the LORD your God will set you high above all the nations on earth

TO THE DISOBEDIENCE 

Deuteronomy 28:15-16 do not turn aside from any of the commands I give you today, to the right or the left, following other gods and serving them. However, if you do not obey the LORD your God and do not carefully follow all his commands and decrees I am giving you today, all these curses will come upon you and overtake you: You will be cursed in the city and cursed in the country.

The fruit of your womb will be cursed, and the crops of your land, and the calves of your herds and the lambs of your flocks.

You will be cursed when you come in and cursed when you go out. 

1, The LORD will send on you curses, confusion, and rebuke in everything you put your hand to until you are destroyed and come to sudden ruin because of the evil you have done in forsaking him.

2, The LORD will plague you with diseases until he has destroyed you from the land you are entering to possess.

3, The LORD will strike you with wasting disease, with fever and inflammation, with scorching heat and drought, with blight and mildew, which will plague you until you perish.

4, The sky over your head will be bronze, the ground beneath you iron.

5, The LORD will turn the rain of your country into dust and powder; it will come down from the skies until you are destroyed.

6, The LORD will cause you to be defeated before your enemies. You will come at them from one direction but flee from them in seven, and you will become a thing of horror to all the kingdoms on earth

7, Your carcasses will be food for all the birds of the air and the beasts of the earth, and there will be no one to frighten them away.

8, The LORD will afflict you with the boils of Egypt and with tumors, festering sores, and the itch, from which you cannot be cured.

9, The LORD will afflict you with madness, blindness, and confusion of mind.

10, At midday, you will grope about like a blind man in the dark. You will be unsuccessful in everything you do; day after day you will be oppressed and robbed, with no one to rescue you.

HAVE YOU EVER NOTICED PROMISES OF GOD ARE CONDITIONED ON YOU BY THE DIRECTIONS HE GIVES? Deuteronomy 5:32-33

So be careful to do what the Lord your God has commanded you; do not turn aside to the right or the left. Walk-in obedience to all that the Lord your God has commanded you, so that you may live and prosper and prolong your days in the land that you will possess. Moses commanded them

HE CONDITIONED JOSHUA

Joshua 1:7-8 

Be strong and very courageous. Be careful to obey all the law my servant Moses gave you; do not turn from it to the right or to the left, that you may be successful wherever you go. Keep this Book of the Law always on your lips; meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do everything written in it. Then you will be prosperous. Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go.

God has made some incredible, specific promises in his Word about obedience. There are so many promises that I can’t list them all here. But here are a few:

1, God blesses those who obey him” Proverbs 16:20.

2, He saves those who obey him” Psalm 7:10.

3, The Lord watches over those who obey him” Psalm 33:18.

4, The Lord takes care of those who obey him” Psalm 37:18.

5, God gives us what we ask for because we obey God’s commands” 1 John 3:22

6, Always obey the Lord and you will be happy” Proverbs 28:14.

7, Keep God’s laws and you will live longer” Proverbs 19:16

8, He rewards those who serve him faithfully and obey him Genesis 17:1-3

WHAT IS THE ORIGINAL ROOT OF DISOBEDIENCE?

Pride proverbs 16:18 Pride goes before destruction, a proud spirit before a fall. Satan fell because of pride read Isaiah 14:12-14

Need to make others happy

Bad companies 1 Corinthians 15:33 do not be deceived: “Bad Company corrupts good character.”

Character Matthew 12:35 the good person out of his good treasure brings forth good and the evil person out of his evil treasure brings forth evil.”

Personal desires James 4:1-3 what causes fights and quarrels among you? Don’t they come from your desires that battle within you?

Doubt Mark 11:23 Truly I tell you, if anyone says to this mountain, ‘Go, throw yourself into the sea,’ and does not doubt in their heart but believes that what they say will happen, it will be done for them.”

RESULTS OF DISOBEDIENCE 

1, Generational curse

2, Generational poverty

3, Chronic diseases 

HOW CAN ONE CHOOSE CHRIST?

To choose Christ is to choose obedience John 14:15, 21. If you love me, keep my commands whoever has my commands and keeps them is the one who loves me. The one who loves me will be loved by my Father, and I too will love them and show myself to them.

HOW CAN ONE CHOOSE DEATH IN CHRIST?

Disobedience Leads to Sin and Death 

The disobedience of Adam brought sin and death into the world. This is the basis of the term "original sin." But Christ's perfect obedience restores fellowship with God for everyone who believes in him For as by the one man's Adam's disobedience the many were made sinners, so by the one man's Christ's obedience the many will be made righteous Romans 5:19, Romans 6:23 

DOES GOD DELIGHT IN SACRIFICE

David was instructed to go and kill each and everything but when he reached there he turned back God’s instructions and spared almost everything saying that he was taking the best sheep’s to make a sacrifice for God 1 Samuel 15:1-3 But here read 1 Samuel 15:22-23  prophet Samuel replying him:

Does the Lord delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices as much as in obeying the Lord? To obey is better than sacrifice, and to heed is better than the fat of rams. For rebellion is as the sin of divination, and arrogance like the evil of idolatry because you have rejected the word of the Lord, he has rejected you as king.”

1saiah 1:13 don’t continue bringing me worthless sacrifices! I hate the incense you burn. I can't stand your New Moons, Sabbaths, and other feast days; I can't stand the evil you do in your holy meetings

1saiah 1:15 When you raise your arms to me in prayer, I will refuse to look at you. Even if you say many prayers, I will not listen to you, because your hands are full of blood.

God delights in obedience 

Isaiah 1:19-20 if you are willing and obedient, you will eat the best of the land. But if you resist and rebel, you will be devoured by the sword.” For the mouth of the LORD has spoken.

REASONS WHY OBEDIENCE TO GOD IS IMPORTANT 

1. Jesus Calls Us to Obey 

If you love me, you will keep my commandments. John 14:15, and his command is to love. Jesus knew it very well that whoever loves him There thieves his commands 

2. Obedience Is an Act of Worship 

My brothers and sisters, I plead with you to give your bodies to God because of all he has done for you. Let them be a living and holy sacrifice—the kind he will find acceptable. This is truly the way to worship him. Romans 12:1

3. God Rewards Obedience

Because of the obedience of one man Abraham the children of Israel were blessed and their descendants Genesis 22:17-19 I will surely bless you and make your descendants as numerous as the stars in the sky and as the sand on the seashore. Your descendants will take possession of the cities of their enemies, and through your offspring, all nations on earth will be blessed because you have obeyed me

4: Obedience makes us doers of the word:

Jesus replied, "But even more blessed are all who hear the word of God and put it into practice." Luke 11:28

But don’t just listen to God’s word. You must do what it says. Otherwise, you are only fooling yourselves. For if you listen to the word and don’t obey, it is like glancing at your face in a mirror. You see yourself, walk away, and forget what you look like. But if you look carefully into the perfect law that sets you free, and if you do what it says and don’t forget what you heard, then God will bless you for doing it. James 1:22–25

4. Obedience to God Proves Our Love 

The books of 1 and 2 John clearly explain that obedience to God demonstrates love for God. Loving God implies following his commands: 

By this, we know that we love the children of God, when we love God and obey his commandments. For this is the love of God, that we keep his commandments. 1 John 5:2–3 Love means doing what God has commanded us, and he has commanded us to love one another, just as you heard from the beginning. 2 John 1: 6 

5. Obedience to God Demonstrates Faith 

When we obey God, we show our trust and faith in him: And we can be sure that we know him if we obey his commandments. If someone claims, "I know God," but doesn't obey God's commandments, that person is a liar and is not living in the truth. But those who obey God's word truly show how completely they love him. That is how we know we are living in him. Those who say they live in God should live their lives as Jesus did. 1 John 2:3–6

WHAT DOES IT MEAN TO KEEP GOD’S COMMANDMENTS?

1, It means SEEKING them. We cannot know them until we find them, and we can only find them by seeking them 1 Chronicle 28:8-9 & Romans 10:14-18

2, It means seeking them ALL. Read 1 Chronicles 28:8 again. This is a life-long occupation!

3. It means OBEYING them. Not only finding them but doing them – look up John 2:5; Acts 9:5-6; James 1:22.

4, It means obeying them PROMPTLY, as the psalmist did in Psalm 119:60! Why are you hurrying? To keep God’s commandments!

5, It means DELIGHTING in obeying God, as the psalmist did in Psalm 112:1.

HOW TO CORRECT THE SIN OF DISOBEDIENCE

Begin by asking yourself whether you are obeying God in different areas of your life, such as personal relationships, your behavior, God's lordship in your marriage or job or other areas, personal devotions, etc. Take an honest inventory of your life.

Thank God for areas of disobedience you may discover. 

Once identified, they can be removed. This will result in new joy and greater faith. "And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose" Romans 8:28. "Always giving thanks to God the Father for everything, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ" Ephesians 5:20. "Give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus" I Thessalonians 5:18. 

Confess the disobedience as sin. 

Ask God for forgiveness and claim His promise of complete pardon. "If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness" I John 1:9. If your act of disobedience involves others who are in authority over you, you must rectify the situation with them. The Bible teaches that we can and should live at peace with ourselves and others. Disobedience to God and those in authority over you can block the joy, blessings, and inner peace which God desires for you.

Use your will to surrender each specific act of disobedience. 

Denounce even the desire to be disobedient. As Paul did, compel your flesh and its soullessness to obey. The Bible says that as a Christian, you have mighty weapons of warfare which will break down walls of disobedience. Rely on the faith of Jesus and the power of the Holy Spirit.

Note

I always see friends fighting demons or the devil, at times we only need confession before God to receive our healing. The Holy Spirit can guide you as he did to Gideon judges 6:25-27 furthermore, stand in  Leviticus 26:40, Isaiah 1:18, I John 1:8-9 and proverbs 28:13.