Tag Archives: obedience

March 4
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“Then, because so many people were coming and going that they did not even have a chance to eat, he said to them, ‘Come with me by yourselves to a quiet place and get some rest.’”  (Mark 6:31, NIV)

Most of us have been where the disciples were in today’s reading.  Some of us will be there today: In the place where the demands of others are too many, and the available time is too short; and our personal resources are too meager to even begin to satisfy the need.

Most of us would choose to press-on — doing more and more with less and less until we get to the point where the upward curve of frustration meets the downward curve of exhaustion.  It is never God’s will for us to be in such a state.

When we approach that state, Jesus invites us to go away with Him to a quiet place and get some rest.  Will we go; or will we decline His invitation because we know our situation better than He?

Will we go; or will we decline His invitation because we derive personal satisfaction from being “at the wheel” and we see no benefit to spending time away with Jesus — resting?

We have a standing invitation from Jesus to come away with Him to rest, not in permanent retirement from the requirement; but that we might be refreshed spiritually and physically before the next round.  – Luther

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February 23
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“Then he said to the man, ‘Hold out your hand.’  So the man held out his hand, and it was restored, just like the other one!”  (Matthew 12:13, NLT)

Oswald Chambers reminds us: “God does not give us overcoming life — He gives us life as we overcome.”

The first task in our partnership with God is obedience.  Too often, we say to God, “Show me, and I will go,” when God is saying to us, “Go, and I will show you.”  To do the latter is to live by faith in God.  To do the former is to live by common sight and human insight alone.

Today’s scripture illustrates for us the way in which our heavenly Father works — which is the same as it was centuries before in the call of the “father of the faithful” — Abraham (who was previously named Abram): “The LORD had said to Abram, ‘Leave your native country, your relatives, and your father’s family, and go to the land that I will show you.'” (Genesis 12:1)

It each case — including our own in our day — the great work of God begins with our personal commitment through obedience.  Stretch out your hand.  The overcoming power of God has never been nearer!  – Luther

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February 22
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“But anyone who hears my teaching and doesn’t obey it is foolish, like a person who builds a house on sand.  When the rains and floods come and the winds beat against that house, it will collapse with a mighty crash.”  (Matthew 7:26-27, NLT)

Most of our personal calamities or failures occur for lack of obedience to Jesus’ teaching.  It is not because the calamity is God’s “payback” for our disobedience; rather, it is because we have ignored God’s blueprint that we discover — frequently in tears — that our own designs are inadequate for the stresses of life.  In this instance, we are responsible for our choices.

It is helpful to note that in Jesus’ parable, both houses are beat upon by the rains, and assaulted by the floods.  However, only the house built on a solid rock is able to withstand the events that test our foundation.

When the next storm of life arrives, will your life’s foundation prove adequate?  Jesus says, “Anyone who listens to my teaching and follows it is wise, like a person who builds a house on solid rock.” (verse 24)  – Luther

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