Obedience Servants Meeting Feb 28 2010 Obedience 1

Obedience Servant’s Meeting Feb 28, 2010

Obedience 1. Reasons 2. Requirements 3. Rewards

Obedience: Reasons • To show my love to God • John 14: 15, 21 • “If you love Me, keep My commandments…” • “He who has My commandments and keeps them, it is he who loves Me. And he who loves Me will be loved by My Father, and I will love him and manifest Myself to him. ”

Obedience: Reasons • To please Him • Satan presented to Eve ideas about why God forbade them from eating from the tree of good and evil and the advantage they will acquire if they ate from it. Eve accepted Satan’s ideas; she ate from the tree and gave to her husband (Based on Gen. 3: 1 -7).

Obedience: Reasons • To please Him • St. James wrote, “Each one is tempted when he is drawn away by his own desires and enticed. Then, when desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, brings forth death. ” (James 1: 14 -15) • 1 Samuel 15: 22 • So Samuel said: “Has the LORD as great delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices, As in obeying the voice of the LORD? Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice, And to heed than the fat of rams. ”

Obedience: Reasons • To please Him • John 13: 14 • “A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another; as I have loved you, that you also love one another. ” • 1 Peter 1: 22 • “Since you have purified your souls in obeying the truth through the Spirit, in sincere love of the brethren, love one another fervently with a pure heart, having been born again, not of corruptible seed but incorruptible, through the word of God which lives and abides forever…”

Obedience: Reasons • To be used by Him • “But in a great house there are not only vessels of gold and silver, but also wood and clay, some for honor and some for dishonor. Therefore if anyone cleanses himself from the latter, he will be a vessel for honor, sanctified and useful for the Master, prepared for every good work. ” (2 Tim 2: 20 -21) • How do you become a vessel of honor?

Obedience: Reasons • Lead as examples • Jesus himself was obedient, not only to heavenly father but also to Mary & Joseph. • “Then He went down with them and came to Nazareth, and was subject to them, but His mother kept all these things in her heart. ” (Luke 2: 51) • “…having your conduct honorable among the Gentiles, that when they speak against you as evildoers, they may, by your good works which they observe, glorify God in the day of visitation. ” (1 Peter 2: 12)

Obedience: Reasons • Lead as examples • It was said of Abba John the Short that he withdrew and lived in the desert at Scetis with an old man of Thebes. His abba, taking a piece of dry wood, planted it and said to him, "Water it every day with a bottle of water, until it bears fruit. " Now the water was so far away that he had to leave in the evening and return the following morning. At the end of three years the wood came to life and bore fruit. The old man took some of the fruit and carried it to the church saying to the brethren, "Take and eat the fruit of obedience. "

Obedience: Reasons • Deeper relationship • “Now he who keeps His commandments abides in Him, and He in him. And by this we know that He abides in us, by the Spirit whom He has given us. ” (1 John 3: 24)

Obedience: Reasons • He is the Master • “Eph 6: 5 – “Bond servants, be obedient to those who are your masters according to the flesh, with fear and trembling, in sincerity of heart, as to Christ; not with eyeservice, as men-pleasers, but as bondservants of Christ, doing the will of God from the heart, with goodwill doing service, as to the Lord, and not to men, knowing that whatever good anyone does, he will receive the same from the Lord, whether he is a slave or free. And you, masters, do the same things to them, giving up threatening, knowing that your own Master also is in heaven, and there is no partiality with him. ”

Obedience: Requirements Completely • • Partial obedience is no obedience at all A renewed heart does not pick and choose from God’s commandments • • Psalm 119: 1 -6 Blessed are they whose ways are blameless, who walk according to the law of the Lord. Blessed are they who keep his statutes and seek him with all their heart. You have laid down precepts that are to be fully obeyed. Oh, that my ways were steadfast in obeying your decrees! Then I would not be put to shame when I consider all your commandments (Ps 119: 1 -6) • • For whosoever shall keep the whole law, and yet offend in one point, he is guilty of all. (James 2: 10 -11) You are my friends, if you do whatsoever I command you. (John 15: 14) Examples Ananias and Saphira Story ( Acts 5 : 1 -10)

Obedience: Requirements • Immediately • I will hasten and not delay to obey your commands. Psalm (119 -60) • • Examples The persecuted apostles (Acts 5: 17 -21) Abraham (Gen 17: 10, 23) 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. Then God said, "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. " Early the next morning Abraham got up and saddled his donkey. He took with him two of his servants and his son Isaac. • •

Obedience: Requirements Intentionally You are my portion O Lord; I have promised to obey your words. I have sought your face with all my heart (Ps 119: 57, 58) I have considered my ways and have turned my steps to your statutes (Psa. 119: 59) Though the wicked bind me with ropes, I will not forget your law (Psa. 119: 61) Examples The persecuted apostles (acts 5: 27 -29) Joyfully Direct me in the path of your commandments; for therein do I delight (Psa. 119: 35) The blessed man is the one whose “delight is in the law of the Lord” (Psa. 1: 2). Blessed is the man that feared the Lord, that delighted greatly in his commandments (Psa. 112: 1). Examples Peter and John (Acts 4: 18 -20)

Obedience: Requirements • Obedience is not only subjection but also a surrendering Obedience to God is the heart’s recognition of His lordship , it is not only the subjection to his laws , but the surrendering of my will to the Lord’s authority . It is the complete subjection of the soul to the blessed yoke of Christ. And why call ye me, Lord, and do not the things which I say? ” (Luke 6: 46). He that saith, I know Him, and keepeth not his commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him” (I John 2: 4). But be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving your own selves. (James 1: 22) Examples Moses though he felt inadequate , offered absolute surrendering to God’s command went to Pharaoh to deliver the Israelites Gideon through obedience and complete surrendering to God’s commands, fought and conquered the great armies of the Medianites with 300 men. Obedience to the Lord in life, not merely glowing words from the lips, is what Christ requires.

Obedience: Rewards • • Faith : “And whatever we ask we receive from Him, because we keep His commandments and do those things that are pleasing in His sight. And this is His commandment: that we should believe on the name of His Son Jesus Christ and love one another, as He gave us commandment. ” (1 Jn 3: 22 -23) Heaven: “Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, ’ shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father in heaven. ” (Mt 7: 21) Miracles (1 Ki 17, Gideon) Wisdom and Understanding – “You, through Your commandments, make me wiser than my enemies; For they are ever with me. I have more understanding than all my teachers, For Your testimonies are my meditation. I understand more than the ancients, Because I keep Your precepts. ” (Ps 119: 98 -100)

Obedience: Rewards Blessings (Deut 28) o Better Reward o Better Future

1 “Now it shall come to pass, if you diligently obey the voice of the LORD your God, to observe carefully all His commandments which I command you today, that the LORD your God will set you high above all nations of the earth. 2 And all these blessings shall come upon you and overtake you, because you obey the voice of the LORD your God: 3 “Blessed shall you be in the city, and blessed shall you be in the country. 4 “Blessed shall be the fruit of your body, the produce of your ground and the increase of your herds, the increase of your cattle and the offspring of your flocks. 5 “Blessed shall be your basket and your kneading bowl. 6 “Blessed shall you be when you come in, and blessed shall you be when you go out. 7 “The LORD will cause your enemies who rise against you to be defeated before your face; they shall come out against you one way and flee before you seven ways. 8 “The LORD will command the blessing on you in your storehouses and in all to which you set your hand, and He will bless you in the land which the LORD your God is giving you. 9 “The LORD will establish you as a holy people to Himself, just as He has sworn to you, if you keep the commandments of the LORD your God and walk in His ways. 10 Then all peoples of the earth shall see that you are called by the name of the LORD, and they shall be afraid of you. 11 And the LORD will grant you plenty of goods, in the fruit of your body, in the increase of your livestock, and in the produce of your ground, in the land of which the LORD swore to your fathers to give you. 12 The LORD will open to you His good treasure, the heavens, to give the rain to your land in its season, and to bless all the work of your hand. You shall lend to many nations, but you shall not borrow. 13 And the LORD will make you the head and not the tail; you shall be above only, and not be beneath, if you heed the commandments of the LORD your God, which I command you today, and are careful to observe them. 14 So you shall not turn aside from any of the words which I command you this day, to the right or the left, to go after other gods to serve them.

Obedience: Rewards Best for us (Deut 10: 12 -13) “And now, Israel, what does the LORD your God require of you, but to fear the LORD your God, to walk in all His ways and to love Him, to serve the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul, 13 and to keep the commandments of the LORD and His statutes which I command you today for _______? ”

Obedience: Rewards • For I am a mean God? • For I don’t want you to have any fun at all? • For I want to make your life very difficult?

Obedience: Rewards For your GOOD

Obedience: Rewards Bible characters examples: • • • Abel Noah Abraham Moses David Daniel

Obedience: New Creation “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; creation old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new. ” (2 Cor 5: 17) 1) New character: v Thoughts (bring it to subjection, “away with you Satan”, self examination, flee evil thoughts) v Actions - Behavior v Ambitions – Priorities (Seeking God’s way & surrendering) 2) Humility (Rom 12: 1)

Obedience: Quotes The most fitting response to undeserved blessing is unreserved obedience! Your obedience to God today determines what you’ll be for God tomorrow. A small step of obedience is a giant step to blessing! Obedience is antidote to pride (H. G. Bishop Youssef)