CHOSEN
FOR OBEDIENCE
BREAD
1 Peter, an apostle of Jesus Christ, To God's elect,
strangers in the world, scattered throughout Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia
and Bithynia, 2 who have been chosen
according to the foreknowledge of God the Father, through the sanctifying work
of the Spirit, for obedience to Jesus Christ and sprinkling by his blood: Grace
and peace be yours in abundance.
1 Peter 1:1-2 (NIV)
1 Paul, a servant of Christ Jesus, called to be an
apostle and set apart for the gospel of God-- 2 the
gospel he promised beforehand through his prophets in the Holy Scriptures 3 regarding his Son, who as to his human
nature was a descendant of David, 4 and
who through the Spirit of holiness was declared with power to be the Son of God
by his resurrection from the dead: Jesus Christ our Lord. 5 Through him and for his name's sake, we
received grace and apostleship to call people from among all the Gentiles to
the obedience that comes from faith. Romans 1:1-5 (NIV)
21 “‘This is what the LORD
Almighty, the God of Israel, says: Go ahead, add your burnt offerings to your
other sacrifices and eat the meat yourselves! 22 For
when I brought your forefathers out of Egypt and spoke to them, I did not just
give them commands about burnt offerings and sacrifices, 23 but I gave them this command: Obey me,
and I will be your God and you will be my people. Walk in all the ways I command
you, that it may go well with you. 24 But
they did not listen or pay attention; instead, they followed the stubborn
inclinations of their evil hearts. They went backward and not forward.’” Jeremiah 7:21-24 (NIV)
4 And though the LORD
has sent all his servants the prophets to you again and again, you have not
listened or paid any attention. 5 They
said, “Turn now, each of you, from your evil ways and your evil practices, and
you can stay in the land the LORD
gave to you and your fathers for ever and ever. 6 Do
not follow other gods to serve and worship them; do not provoke me to anger
with what your hands have made. Then I will not harm you.” 7 “But
you did not listen to me,” declares the LORD,
“and you have provoked me with what your hands have made, and you have brought
harm to yourselves.” Jeremiah 25:4-7 (NIV)
5 Keep my decrees and laws, for the man who obeys them
will live by them. I am the LORD. Leviticus
18:5 (NIV)
21 “Whoever has my commands and
obeys them, he is the one who loves me. He who loves me will be loved by my
Father, and I too will love him and show myself to him.” John
14:21 (NIV)
4 The man who says, “I know him,” but does not do what he commands is a liar, and the truth is not in him. 5 But if anyone obeys his word, God's love is truly made complete in him. This is how we know we are in him: 6 Whoever claims to live in him must walk as Jesus did. 1 John 2:4-6 (NIV)
6 My eyes will be on the faithful in the land, that they may
dwell with me; he whose walk is blameless will minister to me. Psalm 101:6 (NIV)
25 Now to him
who is able to establish you by my gospel and the proclamation of Jesus Christ,
according to the revelation of the mystery hidden for long ages past, 26 but now revealed and made known through the
prophetic writings by the command of the eternal God, so that all nations might
believe and obey him-- 27 to
the only wise God be glory forever through Jesus Christ! Amen. Romans
16:25-27 (NIV)
BUTTER
“We
Christians too often substitute prayer for playing the game. Prayer is good;
but when used as a substitute for obedience, it is nothing but a blatant
hypocrisy, a despicable Pharisaism... To your knees, man! and to your Bible!
Decide at once! Don't hedge! Time flies! Cease your insults to God, quit
consulting flesh and blood. Stop your lame, lying, and cowardly excuses.
Enlist!” C. T. Studd
“Love
for God and obedience to God are so completely involved in each other that any
one of them implies the other too.” F. F. Bruce
“Obedience is the child of trust.” John Climacus
“Obedience
to God is the most infallible evidence of sincere and supreme love for Him.” Nathanael
Emmons
“The best measure of a spiritual
life is not its ecstasies but its obedience.” Oswald
Chambers
“Holiness is not a
feeling – it is the end product of obedience.
Purity is not a gift – it is the result of repentance and serious
pursuit of God.” Frances
J. Roberts
“The conviction of
the Holy Spirit is always precise: He
identifies root causes of sin, and He moves the heart to specific acts of
repentance and obedience. All those who
trust God sufficiently to desire to obey Him, and who are patient in waiting
upon Him, will find unfailingly that HE gives clear guidance. ‘In all your ways acknowledge Him and He will
direct your paths’, promises Proverbs 3:6.
For those who love God everything is aboveboard. To know Him is to know what He requires and
more than that, it is to have the power to carry it out. In fact these two—enlightenment and
empowering—go hand in hand, and where they do not, then the Lord is not in it.” Mike
Mason
“The soundtrack for misery always is ‘I did it My Way.’ Complete abdication to Christ is the only way to complete liberation.” Ann Voskamp
“Never
dread any consequence resulting from absolute obedience to His command. Never fear the rough waters ahead, which
through their proud contempt impede your progress. God is greater than the roar of raging water
and the mighty waves of the sea. ‘The
Lord sits enthroned over the flood; the Lord is enthroned as King forever’
(Psalm 29:10). A storm is simply the hem
of His robe, the sign of His coming, and the evidence of His presence. Dare to trust Him! Dare to follow Him! Then discover that the forces that blocked
your progress and threatened your life become at His command the very materials
He uses to build your street of freedom.” F. B.
Meyer
“Though
salvation is not by the works of the law, yet the blessings which are promised
to obedience are not denied to the faithful servants of God. The curses our Lord took away when He was
made a curse for us, but no clause of blessing has been abrogated. We are to note and listen to the revealed
will of the Lord, giving our attention not to portions of it but to ‘all these
words.’ There must be no picking and
choosing but an impartial respect to all that God has commanded. This is the road of blessedness for the
Father and for His children. The Lord’s
blessing is upon His chosen to the third and fourth generation. If they walk uprightly before Him, He will
make all men know that they are a seed which the Lord has blessed.” Charles H. Spurgeon
“No man can put Jesus Christ to greater shame than by professing the gospel without showing the power of it. There can be no more vile and sordid hypocrisy than for any to pretend unto inward, habitual sanctification, while their lives are barren in the fruits of righteousness and obedience.” K. H. Von Bogatzky
“A thousand people wait on the other side of your obedience.” Anonymous
“A
life well lived is simply a life filled with continual ordinary obedience in
doing the next right thing particularly when no one sees, when no one is
watching. No fireworks go off, no horns
blow, no grand applause from an adoring audience. It is living the one life we have been given
for an audience of the One Who gave it to us, for His pleasure for our
good. Being a follower of sweet Jesus
will always boil down to a matter of our faithful ordinary obedience. And will
always lead to a life well lived.” BHY
HEART
SAVOR
·
God’s commands are always for my good and they are not
burdensome. Sin is burdensome.
·
My obedience to His revealed will demonstrates my love and
trust for Him.
·
Believers are chosen for obedience. Their lives are to point others to Him.
