The Right Way To Obey God. Part [15] 01/14/2025 (Morning thought)

Exodus 34: 6 And the Lord passed by before him, and proclaimed, The Lord, The Lord God, merciful and gracious, longsuffering, and abundant in goodness and truth.

Whenever the Ten commandments are being presented, the focus should not be heavily weighted to the prohibitory side, with heavy emphasis placed on the negative, and adverse consequences, for in this way some of the hearers might be scared into obedience, which, in some instances, does not last. It is the goodness of God that brings individuals to repentance, and even though in our day we have to emphasize all the laws of God, because of the false doctrines, teaching that they were abolished at the cross, yet, Calvary should not get lost in the mix.

In fact, it would be well to follow the model given to us, as when Moses asked to see God’s glory. At that time, the people had sinned greatly, by worshipping the golden calf, and 3000 lay dead as the result. So, what they needed was emphasis on the goodness of God, not primarily adverse results.

Even though the adverse consequences are to be mentioned to bring about a balance to the equation we should endeavor to dwell at length on the bright side, with the positives being given much attention, for in this way, persons would be drawn to God for His goodness, and not because of negative results. Hence the reason why, in this presentation we let the simplicity and the goodness of Gods commands have the preeminence, so that persons would learn to trust Him at his word.

Exodus 34:7 Keeping mercy for thousands, forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin, and that will by no means clear the guilty; visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children, and upon the children's children, unto the third and to the fourth generation.

May The Lord add His blessing to the study of His word. God bless!

The Right Way To Obey God. Part [14] 01/14/2025 (Evening thought)

Deuteronomy 4:5 Behold, I have taught you statutes and judgments, even as the Lord my God commanded me, that you should do so in the land whither you go to possess it. 6 Keep therefore and do them; for this is your wisdom and your understanding in the sight of the nations, which shall hear all these statutes, and say, Surely this great nation is a wise and understanding people.

The persons in question should view God’s laws from a beneficiary perspective, in that they stand to gain greatly by obedience, and for this reason, they are eager to obey, and serve God with joy, having an intelligent understanding of His goodness, made manifest in His character. It is worthy of note that the persons being referred to in Malachi chapter three, view their walk with God as being a great disadvantage, and as they look out of their windows at the ungodly, they conclude that the disobedient are better off than those who obey, and this view sours their relationship with The Lord.

So, here’s a question for you, is it true that serving and obeying God puts you at a disadvantage to the ungodly? And if so, are we obeying Him just because of a fear of negative consequences? Or do we truly enjoy obeying The Lord, because of an intelligent appreciation of His goodness? Let’s break it down, and bring the matter closer to home in the most literal sense. If men, women and tweenagers were to refrain from adultery, as the seventh commandment states, merely because they are afraid of contracting STDs and HIV-aids, this will constitute obedience from fear.

In this scenario, persons might be chomping at the bits, and drooling over the prospect of sex outside of marriage, but the fear of STDs keeps them in the obedience lane. Again friends, this is not the type of obedience God is looking for. Here’s a question for you: If persons were to have guarantees that the adulterer would never contract any sexually transmitted disease, would persons still obey God? And would folks be happy doing so? In other words, without the threat of STD’s, will we still view His law on marriage as being good, or as being too restrictive?

Deuteronomy 4:40 Thou shalt keep therefore his statutes, and his commandments, which I command thee this day, that it may go well with thee, and with thy children after thee, and that thou mayest prolong thy days upon the earth, which the Lord thy God giveth thee, for ever.

May God add His blessing to the study of His word. “Good night” and God bless!