What Obedience Involves

(Gen 2:15-17) And the LORD God took the man, and put him into the garden of Eden to dress it and to keep it. -16. And the LORD God commanded the man, saying, Of every tree of the garden thou mayest freely eat: -17. But of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it: for in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die.

(Gen 3:1-12) Now the serpent was more subtle than any beast of the field which the LORD God had made. And he said unto the woman, Yea, hath God said, Ye shall not eat of every tree of the garden? -2. And the woman said unto the serpent, We may eat of the fruit of the trees of the garden: -3. But of the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the garden, God hath said, Ye shall not eat of it, neither shall ye touch it, lest ye die. -4. And the serpent said unto the woman, Ye shall not surely die: -5. For God doth know that in the day ye eat thereof, then your eyes shall be opened, and ye shall be as gods, knowing good and evil. -6. And when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was pleasant to the eyes, and a tree to be desired to make one wise, she took of the fruit thereof, and did eat, and gave also unto her husband with her; and he did eat. -7. And the eyes of them both were opened, and they knew that they were naked; and they sewed fig leaves together, and made themselves aprons. -8. And they heard the voice of the LORD God walking in the garden in the cool of the day: and Adam and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the LORD God amongst the trees of the garden. -9. And the LORD God called unto Adam, and said unto him, Where art thou? -10. And he said, I heard thy voice in the garden, and I was afraid, because I was naked; and I hid myself. -11. And he said, Who told thee that thou wast naked? Hast thou eaten of the tree, whereof I commanded thee that thou shouldest not eat? -12. And the man said, The woman whom thou gavest to be with me, she gave me of the tree, and I did eat.

I. Half Hearted Obedience is Insufficient:

(1 Sam 15:1-24) Samuel also said unto Saul, The LORD sent me to anoint thee to be king over his people, over Israel: now therefore hearken thou unto the voice of the words of the LORD. -2. Thus saith the LORD of hosts, I remember that which Amalek did to Israel, how he laid wait for him in the way, when he came up from Egypt. -3. Now go and smite Amalek, and utterly destroy all that they have, and spare them not; but slay both man and woman, infant and suckling, ox and sheep, camel and ass. -4. And Saul gathered the people together, and numbered them in Telaim, two hundred thousand footmen, and ten thousand men of Judah. -5. And Saul came to a city of Amalek, and laid wait in the valley. -6. And Saul said unto the Kenites, Go, depart, get you down from among the Amalekites, lest I destroy you with them: for ye showed kindness to all the children of Israel, when they came up out of Egypt. So the Kenites departed from among the Amalekites. -7. And Saul smote the Amalekites from Havilah until thou comest to Shur, that is over against Egypt. -8. And he took Agag the king of the Amalekites alive, and utterly destroyed all the people with the edge of the sword. -9. But Saul and the people spared Agag, and the best of the sheep, and of the oxen, and of the fatlings, and the lambs, and all that was good, and would not utterly destroy them: but every thing that was vile and refuse, that they destroyed utterly. -10. Then came the word of the LORD unto Samuel, saying, -11. It repenteth me that I have set up Saul to be king: for he is turned back from following me, and hath not performed my commandments. And it grieved Samuel; and he cried unto the LORD all night. -12. And when Samuel rose early to meet Saul in the morning, it was told Samuel, saying, Saul came to Carmel, and, behold, he set him up a place, and is gone about, and passed on, and gone down to Gilgal. -13. And Samuel came to Saul: and Saul said unto him, Blessed be thou of the LORD: I have performed the commandment of the LORD. -14. And Samuel said, What meaneth then this bleating of the sheep in mine ears, and the lowing of the oxen which I hear? -15. And Saul said, They have brought them from the Amalekites: for the people spared the best of the sheep and of the oxen, to sacrifice unto the LORD thy God; and the rest we have utterly destroyed. -16. Then Samuel said unto Saul, Stay, and I will tell thee what the LORD hath said to me this night. And he said unto him, Say on. -17. And Samuel said, When thou wast little in thine own sight, wast thou not made the head of the tribes of Israel, and the LORD anointed thee king over Israel? -18. And the LORD sent thee on a journey, and said, Go and utterly destroy the sinners the Amalekites, and fight against them until they be consumed. -19. Wherefore then didst thou not obey the voice of the LORD, but didst fly upon the spoil, and didst evil in the sight of the LORD? -20. And Saul said unto Samuel, Yea, I have obeyed the voice of the LORD, and have gone the way which the LORD sent me, and have brought Agag the king of Amalek, and have utterly destroyed the Amalekites. -21. But the people took of the spoil, sheep and oxen, the chief of the things which should have been utterly destroyed, to sacrifice unto the LORD thy God in Gilgal. -22. And Samuel said, Hath 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 hearken than the fat of rams. -23. For rebellion is as the sin of witchcraft, and stubbornness is as iniquity and idolatry. Because thou hast rejected the word of the LORD, he hath also rejected thee from being king. -24. And Saul said unto Samuel, I have sinned: for I have transgressed the commandment of the LORD, and thy words: because I feared the people, and obeyed their voice.

Saul somehow thought that partial obedience was good enough. He was like a lot of people today. There is this notion that if you obey most of what the Lord requires, then that is good enough. However, as we consider what the Bible teaches us, we see that God has always required complete, whole-hearted obedience. This involves a conscience that is sensitive to every Word of God. Jesus reminded us that we are expected to live according to every Word that proceeds out of the mouth of God, not just the few words that we happen to like or feel that we can obey.

Saul tried to use the people as an excuse. He said that he feared the people. Isn't that just like many today? There is always someone around that you can put the blame on for disobeying the Lord. But, as surely as God did not accept that excuse form Saul, He will not accept it from you either. What God asks of you is not unreasonable. In fact His requirements are what it takes to really enjoy this life. Now Saul suffered greatly for his disobedience. He would never again be preached to by the man of God. God's Holy Spirit would never again woo Saul. He was relegated to become a very lonely and depressed individual that ended up taking his own life. There are lots of people that think that Christians are real pests and they wish that they would be left alone and that no one would bother them about their soul. Well that is where Saul ended up and it is a very lonely place. The truth of the matter is that to have someone interested in your soul is the greatest blessing that you will ever receive in this world. To have someone pray for you, invite you to church, ask you about your spiritual condition, and talk to you about God is the greatest blessing that you can ever receive. If no one has an interest in your eternal welfare, then you are a very lonely person.

(Mark 10:17-22) And when he was gone forth into the way, there came one running, and kneeled to him, and asked him, Good Master, what shall I do that I may inherit eternal life? -18. And Jesus said unto him, Why callest thou me good? there is none good but one, that is, God. -19. Thou knowest the commandments, Do not commit adultery, Do not kill, Do not steal, Do not bear false witness, Defraud not, Honour thy father and mother. -20. And he answered and said unto him, Master, all these have I observed from my youth. -21. Then Jesus beholding him loved him, and said unto him, One thing thou lackest: go thy way, sell whatsoever thou hast, and give to the poor, and thou shalt have treasure in heaven: and come, take up the cross, and follow me. -22. And he was sad at that saying, and went away grieved: for he had great possessions.

Here is a sad story of a young man that knew he was coming up short in the sight of God. When he was told what it would take to have eternal life, he went away sorrowful. His possessions were of more value to him than life and peace. That is a common problem in our time. Many are so busy with their stuff that they have no time to demonstrate a love for the Lord. If people think that serving the Lord, is going to cost them some of their stuff and some of their money, they often go away sorrowful. True it is that serving Jesus costs something, but the benefits of service far exceed the cost. For example, how much is great peace worth?

(Mark 12:28-34) And one of the scribes came, and having heard them reasoning together, and perceiving that he had answered them well, asked him, Which is the first commandment of all? -29. And Jesus answered him, The first of all the commandments is, Hear, O Israel; The Lord our God is one Lord: -30. And thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind, and with all thy strength: this is the first commandment. -31. And the second is like, namely this, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. There is none other commandment greater than these. -32. And the scribe said unto him, Well, Master, thou hast said the truth: for there is one God; and there is none other but he: -33. And to love him with all the heart, and with all the understanding, and with all the soul, and with all the strength, and to love his neighbour as himself, is more than all whole burnt offerings and sacrifices. -34. And when Jesus saw that he answered discreetly, he said unto him, Thou art not far from the kingdom of God. And no man after that durst ask him any question.

Another of Saul's excuses for disobedience was that he spared the best animals for sacrifice. Jesus makes it clear here that God is interested in obedience. Yes some sacrifice is good and acceptable with the Lord. But, it does not replace obedience. You may be one that is faithful to church attendance, various church related volunteer work, and a host of other works which is good, however, all your works are of no profit if you fail to be completely obedient to the Lord. There is no effort that will replace a genuine love for God. To love God is to obey his words. (John 14:21) He that hath my commandments, and keepeth them, he it is that loveth me: and he that loveth me shall be loved of my Father, and I will love him, and will manifest myself to him. (John 14:23) Jesus answered and said unto him, If a man love me, he will keep my words: and my Father will love him, and we will come unto him, and make our abode with him.

Ills.: 22. Misuse of Scripture: A man who was fond of having his own way at home made sure that he got it by constantly reminding his wife that the Bible said she was to obey her husband. He made this an excuse of passing off on her any tasks he found too distasteful for himself. She became a virtual slave to his comfort and that of his relatives. He conveniently overlooked the biblical admonition to husbands to give honour unto the wife, as unto the weaker vessel. His feeling was that God had made him lord and master in his own home and he was exploiting this prerogative to the fullest. We do not invoke Him and His Word to serve our own needs.

245. When I become sick, I go to a certain doctor because I have faith in him and in his ability to make me well. What is the goal of placing my faith in the doctor? - my getting well. But is that faith enough? No! I must also do all the things which the doctor asks me to do, take all the medicine, whether it is sweet or bitter. Just faith, abstract faith, will not reach the goal without my doing the things which the man in whom I place my faith asks me to do. As a result of that obedience I can reach the goal of my faith.

439. Obedience - Gateway to Knowledge: It is difficult to tell which is more important, the proclamation of the grace of God or submission to the Lord Jesus Christ, since the two are so interrelated. Anne Sullivan, who tutored young Helen Keller who was deaf, dumb, and blind, said, "I saw clearly that it was useless to try to teach her language or anything else until she learned to obey me. I have thought about it a great deal, and the more I think, the more certain I am that obedience is the gateway through which knowledge, yes and love, too, enter the mind of a child."

474. The Obedient Son: A distinguished French officer asked Washington's mother how she managed to rear such a splendid son. She replied, "I taught him to obey."

Examples of Obedience:

Noah - (Gen 6:22) Thus did Noah; according to all that God commanded him, so did he.

Abraham - (Gen 18:19) For I know him, that he will command his children and his household after him, and they shall keep the way of the LORD, to do justice and judgment; that the LORD may bring upon Abraham that which he hath spoken of him.

Joshua - (Josh 11:15) As the LORD commanded Moses his servant, so did Moses command Joshua, and so did Joshua; he left nothing undone of all that the LORD commanded Moses.

Hezekiah - (2 Ki 18:6) For he clave to the LORD, and departed not from following him, but kept his commandments, which the LORD commanded Moses.

Joseph & Mary - (Luke 2:39) And when they had performed all things according to the law of the Lord, they returned into Galilee, to their own city Nazareth.

Paul - (Acts 26:19) Whereupon, O king Agrippa, I was not disobedient unto the heavenly vision:

Christ - (Heb 5:8) Though he were a Son, yet learned he obedience by the things which he suffered;

Whole hearted obedience has been required by God from the beginning of time. It was disobedience that brought sin into our world and it is disobedience today that keep sin running rampant in our world. Somehow your flesh convinces you that you can cut corners on God and get by with it. Do you think that God was going to ignore what Adam & Eve did? Do you think that He is ignoring what you are doing? Just because you don't hear Him walking in the garden does not mean that He is ignoring you. He is walking in the midst of the church today and He does indeed call out your name. He is calling to every one that has eaten of the forbidden fruit, to repent. Don't let the Devil deceive you into thinking that you can get away with disobedience. Remember the sand fate of King Saul, the sorrowful young man, and teaching of our Lord. Take the obedient characters of the Bible as your examples of obedience. The benefits await you. Choose today to become an obedient child of God.