"Don't you realize that you become the slave of whatever you choose to obey? You can be a slave to sin, which leads to death, or you can choose to obey God, which leads to righteous living" (Rom. 6:16, NLT).
"If they listen and obey God, they will be blessed with prosperity throughout their lives. All their years will be pleasant" (Job 36:11, NLT)
"This is what I told them: 'Obey me, and I will be your God, and you will be my people. Do everything as I say, and all will be well" (Jer. 7:23, NLT).
"Pay close attention to him, and obey his instructions. Do not rebel against him, for he is my representative, and he will not forgive your rebellion" (Ex. 23:21, NLT).
"... All this will happen if you carefully obey what the LORD your God says" (Zech. 6:15).
"It was by faith that Abraham obeyed when God called him to leave home..." (Heb. 11:8, NLT).
"The people said to Joshua, 'We will serve the LORD our God. We will obey him alone'" (Josh. 24:24, NLT).
NOTE: OBEDIENCE IS PARAMOUNT IN PLEASING GOD AND IS EQUATED WITH FAITH IN ACTION AS PROOF THAT THE FAITH IS GENUINE AND ALIVE.
The Holy Spirit is reserved uniquely and solely for the obedient believer (Acts 5:32, HCSB, "...and so is the Holy Spirit whom God has given to those who obey Him") , and who has obeyed the gospel (2 Thess. 1:8 says expressly: "in flaming fire bringing judgment on those who do not know God and on those who refuse to obey the Good News of our Lord Jesus"). Peter said that he must "obey God rather than any human authority" (Acts 5:29, NLT). He elaborated that "the Holy Spirit, who is given by God to those who obey him" is manifested for all to see by their witness. Samuel the prophet, scolded Saul, saying, "To obey is better than sacrifice" (cf. 1 Sam. 15:22). Jesus calls us friends if we do what He commands (are obedient); i.e., love the brethren and believe in Him! His yoke is easy, to follow on to know the Lord by seeking His will and living accordingly (Hosea 6:3, NLT, says: "Oh, that we might know the LORD! Let us press on to know him..."). Paul says in Romans 2:8 that the unbeliever is one who doesn't "obey the truth!"
Obedience and faith are correlated and juxtaposed in Hebrews as follows: "And to whom was God speaking when he took an oath that they would never enter his rest? Wasn't it the people who disobeyed him? So we see that because of their unbelief they were not able to enter his rest [there remains a Sabbath rest for the people of God]" (Heb. 3:18-19; John 3:36 NLT). There is no such thing as cheap grace (also known as easy-believism) that justifies the sin, not the sinner (we all tend to justify our pet sins and easily besetting ones). The only test of faith is obedience as Dietrich Bonhoeffer famously said, "Only he who believes is obedient; only he who is obedient believes!"
Some people measure their faith by their ecstasies or existential encounters or any kind of subjective feeling or experience; while the true measure of faith is obedience not feeling--many have feelings and don't follow through, or are just emotive or demonstrative, uninhibited types! Remember that our salvation is only for the obedient, and this means submission to the lordship of Christ. We must not only trust Him as our Savior but submit to Him as our personal Lord! Hebrews 5:9 (NLT) says, "...[H]e became the source of eternal salvation for all those who obey him."
There is no such thing as a carnal Christian who is getting away with a life of sin or even living in it, a true believer cannot continue in sin, but is chastised of the Lord when discipline is called for (cf. Rev. 3:19). Some believers learn by the school of hard knocks, the wise ones learn through the ministry of the Word, where they learn to attend to God's voice and hear the Spirit's message to them. Not obeying is a sign of rebellion, and God despises rebels! Rejecting the lordship and ownership of Christ over your life is rebellion and God will not countenance it, but judge it. Soli Deo Gloria!
"If they listen and obey God, they will be blessed with prosperity throughout their lives. All their years will be pleasant" (Job 36:11, NLT)
"This is what I told them: 'Obey me, and I will be your God, and you will be my people. Do everything as I say, and all will be well" (Jer. 7:23, NLT).
"Pay close attention to him, and obey his instructions. Do not rebel against him, for he is my representative, and he will not forgive your rebellion" (Ex. 23:21, NLT).
"... All this will happen if you carefully obey what the LORD your God says" (Zech. 6:15).
"It was by faith that Abraham obeyed when God called him to leave home..." (Heb. 11:8, NLT).
"The people said to Joshua, 'We will serve the LORD our God. We will obey him alone'" (Josh. 24:24, NLT).
NOTE: OBEDIENCE IS PARAMOUNT IN PLEASING GOD AND IS EQUATED WITH FAITH IN ACTION AS PROOF THAT THE FAITH IS GENUINE AND ALIVE.
The Holy Spirit is reserved uniquely and solely for the obedient believer (Acts 5:32, HCSB, "...and so is the Holy Spirit whom God has given to those who obey Him") , and who has obeyed the gospel (2 Thess. 1:8 says expressly: "in flaming fire bringing judgment on those who do not know God and on those who refuse to obey the Good News of our Lord Jesus"). Peter said that he must "obey God rather than any human authority" (Acts 5:29, NLT). He elaborated that "the Holy Spirit, who is given by God to those who obey him" is manifested for all to see by their witness. Samuel the prophet, scolded Saul, saying, "To obey is better than sacrifice" (cf. 1 Sam. 15:22). Jesus calls us friends if we do what He commands (are obedient); i.e., love the brethren and believe in Him! His yoke is easy, to follow on to know the Lord by seeking His will and living accordingly (Hosea 6:3, NLT, says: "Oh, that we might know the LORD! Let us press on to know him..."). Paul says in Romans 2:8 that the unbeliever is one who doesn't "obey the truth!"
Obedience and faith are correlated and juxtaposed in Hebrews as follows: "And to whom was God speaking when he took an oath that they would never enter his rest? Wasn't it the people who disobeyed him? So we see that because of their unbelief they were not able to enter his rest [there remains a Sabbath rest for the people of God]" (Heb. 3:18-19; John 3:36 NLT). There is no such thing as cheap grace (also known as easy-believism) that justifies the sin, not the sinner (we all tend to justify our pet sins and easily besetting ones). The only test of faith is obedience as Dietrich Bonhoeffer famously said, "Only he who believes is obedient; only he who is obedient believes!"
Some people measure their faith by their ecstasies or existential encounters or any kind of subjective feeling or experience; while the true measure of faith is obedience not feeling--many have feelings and don't follow through, or are just emotive or demonstrative, uninhibited types! Remember that our salvation is only for the obedient, and this means submission to the lordship of Christ. We must not only trust Him as our Savior but submit to Him as our personal Lord! Hebrews 5:9 (NLT) says, "...[H]e became the source of eternal salvation for all those who obey him."
There is no such thing as a carnal Christian who is getting away with a life of sin or even living in it, a true believer cannot continue in sin, but is chastised of the Lord when discipline is called for (cf. Rev. 3:19). Some believers learn by the school of hard knocks, the wise ones learn through the ministry of the Word, where they learn to attend to God's voice and hear the Spirit's message to them. Not obeying is a sign of rebellion, and God despises rebels! Rejecting the lordship and ownership of Christ over your life is rebellion and God will not countenance it, but judge it. Soli Deo Gloria!
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