The Effects of Disobedience

I wanted to post this right away after my previous post, but time got away from me. When I was studying this, it was all together, but I split it into 2 parts so that the post wouldn't be too long. So here's the rest of my thoughts from a week ago:


If you look back at the previous post, you'll remember that I was thinking through what holds us back from the kind of victory that the Israelites experienced in Joshua 6. It boils down to a lack of obedience to God, for many reasons. But no matter what is at the root, the effect of it is that we are not moved to act on the things God requests or requires of us.


The result of all of this is mind-blowing to me. It's amazing to me to realize what we are willing to give up in exchange for having our own way / doing our own thing. Thinking through this, I envisioned a literal what-if situation where the Israelites chose NOT to do what God asked of them. Had they not obeyed, they would have remained on the outer edge of Jericho, on the outside looking in, unable to overcome their circumstances, and unable to take hold of all that God had promised to them. What's more, if they did not move forward to the place that God had called them to, then their enemy would remain wholly unaffected by their presence, and they (the Israelites) would, by default, either sit idly by, or wander into the wilderness to a place they were not supposed to be.


The same is true for us. When we are disobedient, we remain on the outskirts of God's will. We never really tap into God's power to move in a situation and to alter circumstances. If we do not do our part, He cannot - or will not - do His. If we do not trust Him, and have faith enough to act on account of His Word, He will not move on our behalf. He is not moved by a lack of faith. Only faith brings about the reward of God's presence and power working in and through our lives. When we fail to act on His Word, we are failing to demonstrate faith in Him.

But without faith it is impossible to please and be satisfactory to Him...
(Hebrews 11:6)

If God doesn't pour out His presence and power on our circumstances, then our circumstances remain unchanged. Without God we are powerless to crumble walls and tear down strongholds. No amount of effort on our part will allow us to accomplish something that only He is capable of doing.

If our circumstances remain unchanged, then our enemy remains unaffected by our presence. The people of Jericho wouldn't have cared if the Israelites sat outside until the end of time, as long as they weren't being bothered. The same is true for our enemy. As long as we are not invading his territory or shaking his walls, he doesn't care whether or not we are sitting right outside. Unless we are in the will of God, being obedient to all that He asks and requires of us, we are not in a position to upset our enemy.

When we live lives of disobedience, we live lives without purpose. If we are not in the will of God, following where He leads, and going where He has asked us to go, then we are doing one of two things. Either we are sitting still, being idle and doing nothing, or we are moving in the wrong direction, headed to places we were not intended to be. Neither is good. Both lack purpose, and both have the potential to create disastrous complications and troubles in our lives. I do not want to live a life without purpose, and I surely do not want to complicate my life with trouble that I could have, and should have, avoided.

Ultimately, though, without obedience, there is no victory. As Christians, it seems we really like to focus in on the verses in the Bible that talk about being more than conquerors, victors, kings in life, the vast blessings of God. But we miss the notion that in front of many of His promises, He says, 'If' or 'For whosoever will.' The promises are available...IF. If we are willing to submit to His guidance. If we are willing to obey Him. If we are willing to dedicate our lives to knowing and loving and serving Him only. IF. If we are not living in obedience and submission to God's will and plan, then we are not in line with the ONE plan that will work to bring about victory in our lives. Victory comes through obedience.

So back to the original question...what holds us back? What keeps us from impacting our communities and our culture for God? What prevents us from breaking through in circumstances where our friends and neighbors are outside of the kingdom? When they need healing? When they need hope? What keeps us from making a difference in their lives? What holds us back from experiencing victory and peace in our own lives?

Is it indifference to others' circumstances? If we were truly being obedient to the Word of God, spending time in His presence, abiding in Him, reading and meditating on His Word, and LOVING one another, HOW could indifference even be a possibility?

Is it selfishness that holds us back? Pride? Insecurity? Lack of Faith? Lack of reverence? All of these things are erased as we let go of them and surrender to Him. Spending time in His presence in prayer and in reading the Bible has the power to transform our lives, replacing pride with humility, selfishness with generosity, insecurity with a firm foundation, and irreverence with a deeper awe and appreciation for all that He is. If we are being obedient to Him at the most basic level - giving Him our time, our attention, and ultimately our hearts - then the other things that hold us back will begin to fade away. As we take the time to get to know Him and to fall in love with Him, we are left with the ability to do nothing BUT be obedient. It becomes our very nature because He becomes a part of us. We obey Him because we love Him. We obey Him because He has become such a part of who we are that we can do nothing else.

Jesus answered, If a person really loves Me, he will keep My word [obey My teaching]; and My Father will love him, and We will come to him and make Our home with him. (John 14:23)

So maybe the real problem is that we, the Church, need to take time to fall in love with Him. Maybe we've gotten so caught up in doing church that we've lost sight of the One thing that matters most. Maybe we need to seek HIM, not His STUFF. Not the victory. Not the blessings. Not the healing and miracle-working power. Those things are great, and I believe they are a vital part of His plan. But Jesus makes it very simple and clear when He says 'Seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness (His way of doing and being right), and all these things will be given to you besides.' (Matthew 6:33) When we put first things first, we get right results. We get peace. We get joy. We get victory, power, and blessings that we could not imagine. But our motive must always be to know Him more, and to serve Him and obey Him out of a heart of love for Him. Nothing else will do.

What holds us back?

This study was prompted by a question that Pastor Mark asked in service yesterday - 'What holds us back?' (Click here to listen - then click on Leveled to Reach)

Joshua 6 describes a tribe of people (the Israelites), lead by Joshua, a God-fearing man. The people were collectively obedient to God, and were therefore victorious over their enemy, even in seemingly impossible circumstances. Their task at hand was to overtake the city of Jericho. Jericho, however, was tightly closed up, and had high walls around it, making it nearly impossible to gain entrance. God gave Joshua specific instructions for conquering the city of Jericho - march around the city one time each day for six days. On the seventh day, march around seven times, blow your horns and shout. The people followed their leader, trusting in him and trusting in God. Because they were obedient, they were victorious.

Today we, as the collective church, find ourselves every day facing seemingly insurmountable circumstances. One easy example would be a friend, neighbor, or family member who does not know God and who seems completely closed off to the idea. If we have the same God today that Joshua had the day he lead the Israelites in the destruction of Jericho, then why are we not victorious? What holds us back? What is different between the Israelites in Joshua 6 and the church of 2008?

1. We do not move and work together in one accord. We tend to sort of do our own thing, want to be our own boss, go with what interests us. We can't even agree on a church service - some think the music is too loud, too fast, too slow, to contemporary, to traditional. We get so hung up on our own interests and our own ways, that we become rigid to the idea of melting together as a united body to accomplish a common goal.
2. We are not obedient. This is a major issue. I believe there are several root causes to this - see #3, 4, 5 & 6.
3. Our PRIDE, INSECURITIES, and LACK of FAITH keep us from being willing to obey God. Maybe we're not sure of the outcome. Maybe His instructions don't make sense to us. Maybe we think there's a better, more logical, easier way to accomplish the same thing. Maybe we're afraid to step out and try because we fear we might fail. Maybe we fear God will not come through for us. Maybe we might feel silly doing what God has asked of us. Maybe it's out of our comfort zone, and we are afraid of what others might think. I'm sure all of this was true to some extent for the Israelites. It is reasonable to imagine they might have felt silly walking around in parade-like fashion for seven days in a row. It's reasonable to imagine they might have thought the people of Jericho would be watching and laughing as they did the same thing over and over with no effect. It's reasonable to think that this plan didn't make a lot of sense to many, that they might have envisioned another way to go about their task. Still, they did what was asked of them. They obeyed God.
4. We don't have the endurance to wait for God's timing. We are an instant-gratification society. We want results fast. If we don't get the results we want when we want them, we deem the project a waist of time and we move on to something else. Sometimes we need to wait on God. We need to be willing to do what He has asked, simply because He has asked it of us, and we need to be willing to do it until He says stop...no matter how many times that is. I can imagine the first day of marching, the plan was okay. Maybe even the second. But by the third day, it's reasonable to assume that there was room for questioning. Why do we have to do this day after day? Why can't God work in three days instead of seven? Is this really going to work? What happens on the seventh day if nothing happens? Still, day after day, they were obedient. Day after day they marched, not making a sound, not saying a word.
5. We are indifferent to the fights that need to be fought today. We have a tendency to snuggle in to our own little world - our happy place where our family is fine, our house is fine, our finances are fine, and our church attendance is fine. We are fine. We can find a lot to do to keep ourselves occupied, and to give us something to focus on besides what God is focused on - the lost. We can get so wrapped up in our own lives, that we get blinders to what exists beyond us. We don't see the lost. If we see them, we don't care. We don't care that they are hurting now. We don't care that they are destined for an eternity apart from God and all that is good. The root of our indifference is selfishness. There is no other excuse.
6. We, as the collective church, do not have a proper reverential fear of God. We do not hold Him in a place of awe and wonder. We do not see Him for all that He is and all He deserves. We do not fear displeasing Him. We do not place any real value on pleasing Him through our worship and obedience. We do not truly respect and appreciate His ability, authority, power, and desire to carry out His will. We are not humbled in our spirits by the simple fact that He chooses to work through us to accomplish His will. If we revered Him as we ought to, we would obey Him. We would do so because we love Him; because He is worthy; because He is good; because He has all authority in heaven and on earth; because He is God. We would recognize the value of pleasing Him, and the danger of displeasing Him. Simply stated, we have let go of a right reverential fear of Him.

Thoughts on an Excellent Life

I want to share something with you that keeps coming up with me lately. It keeps coming up in prayer time, both concerning myself and the church as a whole, and I am continually reminded of it in opportunities to serve, to give, to bless others, and even to do mundane daily tasks. It is the concept of excellence in serving God.

A few years ago I first heard a teaching about the relationship that God has established between Himself and us. Since then, my understanding of this relationship continues to grow and develop. I have heard several such teachings since then, and it seems like I find myself thinking about this a lot.

So here's the gist of the foundation of what I'm getting at:

Yes, God is a sovereign God. Yes, He is capable of all things, and with Him nothing is impossible. BUT.... He has set up His master plan - His plan A, with no plan B - so that He works with us and through us. He needs us to do our part so that He can do His. And often, He will not do our part for us. We must do our part so that He can do His.

Like I said, lately I've been thinking about this a lot. The foundation of our relationship with God, and of all that we are to accomplish here on earth, is that we have a part to play in order for God's will and plan to be carried out. How good is my foundation? Is it solid and whole, strong and sturdy? Or is it cracked and crumbling, uneven and shaky? In building a house, the quality of a foundation determines the quality of the structure that can be built on that foundation. The same principal applies to our acts of service to God.

I have been challenged in almost every area of my life over the past few months. Am I serving with excellence? Giving with excellence? Doing daily tasks with excellence? How is my attitude? What about my follow-through? My willingness to do something unto God alone, something that will go wholly unnoticed by man? How do I treat people? How is my heart condition and the quality of attention given to God in my prayer time? Am I doing just enough, meeting the requirements and checking tasks off of my to-do list? Or am I living out a life of worship, a life that pours all of me into everything, so that I might please Him? Am I giving Him something good to work with? Or am I giving Him mid-grade, middle-of-the-road, plain and average offerings of service, worship, prayer, giving, etc.?

As I've examined areas of my life against this standard of excellence, I have been convicted by the Holy Spirit to take responsibility for every thing that I do and say. I have been challenged to increase my level of excellence in areas where I was taking a just-get-by approach. I do this not because my works earn me something from God, but because the quality of my offering means something to God. And because when I am giving my everything to Him, in the best way I can, then the part He has given me to do is done to the fullest, which gives Him a quality foundation to build on.

Let me tell you what He has done.

Sometimes just hearing something that God is doing or has done in some one's life is all it takes to stir me up and get me over-the-top excited about the God we serve. So, I have such a story to share. It is a little thing, really. But it was very cool, and unmistakably God.

This past Sunday, our church hosted a car show for the community. There were tons of cars, kids games, fire truck rides, a burn-out competition, free snow cones, a DJ and a band, and food! I had offered to help with the car show, and so my job was manning payment for the food. As I sat there, from about 11:30 until almost 3:00, taking people's food tickets and money, I had the opportunity to talk to almost everyone who was there that day, since most of them were hungry at some point (and since most of them were eating for free...who's gonna pass up free food?!).

As the day wore on, the traffic to the food line got slower and slower. Eventually, the fire truck rides started up, and the pick-up and drop-off spot happened to be only about 10 yards away from me. At some point in the afternoon, a mom, who I had noticed a few times throughout the day, and who I had spoken with briefly as she went through the food line, put her two girls on the fire truck, and sat down in a chair very close to where I was sitting. So, I started a conversation, asking about her day, her girls, and so on. We talked for quite a while (as the fire truck rides were about 10 minutes long). The longer we talked, the more I could sense her relaxing and letting her guard down a bit. I could tell that, all in all, she felt a little uncomfortable with her surroundings that day, and it was a bit too much for her to take in. But in our ten minutes of conversation, she seemed to forget it all and relax.

The fire truck returned. The kids got off. And my new friend Brooke walked off. That was the end of that really. I didn't see her again for the rest of the day. I didn't think much of it. I was busy with other things going on and with talking to other people.

At about 3:30 - almost an hour and a half after I had spoken with Brooke - I decided to head for home. It had been a long day, and I was just thinking of getting home and relaxing. As I walked through the field on my way to the truck, I was stopped in my tracks by an instant - I mean ALL OF A SUDDEN, out of nowhere - image in my mind. In that moment, I realized I had met Brooke before - about eight months ago. I saw her clearly in my mind, standing outside in the freezing cold winter weather, just as I had seen her when we first met.

Last December, I was going to a friend's apartment to drop something off. As I drove up to her building, I noticed a young mother outside with a few small children. For a moment, my eyes met hers, and I felt flooded with what she was feeling - love for her kids, and immense loneliness and sadness. I admired her for taking the time to be outside with them on such a cold and windy winter day. And I thought how lucky those little girls were to have a mom that would take the time for them the way she was. Then I tried to go on about my business, when God stepped in on me. He put it on my heart to do something for her so that she would know that He loves her and that He sees her. As I left my friend's house, I tried for a moment to ignore it - I was busy and in a hurry and really didn't have time to do what He was asking me to do. But I knew in my heart that He was reaching out to her, and if He was willing to use me to do that, then I must be willing to be used.

So, I went down the road to McDonald's and bought a gift card. Then I drove back to my friend's apartment, stopping before I got to her building. I was relieved, and also a little nervous, to see that the mother was still outside. I stopped my van, and rolled the window down. Nope. It's best to get out, I decided. So I got out, and approached her. I kept my distance, knowing that she would very likely be wondering what on earth I was doing. I held the card out to her, and briefly explained that God had put it on my heart to do this for her so that she could take her kids somewhere fun for lunch. She took the card and thanked me. I could hear a little disbelief in her voice, and gratitude. And I could see tears beginning to build in her eyes. I wished her a wonderful day, got in my van and drove off.

Several times since then, I've pulled into my friend's apartment building, and have wondered if that mom and her kids still lived there. I haven't seen them again since then. Until Sunday.

I thought about this after it happened, and I wondered if I could have counted this second meeting as a coincidence. Maybe, if I had realized it on my own. Maybe if I would have made the connection while we were sitting there talking. But on my own, I had NO idea. On my own, I would never have made that connection. I might not have really even given her much more of a thought, seeing as I spoke with so many people that day. On my own, I'm sure my mind would have blended her in with the rest of the crowd. But I was not left on my own. God had something else in mind. And I am certain that he brought us together again for His own will and purpose. And the coolest thing about it was that He kept it to Himself until it was all said and done, so that I could not write it off as coincidence or take any of the credit for it. But it was awesome the way He revealed it to me...more of a reminder to me that He is always working... a reminder that He accomplishes His plan through US - through those who are willing to be used by Him - and He uses us in very ordinary ways to do what will some day prove to be very extraordinary things in and for His kingdom. I am amazed by His ways.