MORNING MANNA 8-16-21
FOLLOWING JESUS
“And why call ye me, Lord, Lord, and do not the things which I say?” – Luke 6:46
If every person who talks about following Jesus and claims to be following Jesus were actually doing so, our world would be a very different place. Instead, a vast number of people pick and choose from a few isolated things that Jesus said or take their own interpretation of what Jesus said and do that. God’s pattern is different. He commands obedience in all things. In His last conversation with the disciples before His crucifixion, Jesus said, “Ye are my friends, if ye do whatsoever I command you” (John 15:14).
It is said that on one occasion, a French army officer asked George Washington’s mother what she had done to rear her son into such a fine man. Mrs. Washington replied, “I taught him to obey.” There are many different aspects and duties of the Christian life, but all of them boil down to obedience. Only when we do what God says can we legitimately claim to be following Him. All of our declarations of love and submission can never substitute for the actual obedience Christ commands.
In Roman times, a ruler had absolute authority over his subjects and their lives. At a whim he could order people to be moved from one place to another. He even had the power of life and death, by executing anyone who displeased him. While God is not a capricious tyrant, He does have supreme authority. It is a contradiction to claim that He is Lord while at the same time disobeying what He says for us to do. If He is Lord (and He is) then He must be obeyed. We do not get to decide how we should live and what we should do because our lives do not belong to us.There is nothing that can take the place of our submissive obedience to the Lord’s commands. (Copied)
David Stone
Lakeway Baptist Church
5801 FM 1960 E
Humble, TX. 77346
