The Word of the Lord
I do not believe anyone can read the Bible and not see that God speaks to people. The Bible is God's revelation to us. It shows how He spoke directly to people in different ways, and it is His Word to us. Therefore, we have clear communication from the Lord to know His commands and His will for us. What we do with His commands is up to us. We can obey, or we can disobey. The prophet who came to Bethel to deliver God's Word to Jeroboam, king of Israel, had a specific command from the Lord to follow. At first, he obeyed the Lord.(I Kings 13:9,10) Then, he was swayed to disobey. It is a tragic story that repeats itself in our lives all of the time, unless we understand the importance of following the clear word of the Lord.
What does it take for you to decide to disobey the word of the Lord to you? It could be the flesh, and you do not feel like obeying what the Lord has told you. It could be a family member who sways you, or a friend. It could be peer pressure in general. You do not want to be different from the people around you. It could even be a false prophet who tells you that an angel told him or her something different than God told you, like what happened to this prophet in I Kings 13. Whatever it might be in your life at any particular time, it is always wrong to disobey the clear command of the Lord that comes to you in His spoken word or His written Word to you. He is Lord. We are the servants. We do not know what is right. He does, and He has kindly shown us. All we should do is simply obey and receive the blessings of living as He designed. That is the essence of life.
The prophet died in a way that was obviously God's punishment for all to see. We may suffer in more subtle ways, but they are just as devastating to our lives. We experience inner turmoil, instead of peace. We have broken relationships and all that failure brings into our lives. We only have partial happiness, instead of joy, real love, and God's peace. Can you see the results of not following the clear word of the Lord in your life and the lives of those around you? Think about it, and resolve to follow the commands of the Lord every time, even if someone tells you an angel said to disobey.
Tomorrow, I intend to read I Kings 15-17.
What does it take for you to decide to disobey the word of the Lord to you? It could be the flesh, and you do not feel like obeying what the Lord has told you. It could be a family member who sways you, or a friend. It could be peer pressure in general. You do not want to be different from the people around you. It could even be a false prophet who tells you that an angel told him or her something different than God told you, like what happened to this prophet in I Kings 13. Whatever it might be in your life at any particular time, it is always wrong to disobey the clear command of the Lord that comes to you in His spoken word or His written Word to you. He is Lord. We are the servants. We do not know what is right. He does, and He has kindly shown us. All we should do is simply obey and receive the blessings of living as He designed. That is the essence of life.
The prophet died in a way that was obviously God's punishment for all to see. We may suffer in more subtle ways, but they are just as devastating to our lives. We experience inner turmoil, instead of peace. We have broken relationships and all that failure brings into our lives. We only have partial happiness, instead of joy, real love, and God's peace. Can you see the results of not following the clear word of the Lord in your life and the lives of those around you? Think about it, and resolve to follow the commands of the Lord every time, even if someone tells you an angel said to disobey.
Tomorrow, I intend to read I Kings 15-17.