May 19, 2022
Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. (Matthew 7:21) ESV
This months’ Devotional Thoughts are going to concentrate on the attributes of a life living in obedience to Christ. Todays’ attribute is: Doing the Will of the Lord.
To obey is better than sacrifice. I recalled a story a Pastor incorporated in his message that solidified the statement that obeying God is better than sacrifice. Please bear with me as I recall the Pastor’s story as it was a while back that I heard it told. The story went something like this: In the early days, the church practiced indulgences. If a person would commit a sin: For instance, if a man had slept with his friend’s wife, stole from his employer, or become involved in a drunken fight, all he would do is confess his sins to the priest. The priest gave have a fine to pay, wrote a receipt, and proclaimed his sins are forgiven. Then it would happen next week again. The Pastor closed his story with these words: We cannot behave in this way because it makes a mockery of God!
I remember a coworker came to me not long ago very annoyed; he told me he attended a church where ministers told the people to pay them money for a ticket to heaven. I remember thinking how scripturally wrong this was. There is no shortcut to heaven. God requires obedience of us. The Bible tells us that the greatest commandment is to, “love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind, and with all your strength” (Mark 12:30). Needless to say, my coworker said he was not planning to attend that church ever again in the future. I should say not!
Friends, if we love somebody we are not purposefully going to disobey them, are we? We would not willfully hurt them. For instance, if we love our spouse we will be faithful to them. God challenges us with these words from (Mark 7:21), “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven.” God is not interested in our words; He is interested in what we do. We cannot just tell people that we love them, we have to show them by our actions. The greatest commandment in the Bible is that we must love the Lord your God. We show our love for God by walking in obedience to Him. Words are cheap, it is actions that count. Would you Pray with me?
Father in Heaven, You have spoken to my heart today. Please forgive me that so often I do not put You first in my life. Lord, I never want You to look at me and say that You do not know me! I want to spend my life doing Your Will and walk in obedience to You. Father, please help me to love all people with integrity and passion. Amen
God Bless and have a Blessed Day, Friends <><
Thoughts by Randall Stapleton is a Daily Devotion brought to you by The Bridge - Learn more at https://wearethebridge.org
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