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Obedience to God
In this article we will consider the topic of obedience. To start with, we will go to Romans 6:15-18. There we read:

Romans 6:15-18 "What then? Shall we sin because we are not under law but under grace? Certainly not! Do you not know that to whom you present yourselves slaves to obey, you are that one's slaves whom you obey, whether of sin leading to death, or of obedience leading to righteousness? But God be thanked that though you were slaves of sin, yet you obeyed from the heart that form of doctrine to which you were delivered. And having been set free from sin you became slaves of righteousness."

According to this passage, one is the servant of the one he obeys, with two possibilities available: either, by obeying sin, he will be a servant of sin, or, by obeying from the heart God and His doctrine, he will be a servant of righteousness. In other words, it is impossible for one to truly serve God if his heart does not obey Him. It really doesn't matter how active we may be in religious activities. What matters is how OBEDIENT we are to Him, for it is our obedience and the one we obey that determines the one we serve in reality. As James 4:7-8 tells us:

James 4:7-8 "Therefore SUBMIT TO GOD. Resist the devil and he will flee from you. Draw near to God and He will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners; and purify your hearts, you double-minded" Page 1 of 12

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We need to draw near to God, so that He draws near to us. We cannot serve Him from distance, without knowing Him. We can serve only the one we obey and to whom we subject ourselves. As it says in Philippians 2:5-11:

Philippians 2:5-11 "Let this mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus, who, being in the form of God, did not consider it robbery to be equal with God, but made himself of no reputation, taking the form of a bondservant, and coming in the likeness of men. And being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself and BECAME OBEDIENT TO THE POINT OF DEATH, EVEN THE DEATH OF THE CROSS. Therefore God also has highly exalted him, and given him a name which is above every name: That at the name of Jesus every knee should bow of those in heaven, and of those on earth, and of those under the earth; and that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father."

The same mind that was in Christ Jesus should also be in us. What was this mind? IT WAS THE MIND OF OBEDIENCE TO GOD, THE MIND THAT, OBEYING GOD, DIDN'T DENY EVEN THE DEATH OF THE CROSS. It was the mind of the garden of Gethsemane:

Matthew 26:36-39, 42 "Then Jesus came with them to a place called Gethsemane, and said to the disciples, "Sit here while I go and pray over there." And he took with him Peter and the two sons of Zebedee, and he began to be sorrowful and deeply distressed. Then he said to them, "My soul is exceedingly sorrowful, even to death. Stay here and watch with me." He went a little farther and fell on his Page 2 of 12

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face, and prayed saying, "O my Father, if it is possible, let this cup pass from me; nevertheless, not as I will, but as you will.......Again, a second time, he went away and prayed, saying, "O My Father, if this cup cannot pass away from me unless I drink it, Your will be done."

The mind of Jesus Christ, the mind of obedience to God, was "NOT AS I WILL, BUT AS YOU WILL". This is the mind that the Word of God tells us to have. Not as we will, but as God wills. It is easy to be obedient when everything is going our way. When God gives us what our heart desires, we receive it with great gladness. However, what do we do when this does not happen? How do we react when the plans of the Lord seem to divert from our own plans? Here is the difference between the obedient and the disobedient: in happiness, both they will react the same. It is not happiness that causes the people of the second category of the parable of the good sower to fall. In contrast, as Jesus said, "they receive the Word WITH JOY" (Luke 8:13). Yet, this doesn't last. In the first tribulation, they fall away (Matthew 13:21, Luke 8:13). When a choice of the Lord is not what he would like, the disobedient will run away, while the obedient will stay, saying: "if it is possible ........ nevertheless, not as I will but as you will".

Obedience to God is better than sacrifice

In 1 Samuel there is a well known story: the story of Saul's rise and fall in the kingdom of Israel. Saul was appointed by God to be the first king of Israel. In the beginning, he was humble. In fact, in the day of his proclamation as a king he was hiding from the people (1 Samuel 10:22)! However, his humility didn't last much. Soon it was turned to pride and, under the leading of the people, Page 3 of 12

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haste for action instead of submission to the leading of the Lord. In I Samuel 13 we see his first rebellion: Saul and the people waited for Samuel to come for the sacrifice, while the Philistines were ready for fight in the other side. Yet, Samuel was late. Seeing this, Saul did what he was not allowed to do: he offered the sacrifice himself. The obedient waits for God and keeps His commandments, whatever the cost may be. On the other hand, the disobedient is obedient as long as the things are going OK. Nevertheless, when the status changes, then he takes the things in his own hands. He thinks that he waited much and at the end of the day he has to do something. Samuel came exactly when Saul had finished with the sacrifice. However, he didn't bring him good news.

I Samuel 13:13-14 "And Samuel said to Saul, You have done foolishly: YOU HAVE not kept the commandment of the LORD YOUR God, Which he commanded YOU: For now the Lord would have established your kingdom over Israel forever. But now your kingdom shall not continue. The Lord has sought for himself a man after his own heart, and the Lord has commanded him to be commander over his people, because YOU have not kept What the Lord commanded you."

This probably was Saul's critical test. If he passed it, if he obeyed the Lord and his commandment, his kingdom would be established. If he didn't obey, his kingdom would be lost. As Samuel told him: "for NOW the Lord would have established your kingdom over Israel forever. But NOW your kingdom shall not continue". Obviously, Saul didn't pass the test of obedience to God. When he saw that Samuel was not coming, he abandoned the commandment of the Lord to do his own thing. Page 4 of 12

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Later we see him repeating the same sin. In 1 Samuel 15:1-3 we read:

1 Samuel 15:1-3 "Samuel also said to Saul, "The Lord sent me to anoint you king over his people, over Israel. Now therefore heed the voice of the words of the Lord. Thus says the Lord of hosts: I will punish Amalek for what he did to Israel, how he ambushed him on the way when he came up from Egypt. Now go and attack Amalek, and utterly destroy all that they have, and do not spare them. But kill both man and woman, infant and nursing child, ox and ship, camel and donkey."

Saul was commanded by the Lord to utterly destroy Amalek. Verses 7-9 tell us what he finally did:

I Samuel 15:7-9 "And Saul attacked the Amalekites, from Havilah all the way to Shur, which is east of Egypt. He also took Agag king of the Amalekites alive, and utterly destroyed all the people with the edge of the sword. But Saul and the people spared Agag and the best of the sheep, the oxen, the fatlings, the lambs, and all that was good, and were unwilling to utterly destroy them. But everything despised and worthless, that they utterly destroyed. "

Despite the fact that Saul had very clear heard from the Lord that he was to utterly destroy Amalek, he didn't perform His commandment, or more accurately, he performed it only to the extent that he and the people LIKED it. Thus they destroyed what they were WILLING to destroy, keeping safe what THEY WERE UNWILLING TO DESTROY. However, this is not obedience. Page 5 of 12

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Obedience to God does not mean that you do His will partially, only to the degree that you like it. Instead, it is to do what God has commanded you to do fully and exactly. As Jeremiah 47:10 tells us:

Jeremiah 48:10 "Cursed is he that does the work of the Lord negligently"

Obedience is to do what God has commanded you to do either through His written Word or, as it was the case with Saul, by revelation. To the degree that we do something that God hasn't said, we are disobedient, even if what we do is done in the name of the Lord. The Lord does not want us busy workers doing our own thing for Him. Instead, He wants us OBEDIENT workers, working EXACTLY what He has commanded us. Saul and his people did the work of the Lord negligently. According to Saul, they didn't have bad intentions. As he said later: "But the people took of the plunder, sheep and oxen, the best of the things which should have been utterly destroyed, to sacrifice to the Lord your God in Gilgal" (1 Samuel 15:21). The people wanted to sacrifice, YET THEY DIDN'T WANT TO OBEY. As Samuel said:

I Samuel 15:22-23 "So Samuel said "Has the Lord as great delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices AS IN OBEYING THE VOICE OF THE LORD? BEHOLD TO OBEY IS BETTER THAN SACRIFICE, AND TO HEED THAN THE FAT OF RAMS. FOR REBELLION IS AS THE SIN OF WITCHCRAFT, AND STUBBORNNESS IS AS INIQUITY AND IDOLATRY. Because you have rejected the word of the Lord, He also has rejected you from being a king."

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It doesn't matter how many sacrifices you do for the Lord. What matters is how OBEDIENT you are to Him. Acceptable sacrifices are only the sacrifices that the Lord has commanded. Genuine service can only be the SERVICE THAT THE LORD HAS ORDAINED. Everything else, even if it is done in His name, is disobedience, actions directed by the old nature. As Jesus Christ said:

John 7:16-18 "Jesus answered them, and said, My doctrine is not mine, but His who sent me. If any one wills to do His will, he shall know concerning the doctrine, whether it is from God, or whether I speak of myself. He WHO speaks of himself seeks his own glory: but he that seeks the glory of the one who sent him, the same is true, and no unrighteousness is in him."

Saul was seeking to please men. He cared more for them and their opinion than for God and His opinion. When later he admitted his sin, what he was afraid of losing was not his relationship with God but his honor by the people: "Then he [Saul] said, "I have sinned; yet honor me now, please, before the elders of my people and before Israel, and return with me.." David, Saul's successor, also committed adultery and then murder. However, when Nathan confronted him (2 Samuel 12:1-14), what he was concerned for, was not his throne but his relationship with the Lord (Psalms 51). That's why David, seeking restoration of his relationship with the Lord, was forgiven, while Saul seeking restoration on the throne, was rejected.

2. The example of Abraham Page 7 of 12

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In the very opposite of Saul's example stands another example, the example of Abraham. We all probably know the story of Abraham and Isaac. Isaac was the only son Abraham had from Sarah. He was also the son that God had promised him and for whom he waited for many years. However, one day Abraham was commanded by God to sacrifice Isaac:

Genesis 22:1-2 "Now it came to pass after these things that God tested Abraham, and said to him, "Abraham!" And he said, "Here I am." Then He said, "Take now your son, your only son Isaac, whom you love, and go to the land of Moriah, and offer him there as a burnt offering on one of the mountains of which I shall tell you."

God knew very well how much Abraham loved Isaac. He knew that he was "his only son that he loved". In any case, it was God that gave Isaac to him. However, did Abraham love Isaac, God's blessing, more than God Himself? Having to choose between the two, what would he really choose? Would he submit himself to God even if this implied a great personal cost or as Saul he would rebel doing his own thing? Turning the question to us: Do we really follow God because we want to know Him and have fellowship with Him, or we follow Him only for His blessings, for the "Isaacs" He gave us, or we expect Him to give us? Really, what would we do, if as in the case of Abraham we were called to put on the altar the greatest blessing that God gave us or we expect Him to give us, whatever this may be? Would we really do it? Though there are uncountable blessings in the Lord, of course these are not to be the focus of our relationship with Him. Instead, the focus should be to know intimately HIM, AND HIS WONDERFUL SON, THE LORD JESUS CHRIST. As Paul said: Page 8 of 12

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Philippians 3:8-15 "Yet indeed I also count all things loss for the excellence of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord: for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and count them as rubbish that I may gain Christ.......That I may know him, and the power of his resurrection, and the fellowship of his sufferings , being conformed to his death; If by any means I may attain to the resurrection from the dead."

ALL, even the biggest blessing in this world is but rubbish in comparison to the EXCELLENCE of the knowledge of Jesus Christ our Lord. Returning to Abraham, let's see what he finally did:

Genesis 22:3-10 "So Abraham rose early in the morning and saddled his donkey, and took two of his young men with him, and Isaac his son; and he split the wood for the burnt offering, and arose and went to the place of which God had told him. Then on the third day Abraham lifted his eyes and saw the place afar off. And Abraham said to his young men, "Stay here with the donkey; the lad and I will go yonder and worship and we will come back to you." So Abraham took the wood of the burnt offering and laid it on Isaac his son; and he took the fire in his hand, and a knife, and the two of them went together. But Isaac spoke to Abraham his father and said, "My father!" And he said, "Here I am, my son." Then he said, "Look, the fire and the wood, but where is the lamb for a burnt offering?" And Abraham said, "My son, God will provide for Himself the lamb for a burnt offering." So the two of them went together. Then they came to the place of which God had told him. And Abraham built and altar there and placed Page 9 of 12

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the wood in order; and he bound Isaac his son and laid him on the altar, upon the wood. And Abraham stretched out his hand and took the knife to slay his son."

Abraham followed exactly what the Lord had told him. It was certainly not the most pleasant thing in his life. He, as well as the other men of the Bible, were not robots that did the will of God mechanically. Instead, they were like us, free will beings that by their own will chose to submit themselves to the Lord. Their obedience was not robotic but "FROM THE HEART". This is the only obedience that the Word of God speaks about. God didn't want robots, ice men that would mechanically do what He says, putting no heart in it. Instead He wanted people that WOULD LOVE HIM WITH ALL THEIR HEART, SOUL, MIND AND STRENGTH (Mark 12:30). He wanted free will beings, that would decide "FROM THE HEART" to subject themselves to Him. Returning to Abraham, he followed the Word of God despite the fact that it seemed to imply the loss of his own son. Then, when he reached at the critical point, the Lord interfered:

Genesis 22: 11-12, 15-18 "But the angel of the Lord called to him from heaven and said, "Abraham, Abraham!" So he said, "Here I am." And he said, "Do not lay your hand on the lad, or do anything to him; for now I know that you fear God, since you have not withheld you son, your only son, from Me."......... Then the angel of the Lord called to Abraham a second time out of heaven, and said: "By Myself I have sworn, says the Lord, because you have done this thing, and have not withheld your son, your only son - blessing I will bless you, and multiplying I will multiply your seed as the stars of the heaven, and as the sand which is on Page 10 of 12

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the seashore; and your seed shall possess the gate of his enemies; And in your seed all the nations of the earth shall be blessed; BECAUSE YOU HAVE OBEYED MY VOICE."

The purpose of the test was to prove whether Abraham would obey God, even if this implied the sacrifice of his blessing. Both Saul and Abraham were blessed by God. The former was made the first king of Israel. The latter had the promise that in his seed all the nations would be blessed. However, there was a great difference between them. Their difference was that the former was after the blessings and their defense. This in turn led him to disobedience and fall. On the other hand, the latter was after the Blesser, taking at the end back his son, together with the confirmation of the blessings for him and his seed.

3. Conclusion

We examined in the above the topic of obedience to God. Though the examination was by no means exhaustive, I hope it made clear the importance of the matter. As it says in Micah 6:6-8:

Micah 6:6-8 "With what shall I come before the Lord, and bow myself before the High God? Shall I come before Him with burnt offerings, with calves a year old? Will the Lord be pleased with thousands of rams? Ten thousand rivers of oil? Shall I give my firstborn for my transgression? The fruit of my body for the sin of my soul? HE HAS SHOWN YOU, O MAN, WHAT IS GOOD; AND WHAT DOES THE LORD REQUIRE OF YOU BUT TO DO JUSTLY, TO LOVE MERCY, AND TO WALK HUMBLY WITH YOUR GOD?" Page 11 of 12

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All that God wants from us is to do justly, to love mercy and to walk humbly with Him. To humble ourselves under His mighty hand so that He may exalt us in due time (I Peter 5:6). Disobedience, either in the form of doing what the Lord has not said or not doing what the Lord has said, is action separately from God. It doesn't matter what we do, or the intentions we may have. What matters is whether what is done comes out of obedience to God, as the sacrifice of Abraham, or of disobedience, as the sacrifice that Saul said he intended to do.

Tassos Kioulachoglou

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