Monday, January 20, 2014

Obedience is Better than Sacrifice


 "...The Lord has anointed you..." 1 Samuel 10:1. 
Saul was tall, handsome, charismatic and 
anointed by God to lead his chosen people. 
He began well but ended by committing suicide. 
Obviously it is not enough to be chosen by God, 
to be given His Spirit, His seal of approval. 
What went wrong?

First Saul was impatient, 
he did not wait for God to tell him 
what to do through His prophet Samuel. 
Then he blamed others for his mistakes, 
not learning from them. 
Then he became arrogant, 
acting as if he did not need God. 
Finally he blatantly disobeyed God's commands. 
So I have to watch out for my impatience, 
even the little ones, 
like when I am unkind to telemarketers 
who bother me when I am busy, 
or to sales people who take 
too long doing their job, 
or with people who do not understand my instructions. 
Unkindness, impatience are little things 
but lead to bigger things like arrogance, 
rebellion and disobedience,
 that bring us farther and farther away from God! 
That's what I've learned from poor Saul 
who was so blessed when he was young! 

"Obedience is better than sacrifice."
1 Samuel 15:22
Samuel the prophet told this to Saul
after Saul blatantly disobeyed God's order
to destroy ALL of the Amalekites.
But Saul kept the best of the sheep and oxen,
to sacrifice to God.

  
Sometimes we may have good intentions,
but if we do not take the time to  read
God's letter to us, the Bible,
if we don't take time to pray
and to listen to Him,
how can we obey?

"...God..who has blessed us in Christ 
with every spiritual blessing in the heavens...
chose us in Him, before the foundation of the world...
 I pray that he will give light to the eyes of your hearts, 
so that you will understand 
the hope to which he has called you,
 what rich glories there are in the 
inheritance he has promised his people..." Ephesians 1:3,18

This passage is especially meaningful to me today,
 as yesterday a good and faithful brother, 
the son of dear friends, passed away. 
 Hanzel Sarceda was so young,
 so full of promise, so eager to serve God 
and his younger brothers and sisters.... 
Why Lord? Why take Him away from us 
at the prime of his life? 
Why take him away from his parents who spent 
the whole of their lives serving you? 
It does not make sense!
But if we see through the eyes of our hearts, 
if the Holy Spirit illumines the truth for us, 
we realize that Hanzel now has what we all hope for. 
 He is claiming his inheritance now! 
Too soon, we say. 
But God claims His precious ones when He wants to! 
Perhaps we are the ones called too late! 
There are still things we need to do
 to claim the riches of his glory! 
I like to think of Hanzel basking in the Father's embrace. 
It makes his passing on easier to understand. 

In Deuteronomy 28 ,
it lists down the blessings that are ours
when we obey.
All those blessings are now covering Hanzel!






8 comments:

  1. This post is moving. To follow the Saul teaching with the loss of a precious young one. So sorry.

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  2. Thanks so much for sharing from your heart, Patsy. You bless me, and I praise God for you. May He be with you every minute of every day; blessing you and keeping you. I appreciate you so much.
    Karen
    Word Art Wednesday

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  3. To be absent from the body is to be present with the Lord. A great promise. A precious card. Thank you for dropping by and sharing your inspirational art with us today.
    I pray that Bountiful Blessings come your way,
    Blessings
    Carole Robb Bisson
    Word Art Wednesday

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  4. Such a beautiful card! I am so sorry to hear of your recent lost and I pray God continue to life you up through this time. Thanks so much for sharing your talents with us at Word Art Wednesday and look forward to seeing more of your lovely creations again soon. Have a blessed week! Laura

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  5. Its amazing how impatience crops up when you least expect it. I do good in so many areas, but for some reason when we're eating out it drives me crazy to have to wait for the check! Looks like there's more work to be done in the area of patience...

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  6. Yes, usually we do have good intentions, but we let the little things slip us by, reading the Bible, praying, going to church, ect. I can do good all I want, but if I am not spending time with the Lord it does me no good. Thanks for posting

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  7. You must follow the liturgical readings; that is the same passage I read on Monday ;-). It is convicting and shows how much we can rationalize what we are doing.

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  8. IS BAPTISM JUST AN ACT OF OBEDIENCE? BY STEVE FINNELL

    The prevailing view among faith only advocates is that water baptism is just an "act of obedience" and is not a prerequisite for salvation.

    Acts 5:32 We are witnesses of these things; and so is the Holy Spirit, whom God has given to those who obey Him.

    It is apparent that by obeying God we receive the Holy Spirit. Obedience to God is more than just an unrewarded act.

    Hebrews 5:8-9 Although He was a Son, He learned obedience from the things which He suffered. 9 And having been made perfect, He became to all those who obey Him the source of eternal salvation.

    Jesus is the source of salvation to all who obey Him. What did Jesus say? He said, "He who has believed and has been baptized shall be saved.....(Mark 16:16)

    Baptism is not just an act of obedience. It is a prerequisite for salvation.

    Believing in Jesus is an act of obedience, but is not just an act of obedience. Believing is essential for salvation. (John 3:16)

    Repenting is an act of obedience, but it is not just an act of obedience. Repentance is essential to have your sins forgiven. (Acts 2:38)

    Confession is an act of obedience, but it is not just an act of obedience. Confession is essential for salvation. (Romans 10:9-10)

    Water baptism is an act of obedience, but it is not just an act of obedience. Baptism is essential to the forgiveness of sins. (1 Peter 3:21, Mark 16:16, Acts 22:16, Acts 2:38, Titus 3:5, John 3:5, Ephesians 5:23-27, Colossians 2:12-13, Romans 6:3-7)

    FAITH+OBEDIENCE SAVES.

    Hebrews 11:7......became an heir of the righteousness which is according to faith.

    Noah became an heir of righteousness after he obeyed God. FAITH+OBEDIENCE.

    Hebrews 11:30 By faith the walls of Jericho fell down after they had been encircled for seven days.

    The walls did not fall down by faith only, they fell down after seven days of obedience. FAITH+OBEDIENCE.

    The Scriptures do NOT teach that water baptism is just an act of obedience.

    THERE IS NO SCRIPTURE THAT STATES MEN ARE SAVE BY "FAITH ALONE."


    (All Scriptures from:NEW AMERICAN STANDARD BIBLE)

    YOU ARE INVITED TO FOLLOW MY BLOG. http://steve-finnell.blogspot.com

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I am so glad you dropped by! You are a blessing!
:^) Patsy