Yesterday's blog post was on Naaman and Abraham and the execution of their faith and obedience to the instructions of the Lord. There were some parallels which were drawn in the lives of these two Bible personalities, which were important in demonstrating to us the extent of God's faithfulness when we have faith and obey Him. This is just a continuation of what was discussed in the previous post and I pray that God speaks to hearts and answers questions through this post.
I intend for this to be a short piece because I want it to be very straight-forward. Hebrews 11:1 defines what faith is. This could be faith in whatever and whomever but I choose this definition of faith in this verse to be a representation of the faith I have in God the Almighty. I hope that He is your choice also. Obedience, according to the Encarta Dictionary is the act of following rules and instructions and submitting to authority. So at least now that we have a perspective of both words, I hope we can delve into the matter at hand.
I wish to point out to you that having faith like that of Abraham without looking back, complaining or grumbling leads to automatic obedience, just like what we see in Genesis, in relation to Abraham and Isaac. Abraham required no persuasion to obey the Lord's instructions because he trusted in the Lord whom he served. On the contrary, one can be obedient but not have faith and this is what we observe in the case of Naaman. I doubt he would even have ended up in the River Jordan if Elisha's servant hadn't persuaded him. In Naaman's case, his obedience resulted in his faith in the Lord, while Abraham's faith in the Lord led to his obedience in the Lord. So what would have happened if Naaman had not obeyed?
Having faith is the most important key in our walk with the Lord and in the unleashing of His blessings upon our lives. This is because our faith, like that of Abraham, is an automatic assurance of our obedience in the Lord, because when we trust in the Lord, we give Him the reins of our lives, knowing in our hearts that He will not disappoint. Naaman could have refused to dip in the Jordan River, in spite of the persuasion he had received and what would have been the outcome? Basically, what God is telling us through the stories of these men is that it is safer for us to have our trust in God and then obey Him, rather than obey Him, which will hopefully lead to our faith in Him when He comes through for us.
You see the risk in obeying without faith is that: what if God does not come through for us at the time we choose to obey Him? Does that mean that we will never believe in the goodness of the Lord? This is serious oh!!! It is not safe at all!!! The safest and wisest approach, I believe, is to cultivate our faith in the abilities of the King of Kings so that the obedience to His instructions will be the by-product of that faith, so that the floodgates of Heaven will pour out blessings upon our lives and save the things we find dear.
Naaman was blessed in actually coming to believe in the goodness of the Lord, but please do not take that risk! Faith is more important. Do you have faith in the Lord?
God bless you!!!
Tuesday 9 August 2011
Monday 8 August 2011
FAITH AND/OR OBEDIENCE (PART 1)
Hi guys, I know it has been a while since my last post. However, I have been thinking about this particular post for quite some time and I hope that God speaks to some hearts through this post to the glory of His Name. This is intended to talk about the parallels between two very important personalities in the Bible: Naaman and Abraham, and how their walk/encounter with the Most High changed their lives as a result of their faith and/or obedience.
I am sure most of us are familiar with the famous Sunday School stories about Abraham, found in Genesis, and Naaman, found in 2 Kings (please lend a few minutes to take a look at these stories). My main focus, today, is going to be on how these men reacted to the instructions that they were given by God, and what the outcome of their faith and/or obedience was.
So allow me to just give a brief summary of the portion of the lives of these men that I wish to address, as told by the Bible. Abraham was a man whose walk with the Almighty was so entrenched in faith that he willingly obeyed God's instruction to sacrifice his one and only beloved son, whom he had waited for till his 100th year to have; the one who was supposed to be the heir to all his belongings; the one who was to carry on the legacy of Abraham's lineage. Yes, that son was the one chosen to be sacrificed. Not Ishmael the least loved one oh, but the most cherished, adored and appreciated one, Isaac. Our dear "Father of all Nations", does not utter a single word of complaint or frustration at God; neither does he grumble or curse for such a hefty task. He simply obeys and goes on his way to do what he has been commanded.
On the other hand, let's have a look at Naaman. At the beginning of 2 Kings 5, Naaman is given a lot of accolades because of his achievements. However, the "but" that immediately ends his praise is very instrumental in hinting at the pathetic situation that Naaman lived in. He had everything BUT he was a leper, which was terribly disgraceful and abominable at the time. Thank God he was rich! Fortunately for him, Naaman is told about a prophet of the Lord, Elisha, who can cure him of his disease, obviously in the Name and by the Power of God. So he sets off in search of this man. Interestingly enough, Naaman is told to dip into the River Jordan 7 times so that his flesh will be restored. Now tell me, isn't this one of the simplest tasks in the world? Naaman is required to do nothing out of the ordinary to be healed of this disease; mind you a very unfortunate skin ailment that he must have been desperate to get rid of. Ironically, big man Naaman simply cannot do this because he is too big a man to step into the muddy, smelly, dirty river of Jordan to wash himself. After all he has only leprosy! Indeed! So he is own his way home, but returns, until he is persuaded to do what he was told. Lo and behold, Naaman emerges with skin as smooth and lovely as that of a baby.
In these two stories, both men were blessed. But one was required to sacrifice that blessing which was so dear to him, while the other sacrificed his blessings willingly in the hope of receiving a newer, more important blessing. Therefore, through it all, we are able to witness the saving grace of our Faithful Father, who only wants our faith and obedience. We see that Abraham portrayed the true essence of having faith in the only God, which transcended to his obedience in Him, since the God that he trusted was not one to fail him. Contrastingly, Naaman did not have faith in the healing power of our God, neither did he initially obey, till he was persuaded and cleansed, then he finally, admitted his belief that there is no greater God but Jehovah Jireh (2 Kings 5:15b).
I hope you are understanding the drift of events because it is important that we know the importance of the works that our faith in God and our obedience to His instructions can achieve. Abraham had faith that God did not intend to harm him and so obeyed him, no matter how "absurd" the command was. Thankfully, our Faithful Daddy was only testing Abraham's faith, and so Isaac was saved. As a result, God's promise that Abraham will have descendants who will be as numerous as the sand on the seashore was fulfilled, and here we are now! This is all the work of faith and obedience.
Contrarily, Naaman did not have faith in God, neither did he want to obey God. However, events led to events and then he finally decided to dip into the river, maybe not because of his faith that he will be healed, but because he was desperate to try anything. That is why after he was healed he admitted his new faith in the God of Israel. He was saved through God's miraculous Hand, since in the end he was obedient to the words of the Lord.
Sometimes God works in ways such that by obeying Him, our faith in Him will grow from grace to grace. I intend to talk more about Naaman and Abraham in relation to faith and obedience later on, however, it will be for your own good that you study the lives of these two influential personalities in the Bible and allow the Lord to guide you to the reach His conclusions in His own time. As you meditate on the Word, continue to learn from the word and make it a part of your life. Living for Christ always!!! God bless you!!!
I am sure most of us are familiar with the famous Sunday School stories about Abraham, found in Genesis, and Naaman, found in 2 Kings (please lend a few minutes to take a look at these stories). My main focus, today, is going to be on how these men reacted to the instructions that they were given by God, and what the outcome of their faith and/or obedience was.
So allow me to just give a brief summary of the portion of the lives of these men that I wish to address, as told by the Bible. Abraham was a man whose walk with the Almighty was so entrenched in faith that he willingly obeyed God's instruction to sacrifice his one and only beloved son, whom he had waited for till his 100th year to have; the one who was supposed to be the heir to all his belongings; the one who was to carry on the legacy of Abraham's lineage. Yes, that son was the one chosen to be sacrificed. Not Ishmael the least loved one oh, but the most cherished, adored and appreciated one, Isaac. Our dear "Father of all Nations", does not utter a single word of complaint or frustration at God; neither does he grumble or curse for such a hefty task. He simply obeys and goes on his way to do what he has been commanded.
On the other hand, let's have a look at Naaman. At the beginning of 2 Kings 5, Naaman is given a lot of accolades because of his achievements. However, the "but" that immediately ends his praise is very instrumental in hinting at the pathetic situation that Naaman lived in. He had everything BUT he was a leper, which was terribly disgraceful and abominable at the time. Thank God he was rich! Fortunately for him, Naaman is told about a prophet of the Lord, Elisha, who can cure him of his disease, obviously in the Name and by the Power of God. So he sets off in search of this man. Interestingly enough, Naaman is told to dip into the River Jordan 7 times so that his flesh will be restored. Now tell me, isn't this one of the simplest tasks in the world? Naaman is required to do nothing out of the ordinary to be healed of this disease; mind you a very unfortunate skin ailment that he must have been desperate to get rid of. Ironically, big man Naaman simply cannot do this because he is too big a man to step into the muddy, smelly, dirty river of Jordan to wash himself. After all he has only leprosy! Indeed! So he is own his way home, but returns, until he is persuaded to do what he was told. Lo and behold, Naaman emerges with skin as smooth and lovely as that of a baby.
In these two stories, both men were blessed. But one was required to sacrifice that blessing which was so dear to him, while the other sacrificed his blessings willingly in the hope of receiving a newer, more important blessing. Therefore, through it all, we are able to witness the saving grace of our Faithful Father, who only wants our faith and obedience. We see that Abraham portrayed the true essence of having faith in the only God, which transcended to his obedience in Him, since the God that he trusted was not one to fail him. Contrastingly, Naaman did not have faith in the healing power of our God, neither did he initially obey, till he was persuaded and cleansed, then he finally, admitted his belief that there is no greater God but Jehovah Jireh (2 Kings 5:15b).
I hope you are understanding the drift of events because it is important that we know the importance of the works that our faith in God and our obedience to His instructions can achieve. Abraham had faith that God did not intend to harm him and so obeyed him, no matter how "absurd" the command was. Thankfully, our Faithful Daddy was only testing Abraham's faith, and so Isaac was saved. As a result, God's promise that Abraham will have descendants who will be as numerous as the sand on the seashore was fulfilled, and here we are now! This is all the work of faith and obedience.
Contrarily, Naaman did not have faith in God, neither did he want to obey God. However, events led to events and then he finally decided to dip into the river, maybe not because of his faith that he will be healed, but because he was desperate to try anything. That is why after he was healed he admitted his new faith in the God of Israel. He was saved through God's miraculous Hand, since in the end he was obedient to the words of the Lord.
Sometimes God works in ways such that by obeying Him, our faith in Him will grow from grace to grace. I intend to talk more about Naaman and Abraham in relation to faith and obedience later on, however, it will be for your own good that you study the lives of these two influential personalities in the Bible and allow the Lord to guide you to the reach His conclusions in His own time. As you meditate on the Word, continue to learn from the word and make it a part of your life. Living for Christ always!!! God bless you!!!
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