Category Archives: Obedience

Abiding, Advocate, Bible, Direction, Faithfulness, Following, God's Will, Obedience, Scripture

HALFWAY THERE

ZECHARIAH 7:1

“In the fourth year of King Darius, the word of the LORD came to Zechariah on the fourth day of the ninth month, which is Chislev.”

Often when I travel, I will look up the halfway point of the trip. I like to plan where I can stop and lodge for the night or check out any cool landmarks. If the trip is several hours long, this halfway spot will give me a chance to stretch my legs and maybe get something to eat. I also like knowing that I am halfway to my destination.

What you may not can tell from the dates mentioned in verse 1 of chapter 7 is this marked about the halfway point from the beginning of the temple rebuild until it was finished. It had been two years since they started. The temple was taking shape, and the people were probably getting more excited about its completion, which was still two years away. But progress was being made.

APPLICATION

Spiritually speaking, how far along are you in your growth? One tenth? Halfway? Philippians 2:13 says, “for it is God who is at work in you, both to desire and to work for His good pleasure.” How far along we are spiritually has a lot less to do with us than it does with God. As Paul said in that verse in Philippians, “it is God who is at work in you.”

Just like in my physical journeys, I won’t get to my destination unless I continue on my path. Spiritually, I don’t want to stop halfway. I want to go all the way with Jesus. I want Him to work in and through me to make me exactly what He wants me to be. That may require me to change the direction I am going. That’s okay because I want to be on the path the Lord is on.

Let me ask you another question. Where do you WANT to be on your spiritual journey? Have you given that much thought? God has. He wants you right by His side and He leads you each step. He will not force you to take this journey, but He promises to be with you if you do. Come on, let’s get going.

Wherever You lead I’ll go, Wherever You lead I’ll go!

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Abiding, Battles, Bible, Choices, Obedience, Scripture, Self-control, Submission

OBEY

ZECHARIAH 6:15

“‘Those who are far away will come and build the temple of the LORD.’ Then you will know that the LORD of armies has sent me to you. And it will take place if you completely obey the LORD your God.”

As a child, I did not always obey my parents. I misbehaved in school. I made some horrible decisions as a teen. I knew what my parents expected of me. They made that perfectly clear. However, my flesh got in the way. I simply chose to disobey. Some of those decisions were costly. Others I got away with (or so it appeared).

What does it mean to completely obey? Zechariah is warning the people that all the promises God has made to them will ONLY come to be if they obey Him fully. God doesn’t allow half-hearted commitments. It’s kind of like being “kind of” pregnant. Not so much. You are or you’re not.

APPLICATION

Obedience is that way. God expects us to obey all the time, not just when we feel like it. It’s interesting that, in the Hebrew, “completely” and “obey” come from the same root word for “hear attentively.” In English it would read, “if you hear hear the Lord your God.” Get the picture? You need to really listen, so you can obey.

What do you need to “hear hear” from the Lord today? I love what Jeremiah said in Jeremiah 7:23. “‘But this is what I commanded them, saying, “Obey My voice, and I will be your God, and you will be My people; and you shall walk entirely in the way which I command you, so that it may go well for you.”’”

God doesn’t measure out His love based on our level of obedience. Aren’t you glad? But He does desire our obedience. Let’s show the Lord today that we love Him by obeying His Word. Let’s show the world that we are consistent in our obedience to Him. He can use our obedience to draw others to Himself.

Trust and obey, for there’s no other way to be happy in Jesus, than to trust and obey.

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Accountability, Bible, Commands, Following, Love, Obedience, Salvation, Scripture

STEALING AND SWEARING

ZECHARIAH 5:3

“Then he said to me, ‘This is the curse that is going forth over the face of the entire land; everyone who steals certainly will be purged away according to the writing on one side, and everyone who swears falsely will be purged away according to the writing on the other side.’”

My dad would not tolerate stealing. Nor would he put up with foul language. My dad wasn’t perfect and didn’t come to Christ until later in life, but he was intent on raising us right. I never had the desire to steal (except for that one piece of candy at the grocery store), but I was prone to cuss and swear. Of course, I knew better but still did it.

Do you wonder why this flying scroll singled out these two sins? The commandment against stealing was on one side of the tablet of the ten commandments and swearing (against God) was on the other. They were the eighth and third commandments, respectively. One had to do with sins against others and the other against God. These were representative of the sins of the people.

APPLICATION

It is not hard to see how to apply this to our lives today. What are your sins against others? What are your sins against God? You know them, but have you confessed them to the Lord and asked His forgiveness? I understand that as a child of the Lord and a believer in Jesus as our Savior, we are under grace, not the Law. But we still need to obey His commandments. We are to still strive to be holy.

Leviticus 22:31 tells us, “‘So you shall keep My commandments, and do them; I am the LORD.’” Jesus said in John 14:15, “‘If you love Me, you will keep My commandments.’” Commandment keeping is still important. Let me repeat – we are under grace, not the Law. However, we are expected to follow God’s commands.

You may not steal or swear, but I am willing to bet that you have committed sins against others and God. Take a moment right now and search your heart. Ask the Lord to reveal those transgressions to you and then confess them as sin. Confession is saying the same thing about your sin that God says. Agree with Him. He will forgive. Follow Him.

Oh Father, keep me from transgressing against You and my neighbor. I want to please You.

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Awake, Bible, Choices, Distractions, God's Will, Obedience, Scripture, Seeing

WHO NEEDS AN ALARM?

ZECHARIAH 4:1

“Then the angel who had been speaking with me returned and woke me, like a person who is awakened from his sleep.” 

I wake up most mornings before my alarm goes off. I don’t know how to explain it except my body has a built in alarm. I think about the time I need to get up and most days I wake up just before then. I like that. I like to get up early and spend time with the Lord before it gets crazy busy.

Zechariah didn’t need an alarm clock either. He had an angel to wake him up. He was not startled, or so it seems, because this was the same angel who had been talking to him. I can just picture that, can’t you? Wake up, sleepy head. I am not finished talking. Zechariah rubs the sleep out of his eyes and, as we will see tomorrow, the angel starts right in delivering another message to him for the people.

APPLICATION

Too many of us walk around in a slumber. We are believers, but we aren’t aware of what is going on around us. It almost appears our eyes are shut to the spiritual realm in which we live. I love Psalm 3:5. “I lay down and slept; I awoke, for the LORD sustains me.” The Lord can awake you to a new day, a new vision.

I am not trying to get strange here. I just know that the Lord works that way. He will awaken us to new things. He will awaken us to His vision for the world. He will awaken us to a new calling. Oh, wait! I’ve gone too far, haven’t I?

You see, most Christians are fine with talking about Jesus. But don’t ask them to shift their way of seeing the world. Don’t ask them to gear up for warfare against the enemy. Since the Lord woke me up, I see the world in a whole new way – His way.

Wake me, Lord, each day to new opportunities to serve You.

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Admonished, Advice, Angels, Bible, Commands, Eternity, Following, God's Will, Hearing, Listening, Obedience, Scripture

ADMONISHED

ZECHARIAH 3:6

“And the angel of the LORD admonished Joshua, saying,”

This time of the year here in the U.S. there are a lot of graduation ceremonies. At most high school and college graduations there will be a speaker, an invited guest. This person may be an alum, a celebrity, a politician or an educator. The purpose of this person’s speech is to admonish, to exhort, to challenge and to remind the students of their responsibilities that lie ahead. I have a granddaughter graduating this year from high school. I am sure she will hear such a speech.

You may question why I would do a devotional on such an insignificant verse. Really? Is any verse insignificant if it is inspired by God? I don’t think so. Look at the verse. The “angel of the Lord” is considered by many to be Jesus Christ who appears throughout the Old Testament. He is reminding Joshua of what is about to come. In the next four verses we will see what He says. This admonishment wasn’t cruel or harsh. It was just a firm reminder.

APPLICATION

I usually see “admonishments” in a negative way. Maybe that’s because I have actually received a lot of those. But an admonishment is not meant to be negative if it comes from the Lord. Remember, His desire is to always draw you to Him. He is not trying to scare you away. James 4:8 says, “Draw near to God and He will draw near to you…”

I don’t want to react to God’s voice like a feral cat that runs away if you try to approach. I want to be like the family dog that runs to the door to greet you when they hear your car pull into the driveway. They can’t wait to see you. That’s exactly how I want to react when God admonishes me. He may just want to remind me of my purpose or to tell me He loves me.

When God speaks to you, how do you react? Well, Carl, I haven’t heard God speak to me? Oh, you are missing out. Get alone with Him and ask Him to talk to you. You’ve got to listen, though. You’ve got to get quiet and wait. You have to tune your ear to His voice. Then when He does speak you can recognize it. And then hang on. His words of admonishment will be welcomed then.

Speak to my heart, Lord Jesus. Speak that my soul may hear.

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Accountability, Bible, Blameless, Conviction, Discipline, God's Will, Modeling, Obedience, Perseverance, Scripture

ACCURATE

ZECHARIAH 1:7

“On the twenty-fourth day of the eleventh month, that is, the month Shebat, in the second year of Darius, the word of the LORD came to Zechariah the prophet, the son of Berechiah, the son of Iddo, as follows:” 

For many years I oversaw the Quality Assurance programs for the children’s homes ministries where I served. You have to be kind of accurate when you do that. Many times funding sources depended on the accuracy of my data. I enjoyed that work and learned little secrets to keeping accurate data. Those who worked with me knew I expected them to work with excellence. That’s what the Lord expects from us.

So, when I read today’s verse in Zechariah, I thought to myself that God wanted Zechariah to make sure he was accurate in putting down this information. When you read the verse, you may wonder how this applies to you. Well, I go back to our basic premise about Scripture – every word is inspired by God. Therefore, it was important to Him that the twenty-fourth day of Shebat in Darius’ second year be noted. Don’t miss that.

APPLICATION

Application time! How accurate are you? What do you let slide in your walk with Christ? I am not saying you need to be legalistic and do things out of rote habit. No! What I am saying is you need to do everything you do with excellence. Immediately, I think of Colossians 3:23-24. “23 Whatever you do, do your work heartily, as for the Lord and not for people, 24 knowing that it is from the Lord that you will receive the reward of the inheritance. It is the Lord Christ whom you serve.”

Did you catch that? It is the Lord Christ whom you serve! You do not represent just your family, your employer or your church. You represent Jesus. I promise if you are working to please Him, everything else will be covered. If there are things you are doing to “cut corners,” examine them. Don’t do anything that would reflect bad on our Lord.

My dad always taught me to do things right the first time. I watched him meticulously hang wallpaper and wall murals. He would painstakingly smooth out every wrinkle and make sure the pattern was matched perfectly. I want to do the same with my life. I want my life to match up perfectly with Jesus. I want to show others how to live their lives surrendered to Him. And you?

Thank You, Lord, for showing me how to walk perfectly on this earth. Help me model Your lifestyle to others.

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Abiding, Accountability, Bible, Choices, Death, Following, Life, Modeling, Obedience, Scripture

DEATH AND TAXES

ZECHARIAH 1:5

“‘Your fathers, where are they? And the prophets, do they live forever?’” 

I have heard it said many times, “There are two certainties in life – death and taxes.” While that may be true, no one likes to dwell on either. Here in the U.S., it is tax season. Everyone is expected to file their federal income taxes by April 15. I’ve already done mine and was fortunate to get a little refund. However, it will all happen again next year. At least death is a one-time deal, right? I am not worried about that because I know where I am going.

Today’s verse is kind of somber. God is reminding the people that everyone dies. Their fathers had died. Their prophets had died. There is no escaping that. Why does God do that? What was He trying to say? He was warning them that those in the past who had resisted His commands had passed away. Resisting God does you no good. Only He is eternal.

APPLICATION

Is there someone to whom you are hanging on to? You think everything will be fine as long as they are around. Warning – they won’t always be here. We can’t place our trust in anyone here on earth. We are all just passing through this earth. You may have been fortunate enough to have godly parents who taught you right. They may still be alive. Enjoy them. But our parent’s faith won’t do a thing for us as far as getting into heaven. That only comes from our own faith in Christ.

The good news is our parents’ lack of faith isn’t counted against us either. Deuteronomy 24:16 says, “Fathers shall not be put to death because of their children, nor shall children be put to death because of their fathers. Each one shall be put to death for his own sin.” We also know Romans 3:23, “For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,…”

You must come to God through Jesus. Just because you grew up in a Christian home, that does not make you a Christian, anymore than being born in a garage makes you a car. Right? So, come to Jesus. Let Him give you the plan He has for your life. Only He can be trusted to do that.

O Father, I am so thankful I am resting in Your hands and not my own.

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Accountability, Bible, Boundaries, Commands, Direction, Following, Hearing, Obedience, Scripture

YOU KNOW BETTER

ZECHARIAH 1:4

“‘Do not be like your fathers, to whom the former prophets proclaimed, saying, “This is what the LORD of armies says: ‘Return now from your evil ways and from your evil deeds.’” But they did not listen or pay attention to Me,’ declares the LORD. “

I can’t recall the number of times my parents told me to not do something. I heard them, but I did not listen. You see, I knew better than to do the things I was doing. I knew doing them would get me in trouble if I was caught. I got to be pretty sneaky. My mom and dad went to heaven not knowing about some of them. Hmmm, now that they are up there, do they know? Lol

The Israelite’s fathers did not listen or pay attention to the Lord’s commands. They heard them over and over again. They knew the Law. They knew the commandments. However, they chose to live as if they did not care. The Hebrew word for “pay attention” means to prick up the ears. Just picture a dog laying down and resting. When you call its name, what does it do first? It pricks up its ears. You see, the Israelites had not pricked up their ears to listen to the Lord.

APPLICATION

What is the Lord telling us in this verse? Prick up your ears! Listen! Do what I say! Sounds easy enough, so why don’t we do it? Because we are just as stubborn as those Israelites who did not listen and pay attention. We want to do what we want, not what the Lord has instructed us to do.

Do you know what happened nine times out of ten when I did not follow my parents’ rules? I got in trouble. Yep, I usually was disciplined. Same is true when I don’t follow God’s rules. I find myself in trouble. God will discipline those whom He loves. Aren’t you glad? Probably not, if you are honest. But it is for our good. We know that, right?

Psalm 103:17-18 paints a beautiful picture of this. “17 But the mercy of the LORD is from everlasting to everlasting for those who fear Him, and His justice to the children’s children, 18 to those who keep His covenant and remember His precepts, so as to do them.” I can’t say it any better than that.

O Lord, I know Your commands are for my good. Lead me in the path that is true and right.

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Bible, Blessing, Holiness, Holy Spirit, Obedience, Offering, Sacrifice, Scripture

QUESTION NUMBER ONE

HAGGAI 2:12

“‘If someone carries holy meat in the fold of his garment, and touches bread with this fold, or touches cooked food, wine, oil, or any other food, will it become holy?’” And the priests answered, ‘No.’”

Have you ever wondered what makes something holy? We have the Holy Bible (that one is understandable). We have holy water (which is used by some). We even have holy smoke, lol. A question is poised by the Lord to the priests about how things become holy. This may seem like a foreign concept for us today. We’ll dig into that a little further in a minute.

In today’s verse the priests are asked if a certain action would cause something to be holy. Can meat, that has been blessed by the priests, transfer holiness from it to another object if it touches it? You can read about this transfer of holiness in Exodus 29:37 and Leviticus 6:27, 29; 7:6. It was the meat given to the priests as part of their provisions. This meat was a portion of the meat given by the people for sacrifice. This meat belonged to the Lord.

APPLICATION

Ahh! So, there it is! That is what makes something holy. We have the answer to the question. Holiness is only transferrable by the Lord. He makes something or someone holy. There is nothing we can do on purpose or accidentally that can confer holiness. Our holiness cannot be passed on. Each person must become holy on their own through the blood of Jesus.

You see that meat that was holy was only holy because it was part of the offering to God, a blood sacrifice. We are made holy through the blood of the Lamb. We are made more like Him (more holy) by surrendering more and more of ourselves on that altar of sacrifice. As we die to our flesh each day, the Lord allows us to experience more and more of His holiness.

Holiness is not something to be grabbed and obtained through a touch. Holiness comes through righteousness given to us by Jesus. Do you long to live holy? Do you want to be known as someone who lives holy? Then lay your life on that altar. Die to your will and live according to His will. Holiness will be poured upon you through His Spirit.

Holy, holy, holy, Lord God Almighty…Only Thou art holy
There is none beside Thee, Perfect in power, in love and purity

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Abiding, Accountability, Bible, Commands, Obedience, Rules, Scripture

A RULING

HAGGAI 2:11

“The LORD of armies says this: ‘Now ask the priests for a ruling:’”

Anyone who knows me knows that I am a football fan, especially Georgia Bulldog football. But the one thing I don’t like about the game now are all the pauses in play for the official review of a play. In this scenario, the head umpire goes to the sideline to watch an instant replay of the play in question. This can take a few minutes to several minutes. All the while, the players are cooling down on the field and perhaps losing their momentum at that point in the game. But an official ruling is necessary before the game can continue.

It’s interesting to me that here in verse 11 of Haggai 2, we see God telling Haggai to ask the priests for a ruling. We will see that over the next couple of days. But why does God need the priests to make a ruling. He is not asking them for advice. No! He is just wanting them to take a closer look at His law, not their laws. Just like the head umpire, they need to look very close at what they are doing, at their rulings over people. God is always precise and perfect in His rulings. They weren’t.

APPLICATION

What do you need to take a closer look at? James tells us in James 1:25, “But one who looks intently at the perfect law, the law of liberty, and abides by it, not having become a forgetful hearer but an effectual doer, this man shall be blessed in what he does.” “To look intently” means to stoop down and look, to really look. The same word is used in John when John and Peter went to the tomb after the resurrection of Jesus. It says John stooped and looked.

Take a few minutes today and “stoop and look” at how you are following Jesus. If you find yourself not following Him at all, stop whatever you are doing and come to Him. If for salvation, make today the day your surrender to Him. If for correction, let Jesus guide you back as you look intently at your walk.

We are all at different places in our walk with Jesus. But we all need to look intently and make a ruling about our journey. Make sure you are making the right ones. Only His Word can show you that. Take the time today. I promise it will be time worth taking.

I trust Your rulings in my life, O God. You are always right and true.

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