Obeying is Understanding
Scripture: 1 Peter 1:22Devotional Series: The Integrity of God's Word
Teaching: The Integrity Of God's Word pt. 3 (SUN_AM 2021-06-20) by Pastor Star R Scott
We’ve just been through some persecutions in the last couple of years. For some of you, the true definition of persecution means to be hunted down. This is one of the renderings for that word. Some of you were hunted down in grocery stores by people that wanted to be critical, and it would be humorous if it wasn’t so sad. To see the compulsion, the hatred, the vehemence, for what? Because we did the Word. Because we brought forth righteous judgment. Because you can’t be here among us, call yourself a Christian, and be committing fornication and taking drugs, so we put you out according to the Word of God. And we’re the bad guys?
What’s the Scripture say? We’ve looked at it many times. Jesus said, “You’re going to be hated for My name’s sake. Amen? Count it all joy when men hate you, when they persecute you, when you suffer persecution for your righteousness. For all that live godly in Christ Jesus shall suffer persecution.” When you begin to find yourself in the position where these people are warring in their own minds, now it’s a thing of, “Man, this could cost me something. This could cost me my job. This could cost me, you know, my reputation. This could cost me my family.” You had received the Word with gladness, but now the heat’s coming on. What it means to be a Christian is really being tested in your life. That’s going to come to some of us here very soon, very soon. What are you going to do?
Now, none of us know for sure, but have you been working on your heart to get it ready for this hour? That’s what this parable is all about. Are you preparing your heart? Break up the fallow ground; amen? It’s time to seek the Lord. Are we seeking God more than we have before? Seeking God is not praying more and not reading your Bible more. Seeking God is being in the presence of God, knowing He’s present with you, and you’re obeying and carrying out His commandments. Whether it be evangelism, whether it be loving the unlovely, whether it be finally breaking the shackles of those things that have you bound so that sin would no longer have dominion over you as the Bible says. Yet you fight it every day, every week. You’re successful part of the time. Next thing you know, you’re cast down.
How about fasting? How about setting yourself apart in your heart and also literally to seek God and say, “I will not turn You loose until You’ve blessed me,” praise God? What kind of heart condition do we really have with this hour coming upon us? The bride is making herself ready. This whole parable is about hearing and doing the Word of God.
I’d noticed, through coming out of all of this in the last year and in different areas, that I’ve gotten away some, as I’ve been out walking. I’ve noticed that, man, it’s been months since I’ve had anybody to witness to. Of course, people were afraid, you know, and everybody had masks on, and were running across the street. But I don’t think it was Covid that was the problem. I think it was me that was the problem. Covid added to it, but I had noticed that I wasn’t doing what I normally did before. This came to me as I was along my walk. I said, “Father, just forgive me. I repent of that, Father. I ask You right now, would You open doors of utterance for me?” It wasn’t ten minutes, man. I came up and was witnessing to a guy. God opened the door.
What are we praying for? What are we believing for? We heard the utterance this morning. Do we even care that people are going to an eternal hell? We allow a little discomfort, a little dis-ease, because, you know, this isn’t something I do all the time. Well, do it, and you’ll get used to it; amen? You may never get rid of the anxiety, but you can get rid of the disobedience—by a choice. All sin is the consequence of a willful choice. Every man sins when he is drawn away of his own lust, the lust to satisfy self. My lust right now is to not be uncomfortable speaking to this person; therefore, I will not speak to them.
Don’t you want to be free of that? Break up the fallow ground. It’s time to seek the Lord. We can get all excited and happy about a certain teaching, or, “Oh, that was such a blessing. Oh, I got so illuminated.” What are you doing with it? And understandeth it not. It didn’t matter what the teaching was, what new truth you may have learned. Peter says it’s through obeying the truth that allows us to experience that purification, that sanctification process.
Father, we thank You for Your Word. Just help us, Father. Give us that grace that we saw in Ezra, so that when we, as a people, turn to praise You and to seek You, our hearts are changed. That You would give us grace, that You would give us more grace to enable us to carry this out. Make us seekers early. You’ve admonished us to seek You early, first, constantly. When we come to a crossroads, the first thing we ought to do is just stop and seek God, “Lord, what’s Your will? What will You have me to do in this situation?” One thing we know is it will be what glorifies God and not exalt you. We long to hear these words, Father, “Well done good and faithful servant.” You didn’t say, “Well done, thou great victor, mighty servant, righteous champion, gloriously exalted.” But the greatest among us is... Can we pour out our lives to make great and to edify our brethren? Let it be, Father. We ask in Jesus’ name. Amen.
What’s the Scripture say? We’ve looked at it many times. Jesus said, “You’re going to be hated for My name’s sake. Amen? Count it all joy when men hate you, when they persecute you, when you suffer persecution for your righteousness. For all that live godly in Christ Jesus shall suffer persecution.” When you begin to find yourself in the position where these people are warring in their own minds, now it’s a thing of, “Man, this could cost me something. This could cost me my job. This could cost me, you know, my reputation. This could cost me my family.” You had received the Word with gladness, but now the heat’s coming on. What it means to be a Christian is really being tested in your life. That’s going to come to some of us here very soon, very soon. What are you going to do?
Now, none of us know for sure, but have you been working on your heart to get it ready for this hour? That’s what this parable is all about. Are you preparing your heart? Break up the fallow ground; amen? It’s time to seek the Lord. Are we seeking God more than we have before? Seeking God is not praying more and not reading your Bible more. Seeking God is being in the presence of God, knowing He’s present with you, and you’re obeying and carrying out His commandments. Whether it be evangelism, whether it be loving the unlovely, whether it be finally breaking the shackles of those things that have you bound so that sin would no longer have dominion over you as the Bible says. Yet you fight it every day, every week. You’re successful part of the time. Next thing you know, you’re cast down.
How about fasting? How about setting yourself apart in your heart and also literally to seek God and say, “I will not turn You loose until You’ve blessed me,” praise God? What kind of heart condition do we really have with this hour coming upon us? The bride is making herself ready. This whole parable is about hearing and doing the Word of God.
I’d noticed, through coming out of all of this in the last year and in different areas, that I’ve gotten away some, as I’ve been out walking. I’ve noticed that, man, it’s been months since I’ve had anybody to witness to. Of course, people were afraid, you know, and everybody had masks on, and were running across the street. But I don’t think it was Covid that was the problem. I think it was me that was the problem. Covid added to it, but I had noticed that I wasn’t doing what I normally did before. This came to me as I was along my walk. I said, “Father, just forgive me. I repent of that, Father. I ask You right now, would You open doors of utterance for me?” It wasn’t ten minutes, man. I came up and was witnessing to a guy. God opened the door.
What are we praying for? What are we believing for? We heard the utterance this morning. Do we even care that people are going to an eternal hell? We allow a little discomfort, a little dis-ease, because, you know, this isn’t something I do all the time. Well, do it, and you’ll get used to it; amen? You may never get rid of the anxiety, but you can get rid of the disobedience—by a choice. All sin is the consequence of a willful choice. Every man sins when he is drawn away of his own lust, the lust to satisfy self. My lust right now is to not be uncomfortable speaking to this person; therefore, I will not speak to them.
Don’t you want to be free of that? Break up the fallow ground. It’s time to seek the Lord. We can get all excited and happy about a certain teaching, or, “Oh, that was such a blessing. Oh, I got so illuminated.” What are you doing with it? And understandeth it not. It didn’t matter what the teaching was, what new truth you may have learned. Peter says it’s through obeying the truth that allows us to experience that purification, that sanctification process.
Father, we thank You for Your Word. Just help us, Father. Give us that grace that we saw in Ezra, so that when we, as a people, turn to praise You and to seek You, our hearts are changed. That You would give us grace, that You would give us more grace to enable us to carry this out. Make us seekers early. You’ve admonished us to seek You early, first, constantly. When we come to a crossroads, the first thing we ought to do is just stop and seek God, “Lord, what’s Your will? What will You have me to do in this situation?” One thing we know is it will be what glorifies God and not exalt you. We long to hear these words, Father, “Well done good and faithful servant.” You didn’t say, “Well done, thou great victor, mighty servant, righteous champion, gloriously exalted.” But the greatest among us is... Can we pour out our lives to make great and to edify our brethren? Let it be, Father. We ask in Jesus’ name. Amen.