03/28/2025
Today we are exploring our obedience to Jesus without questioning His instruction. We will be looking at how we should obey Him without the need to weigh His guidance against our own desires. Sometimes we receive a Word from God and it isn't something easy or perhaps it is something we think is dangerous or would put us in a precarious position financially or possibly even spiritually... so we question His motive or our understanding. This doubt is not a modern phenomenon but goes back to the earliest times of faith.
“Then after that saith he to his disciples, Let us go into Judaea again. His disciples say unto him, Master, the Jews of late sought to stone thee; and goest thou thither again?”
John 11:7-8 KJV
Doubt, although not new is dangerous; it can place us in a position in which we are doing more than just asking for clarification... it tempts us to bargain with God. Let's read what Pastor Oswald Chambers says about obeying God... even during those times when we might fear for Him and His church.
"Are you debating whether to take a step in faith in Jesus or to wait until you can see how to do the thing yourself? Obey Him with glad reckless joy. When He says something and you begin to debate, it is because you have a conception of His honor which is not His honor. Are you loyal to Jesus or loyal to your notion of Him? Are you loyal to what He says, or are you trying to compromise with conceptions which never came from Him? "Do whatever he tells you."" - Oswald Chambers
"Do whatever He tells you“, this is a phrase from the Bible, and specifically spoken by Mary the mother of Jesus. He is about to turn water into wine, and she is telling the servants not to question Him or complain about what He asks them to do, but to simply "do it." She is letting them know that something beyond their understanding is about to happen. Something wonderful.
“His mother saith unto the servants, Whatsoever he saith unto you, do it.”
John 2:5 KJV
When Jesus asks something of us, it is tempting to grouse about hauling the water, or whatever it is, but He asks nothing frivolous... just do it and realize that something wonderful is about to happen. We might find ourselves challenged or even afraid, but if we step out in faith then the wonder that awaits us will become real, and for us to experience.
“But Jesus answered, “Rather, how happy are those who hear the word of God and obey it!””
Luke 11:28 GNT
I loved the Indiana Jones movies, they were wholesome, and so full of excitement. One of my favorites was 'Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade.' In that movie Indy and his father were following clues to find the Holy Grail. Finally, they reached a place where they believed it to be, but they were faced with a number of deadly challenges. To complete these challenges they had a number of clues which would lead them safely through the tests… these clues were all biblical in nature.
Indy solves each riddle until at last he finds himself standing at the edge of a deep chasm. On the far side is another doorway, but how will he get across? He considers the puzzle and then recognizes it as a leap of faith... and with his father saying "you must believe" behind him, he steps out into thin air... and finds that his faith has revealed an optical illusion and that there was a bridge where one couldn't be seen before. So, he is able to retrieve the Holy Grail (The Cup of Christ), saves his father’s life, and… Well, I won't spoil the rest of the movie for you.
God often asks us to take a leap of faith. He wants us to step out into thin air with only His promise to support us. It is a very hard thing to do and goes against everything our physical lives have taught us... yet here we are, standing at the edge of a deep chasm of faith with our Father behind us saying "you must believe." Will we take the step? Will we trust in God and Jesus when everything within us says it doesn't make sense? This is when we are tempted to question the Lord... this is when we look at Jesus and are tempted to say "goest thou thither again?”
So, what will we do when we are personally facing the chasm and must step out in faith? Will we take that step without reservation? Will we step out with beads of sweat all over our foreheads? Will we step out at all? The answer might still await us, or for others of us it might have already been answered, but behind every step of faith comes another... so how will we answer our next challenge? Will we trust that something wonderful awaits us? Will we experience what Jesus has prepared for us?
Prayer:
Father, thank you for the strength of faith you provide me and the courage I need to step out in it when faced with situations that require me to take a leap of faith. Father, build my faith, so that I will always be prepared to step out obediently when you call. Lord, give me the strength of faith, and the courage to climb out of the safety my life’s boat represents, and walk with you on the water... doing so obediently in unwavering faith. Never let me miss the wonder that awaits me on the far side of the chasm when you present me with each challenge or uncertainty. If you let me find courage in you, let me find my strength in you, let my faith in you abound; and let my trust in you be firm, then my obedience will follow. and the experience that awaits me will most certainly be wonderful. I praise you Lord, and your Son Jesus Christ, for the wonders I experience in my life. I praise you in the midst of the storms I face that frighten me as I step into them, strengthened in my faith, because I trust that they will amaze me once they have passed by, and I am left in your glory. Show me the wonders that are you Father, just as you did Moses when you showed him your glory after you had passed him by. Let me also taste the wonder in the wine and witness the glory of Jesus just as you did the wedding guests at Cana after He had turned the water into wine. Holy, Holy, Holy, are you my God in whom all things work together for good. Holy are you who blesses me when I obey you without question. Hear me now as I praise your name and do as you ask so that you will be glorified. Help me to overcome my disbelief and honor you through my obedience always. I pray these things in the name of Jesus and so that your will be done. Blessed are you Lord, and great are you whose glory is the light of the world.
Hallelujah! Hallelujah! Hallelujah! Amen!
Supporting Scripture:
“Moses said, “Please show me your glory.” And he [God] said, “I will make all my goodness pass before you and will proclaim before you my name ‘The Lord.’ And I will be gracious to whom I will be gracious, and will show mercy on whom I will show mercy. But,” he said, “you cannot see my face, for man shall not see me and live.” And the Lord said, “Behold, there is a place by me where you shall stand on the rock, and while my glory passes by I will put you in a cleft of the rock, and I will cover you with my hand until I have passed by. Then I will take away my hand, and you shall see my back, but my face shall not be seen.”
Exodus 33:18-23 ESV
“Jesus said to the servants, “Fill the jars with water.” And they filled them up to the brim. And he said to them, “Now draw some out and take it to the master of the feast.” So they took it. When the master of the feast tasted the water now become wine, and did not know where it came from (though the servants who had drawn the water knew), the master of the feast called the bridegroom and said to him, “Everyone serves the good wine first, and when people have drunk freely, then the poor wine. But you have kept the good wine until now.” This, the first of his signs, Jesus did at Cana in Galilee, and manifested his glory. And his disciples believed in him.”
John 2:7-11 ESV
Rich Forbes