NTC: Obedience

“Jesus, you said, ‘There is no greater love than to lay down one’s life for one’s friends.’ Today we pray for those men and women who have, in their military service, sacrificed their time, strength, ambition, health and even their lives on this earth to benefit ‘friends,’ known and unknown.

Many of our warriors carry scars in their hearts as well as on their bodies. Dark memories haunt their dreams at night. Fears cloud their waking hours. Jesus, you came to give us abundant life by providing a way for us to release our pain to you. On the cross you bore our sorrows and brokenness and when we trust you, we can exchange our wounds for your joy in a future unhindered by fate. Bring this gift now to the veterans of our nation who bear tangible and intangible wounds. Heal them, Jesus.

Bless the families of soldiers who bear these pains vicariously. Give them patience and wisdom and strength to endure, and more than endure to hope in faith for a blessed life. God, not everything that happens in life is good. But you promise to work all things together for good to those who love you and align their lives with your purpose. Create good in the families of veterans who have experienced pain and loss. Do this miracle, we pray.

We honor our veterans in your name. We thank you – as we thank them – for their sacrifice. We ask you to return to them the favor of your blessing, a gift we on our own could never offer. We ask that you would give our veterans a peace beyond the peace they fought to secure, a peace in their own hearts, wrapped in the joy of a life touched by your strong hand.

In Jesus we pray…”

The New Testament Challenge to Obedience

James 1:22–25 NIV84

Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says. Anyone who listens to the word but does not do what it says is like a man who looks at his face in a mirror and, after looking at himself, goes away and immediately forgets what he looks like. But the man who looks intently into the perfect law that gives freedom, and continues to do this, not forgetting what he has heard, but doing it—he will be blessed in what he does.

The bible is full of strange rules…do’s and don’ts

Don’t boil a baby goat in its mothers milk.

Don’t eat owls.

Don’t leave pits open on your property for animals to fall into.

Don't tear your clothes.

Don’t speak the names of other gods

Have women suspected of adultery drink dirty water

Don’t wear clothes made of linen and wool

Don’t eat fat.

Don’t plant more than one kind of seed in a field.

When fighting another man, chop off his wife’s hand if she touches your genitals.

You can’t kill a burglar during the day.

If a slave refuses freedom, pierce their ear.

Make sure no one falls off your roof.

Leave grapes that fall on the ground for the poor to eat.

When we think of obedience, why is it we usually think of what we aren’t supposed to do. WE think of all the don’t-s.

That’s what I thought being a Christian was all about.

Don’t drink, don’t chew, and don’t go out with girls who do.

Honestly, I still tend to focus a lot on what I shouldn’t do…or what we don’t do.

It’s easy when we are surrounded by such brokenness...

poverty

addictions

crime

abuse

It’s easy to draw the line there. At least I don’t ______, I’m not “that” bad.

But obedience is about doing the things that Jesus calls us to.

1 mile obedience…but not 14 mile obedience

I’m not saying everyone needs to pick up hitchhikers, buy we all need to be obedient to God’s call on our lives.

One calling that ever follower of Jesus shares is the one Jesus gave at the end of his ministry.

A challenge for all believers.

Teach them to do what you are doing.

To the end of the age

A Challenge for all times - “as you are going”, make disciples.

as you go to work,

as you go to school,

as you go shopping,

as you go to lunch

A Challenge to show God’s love is for everyone.

all nations are welcome to the family

How does scripture teach obey this challenge to make disciples?

I am on a mission in my backyard to fulfill the great commission.

John 17:18 NIV84

As you sent me into the world, I have sent them into the world.

2 Corinthians 5:18–20 NIV84

All this is from God, who reconciled us to himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation: that God was reconciling the world to himself in Christ, not counting men’s sins against them. And he has committed to us the message of reconciliation. We are therefore Christ’s ambassadors, as though God were making his appeal through us. We implore you on Christ’s behalf: Be reconciled to God.

Illustrate

I commit to my church to fulfill the great commission.

Ephesians 2:19 NIV84

Consequently, you are no longer foreigners and aliens, but fellow citizens with God’s people and members of God’s household,

Matthew 16:18 NIV84

And I tell you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of Hades will not overcome it.

Illustrate

Invite to lunch

I partner with others to fulfill the great commission.

Acts 1:8 NIV84

But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.”

The great commission you see is a challenge for all of us to obey. But it’s the big idea. It’s the day to day living it out that is sometimes more of a challenge.

Illustrate:

It’s like a parent telling the kids to wash the dishes. They don’t tell us exactly how to wash each cup every time…no they show us, they teach us, then they leave it up to us to figure it out.

We all have a part to play. We all have something to contribute. IT’s all our responsibility. We WORK TOGETHER BECAUSE WE CAN’T DO IT ALL

This is why reading the bible was such a part of the New Testament Challenge.

Because as we read, we see how God calls his followers to live.

As we reflect on it, as we pray through it, we hear God calling us.

Then he leaves it up to us.

What’s the 2nd mile Jesus is leading you to?

SO maybe you only have 1 mile obedience…try two miles.

Walking out on a limb our faith grows

That’s why we read the bible, so that we can hear God speak to us, so we can live the life he is calling us to live. It’s about spending time with him, so that we can obey…not about figuring out how good we already are.

Maybe this is the first place you need to be obedient. Maybe spending some time in your favorite chair with Jesus every day is your first mile.

Maybe you can work on your first mile and begin stretch to the second mile of committing to a church by serving or tithing. Maybe your second mile is to volunteer in the after school mentoring ministry that so many others are a part. I’m not sure where God is calling you, how God is calling you to follow him. But if Jesus is calling us to go a 2nd mile with him, then the best thing we can do with our lives is travel that mile rather than stay where we know we are safe and secure.

In order to be obedient, we need to hear God’s call on our lives. How can we be obedient to what’s next if we aren’t in his word? IF we aren’t listening to him speak?

The area of our lives that we refuse to surrender to God will be the area of our life that causes the most trouble in our lives.

The challenge to obedience is real because our flesh fights against surrendering authority.