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Daily Encounter: A Week-day Devotional by a staff of ACTS International. |
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Genuine Obedience
“What do you think? There was a man who had two sons. He went to the first and said, ‘Son, go and work today in the vineyard.’ ‘I will not,’ he answered, but later he changed his mind and went. Then the father went to the other son and said the same thing. He answered, ‘I will, sir,’ but he did not go. Which of the two did what his father wanted? ‘The first,’ they answered. Jesus said to them, ‘Truly I tell you, the tax collectors and the prostitutes are entering the kingdom of God ahead of you. For John came to you to show you the way of righteousness, and you did not believe him, but the tax collectors and the prostitutes did. And even after you saw this, you did not repent and believe him.’”1 In the passage above, we see Jesus, once again, in dialogue with the Jewish leaders. After the leaders had questioned the authority by which Jesus acted, Jesus turns the tables on them to, once again, highlight an important truth. Jesus always goes directly to the issue, which in this case was the unbelief of the Jewish leaders. The point Jesus was making in this passage is quite clear. We read how the first son initially refuses to obey, but then regrets his decision and obeys after all. On the other hand, we see how the second son states his obedience immediately, however, fails to follow through. Verbally stating our obedience is very different than being obedient with our actions. Just like the first son has a change of heart and chooses to obey his Father after he had initially said no, our genuine obedience follows our inward change of heart. We are reminded in Proverbs 21:2 that, “A person may think their own ways are right, but the Lord weighs the heart.” There is no tricking God when it comes to this matter of obedience. He can see right through our words and see the true motive of our hearts. In Matthew 15:8 we read, “These people honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me.” I encourage you, my dear reader, to examine your heart. Are we saying all the right things and pretending to obey God’s will for our lives? Or are we truly allowing God to change our hearts day by day, which will then lead to genuine obedience? God requires more than empty words. He is looking for people who will wholeheartedly submit to His will and obey His Word. Then are we able to be used by God. Suggested prayer: Dear God, I pray that you would show me areas of my life where I am not being genuinely obedient to you. I don’t want to offer empty words to you, but rather be living proof of the work you are doing in me through my actions of obedience. Thank you for your forgiveness and the opportunity to start over when we fail. I thank you and praise you for your unconditional love. In Jesus’ name, amen. 1. Matthew 21:28-32 (NIV). Today's Encounter was written by: Crystal B. |
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