…a word in due season, how good it is! (Prov. 15:23 KJV)
“We settle for words in religion because deeds are too costly. It is easier to pray, “Lord, help me to carry my cross daily” than to pick up the cross and carry it. But since the mere request for help to do something we do not actually intend to do has a certain degree of religious comfort, we are content with repetition of words”
– A.W.Tozer
“Prayer is often a temptation to bank on a miracle of God instead of on a moral issue, i.e., it is much easier to ask God to do my work than it is to do it myself. Until we are disciplined properly, we will always be inclined to bank on God’s miracles and refuse to do the moral thing ourselves. It is our job, and it will never be done unless we do it.”
– Oswald Chambers
“And shall I pray Thee change Thy will, my Father,
Until it be according unto mine?
But, no, Lord, no, that never shall be, rather
I pray Thee blend my human will with Thine.
I pray Thee hush the hurrying, eager longing,
I pray Thee soothe the pangs of keen desire—
See in my quiet places, wishes thronging—
Forbid them, Lord, purge, though it be with fire.”
― Amy Carmichael
“You need to persevere,
so that after you have done God’s will,
you will receive what He has promised”
Hebrews 10:36
Perseverance of spirit coupled with our obedience to His will is the linkage to His promises. Often the promises of God are presented to us as ours regardless of our walk. This is a lie of Satan preached from the pulpits of the compromised.
From the very beginning Satan injected the lie into Eve’s perception of God. What is the lie? It is the belief that we can consistently disobey God without any repercussions.
“And the serpent said unto the woman,
Ye shall not surely die…”
Genesis 3:4
So often the gospel is preached without the need for accountability; we can have the promises without the obedience, we can have His Life while living unto ourselves. There is no thought given to the wages of sin or repercussions of worldly living.
We may claim Him as our Shepherd and yet not follow Him. We may claim Him as our Lord without obeying Him. We may call Him our Savior yet hold on to our sins. We may call ourselves disciples and know nothing of the cross.
Doing His Will is the means of receiving His Promises. Obedience is the revelation of our submission to Him. Any other gospel is the abomination of religion.
“And why call ye me, Lord, Lord,
and do not the things which I say?”
Luke 6:46
Brian Troxel
www.aword.info