1 Samuel 15:22 NLT
But Samuel replied, “What is more pleasing to the Lord: your burnt offerings and sacrifices or your obedience to his voice? Listen! Obedience is better than sacrifice, and submission is better than offering the fat of rams.
Beloved,
As Christians, we are taught to pray for God’s kingdom to come and for His will to be done in our lives. Sadly, many so-called believers lack a full revelation it. One of the first truths to establish for every serious believer and aspiring kingdom citizen is that God’s kingdom is a kingdom of instruction. Know this and you will know peace and joy unspeakable. It’s impossible to obey God with your whole heart and the help of His Holy Spirit and not profit. We will talk more about the benefits that come with kingdom citizenship later. Failure to acknowledge the truth about God’s kingdom or to live a kingdom-compliant life will always and inevitably lead to loss and limits in this life and quite possibly for eternity if one should choose not to turn around and get it right.
There is no how you will be ready to enjoy God’s kingdom in your life if you are not ready to honor Him as your King. To honor Him as King requires your COMPLETE obedience to His divine instruction. For example, it is your wisdom to trust God enough to obey Him at once when given an assignment or directive. It is also important that you carry out his total instruction. Don’t make the error of King Saul. King Saul was chosen for such a privileged position of leadership among God’s chosen people and given a very clear directive from God with promised victory. Despite the honor of being declared king and the comfort that should come from having a very clear word from God and promised victory, King Saul still chose to only follow God’s command to the level of his convenience (1 Samuel 15:1-3).
The instruction was as follows:
1 Samuel 15:3 NLT
Now go and completely destroy the entire Amalekite nation—men, women, children, babies, cattle, sheep, goats, camels, and donkeys.
What did King Saul do instead?
1 Samuel 15:9 NLT
Saul and his men spared Agag’s life and kept the best of the sheep and goats, the cattle, the fat calves, and the lambs—everything, in fact, that appealed to them. They destroyed only what was worthless or of poor quality.
And what was the outcome?
1 Samuel 15:23 NLT
Rebellion is as sinful as witchcraft, and stubbornness as bad as worshiping idols. So because you have rejected the command of the Lord, he has rejected you as king.”
The first step to enjoying God’s kingdom in your life is obeying Him as such. Do not find yourself in rebellion to His will or word. Even if you do not understand, trust God and obey. Why? The Bible tells us this:
Psalms 33:18-22 GNT
The Lord watches over those who obey him, those who trust in his constant love. 19He saves them from death; he keeps them alive in times of famine. 20We put our hope in the Lord; he is our protector and our help. 21We are glad because of him; we trust in his holy name.
By nature, humans are curious. We love to explore and have all the details of things. When it comes to running a smooth and prosperous kingdom, the citizens, especially those given any kind of special or leadership assignment must be fully in sync with the leader and comply with His directives at a moments notice. A soldier does not question his commanding officer before he follows an order. If you declare God as both Savior and Lord of your life, then you must be ready to obey without hesitation. You don’t need to understand and have all the details of the instruction before you respond to God’s will. The only reason to question God must be for the reason stated above which would mean that you sincerely need a clarification on how to carry out the instruction with respect to the ultimate mission or best interest of the Father. In such a case, it is wisdom to ask for clarification in order to respond correctly. The Bible says:
James 1:5-6 ESV
If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask God, who gives generously to all without reproach, and it will be given him. 6But let him ask in faith, with no doubting, for the one who doubts is like a wave of the sea that is driven and tossed by the wind.
Let the kingdom of God be established in your life. Are you in God’s will? Are you struggling to be fully obedient to God’s instructions. Start by confessing your sins and repenting of every disobedient act or thought. If you have not done so already, decide, today that Jesus Christ must be Lord and Savior of your life. Accept, and declare Him so. Worship Him and thank Him for your new life in Him and declare His kingdom come and will be done in your life. Ask for His help; the gift of His sweet, Holy Spirit to help you obey and fully surrender to the will and way of the Father. Trust Him to give you an answer of peace and the grace to obey, which is made available to you by way of the sacrifice of His Son who also made it possible for you to enjoy life eternal. We will talk more on this tomorrow.
I commend you to God and to the word of His grace.
I call you blessed. I call you NATIONS.
