Obedience Is Application
4/25/20
One of the most important applications of the Bible is
the truth about obedience and how vital it is to make sure it is followed
without compromise. Many times it is
easy to try and justify this aspect of God with human feelings or affections,
but when we live upon this belief we can never be under true obedience. God has given us many examples of how we
should treat obedience and what occurs when obedience is devalued by outside
influences. Without obedience, our lives
become a religious sacrificial process that has no meaning, for obedience is
application of what God says is True which in turn defines God eternal. How are we living according to God’s plan of
obedience, are we allowing worldly influences afflict our life thus nullifying
our witness to those who need God? Let
us really allow God to examine our hearts and show us the areas we need to
apply His Son’s blood over our lives because if we do not then all we are is
just religious sacrificial representations of Someone we have no idea who is.
For many of my learning years, I heard some type of
phrase that included that I needed to apply myself in order to understand what
is really trying to be taught. It
frustrated me tremendously because my heart did not want to be applied for it
wanted to be outside with my friends, at games, or with the person of the
opposite sex who I was “very” interested in at that moment. It was not my idea of sitting at my desk with
my nose stuck in a book for hours at a time completing the assignment that was
scheduled to be turned in the next morning.
Boy, you have witnessed the arguments and heated discussions when it
came time for me to study for a test, it was not pretty. Looking back at all of those instances, and
there were plenty of examples, I cannot help but think about how many of my
friends throughout the years spent a large amount of time trying their best
trying to find ways to cheat for the upcoming test, but I never resorted to
such devious activities I just argued instead and would study poorly and bring
home the corresponding grade later that week, justifying me not being able to
attend the outside influential activities that I wanted to be at in the first
place.
As my adult years advanced, once again I cannot help but
look back at all of the lost time I gathered not completing what I should have
done in the first place. I see the kids
nowadays reacting to the homework that they have at times, not every night
like many of us had when we were younger.
I also cannot help but remember how wrong I believed my parents were
to keep hounding in me to use the correct study habits and to keep up the means
necessary to perform up to standards.
Yes, I was frustrated with them but I never turned against them and
deliberately disappoint them. All they
wanted to instill into my life was the process of learning and to keep that
commitment in my heart not only for those “grueling” days of high school but
also to understand those pressured assignments of adulthood later down the road. The trouble is I see the same type of
attitudes in many of the youngsters today but with a greater deal of angst
toward their authoritative figures trying to guide them in a similar manner. I want so desperately to tell them that a school is a place of learning and that if you do not apply yourself to the
knowledge that is being taught your life may not turn out in the way you wish
it to be. Sadly, I see this type of
commitment or lack of commitment in many people who consider them to be
Christians as well. I know this to be
true because my study habits I harbored when I was younger reflected my study
habits when it came to the Bible and my relationship with God as well. As God gives me these topics and articles to
write, I sit back sometimes and weep for if I had listened to the ones that
really cared for me I might have been further down the road in what God had in
store for my life.
Exodus 12:21-22
“Then Moses called
for all the elders of Israel, and said unto them, Draw out and take you a lamb
according to your families, and kill the Passover. And ye shall take a bunch of hyssop, and dip
it in the blood that is in the bason, and strike the lintel and the two side
posts with the blood that is in the bason: and none of you shall go out at the door
of his house until the morning.”
Matthew 7:21
“Not every one
that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he
that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven.”
Here we have two very distinct passages of Scripture that
have many specific settings that need to be followed, and if they
are not followed then dire circumstances would quickly result. Now, the passage in Exodus clearly states
part of the instructions that God spoke to Moses to give to the people of
Israel. God meant for every detail of
His Word to be followed without exception for if they did not it would mean
that death would visit their homes and they would fall into the hands of the
disobedient. This passage also details
that a sacrifice is to be made and to serve as the Passover. This is an important step in the instructions
of what is to occur but it is not the most important part of the event. Do NOT get God wrong here, the sacrifice is
of the greatest importance but that is not all that is supposed to occur. See, anyone can make a sacrifice; the
Egyptians probably did so that evening as well and used it as their dinner or
to serve as some other ritualistic process.
In other words, the sacrifice alone is a symbol and rendered cold and
meaningless unless every detail is fulfilled and it is the second detail that
is the most important and stands out to the one who is worthy of receiving the
sacrifice.
Moses then instructed the people to take a hyssop bunch
and dip into the blood and then start at the top of the door and swipe the
blood that was in the basin, across the top of the door frame. Then they were supposed to repeat the same
procedures to both sides of the door so that the entire door was covered by the
sacrificial blood. Then the people were
to close the door and not go outside until the morning. The procedure took place in ancient times so
the doors were not current market doors nor was the painting of the doors with
blood; it was a simple procedure to be followed exactly as God said without
compromise. It was the application of
the blood to the doors that was the sign to the death angel to Passover that
residence. It did not matter if a
sacrifice was made alone for it was the application of the blood that covered
those who obeyed completely and it is this concept that Jesus was referring to
when He spoke those words in Matthew about some people crying out Lord, Lord.
Applying the blood to the doors in Egypt was the item
that the angel saw as he was going through the midst of the land. The blood is also the symbol that God sees
when we accept His Son as our Savior too.
But accepting the sacrifice alone means nothing for it is the
application of the blood that serves as the difference and until we do such an
obedient act our lives still remain in sin.
Sitting back and absorbing the Word of God into our lives and then doing
nothing with its content is an example of accepting the sacrifice and not
applying the blood. To apply the blood
and to make Jesus’ death, burial, and resurrection as God intended it to be we
must apply the blood to those who are willing to hear and to accept Jesus as
their Savior, then and only then does the sacrifice turn into the eternal
Sacrifice. Applying the blood to the
door was a simple process that did not take too much time to complete, but it
was this act of faith that saved the lives of all who listened, obeyed and
were together under the protection of that blood.
To those who sit back and while knowing God and what His
Son did for us and commanded us to do yet do nothing about it let it be known
that there is a category for you already established. For if you do not take action and apply the
blood of Jesus on your heart’s doorframe you shall be subject to the eternal
death angel and will be fulfilling the words of Jesus according to Matthew
7:21. There is NO Option but to apply
this blood for it is the sign of the Covenant that God made with Israel and it
is the sign of the New Covenant through Jesus Christ. If we do not apply the blood to our hearts
then we do not accept the Sacrifice as it was meant for our lives and thus live
in disobedience to God which is sin.
This also means that our heart’s door is subject to sin and all of the
legal aspects that Satan brings with it.
How can we honestly state and proclaim we love Jesus if we do not apply
the blood of His Sacrifice?
It becomes lip service and declares that we are not serious
about what He did for our lives and we deserve nothing more than to cry Lord,
Lord on that great Day of Judgment. God
submits to you today that if we are willing to drop the clothes of the world
from our bodies that we have not applied the blood of His Sacrifice correctly
and that we shall fall into this category on the day. Obedience is so vitally important, not just
partially but completely. God also
submits to you that unless you apply His Son’s blood to your heart’s door that
you do not trust Him and if you do not trust Him then you cannot obey His Word. It is obvious that God seeks us out first and
yet we refuse to return His heart’s favor by seeking Him first for if we did we
would want to make sure each second of our lives that His blood is over us.
Further down in Scripture it says that cries were heard
all around the land of Egypt and that no household was left untouched because
of the disobedience of many. Some may
think that this action by God was unfair and was not necessary, but we cannot
ignore the fact that Egypt had nine previous opportunities to surrender to God
and to allow God praise. But just as
humans do, they claim to be in more control of their hearts than God and must
do things in their own selfish ways until proven otherwise. Even in this devastating state, Egypt did not
return to God and eventually was destroyed in God’s own timing and in God’s own
specific way. This action of the
Egyptian rulers and leaders should speak greatly to our hearts for it shows us
exactly what will occur when things begin to turn for the worse in our own
land. The land of Egypt just suffered a
tremendous blow to every household and still, it did not soften their hearts one
iota, it is easy to conclude that it hardened their hearts even greater and
they responded in the only way that they knew how through worldly actions.
Let’s be truthful with ourselves Church. How can we even consider ourselves true
witnesses for Christ when we cannot apply the blood of Christ to our own
hearts? Look at us, we are filthy with
the dust formations of the world. It is
obvious that we have forgotten the beauty of Christ and what He did for us
through His shedding of His blood and we have definitely forgotten what the
blood means for our lives and it is THE necessary portion of our salvation and
eternal covering. Yet, we parade around
with the ideas of the world draped all over us with singing and dancing to the
beat of the world then on some given days we attend church and sit there
looking at our phones and the clock and wishing that time would speed
along. Turning to God on a sparingly
momentous timeframe is not applying the blood correctly over our hearts;
however, it is representing that we have the basin of blood in our possession
but allowing it to sit on the table and spoil without using it obediently. Oh yes, we shall reap what we sow Church and
the reaping shall come as a surprise to us all for it shall not be one of
beauty and of joy. God wants His people
to repent and to obey His Ways especially the command that His Son gave to us
while here with us. I do not know
exactly what is in store for us in the near and distant future but I do know
that if we are not prepared and have obediently placed the blood over our
hearts doors we will have no chance of survival. It is up to us to change this setting but we
shall never accomplish this task until we obediently put into motion the
application of the blood.
DLB
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