You Don't Pay For A Gift Given To You

Your grandparents come by for a visit. During their visit they present you with a beautiful gift. You are moved by their love for you and put great value on this wonderful thing they have done for you. Imagine now that you turn around and offer them money for their gift. How do you think that would make them feel? Would it not cheapen their gift of love? Could you even imagine doing this? It is what we do with Father almost every day.

Salvation is a gift. It is a gift of grace offered to us, the enemy of Yahweh. Even though we were in rebellion against his authority, he reached out in a great act of love and offered us an escape from the power of sin and forgiveness for all of our offenses including any future ones. As his enemy, we have deserved none of it, yet in grace he offered it.

This is fantastic but then we cheapen it in our attitude in accepting it. We don't seem to believe it as we continue to cry out for forgiveness, as we try to atone for our sins, as we try to bribe Father with our goodness. We confuse the fruit of righteousness with the price of salvation. There is no price for salvation because Jesus paid it for us.

Paul the apostle, the great teacher of this grace, used Abraham as an example. In fact, Paul refers to Abraham as the father of our faith because he is the first to have lived such faith:

So what are we going to say? Are we going to find that Abraham is our ancestor on the basis of genealogy? Because if Abraham was made righteous because of his actions, he would have had a reason to brag, but not in front of God. What does the scripture say?Abraham had faith in God, and it was credited to him as righteousness. (Romans 4:1-3)

It was credited to him. The simple fact is that Jesus saved you because there is nothing you could do to save yourself. Nothing. All of your sin has been covered, even the future stuff. That is hard for us to grasp but it is the reality of our salvation. It does not mean that we cannot lose our salvation. If we were ever stupid enough to deny Jesus, to turn our back and to enter into rebellion again, we would be lost. But sin alone does not affect our salvation when we are of such a heart to confess it because we don't want it to abide in us. We don't need to seek forgiveness because it has been forgiven but we do need to confess it to be free from it.

As to the clarity of understanding that this is a free gift that cannot be earned or purchased by good living and sacrifice, Paul uses this illustration:

Workers’ salaries aren’t credited to them on the basis of an employer’s grace but rather on the basis of what they deserve. But faith is credited as righteousness to those who don’t work, because they have faith in God who makes the ungodly righteous. (v. 4-5)

If we could finally grasp this we might actually discover the quality and depth of the peace that Jesus has given to us. Only don't rest at the foot of the cross but instead press on to grow in maturity and power. We are called as warriors, to lay down our lives for the enemy of Yahweh because he wants to see everyone saved. Knowing our salvation is sure, go out today to do good for the sake of others.

You Are Not Perfect But You Can Desire To Be

We know we are not perfect. Not one of us is without sin, mistakes, faults, imperfections, so none of us can afford to point out the failings of others. If there is any love in us we should have a desire to see people succeed, not fail. Yet there is something in us that rejoices in the failings of others and for some reason makes us feel good about ourselves. Maybe such failings cause us to forget our own for a moment.

The strange thing is,when we accept Jesus, our sins, failings, mess ups, from our past, present and future are all forgiven and covered. But this does not negate the fact that Father wants us to seek his righteousness. He wants us to throw off the attractions of sin's system and walk in his ways, even if we stumble in doing so. He wants our hearts desire to be the things of the Kingdom. Job reflected:

I have made a covenant with my eyes;
Why then should I look upon a young woman?
For what is the allotment of God from above,
And the inheritance of the Almighty from on high?
Is it not destruction for the wicked,
And disaster for the workers of iniquity?
Does He not see my ways,
And count all my steps? (Job 31:1-4)

Job had a heart desire to walk in righteousness. He knew that Yahweh was occupied with him and Job desired to honour him with his life. He knew he wasn't perfect and it was for that reason he began each day with sacrifices, to cover his failings. Jesus has covered our failings with one sacrifice so we don't need the system of sacrifices, but that does not mean we should not desire to live the righteousness of Jesus.

Allow the sacrifice of Jesus cover your failings and sins but you guard your heart. Make it your great desire to honour Jesus with your living. Do what is right. Live by his instruction. Seek his face daily. Love as he loved. Sacrifice as he sacrificed. Desire to do good. And when you fall short, confess it and trust Jesus. Father has declared us to be perfect and holy according to his grace, so do your best to walk in it.

Doing Wrong With Good Intentions

I am not legalistic but I do believe that wrong is wrong and right is right. We may try to understand the wrong actions of a person by trying to understand their motivation but it does not diminish the wrong of their actions. There is a lady in the news here who ended up causing the death of two people when she stopped in the middle of a highway to assist a family of ducks. Perhaps we can acknowledge there was no criminal intent but her actions robbed a family of a father and daughter and impacted a number of family, friends, and co-workers. Her actions were wrong. There is also the problem of intentionally doing something wrong for a good purpose.

Many people love the stories of Robin Hood, who stole from the rich to give to the poor. When we strip it of its romantic notions we are left with a group of armed bandits who threatened people to steal what did not belong to them. Their noble purpose does not matter when it involves wrong action. This was the situation with Moses who wanted to do something about the suffering of his people.

When Moses went out walking that day and he saw the abuse being inflicted on his people. It provoked in him a desire to do something about it. His desire was good but his actions were wrong and could not be honoured by Yahweh. Let's not get romantic about it, it wasn't an accident, he intentionally killed a man:

Looking this way and that and seeing no one, he killed the Egyptian and hid him in the sand. (Exodus 2:12)

I doubt you and I would find ourselves in a situation where we would kill someone as a means to reach an end, but we may do other things that are just as ugly to our Lord. We may feel justified in destroying someone's reputation because we don't agree with something they said or did. We may cut corners, smudge our tax return a bit so we have more money to do good. We may lie to protect a friend or child. Whatever the motivation, wrong is still wrong.

You and I say we follow Jesus, so this means we should be following his example. Scripture says he did all things well. A simple example: Should the instrument of all Creation have to pay Roman tax? I wouldn't think so, but Jesus did because it was the right thing to do: Give to Caesar what is Caesar's and to God what is God's. So why should we think we don't have to pay our government tax? Another example: The enemy offered Jesus several short cuts to avoid the cost of the cross but Jesus dismissed each one of them by putting the Father first. Perhaps he could have justified his actions with his good intentions, but wrong is wrong. The cross was the path he had to take and in obedience it is what he did.

It can be a real pain doing things the right way sometimes, but doing it the wrong way is always ugly and unacceptable to Father. He has purpose for his methods. If Moses had been allowed to lead an armed rebellion, the Lord would not have been revealed to the world and Israel would have kept all the glory for herself. They may have gotten their freedom but at the cost of how many lives and to what end? Without being the servants, the people of Yahweh they would have been a nation like any other nation and the world would not have known her Creator. Now just imagine what would have resulted if there had been no cross, no empty grave, no Holy Spirit.

Don't do short cuts. Don't try to do good by doing wrong. Take the long hard road. Do what is right no matter the cost. Allow Yahweh to accomplish what he wants to accomplish by walking in righteousness. Doing it right matters to how you will feel about things, your conscience, and to Yahweh's glory. Don't fall victim to the temptation of the easy way, the short cut, the fast solution. Follow Jesus and walk according to the example he set for us. To God by the glory!

Standing For What Is Right

The last thing most of us want to do is stand out in a crowd. Given the choice, the vast majority of people would simply like to "live and let live" and continue living a peaceful life of blending in. We don't like conflict so we do what we can to avoid it, even if it means agreeing with the disagreeable. Whatever it takes to maintain peace. Except, followers of Jesus can't do that. We can't blend, we can't remain anonymous, we can't agree with what is disagreeable for the sake of peace. We tend to stand out in a crowd.

We live by different rules, by a different standard, by a different definition of good and evil. We are clothed in the righteousness of Jesus Christ and, like him, we must speak the truth, even when people don't want to hear it. We don't force anybody to do anything, that isn't Father's way, but we do need to let people know they have a choice. I know we would rather not draw attention to ourselves but, we are here as examples of his grace. That doesn't mean demonstrating perfection, because it doesn't exist in us, but demonstrating his power made perfect in our weakness. Consider Lot for a moment.

Lot, the nephew of Abraham, chose an interesting place to live. Sodom was a city that had lost its moral compass and did whatever they felt like doing. We only get one glimpse of Lot in this context but consider what we are told. He had just housed the visiting angels when all the men of Sodom showed up to rape them:

Now before they lay down, the men of the city, the men of Sodom, both old and young, all the people from every quarter, surrounded the house. (Genesis 19:4)

Notice that it was all the men, of every age, of every social standing. Yes, an interesting place in which Lot had chosen to live. But these angels had come under Lot's hospitality and the desert law of hospitality meant that they were under his protection. He had to do everything he could to protect them. So Lot told these men that what they planned to do was wicked and he tried to reason with them, but a heart bent on sin cannot be reasoned with. It is here I want you to notice how these wicked men describe Lot:

“This one came in to stay here, and he keeps acting as a judge; now we will deal worse with you than with them.” (v. 9)

He keeps acting as a judge. Obviously this was not the first time Lot spoke out against their unrighteous living. Even at this early stage of the developing relationship with Yahweh, enough had been revealed that Lot knew the difference between good and evil, right and wrong, holy and common. Imagine the conviction that Lot must have felt in order to find the courage to speak out against a city.

I am not saying that we need to go on the rooftops and shout out the sins of this world. Such an approach rarely works, causing the sinful heart to become even harder. However, in our sphere of influence, in our Sodom, we must stand for the righteousness of Jesus. As far as it depends on us, we cannot allow good to be called evil and evil good. As much as we might fear it, we must be willing to stand out in a crowd, to allow the light of Christ to shine in and through us, as we set the example in word and deed. We cannot compromise the Kingdom for the sake of maintaining a false peace. Remember, Jesus did not come to bring peace, except to the heart of the forgiven sinner.

My brother, my sister, let us stand on the righteous ground of our Lord Jesus Christ.

Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand. (Ephesians 6:13)

Why Do You Call Him Lord?

There is absolutely no doubt that salvation is by the grace of Yahweh. There is nothing we could do to save ourselves and there was no good in us to provoke Jesus to save us. Salvation came out of Yahweh's love, his compassion and mercy for his creation. This grace also enables the Spirit to empower us to live and serve in his presence, with power to overcome everything from our old nature, the fallen world and the enemy of our soul. But none of this takes away from the importance of us living the righteousness of Jesus.

Jesus taught us, as well as showed us, that there is a difference between right and wrong, good and bad. The world fudges those lines and says there are no absolutes but the righteousness of Jesus Christ proves otherwise. In fact, all the way through the Scriptures the importance of righteousness was lifted up. Even though the prophet Isaiah, as he spoke of our approaching salvation, Yahweh stated:

Keep justice, and do righteousness,
For My salvation is about to come,
And My righteousness to be revealed.
Blessed is the man who does this,
And the son of man who lays hold on it;
Who keeps from defiling the Sabbath,
And keeps his hand from doing any evil. (Isaiah 56:1-2)

We no longer walk in righteousness, doing good instead of evil, to try to earn our salvation. The grace Jesus gave us on the cross took care of that, but now we walk in righteousness to bring pleasure to Father. For us it is an act of love, as we live in obedience to Jesus. The expectation is, if we call him Lord we will submit to his commands, teachings and instructions; we will obey. He told us:

But why do you call Me ‘Lord, Lord,’ and not do the things which I say? (Luke 6:46)

Too often we dismiss much of what Jesus taught, abusing the Scripture that tells us that we are no longer under law but under grace. What that is telling us is that we are no longer under the condemnation of the law but under the forgiveness that comes from grace. But this does not minimize our need for obedience if we are to be followers of Jesus Christ, his disciples and fellow heirs:

If you love Me, keep My commandments. (John 14:15)

Salvation is by grace but a loving relationship with Jesus provokes in us a desire for righteousness. In fact, Paul the apostle says that we become slaves to this righteousness instead of a slave to sin. Let me be clear, this is not righteousness by law but righteousness by faith. We have been declared to be righteous under grace, but Jesus expects us to walk in that righteousness. It is a state of being, declared by Yahweh, which provokes us to action.

Simply put, if you really love Jesus then obeying him becomes a top priority to you. Jesus showed us that there is a difference between right and wrong, good and evil. He didn't just tell us, he showed us. It is interesting because to me righteousness looks a lot like love. You can't say you love Jesus and then expect him to believe you when you do the opposite of what he taught. It also confuses the people who are looking in, the ones who want to see if there is anything authentic about this thing we call faith.

Why do you call him Lord? Righteousness may call on you to die to what you want today. For the sake of love, can you answer that call and obey? Love keeps us from twisting the truth of the Word to meet our selfish agenda and beckons us to the righteousness of Jesus. As always, it is a matter of choice. We are under grace but we walk in righteousness.

Would You Consider Yourself A Skilled Christian?

Do you consider yourself a skilled Christian? Yes, that question struck me as odd as well when I first read it in the book of Hebrews but as I pondered it I began to appreciate it. We do a lot of listening, learning, studying but not a lot of practice. Certainly we all try to be kind but there is a lot more to Christianity than being kind. In some ways, our spiritual development is somewhat like school in that you do not get to advance until you demonstrate that you are able to apply what you have learned. In other words, there are many of us Christians who are still stuck in kindergarten.

While we are serving Jesus in this place we should understand that his goal for us is spiritual maturity. Everything we do, that we face, that we learn is suppose to move us forward in this maturity. To put it in the terms of my opening question, we should be improving our skills, advancing to the "master" category. The writer of Hebrews observed this:

For though by this time you ought to be teachers, you need someone to teach you again the first principles of the oracles of God; and you have come to need milk and not solid food. (Hebrews 5:12)

This provokes a humorous picture in my head of a bunch of 25 year olds playing with nursery toys, stuck in kindergarten. They should be teachers but they have not yet gained the skills to leave kindergarten. We learn about, even study, concerning prayer, but we don't pray. We learn and study about evangelism but we have never been brave enough to try. We hear about the importance of hospitality but never invite anyone over. And these are the simple things:

For everyone who partakes only of milk is unskilled in the word of righteousness, for he is a babe. (v.13)

Righteousness is important but few of us understand it. We are unskilled to apply it. Righteousness crudely is the understanding of good and evil, right and wrong. There is a right path and there is a wrong path. There are right choices and wrong choices. The more that we allow the Spirit to guide is in the right choices the more familiar those things become, the easier it is for us to recognize. But if we don't understand this then how could we ever apply the Word of God to our every day practical living? Then we hear Jesus' question, why do we call him Lord if we don't do what he has instructed? (Luke 6)

When athletes train they are conditioning their bodies to perform in a certain manner. Each sport requires different skills. A hockey player would not make a great snow boarder. He may be good at it but he will never be great because his body is conditioned for hockey. With practice he has gained skill in his chosen sport. Christians also train their heart, mind, soul and strength under the guidance of the Spirit to gain great spiritual skill to be able to apply the Word, to walk in righteousness.

But solid food belongs to those who are of full age, that is, those who by reason of use have their senses exercised to discern both good and evil. (v. 14)

I am not talking about gaining our salvation by our own works. I am speaking to those of you who have already received Jesus and are under that promise of salvation. I am speaking to those who are on their walk with Jesus but can't seem to get any traction to advance. Our great desire should be to mature in Jesus, to walk in his righteousness. At first it will be difficult, just like learning to physically walk, but with practice we gain skill and we will eventually be running. We will be mature, growing into the fullness of Jesus.

It means when we are faced with decisions, we learn to die to our desires and choose what honours Jesus. It means, every day our thoughts are of Jesus and we use him as our measuring rod in our conduct and choices. We learn to hear and obey the Spirit as he constantly guides us and teaches according to the righteousness of Jesus. It means we learn to die to ourselves a little bit every day as we become skilled in the word of righteousness, moving from milk to glorious solid food. It is where the Word of God moves from a document of theory to the Living Word inside of us, embodied in our words and actions. It is gaining skill to do what Jesus has instructed us to do as we apply it in everything in our lives. So let's make every day a practice day.

Getting Real With Jesus - A Call To Holiness

I think we have gone too far in the taming of our God, to make him appear more attractive, more salable among the cavorting nations. We have removed the bite from the Lion, or, I should say, we tried. At what point did we realize that the way of holiness was unattractive to the masses? When was that moment that we decided a benevolent Santa Claus type figure would be more acceptable? Who was the marketer that decided it was wiser to leave people happy in their sin in the pews than uncomfortably convicted at the Mercy Seat? I realize I am being harsh but I am being harsh on people like me: The Preachers.

Our God is not tame; far from it. However, he is kind, loving, forgiving and his desire is to see everyone saved from their intended destination of destruction. This does not diminish his glory; his righteousness; his holiness. Just because he reaches out in compassion to adopt us as his children does not take away from his glory:

Clouds and darkness surround Him;
Righteousness and justice are the foundation of His throne. (v. 2)

I don't think we preachers have done a very good job of telling people that a mark of accepting Jesus Christ as Saviour and Lord is change. We die to what we were. That is how our bondage to sin is broken. Then we are raised in our new life in Jesus, and he in us. It is true that all our sin is forgiven but it also means we are called to his righteousness. It is the foundation of his throne as it becomes the foundation of our lives. It means that we no longer desire sin, or self or anything but the will of the Father. Any other form of Christianity is a lie. Anything that allows you to remain in sin and your desire for sin and self is a lie. Remember that justice is also the foundation of his throne and all those who live by sin instead of the Spirit are his enemies:

A fire goes before Him,
And burns up His enemies round about. (v. 3)

Not so tame.

We need a better vision of Yahweh, a better understanding so that we know that we do not want to fall into the hands of the living God; not his hands of justice:

His lightnings light the world;
The earth sees and trembles.
The mountains melt like wax at the presence of the Lord,
At the presence of the Lord of the whole earth.
The heavens declare His righteousness,
And all the peoples see His glory. (vv. 4-6)

We should fear to sin. We should fear to fall out of his grace. We should fear to offend our God. We should never take his grace for granted. We should never abuse his love. We should never try to manipulate his kindness and desire for us to our selfish advantage. We should desire to flee hard and fast from even any hint of sin, not use grace as an excuse to flirt with it or even to flaunt it. If we are saved we should have a longing for the righteousness of Jesus Christ. It should be our desire and when we fail, repentance should be our quick response.

Let all be put to shame who serve carved images,
Who boast of idols. (v. 7)

Indeed, let us feel the shame of our prostitution to the idols of this age. Let us feel deeply the shame and guilt of what we do against the Name above all names. Let us stop playing games with grace and get serious about loving our God. Let us throw off everything that entangles and ensnares our hearts and be thoroughly cleansed and set right in our service to our King. Let us discover again our fear of the Lord, the great respect that is due him and get up on his Highway of Holiness. Let us pursue him with all that we are and trust him to preserve us until the day of his return.

You who love the Lord, hate evil!
He preserves the souls of His saints;
He delivers them out of the hand of the wicked.
Light is sown for the righteous,
And gladness for the upright in heart.
Rejoice in the Lord, you righteous,
And give thanks at the remembrance of His holy name. (vv. 10-12)

Indeed, REPENT! REJOICE! GIVE THANKS! REMEMBER!

Cry Out To Those Who Are Perishing

Terrible things happen to those who forget Yahweh. Not so long ago there were entire nations that had embraced Christianity, who called on the name of the Lord in good times and in bad. I would not call them Christian nations because there are no such thing but they were nations where the majority of their people had professed Jesus as Lord and Saviour. Some of these people were not true to their word but only spoke because the majority believed. Yet, now these nations have forgotten.

They have forgotten and terrible things are happening within them. The psalmist knew of that which I speak:

The nations have sunk down in the pit which they made;
In the net which they hid, their own foot is caught.

The Lord is known by the judgment He executes;
The wicked is snared in the work of his own hands. (Psalm 9:15-16)

Sometimes people call out in times of catastrophe, "Where is your God now", and it is often pointed out to them, "You have replaced him by that which is not God". The nations have sunk down in the pit which they made. They made the problems. They turned their back on the Lord and set their heart on evil things and those evil things open the door to disaster. Their foot gets caught in the net which they hid. They are snared in the work of their own doing.

Consider how many of those countries that once stood with Jesus, who based their laws on righteousness, are now slaughtering innocent children in the name of their own laws and their own justice? Not just the unborn children but those children deemed of lesser worth. And they do it in the name of compassion. Without the light of Yahweh's holiness evil looks good and the common begins to look holy. There is a reason why economies are failing. There is a reason why there are wars and rumours of wars. 

Even in our individual lives, there is a huge difference between a life of righteousness and one bent on its own destruction. If you are lacking joy, look to where you stand with Jesus. What are you allowing to happen within your own city gates? If you are lacking peace, look to where you stand with Jesus. Who or what is your council, guiding your steps, making your decisions? Where is your heart? It goes beyond words of worship? Do you consider the poor? The Widow? The orphan? Are we fighting for those who cannot fight for themselves?

There is not much you and I can do about entire nations, they are the dominion of our Lord, but we can do something about ourselves. We can also be a great influence on our family and friends. Do not be tempted by the evil of our day. Do not make your own god and your own rules. Stick to Jesus all the way. Walk in obedience and allow him to provoke righteousness in you. Love as he loved, not the soft kind but the fierce kind; the kind that takes risks to save those who are heading to their death. Yes, even in the face of the sanctions of nations we can stand, because we do not stand alone.

Remember:

The wicked shall be turned into hell,
And all the nations that forget God. (v. 17)

Father does not want this to happen. He is more interested in forgiveness and reconciliation, but he is also just and will carry out his judgement. However, we should work within his will that everyone would be saved. We should pray with the psalmist:

Arise, O Lord,
Do not let man prevail;
Let the nations be judged in Your sight.

Put them in fear, O Lord,
That the nations may know themselves to be but men. (v. 19-20)

... and Jesus to be King over them. May they all come to know you Lord, turning from their evil ways and be saved from the fiery pit of hell. That is why we are still here my friends, to call out the Word of Truth, the Word of Life, to the doomed peoples of this earth. Cry out!

Why Should I Fear Yahweh?

Having grown up near the Atlantic ocean I learned to respect water. There are certain rules you learn to obey, not because they are forced on you but simply for survival. There are things you can do to enjoy the water but there are definitely other things you shouldn't do if you want to live. One thing you learn is that you always keep your wits about you when you are around water. You learn to respect the character of the Atlantic ocean.

In our age of hyper-grace I think we are forgetting the respect that is due our Creator. It is kind of like the line we get from Mr. Beaver in The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe. When Lucy asks if the lion, Aslan, is safe Mr. Beaver replies, "Safe? Who said anything about safe? 'Course he isn't safe. But he's good." A wonderful description of Yahweh, one to which we should pay attention. If we understood his character we would understand why David writes of respecting him in the same way I learned to respect the powerful Atlantic ocean:

Now therefore, be wise, O kings;
Be instructed, you judges of the earth.
Serve the Lord with fear,
And rejoice with trembling. (Psalm 2:10-11)

Even king Solomon understood respecting the character of Yahweh, or at least he did before his hundreds of foreign wives interfered with his relationship:

The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge,
But fools despise wisdom and instruction. (Proverbs 1:7)

The character of Yahweh is nothing to be trifled with; he is not tame. The Atlantic ocean is not tame and never will be tamed. It is beyond the capability of man. Yahweh is beyond the concept of man and we can never reduce his character so that we can make him dance to our tune. To try to do so is to play in the water without respect. It will end in our demise.

We cannot play with Yahweh's words to make it say what we want. We cannot change the words or actions of Jesus to suit our thinking. We cannot dismiss the Spirit into non-existence. We cannot create our own god and then attach Yahweh's name, claiming that we are Christian. Our God cannot be mocked and those who try will discover the true nature of his character.

Our God, his testimony concerning himself, his instructions, his Spirit are to be respected and obeyed. This Hebrew word has been translated to "fear" and most people miss the point because we no longer live in an age where respect has much value. I hear ignorant people stating, "I will never obey God if he requires me to fear him". The ocean doesn't demand me to fear it, but it is a wise thing for me to develop a healthy fear of it if I wish to live. Fear is not as we use it today but it does imply a great respect of something so powerful it is out of your control to tame and get it to behave as we want.

Yahweh is love, but his character demands respect. We can't do whatever we want because his character has defined right from wrong, good from bad. We are a fallen creation because of our disobedience and he has done everything he can, paying the highest price, so that we might escape the consequences of our behaviour. Even this should never be trivialized but should provoke in us a response of love, so that we would desire to walk in his righteousness and respect him. I pray that Yahweh's people can re-discover this before it is too late.

What Evil Lurks In The Heart Of ....

The more I study Scripture and put it in the context of today, the more disturbed I become. There is just something wrong with so many people claiming Jesus with no passion to live in his righteousness. I look around and see everyone doing what they think is best and their best is sometimes evil. By evil I mean that it is contrary to the character of Yahweh, who is holy. How can we say that we love Jesus and lack great passion for his name?

I know we all go to great churches and we sing loud, with great joy, and we feel in our hearts that we love Jesus. That is really great and I am glad for that passion but what about the passion to walk right before him, all the time? What about the passion to know what pleases our LORD and to do those things, all the time? What about the passion for his holiness and to live according to it, all the time? It is far too easy to know of Jesus, think we are okay and yet not be known by Jesus because we are not united with him.

There are many who call upon Jesus' name for all kinds of things and who do great things in his name, who will be rejected by Jesus on the day we stand before him. It is too easy to look like we are walking with him and yet in our hearts live an evil life; things contrary to his character. It reminds me of Eli's sons and later Samuel's.

These boys had great father's who served the LORD holding nothing back, but this passion and dedication was not passed on to the sons. This sort of thing cannot be passed on to someone else unless it is first birthed in their heart. Yet, these sons stood in positions of spiritual responsibilities and did evil. How is this possible?

Now the sons of Eli were corrupt; they did not know the Lord. (1 Samuel 2:12)

It was possible because they did not know the LORD. Their great sin was that they changed the regulations of the sacrifices to their own advantage. They took from sincere worshipers the sacrifices being made to Yahweh and used them selfishly. The end result was terrible:

Therefore the sin of the young men was very great before the Lord, for men abhorred the offering of the Lord. (v. 17)

Their actions turned people away from Yahweh; they made something of beauty and love very ugly and unattractive to the sincere worshiper. This is why it was very great before the LORD because they were interfering in the relationship. Remember Jesus' harsh words for those who would prevent the children of Yahweh from approaching him.

We don't get to do whatever we want. We have clear instructions to walk in the righteousness of our LORD. We need to be checking ourselves to see that our faith is sincere and understand that our Father does test the sincerity of that faith from time to time. It is better to be tested here then to find out as we stand before Jesus that it was not genuine.

We need to understand that any insincerity on our part can be a stumbling block to others. It is also important that we do not put anyone in authority who does not have a sincere faith. They may have all the words, know all the ceremonies, know the key Bible passages to quote but have a heart possessed by evil, selfish thinking, jealousies and pettiness; things contrary to the character of Yahweh.

The bottom line is that we should all have a constant desire and passion to increase in our maturity, to grow into the fullness of Jesus. There is never a time that we can afford to sit back and relax, to be entertained, to retire because there is no retirement for the children of Yahweh in this place. If we are not pushing forward we are losing ground. If we are not growing in our relationship then our passion is growing cold. We should have a growing desire to have more of Jesus and he should be our constant thought and motivation. Never should we see the blessings of the Lord simply for our use because they have been given to us as tools to do the work we have been given to do.

Lord Jesus, change our perspective and thinking. Change our heart that we would shake off the lullaby sung over us by this world as it tries to put us to sleep spiritually to rape us carnally. Open our eyes to you, that we would be caught up in such passion for your name that our great desire would be for your righteousness. Strengthen and encourage us to live for you and you alone, pouring all that we are and all that we have into your mission. Forgive us for our failures and help us to walk the highway of holiness where nothing can prevail against us.

Who Will You Serve?

I realize that I seem to be repeating myself for the last couple of weeks but I am sharing with you a clear message that came out of my period of Fasting to the LORD. The message is simple: Yahweh has set his standards and has called us to a relationship of obedience, so make a decision. I think the reason this message is so important is because many leaders and teachers have been muddying the waters with human reasoning. There is much apostasy that is spewing from the mouths of those who promised to love and obey Jesus Christ.

Let's make this as simple as possible by looking at one piece of Scripture to understand our Father's heart on his expectations of those who accept Jesus Christ as their Lord and Saviour. It is at it's essence the same expectations he had for Israel:

Now therefore, fear the Lord, serve Him in sincerity and in truth, and put away the gods which your fathers served on the other side of the River and in Egypt. Serve the Lord! (Joshua 24:14)

The other way this was put was to love the LORD your God with all your heart, all your mind, all your soul and all your strength. It means we get to know him, what delights him and what offends him. We must know his heart and then desire to walk in obedience to him. It doesn't mean doing whatever you think is best to serve him. That's what Israel tried to do during the times of the judges and it got them in a lot of trouble, as it is getting people in trouble today.

No, we don't get to do what we want. Jesus repeated these same kind of words but a little more directly:

If you love Me, keep My commandments. (John 14:15)

Not what you think is best but what Jesus commanded. We live according to the righteousness of our holy LORD not according to the supposed righteousness of man. We have been given standards, statutes to live and they are higher than the cesspool of sin that we are witnessing transpire from the hearts of man in our societies today.

Joshua made it clear that there is something we need to do:

And if it seems evil to you to serve the Lord, choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve, whether the gods which your fathers served that were on the other side of the River, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you dwell. But as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord. (Joshua 24:15)

No one on the face of this planet is forced to serve Jesus Christ. Men of demented thinking tried to use the Church in the past to hold power over people but it failed. Yahweh does not even force his desire upon us but he freely offers it. He freely offers his mercy and grace, his love and forgiveness, his compassion. He freely offers us adoption into his family and rescue from the destructive course that we have chosen. But we have to make that decision.

The only thing we are warned is that we can't have it all. We can't have the sin of this world and the righteousness of our LORD. Jesus asked the question, what is the point of gaining the whole world if we lose our soul? If we make the decision for Jesus then there are expectations we will live by the Spirit who places the Word of God in us. We cannot take part in the unholy things of this world and be possessed by the Spirit. It doesn't work that way.

Make a decision: is the music of this world more important than Jesus? Are those favorite sin-filled television shows more important than Jesus? Are those misleading movies more important than Jesus? Is the dangerous place of social networking more important than Jesus? If you lack the discipline to turn things off when they go terribly wrong, then get rid of that thing from your life; deny yourself, take up your cross, and follow Jesus. The choice is clear and a decision is demanded of us: Who will you serve?

Grace As A Loophole

In this age of hyper-grace we are losing our fear of Yahweh. We are no longer afraid to sin, to offend our God because the overwhelming message of the day is that his grace will cover us. How quick we forget apostle Paul's warning not to use grace as an excuse to sin. The grace of our God is the great message of the age, as it has been for every age since the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. It is a fantastic reality that we need to bring to the world but we can never lose sight of the truth that we serve a God of justice. Yahweh will judge and he will punish according to our heart.

We should not be looking for loopholes in order to excuse our sin. If any sin has a hold on us it means that we are enslaved to it and not to the righteousness of our LORD. It means we do not walk in the freedom Jesus won for us and it means we are wrong. Pleading grace is not like pleading the 5th in the United States. Grace is applied to the repentant heart not to the one that is looking for the "get out of jail free" card. Let's look at two examples, one from the Old Testament and one from the New.

Israel had just destroyed Jericho at Yahweh's command. He had warned them not to take anything but to destroy everything. However, there was one who did not obey. Achan could not resist certain of the treasures, so he took some and buried them in his tent. An innocent sin that did not impact anyone else, right? Wrong. God's blessings were removed from the nation and when they fought the next battle many lost their lives because Yahweh was not with them. Achan's sin was found out and Yahweh called for justice to be carried out. Rebellion cannot be tolerated among the children of Yahweh:

Then Joshua, and all Israel with him, took Achan the son of Zerah, the silver, the garment, the wedge of gold, his sons, his daughters, his oxen, his donkeys, his sheep, his tent, and all that he had, and they brought them to the Valley of Achor. And Joshua said, “Why have you troubled us? The Lord will trouble you this day.” So all Israel stoned him with stones; and they burned them with fire after they had stoned them with stones. (Joshua 7:24-25)

Harsh but so was the sin, the rebellion that Yahweh could not permit to spread in his holy nation. Now let's flip forward to the beginning of the Church. There was a married couple who had a plot of land. At that time many of the followers of Jesus were selling their possessions to give to the leaders to provide for those who did not have much. This couple wanted to look good in everyone's eyes but without the cost. So they said they were donating the price of the plot of land they sold but in fact they held some back for themselves. They said they were giving their all but they kept some in reserve:

But Peter said, “Ananias, why has Satan filled your heart to lie to the Holy Spirit and keep back part of the price of the land for yourself? While it remained, was it not your own? And after it was sold, was it not in your own control? Why have you conceived this thing in your heart? You have not lied to men but to God.” Then Ananias, hearing these words, fell down and breathed his last. So great fear came upon all those who heard these things. (Acts 5:3-5)

They could have given whatever they wanted, there were no expectations, but they choose to lie. Fear came upon the followers of Jesus as it should to this day. I speak for myself as well when I say that we have lost that fear. We are no longer afraid to offend our God, we no longer fear to sin. We enter into it with the thought, "My God knows I love him; he will forgive me according to his grace". But the Spirit knows the motivation of our heart. If we truly loved Jesus then we would seek his righteousness not loopholes to get what we want and to do what we wish.

There is a difference between those who have chosen righteousness, who pursue it and who are covered by grace, and those who say they seek it but lie, expecting that the grace of our Father will cover them. Our God is still a God of justice and we should fear that justice. How quickly we forget the warning in Hebrews:

For if we sin willfully after we have received the knowledge of the truth, there no longer remains a sacrifice for sins, but a certain fearful expectation of judgment, and fiery indignation which will devour the adversaries. Anyone who has rejected Moses’ law dies without mercy on the testimony of two or three witnesses. Of how much worse punishment, do you suppose, will he be thought worthy who has trampled the Son of God underfoot, counted the blood of the covenant by which he was sanctified a common thing, and insulted the Spirit of grace? For we know Him who said, “Vengeance is Mine, I will repay,” says the Lord. And again, “The Lord will judge His people.” It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God. (Hebrews 10:26-31)

Fearful indeed. I am not saying that we should live our life constantly in fear of stepping on an ant and offending Yahweh; we do not live a sin conscience life. But we can live a life where we are aware of the motivation of our heart and if our motivation is to sin against the righteousness of our LORD, to reject it immediately. We are a holy nation, a royal priesthood, separated for the purpose of our Father. We walk in his righteousness and maintain a healthy and respectful fear of the Living God. No loopholes, only obedience.

The Highest Standard Is Love

It's crazy that we have police and politicians who are responsible for making and enforcing laws but who believe they are above the law. Here in Canada, we just had one of our party leaders admit that he has smoked marijuana after being elected. In Canada it is illegal to smoke marijuana except if you have a doctor's permission due to an illness. The law remains and is enforced for the ordinary citizen but Mr.Trudeau believes he is above this law.

It doesn't matter which law was broken, the fact remains that our politicians are suppose to hold themselves to a higher standard. Even if they disagree with a law, they still have the responsibility to abide by it. This goes for speed limits, paying taxes, or any other law we want to consider. If they disagree with the law then they should work to change it but in the meantime, abide by the law like every other citizen must.

Now why would I bring politics into my blog which is all about all things connected to Jesus Christ? Simple: The same principle is in play for us who belong to the Kingdom of God.

We seem to be a confused people concerning the law and grace. We use grace as an excuse for ignoring the fact that our Father is holy and has called us to his righteousness. Grace simply covers us when we get it wrong but what matters is the attitude of our heart. If we purposely set out to deceive God by doing what is contrary to his righteousness then we are only deceiving ourselves. We don't get to do what we feel is right. In fact. Jesus brought us to the deepest part of the law which is governed by love.

Jesus taught that the law says not to murder but love says do not hate, which is the root of murder. Jesus taught that the law says do not commit adultery but love says do not lust, which is the root of adultery. Jesus moved us from the law, which deals with the surface, to the root of the law which is governed by love.

If you love me, you will do as I command. (John 14:15)

These, the words of Jesus, do not give us the right to sin but instead hold us to a higher standard. Certainly we will fail because our bodies have not yet been redeemed. It is the weakest link. But our flesh should not be dictating to us when we have been empowered by the Spirit. We must command our bodies to obey our spirit which longs for intimacy with God's Spirit. This should be our desire, our longing, our hope so that any thought of disobedience would seem repugnant to us. There must be a desire in us to want to obey Jesus Christ.

I will be personal with you. There have been times when I have allowed fear to knock me off course. In my position it means other people, a lot of people, have been effected by my fear. I have feared my future and my finances. Some would feel that it is only normal because of my situation but it is not normal for me. I am a man of faith. I take God at face value. I trust his promises and to allow fear to manipulate me is to say that I do not trust. This is a sin because faith means to trust. I have learned that I must confess my weakness so Jesus can show his strength through it. I have learned to refuse fear and purposely do exactly what I fear. And every time God has revealed himself in glory.

We cannot hold on to our sins, flaunt them before the world and use the excuse that we aren't perfect, only forgiven. It should be with some shame that we come before God, admitting our failures and allowing him to restore his Spirit in us. We need to desire to obey his will without hesitation. We should take delight in his law, delight in his holiness and delight in his righteousness. We need to press in more every day, getting closer, surrendering more, desiring more. We don't want less righteousness, we want more. We don't want less of Jesus, we want more. We don't want less of the law, we want to go deeper.

Politicians, who are our lawmakers, who refuse to follow the law because they disagree with it, are wrong. Many won't see it that way but it eats away at the foundation of our society and opens the doors to all kinds of abuses and wrongs. It is the reason they are held to a higher standard. But far worse are Christians who refuse to obey the Spirit, allowing disobedience to eat away at their foundation, opening the door to all kinds of abuses and wrongs. They fail to understand that we are held to the highest standard, Jesus Christ and it will have eternal consequences for them and all those they influence.

Homophobic? I Think Not

According to my daughter and a lot of other people I am homophobic and I take issue with this. You should too, if you are a follower of Jesus Christ who understands our mission. I even have issues with the term "homophobic". What it is suppose to mean has nothing to do with a phobia but rather a hatred, but it doesn't even mean hatred any more. It has been used to label anyone who does not agree with homosexuality. It means I do not have a right to disagree, to have a different perspective from the homosexual community.

The reason this is a concern for Christians is because those who understand God's Word and stand by it are labelled as "haters" with the term homophobic. This flies in the face of what Jesus taught, what he has done for me and the transformation I have gone through. I have no desire to hate anyone and I have nothing but respect for human life, even if I disagree with what that human life is doing. I have a long list of things I disagree with:

I disagree with:
    - abortion
    - prostitution
    - domestic violence
    - child abuse
    - smoking
    - drunkenness
    - drugs
    - speeding
    - over-eating

The list goes on. Some of these things are very common and others no so much. Do I hate the people who do these things? No, I don't. I would show them compassion and grace because that is what I have received from my God. I have not walked in their shoes, I cannot judge them but neither do I support or encourage their behaviour. If they walked into my store or my church I would treat them with the same love and respect as I would anyone else; the same as I would treat a homosexual, even if I disagree with their choices.

I am not meaning this as a political statement but a spiritual one. I am not about to allow the false prince of this world to label me with something that doesn't fit. I am not a hater and by God's power never will be a hater. But I am pursuing God's righteousness, the One who has defined right and wrong for us. I cannot agree with homosexuality based on that righteousness. Because of his love for me and mine for him, I have no choice but to be obedient to his love, to what God has defined as right and wrong, and no human being can persuade we otherwise.

God's Word states, from the mouth of Jesus, "God loved the people of this world so much that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who has faith in him will have eternal life and never really die." God loved us in our rebellious state so much that he sacrificed himself so we would not have to be punished. However, it does mean we have to walk away from our rebellion by the power he has given us in Jesus. But who am I not to love people in a fallen state when God sacrificed so much for these same people? But just as God does not accept the behaviour of our fallen state, either can the followers of Jesus Christ. This is at the foundation of our belief and the enemy will not rob me of this love by labeling me a "hater".

In this same Word that coneys God's love and the grace he is showing a rebellious world, we are warned that there is a limit; that there will be one day of judgement. We forget that just because we live in this age of grace and free will, does not mean there is no accountability. Remember the Words of Jesus:

Not everyone who calls me their Lord will get into the kingdom of heaven. Only the ones who obey my Father in heaven will get in. On the day of judgment many will call me their Lord. They will say, “We preached in your name, and in your name we forced out demons and worked many miracles.” But I will tell them, “I will have nothing to do with you! Get out of my sight, you evil people!” (Matthew 7:21-23)

And this is what we spend our days trying to convey to people. It is because we love them that we need to share the truth, to warn. They have the freedom to choose but we want to make sure that they understand there is a choice. If I refused to love them I would refuse to tell them the truth. It's like when someone is lost on drugs, they need to be confronted and told the truth. We don't abandon them, hate them, spit on them, call them names, but we don't withhold the truth either.

So I refuse the label of "homophobic" and any other label that our changing society wants to place on me. I am a child of God, a follower of Jesus, a bearer of the Light, a teller of the truth, a prophet of God's Word, a lover of sinners, detesting sin and longing for God's righteousness. Don't let the world bully you into anything less than what our Father has called you to be.

Enticed By The Enemy Of Your Soul

Sin is foolishness and we are the fools. Don't think you are not because you are only one decision away from being unfaithful to the God who is nothing but faithful. We are a wayward wife, refusing to find satisfaction at home, and rushing around town, searching for anything that will thrill us. It is like we forget who our husband is and care not the consequences of our actions. We flirt with the dangerous, the things that will hurt our God if we were to get involved with them. We excuse it away, find someone else to blame or refuse to see it for what it is, giving it a new name and calling it good.

We allow the enemy of our soul to court us, as if we did not already have the finest husband. We allow him to introduce us to things that seem so sweet to taste without realizing the cancer it will produce. We look around, see so many others doing it, ignore what we already know to be the truth and consider that there must be safety in numbers. We know we shouldn't but the enemy of our soul, dressed as a beautiful vision of white, encourages us on.

Solomon, in warning his son against an adulterous woman, stated it in a way that describes all sin that attracts us away from God:

And so, she tricked him
    with all of her sweet talk
    and her flattery.
22 Right away he followed her
    like an ox on the way
    to be slaughtered,
or like a fool on the way
to be punished[a]
23     and killed with arrows.
He was no more than a bird
    rushing into a trap,
    without knowing
    it would cost him his life. (Proverbs 7:21-23)

Remember Jesus' words:

If any of you want to be my followers, you must forget about yourself. You must take up your cross and follow me. If you want to save your life, you will destroy it. But if you give up your life for me and for the good news, you will save it. What will you gain, if you own the whole world but destroy yourself? What could you give to get back your soul? (Mark 8:34-37)

If we do not understand the seriousness of our relationship with God perhaps it is because we don't know Jesus or we have allowed many things to distract us from him. How, in all seriousness, can we be willing to chase after the world after experiencing the benefits of Jesus?

We are not surprised by the depravity of the world's thinking and the action that arise. We are saddened by it but not surprised. However, we should be shocked and horrified to find sin entertained and celebrated in the Church. Yes, unfortunately there will be times when our unredeemed bodies will cause us to stumble, but we don't excuse it or try to hide it. We run to our Father and present it in all our shame to have him wash it away with a word. But when we invite it in, excuse it, accept it as part of us, celebrate it and even allow it to rise higher than Jesus, we are in a lot of trouble.

The untrained, undisciplined, unsaved masses of the Church are falling for the courtship of the enemy. They are following after the lies of demons. They are chasing after the world dressed in the vocabulary of the Church. They are deceived. What will they do to get back their soul? What trap have they flown into like an unaware bird?

Quick, flee to the feet of Jesus. Surrender to the direction of the Spirit. Repent of our ways and seek the face of God. Be renewed in righteousness. Claim the holiness that has been proclaimed over us. Know that you have an enemy and he is out to destroy your soul. Look to the things above. Set your heart and mind on the things above. Let go of the trappings of this world and find your satisfaction in your husband, in our Lord Jesus Christ. You are his bride, his most beautiful, radiant bride, so act like it. Be devoted to your husband, faithful until your very last breath.

Calling Good Evil And Evil Good

God is love! That is the clear message of the Church today, and it should be because there is no love that compares to the love of our Father. This love has brought in an era of grace through the sacrifice of Jesus on the cross. But unfortunately some have interpreted this love to mean that "anything goes". As we see evil called good and good evil we should be shocked that this message is arising from the Church.

Yes, God is love but he is also holy. Yes, grace is incredible and without limits but we have been warned not to abuse it. There is a lopsided message starting to emerge from the Church and it is wrong. It is made up of lies covered by a thin veil of truth and people are falling for it.

Yes, Jesus hung out with the prostitutes, the drunkards, the liars and thieves, but that did not stop him from teaching the righteousness of God. Yes, he forgave sins but he also told people to stop sinning. The woman caught in adultery was saved from stoning but Jesus told her to "sin no more". When people met Jesus they were never the same again. When he invited people to follow him, Jesus set an example for them and they left everything they had been to become something more. They did not continue as they were, doing what they wanted, free to sin to their heart's content.

Today, in our desire to be inclusive, we forget the transformation that takes place with the new birth. If there is no transformation then it is conformity and conformists will not make it into the Kingdom. It is a heart change, a repenting, a turning away from what we were and grasping what God has called us to be; a complete transformation under the power of the Holy Spirit.

The audacity to come before our Creator in the depravity of our thinking and say, "Accept me as I am with my thoughts and limited wisdom, with my sin. Don't change me. If you try to convince me I am wrong I will serve someone else." We are not doing God any favours. It is he who has rescued us at great cost and he has said to us, "If you love me you will obey what I have commanded". Famous servant's of God are now saying, "You had better accept sin or I will decide to spend eternity in hell". With such an attitude I think the choice has already been made, but it is the damage and confusion they are sowing that concerns me.

Yes, God is love and that love also makes forgiveness available. We need forgiveness and transformation because our ways are so entrenched in sin and the depravity that comes from it that we are desperate for his forgiveness. How can we be forgiven of things that we no longer consider wrong?

Yes, God is love and that love comes from his holiness. As a holy God he hates sin. Just a tiny, and I mean tiny, example from his Word:

"There are six things The Lord hates, seven that are detestable:

     - haughty eyes

     - a lying tongue

     - hands that shed innocent blood

     - a heart that devises wicked schemes

     - feet that are quick to rush into evil

     - a false witness who pours out lies

     - and a man who stirs up dissension among brothers." (Proverbs 6:16-19)

Jesus did something incredible with the law; he took us to a deeper place in it. "Do not murder but I tell you do not hate. Do not commit adultery but I tell you do not lust." The law went from a document impossible to live, to something written on our heart by the Holy Spirit and alive in us by that same Spirit. Grace does not give us an excuse to sin but should give us a desire to be more like our God.

Of course the problem now is the definition of sin. What do we consider sin? As we redefine it, calling good evil and evil good, the debate is really over what God defines as sin. We have certainly come into the last days as people run after the teachings of demons, which are convincing people to abandon the Word of God and go with what feels right. We set aside the wisdom of our God for the wisdom of man forgetting that our God has told us that his ways and thoughts are so much higher than ours.

Redefine sin any way you want but it still comes down to what God has said. Re-write his Word to make it say what you want but you will still be held accountable to the truth. God is love and that is why we have had two thousand years of grace but the day of judgment is coming and then we shall see if there is a hell or not. His love has made it possible for us to escape judgement but those who have rejected his truth for their own will be condemned by our righteous God according to the decisions they have made.

Obedience: A Concept Of A Gone By Era?

Obedience seems to be a concept relegated to a gone by era. Obedience to authority, whether it be parents, police, governments appears to be something that is suggested but circumvented by the individuals right to "think for themselves". We now live in the enlightened age of the individual where anarchists will soon see their desires fulfilled. After all, what else can we expect when each individual is allowed to define their own sense of right and wrong? But of course we should not be surprised with our struggle with obedience.

Our entire character is deformed by the very first act of disobedience and since that moment we have been governed by a spirit of rebellion. The urge to come against authority is in us from birth and is easily detected in "innocent" toddlers. But since the very beginning God has sought a relationship with us built on love, trust and obedience. Obedience is a fundamental part of our relationship with our Father. It is instilled in the law that we were unable to fulfill before Jesus. Apostle Paul reminds us of that law:

Children, you belong to the Lord, and you do the right thing when you obey your parents. The first commandment with a promise says, “Obey your father and your mother, and you will have a long and happy life.” (Ephesians 6:1-3)

So often when you talk about obedience the sinful nature rises up and we start to hear words such as "control", "oppression" and "abuse". But those are situations where obedience is demanded with an absence of love. In the context of what we read in the Word, love is the underlying factor. You cannot have a desire to obey unless it comes from a place of love and trust. But let's not overlook the benefits of obedience.

Paul pointed out that the law to obey is the first one that came with a promises and that promise was of a long and happy life. This is the same promise that Solomon emphasized with his son:

My child, if you listen
and obey my teachings,
    you will live a long time. (Proverbs 4:10)

But Solomon did not just state it once, he repeated himself because it was an important point for his son to understand:

Hold firmly to my teaching
and never let go.
    It will mean life for you. (v.13)

and,

My child, listen carefully
    to everything I say.
21     Don’t forget a single word,
    but think about it all.
22 Knowing these teachings
    will mean true life
    and good health for you. (vv.20-22)

God had warned Adam and Eve that disobedience would lead to death and it did. Solomon described the difference between the obedient and the rebellious as this:

The lifestyle of good people
    is like sunlight at dawn
    that keeps getting brighter
    until broad daylight.
19 The lifestyle of the wicked
    is like total darkness,
    and they will never know
    what makes them stumble. (vv.18-19)

Is there a better description of those who are lost in their rebellion: They will never know what makes them stumble"? And that is why we refer to them as lost, because they are lost in their rebellious way. They aren't even aware of what is wrong any more.

Obedience is not a suggestion in our relationship with God, it is a must. It should be the great, overwhelming desire we have; to obey our Father. Not out of a sense of duty and fear but from a great well of love, in response to his overwhelming love. If we are still pursuing what we want because we want it no matter the cost, then we do not know the love of Jesus. If we honestly knew the love of Jesus we could not stay the same and we would be changed with a desire to obey him in love.

So many people misunderstand Jesus when he stated:

If you love me, you will do what I have said, and my Father will love you. I will also love you and show you what I am like. (John 12:21)

People only pick up on "you will do what I have said" and miss the great blanket of love that the statement is wrapped in. Jesus was simply stating the nature of love and obedience and the relationship between the two. You cannot love someone and be in rebellion against them.

There is no getting around obedience. If you love Jesus then your desire is to obey. If you do not love Jesus then your desire will be for yourself. Those are the facts. It comes down to those words, "If you love me you will do what I say".