Being Spirit-called or Spirit-led is like a heavy weight or gravitational pull on my heart as of late. What is God telling me to be and to do? Am I being obedient to his will and calling for my life? In my personal reading a suggested book came across my queue. The book is called Finish Line Leadership by author and leadership trainer Dave Kraft. One of Kraft’s lines from chapter 5 Living in Reactive Obedience has tattooed itself on my mind. Kraft states, “Delayed obedience is still disobedience.” Talk about hitting a nerve. Fortunately, it made immediate, practical sense to me. My students turn in their schoolwork late all the time. Typically, late work comes with a response, something like this, “Well, at least I turned it in!” While the statement is true, they still didn’t follow the rules. They missed the deadline. They are in the wrong. There is still going to be a consequence, like points off their final grade. However, I need to start taking a closer look at my own obedience or lack thereof. I should do this rather than attacking adolescent students. Let’s look at what obedience looks like biblically and practically for you and for me?
In the Bible we can quickly and easily find obedience in Jesus Christ. He perfectly obeys the Father’s will. First, because He and the Father are one, John 10:30. Therefore, God the Father and God the Son share the same will and desires. Two, Jesus delights in pleasing the Father. We never see Jesus delaying in bringing the Father’s will to fruition. He even does the hard things like going to the cross, but we are not Jesus.
Many of our biblical leaders especially the disciples of the New Testament struggle with obedient behavior. They seem to gravitate to disobedience like a moth to a flame. Maybe it’s just human instinct. Our first example is Peter. Peter does not always do the will of God. In Matthew 16:23 Jesus rebukes Peter saying get behind me Satan. Peter does not want and is convinced he will not let Jesus die. Going against Jesus’s authority. Yet Peter loses his boldness after Jesus is arrested, by denying Jesus three times. Later in the New Testament, Paul confronts Peter for not eating with Gentiles. This goes against God’s will that we are all one in Christ. Let’s not just pick on Peter. Thomas refusing to believe in the resurrection, even though his closest friends tell him that Jesus has risen. He would only believe by seeing and touching the actual Jesus, John 20:25. Thankfully our God is slow to anger. Jesus is patient with our disobedience and the Spirit gives us the opportunity to awaken to joyful obedience.
Peter learned from his mistakes. In John 21 Peter sees the Lord on shore and after they catch an astonishing haul of fish. The impressive haul convinces him that it is none other than Jesus on the shore. Peter immediately decides to respond. Peter could have waited – waited until the net was hoisted up and the boat was brought into shore. Instead, he throws himself right into the sea! He responded with immediate obedience. Thomas after touching Jesus and seeing Jesus does not sit around to contemplate what he just did. Immediately, Thomas falls to his knees to worship Jesus, saying, “my Lord!” John tells us another story earlier on in his Gospel about Nathaniel. Nathaniel was called like most of the disciples to follow Jesus. Upon Jesus telling Nathaniel, he saw him under the tree what does he do? He immediately followed Jesus. Jesus woke them all from their sin of delayed obedience, teaching them to respond with immediacy.
We are not so different from these disciples. Kraft’s book has shined a light on my heart. A song by Josiah Queen called Things that Matter has given me a mirror to see this blind spot. I have always been slow to obey but as of late I have really been trying to listen and act. I’ve driven by the beggar at the grocery store not even giving a smile. I’ve decided against reaching out to that friend who is struggling. I’ve been told put down the drink because it hinders you to do God’s will. We have all been there, knowing the obedience God has called us to. But whatever reason, we disobey. We see an opportunity and waste it. I think we need to be better at being reactive to the call of God. If you feel guilty for not giving the homeless person 5 dollars maybe it’s because you should feel guilty. I had this experience over Memorial Day weekend. I have thought of so many practical reasons why I should not stop. Giving and praying for the person standing at the grocery store begging for money seemed unnecessary. However, I always felt guilty. I decided from now on to stop, give and pray. It’s not my money anyway it’s God’s and he can do with it what he pleases. Also don’t get discouraged by only giving a little money here or a get well soon card there. God will do much with it. Actually, he can do more with a little bit of money and prayer than I could ever actually do.
We need to ask God to awaken us from this zombie like state of delayed obedience because it is still disobedience. God gives us opportunities for obedience every day. Not only do we need to look for those opportunities but we need to start asking for them. I like the scene in the movie Evan Almighty. In that scene, God, played by Morgan Freeman, says, “God does not always necessarily give us kindness or patience. Instead, He gives us the opportunity to be kind and patient.” If we wait to react, we run the risk of becoming like Jonah. Jonah had a clear message from God. It should have been easy to be obedient, yet he was not. Because of his disobedience, he fell fast asleep in the belly of the ship. Meanwhile, his sin was costing the lives of those outside in the storm. We can become callous and shut off from God like Jonah. Worse yet, God might decide to stop pursuing us. He could give us over to our desires, like Paul says in Romans 1:24-28. Luckily God is patient and kind, like in the case of Jonah God will pursue us. He will pursue us to the ends of the earth. Actually, He pursued us into the Earth.
God so loved the world that he sent his Son. This living word ate with us, drank with us and died for us. Jesus has awakened us to the reality that delayed obedience is a sin. Jesus tells us in John 8:11, “Sin no more.” While we still sin on this side of glory. We have the comfort of knowing Jesus took sin upon Himself to justify us before a just God. Because of Jesus before the judge, we are no longer found guilty. The judge will look upon us and judge, “not guilty.” God the Father will say, “This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased.” Matthew 3:17
Lit Lamp For The Soul 
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