Obedience ...

             He replied, “Blessed rather are those who hear the word of God and obey it.” (Luke 11:18)

 

It’s not unusual for me to read several books at a time. My side reading is a book by John Bevere, Under Cover. The topic in the chapter I’m reading is the definition of sin, which comes down to any deviation from God’s will. If God said to take the dog for a walk at 6:45, if I left at 6:44 or 6:46, it would be sin. It seems like a petty example. Is God really the sort of God to condemn a person to Hell for not leaving on schedule? 

The answer is “no” and “yes.” Leaving off schedule isn’t so much the issue as choosing to leave at a time other than what God said and standing in judgment of God based on whether or not He would condemn someone to Hell for doing so. More importantly, if you had an employee who regularly decided to show up late or whenever the whim took him, would firing that employee be an arbitrary fit of temper on your part, or would the responsibility be the employee’s?

But, as important as that discussion is, I’m going to leave it because there’s another aspect that I want to consider. When you think about disobeying God (as a concept, not as an active plan) what kind of response do you expect from God? If we break the law, we expect the law to at least attempt to apprehend, try, and punish us. that’s the way the law works. If you disobeyed your parents (if you parents were good parents)  you  probably got a direct punishment. You were spanked, sent to your room, grounded, or your access to something you enjoyed was taken away.

But how often have you been struck by lightning, given some ailment, or otherwise directly and immediately punished? It seems to me that most of the time, God doesn’t take immediate punitive action. So last night, when I felt challenged by God to not eat a before bed snack, I considered this likely lack of immediate attack. If God tells us to do something (or not do something) and we disobey, while we may not face a spiritual firing squad, we do face consequences. God could have done the lightning bolt bit if I had not obeyed, but He could also have simply allowed my body to suffer the natural consequences of eating food I didn’t need.