Do Not Back Away But Obey!
“The LORD has bared His holy arm
In the sight of all the nations,
So that all the ends of the earth may see
The salvation of our God.”
(Isaiah 52: 10 NASB 2020)
I did not want to do “it.”
I did not want to do what I knew God was sending me to do.
I knew it would be uncomfortable, maybe impossible, and I thought, “What if it destroys our relationship.”
Then a great friend encouraged me to listen, follow, and obey the LORD.
I purchased my ticket, prepared to go, sent a message asking them if I could come for a visit, telling them how I had something important to discuss.
Then I boarded the plane and flew 5,000 miles to their home.
We hiked. He asked me what I needed to discuss. I replied, “no, not here, not with everyone present, not today.”
We visited for several days, and time was running short.
Would I have the courage?
How would I ever bring up the subject I needed to discuss: the existence of God.
Then the LAST morning arrived, and God shook me awake.
I sat at the kitchen table, reading God’s Word when he walked into the room.
We then sat together at the kitchen table, he at one end and me at the other end.
How God, will I ever broach the topic? That was my question.
Then the man said, “Nancy, you had something to discuss with me.”
“Thank You, God! Thank You, God!” I proclaimed aloud within my heart, and then I asked the question God sent me 5,000 miles to ask.
- Stepping out is difficult.
- Standing up for the truth is hard.
- Walking away from someone or something leading us toward evil seems impossible at times.
- Professing our faith with someone takes courage.
- Leading another to see the goodness of God requires trust.
God may be calling us to do, to say, to go, or to be!
Nevertheless, if God is calling us, who are we to say, “No, God.”?
This morning, I found myself (again) reading about the prophet Isaiah and a totally embarrassing task God gave him to do—walk naked for three years.
Yes, that’s correct; you read right: NAKED—WITHOUT ANY CLOTHES—OUT IN PUBLIC—FOR ALL TO SEE—FOR 365 DAYS + 365 DAYS + 365 DAYS. That’s Right! NAKED! I am sure, Isaiah questioned in his mind the why, but the Bible reveals that Isaiah did not back away or come up with some excuse, but that Isaiah OBEYED GOD!
If God asked me to do this, I might exclaim, “No way, LORD!” Yet is that very statement not an oxymoron, a contradiction! How can I (a child of God) ever say, “NO WAY” and in the same statement attach the name and position of God—“LORD”?
LORD—to lead another.
LORD—to be in authority over another.
LORD—to influence another.
LORD—to be master over another.
LORD—to rule with authority.
LORD=JEHOVAH GOD!
How can we ever claim Jesus Christ as our Savior & Lord, then in the next breath, say, “No, LORD, I cannot do what You ask me to do”?
How can we ever exclaim, “Oh God, please don’t ask me to do–THAT!”
- We cannot!
- We should not!
- We could never do that!
In reading the Word of God, we learn the “why” God would call Isaiah to do such a thing as walk naked for three years—It was so the will of God could be accomplished!
God will never ask us to do anything apart from His will—YES, THAT IS RIGHT!
See with me the reason Isaiah was called to this action.
“Then they will be terrified and ashamed because of Cush their hope and Egypt their pride.
So the inhabitants of this coastland will say on that day, ‘Behold, such is our hope, where we fled for help to be saved from the king of Assyria; and how are we ourselves to escape?”
(Isaiah 20: 5-6 NASB 2020)
Isaiah did not back away or come up with some excuse, but Isaiah OBEYED GOD!
Isaiah realized how the people relied upon their own power, how they placed their hope in others, & how they arrogantly believed they could escape the evil of this world—apart from God.
Isaiah knew the people needed God.
God knew the people needed a Savior!
It is within the book of Isaiah where we read these words.
“Then I heard the voice of the Lord, saying,
“Whom shall I send, and who will go for Us?”
Then I said, [Isaiah said] “Here am I. Send me!”
(Isaiah 6: 8 NASB 2020)
- Maybe God is asking us to walk through something really hard.
- Maybe God is asking us to do something really scary.
- Maybe God is asking us to speak to someone who we know is lost.
- Maybe God is asking us to go somewhere to serve.
- Maybe God is asking us to do something extremely embarrassing & totally awkward.
- Maybe God is asking us to experience something we totally do not want to experience.
- Maybe God is asking us to speak aloud our faith.
- Maybe God is asking us to fully trust Him.
- Maybe God is asking us to walk in full obedience to Him.
- May we not back away from obeying God!
May we seek God’s forgiveness for our disobedience.
May we rely upon God’s Grace & Strength.
May we give ALL that we are to God—our Salvation!
May we give ALL that we are to God’s Son—our King of Kings!
May we give ALL that we are to our Savior—our LORD of LORDS!
It is Jesus Christ, the Son of God, who was sent to leave the glory of heaven,
- To take on the form of a man,
- To walk on this earth among humans & all our muck of sin,
- To live a human existence, yet without sin,
- To teach & proclaim the truth of WHO HE REALLY IS!
- To preach how the Messiah has come,
- To be arrested on false charges,
- To be spit upon,
- To be openly ridiculed,
- To be beaten,
- To be tormented,
- To hang upon the cross of shame,
- To die upon a cross, giving up his life,
- To be buried & stay buried for three days,
- To be resurrected to new life,
- To walk among His followers &
- To be seen in His resurrected body,
- To reveal His nail-scarred hands,
- To ascend back to heaven,
- To sit back down on the right hand of God, to one day soon—STAND UP & RETURN to earth, to REIGN as KING of KING & LORD of LORDS!
- It is Jesus Christ, the Son of God, who—OBEYED GOD!
NEVER—DID JESUS SAY, “NO, GOD, I WON’T DO YOUR WILL.”
JESUS OBEYED HIS HEAVENLY FATHER!
God may be calling us to do, to say, to go, or to be!
Perhaps God has given us opportunity to follow Him, to go & do & speak before, and now perhaps, God may be calling us (again) to do, to say, to go, or to be ALL In—HIS!
May we (just like Jesus) rely upon—God’s Grace & Strength.
May we (just like Jesus) not back away BUT—Obey God!
“For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek.
For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith to faith; as it is written: “BUT THE RIGHTEOUS ONE WILL LIVE BY FAITH.”
(Romans 1: 16-17 NASB 2020)