OBEY TO KNOW

 

Wednesday, March 4, 2026

 

OBEY TO KNOW

 

John 7:17

17 If any man will do his will, he shall know of the doctrine, whether it be of God, or whether I speak of myself.

 

Mark 9:24

24 And straightway the father of the child cried out, and said with tears, Lord, I believe; help thou mine unbelief.

 

          We generally think that the reason unbelievers do not believe and obey the Scriptures is because they do not understand them. In fact, the opposite is probably true. They do not understand because they are unwilling to obey. We want complex religious concepts tied neatly with ribbon and presented to us in completely logical and understandable ways. We approach Christ in the same way as Star Trek’s Dr. Spock. We cock our head and declare that following Christ is illogical.

 

          The following comment on John 7:17 may clear things up a bit. “I will give you a sure rule by which ye may judge of my doctrine: If you really wish to do the will of God begin the practice of it; and take my doctrine, and apply it to all that you know God requires of man and if you find one of my precepts contrary to the nature, perfections, and glory of God, or to the present or eternal welfare of men, then ye shall be at liberty to assert that my doctrine is human and erroneous…” (From Adam Clarke's Commentary.)

 

          An honest desire to obey God is the easiest way to become acquainted with the truth. The fact is that we bring too many prejudices into our investigation. We do not want a truth that challenges our behavior. We want a truth that confirms our deliberations and decisions. We don’t want change until what we currently have becomes so painful we seek something else! But we fear that we will trade our current pain for something even more painful. We become closed to the possibilities of God. When challenged about His teaching, Jesus applied the only reasonable answer. He said, “Try it.”

 

          I wonder just how many people sit in church each week clouded by the fog of stubborn disobedience and therefore ignorant of God’s truth? When you challenge them, they will say that they can’t obey God until they understand when, in truth, they can’t understand until they are willing to obey!

 

Dear Lord, give me a heart that is willing to obey so that I might also have a mind that understands. AMEN

 

YOU NEED A DAYSMAN!

 

Tuesday, March 3, 2026

 

YOU NEED A DAYSMAN!

 

Job 9:32-33

32 For he is not a man, as I am, that I should answer him, and we should come together in judgment.

33 Neither is there any daysman betwixt us, that might lay his hand upon us both.

 

           The word “daysman” occurs only once in all the Authorized Version! A clue to the meaning of the word is the phrase: “that [he] might lay his hand upon us both.” The original word is mowkiyach and means “an arbiter; one who is, by the consent of both parties, to judge between them and to settle their differences.” (Loosely from Adam Clarke’s Commentary)

 

           Job had issues! He was a meticulously religious man and yet God was pouring down fierce and horrible things. Job had thoroughly searched his heart and found no sin worthy of such punishment. God was silent! Job needed someone who had status with both God and man; someone who could stand in the middle and “lay his hand on us both.”

 

           Along comes Jesus who is every bit God and who is every bit man. We now have a high priest who CAN be touched with our same feelings. He is very aware of our weaknesses. He was tempted in ALL points just like we are yet He did not sin. He alone is able to lay his hand upon the shoulder of the Almighty and upon the shoulder of the weakest man. He is our Daysman! He will judge righteous judgment.

 

1 Tim 2:5-6

5 For there is one God, and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus;

6 Who gave himself a ransom for all, to be testified in due time.

 

          The word mediator in the verse above is the Greek word mesites and literally means an “internunciator; a go-between.” Jesus is the daysman that Job wished for centuries ago. Run to Him and let Him plead your case and your cause.

 

Dear Lord, thank you for being my “daysman.” Thank you for laying your hand on both me and the Father. AMEN

 

BETWEEN FAITH AND FOOLISHNESS!

 

Monday, March 2, 2026

 

BETWEEN FAITH AND FOOLISHNESS!

 

Heb 11:1-2

11 Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.

2 For by it the elders obtained a good report.

 

The Amplified New Testament puts it this way: “[faith is] the proof of things we do not see and the conviction of their reality.”

 

          One thing is certain, I can’t produce success just because I am cocksure. Jesus was clear about being properly and adequately prepared in Luke 14:31 “Or what king, going to make war against another king, sitteth not down first, and consulteth whether he be able with ten thousand to meet him that cometh against him with twenty thousand?”

 

          The heroes in Hebrews 11 all had a quality we know as “faith.” The writer begins at creation and moves through the entire Bible. Abraham left his homeland in search of a new home with no more direction than that God would show it to him in due time. Moses left the luxury and privilege of Egypt to associate himself with the sufferings of Jewish slaves and thereby positioned himself to lead them away from slavery. Joshua marched around a walled city believing that the walls would fall down. David went against a giant with only a sling and a few stones believing that he would be victorious. All seemed foolish until the story was finished.

 

          But these heroes had one more thing that made them confident and that was a promise. Each one believed that God would do exactly what He said He would do and that is the essence of faith. The word “promise” in some form appears eighteen times in Hebrews and seven times in this one chapter alone. In verse 11 Abraham and Sarah were able to have a child “because she judged him faithful who had promised.”

 

          Dr. Charles Stanley says “Faith is not a power we tap into. Faith is not a lasso we slip around God's neck to force our will on His. Faith is not a button we push to prod God into action. Faith is confidence that God will do what He has promised.”

 

Dear Lord, help me to know and remember your promises so that I will not confuse foolishness with faith. AMEN