“NOW!” Today’s Scripture: AND ANOTHER OF HIS DISCIPLES SAID UNTO HIM, LORD SUFFER ME FIRST TO GO AND BURY MY FATHER. (MATTHEW 8:21) KJV. OFTEN OUR STRUGGLES AS CHRISTIANS IS NOT IN DECIDING WHETHER WE SHOULD OBEY CHRIST BUT IN OBEYING “IMMEDIATELY”. WE MAY ACKNOWLEDGE OUR NEED TO FOLLOW CHRIST AND COMMIT OURSELVES TO DO WHAT HE HAS TOLD US. YET WHEN GOD REVEALS HIS WILL TO US, THAT IS THE TIME TO OBEY! GOD’S REVELATION OF HIS WILL IS HIS INVITATION TO REPSOND IMMEDIATELY! SOME WOULD-BE DISCIPLES PLEDGED THEIR WILLINGNESS TO FOLLOW JESUS, BUT THEY TOLD HIM THEY WERE NOT READY YET. IN JESUS DAY, A JEWISH MAN WAS EXPECTED TO CARE FOR HIS ELDERLY PARENTS UNTIL THEY DIED. ONE MAN WANTED TO WAIT UNTIL HIS FATHER DIED BEFORE GOING WITH JESUS. THIS WOULD BE AN HONORABLE DELAY. THE MAN HAD TO CHOOSE BETWEEN THIS IMPORTANT RESPONSIBILITY AND HEEDING A CALL FROM THE LORD. YET GOD KNEW THIS MAN, AND KNEW THE MAN’S FATHER. GOD WOULD HAVE TAKEN CARE OF THE MAN’S FATHER, IF HE ONLY WOULD HAVE FOLLOWED JESUS. THIS WAS AN OPPORTUNITY TO WALK WITH THE SON OF GOD, YET THE CONCERNS OF THIS LIFE WERE COMPETING FOR PRIORITY WITH OBEDIENCE TO GOD. TIMING OUR OBEDIENCE IS CRUCIAL. INVITATIONS FROM GOD COME WITH A LIMITED OPPORTUNITY TO RESPOND. SOME OPPORTUNITIES TO SERVE HIM, IF NOT ACCEPTED OMMEDIATELY, WILL BE LOST. OCCASIONS TO MINISTER TO OTHERS MAY PASS US BY. WHEN GOD INVITES US TO INTERCEDE FOR SOMEONE, IT MAY BE CRITICAL THAT WE STOP WHAT WE ARE DOING AND IMMEDIATELY ADJUST OUR LIVES TO WHAT GOD IS DOING. MISSING OPPORTUNITIES TO SERVE THE LORD CAN BE TRAGIC. WHEN AN INVITATION COMES FROM GOD, THE TIME TO RESPOND IS NOW! THOUGHT: OUR RELATIONSHIP WITH GOD SHOULD BE OUR TOP PRIORITY
Posted on: Tue, 18 Nov 2014 15:55:37 +0000