Obedience Is Wise - Friday Praise & Pray (for others) March 15, 2024

Wisdom. It is a crucial element to the believers' walk with the Lord. We are told in Ecclesiastes 7:12 that wisdom can save a person's life.

Thus, it is no surprise that God wants His people to operate in wisdom. The Bible states in Proverbs 3:18 that those who have wisdom are blessed. In Proverbs 8:35, we are encouraged to seek out wisdom because those who have it will also obtain the favor of the Lord.

Keeping in mind that we are to be wise, let us then consider Matthew 7:24 - “Therefore everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house on the rock.

It is therefore a wise person who will apply the instructions of Christ in their life. Doing so ensures a solid foundation that will not be washed away by the floods of life or swept away by the stormy winds seeking to huff, puff, and tear down.

​Instead, the one who stands upon the solid Rock by observing Christ's instructions will be blessed, receiving the favor and success of God in all they do (Psalm 1:1-3).

And what has Christ called believers to do? The first directive is in Mark 12:30 - Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.’ The second directive calls the faithful to apply the Royal Law and thereby ‘Love your neighbor as yourself' (Mark 12:31).

Like everything Christians have been commanded to do, they need to cooperate with the Holy Spirit to live lives worthy of God. It is the Holy Spirit's job to remind believers of what Christ taught so they put those teachings into effect every day of their lives. And this is why it is so important to desire and receive the Holy Spirit, for Jesus promised to give every believer a deposit of God's Spirit. His job is to get the redeemed to heaven and as long as they submit to His guidance, they make it.

Finally, be aware of 2 Thessalonians 1:8 and its stern warning - those who do not know God and those who do not obey Jesus will be punished. Nobody wants to think about punishment but the reality is that a day of judgment is coming. Now is the time to know God and walk with His Spirit, obeying Jesus. Doing so as each day passes until when our eyes shut to this reality to open to eternal life with the Heavenly Father and the rest of His Holy family.