Obey

As a child, whenever I was assigned a chore, my first instinct was often to protest. “Why can’t someone else do it?” I would demand, as if the responsibility belonged to another. I failed to grasp a simple truth—the instruction was given to me, not to my sibling, not to my neighbor. To the one who commanded, what mattered was obedience, not debate. And for my foolish resistance, I was met with punishment time and time again.

So it is with the Almighty. When God speaks, His word is final. There is no room for negotiation, no space for our own devised methods. His commands must be followed exactly as given, lest we find ourselves crushed under the weight of disobedience.

The words of Scripture are the very voice of God, and each letter carries His divine commands. In Joshua 1:8, the Lord declares: “This Book of the Law must never leave your lips; meditate on it day and night so that you may carefully follow everything written in it. Only then will your path be prosperous, and only then will you find true success.” His Word is not merely to be read—it is to be lived, shaping our thoughts, guiding our actions, and leading us into His perfect will.

 

History is littered with those who dared to defy divine instruction, and their fates stand as stark warnings to all who follow. Adam and Eve, lured by the whisper of temptation, reached for the forbidden fruit—and in that single act, they plunged all of humanity into suffering. Moses, mighty leader of Israel, was told to speak to the rock, yet in frustration, he struck it instead. That single moment of defiance cost him the Promised Land. Samson, chosen by God, was warned against the snare of Delilah, yet he allowed desire to cloud his judgment. He paid the ultimate price with his life. Lot’s wife, given one simple command—do not look back—ignored the warning and was turned into a lifeless pillar of salt. And Jonah, called to preach in Nineveh, attempted to flee from the Lord’s presence, only to be swallowed by a monstrous fish and trapped in its belly, forced to reckon with his rebellion in the suffocating darkness.

 

The path of righteousness is fraught with trials, temptations, and distractions. The pleasures of this world call out to us, begging us to turn aside, to loosen our grip on holiness. But we must stand firm. The journey is arduous, the struggle immense, but we are not without hope.

1 Timothy 6:12 encourages us by saying, 

"Fight the good fight of faith, lay hold on eternal life, whereunto thou art also called, and hast professed a good profession before many witnesses."

For the Scriptures declare again in Matthew 24:13, “But he that shall endure unto the end, the same shall be saved.” Let us, then, endure—lest we, too, become cautionary tales written in the ink of disobedience.