4 Minute Read
Prepare Your Heart
To the best of your ability, get rid of all distractions. Take a few minutes to breathe deeply and quiet yourself in the Lord’s presence. Then, ask the Lord to speak to you in this time. Let Him know that you will listen and make whatever adjustments He will reveal to you.
Read God’s Word
A Verse for Today
Slowly and reflectively read the following verse(s) and listen to what God will say to you through His written Word. Consider writing down any insights He reveals to you.
Genesis 11:31 (CSB): “Terah took his son Abram, his grandson Lot (Haran’s son), and his daughter-in-law Sarai, his son Abram’s wife, and they set out together from Ur of the Chaldeans to go to the land of Canaan. But when they came to Haran, they settled there.”
Reflecting on God’s Word
The verse I have chosen for today may seem a bit unusual. It might have caused you to scratch your head, wondering what I would say about it. After all, it simply tells us that Abraham’s dad, Terah, took him, his wife, and his nephew on a journey from Ur and settled in Canaan.
The problem is seen when we read what God had actually told Abraham to do. In Genesis 12:1, we read that God told Abraham to “Go from your land, your relatives, and your father’s house to the land that I will show you.” God told Abraham to leave his family behind as he migrated to the place God was leading him to.
When did God initially give this message to Abraham? According to Acts 7:2-3, God gave this message to Abraham when he was still in Ur. So, the verse I have chosen today tells us that Abraham was being disobedient to the Lord’s message. He was taking his dad and his nephew on the trip when God told him to leave his family behind.
We may assume that Abraham thought: “What could it hurt? I don’t see how it would be a problem to take my dad and my nephew with me.”
But we read in Genesis 11:32 that Abraham’s dad died in a foreign land, only halfway to God’s destination for Abraham. He never made it to Canaan. And Abraham’s relationship with his nephew, Lot, went south after arriving in Canaan. Discord arose between Abraham’s people and Lot’s people so they had to separate. Lot moved to Sodom, known for its sexual perversion, and had a family. Lot’s wife died while leaving Sodom, and his daughters got him drunk and became pregnant by their own father.
In other words, Terah would have died in his hometown, and Lot may never have wrecked his life had Abraham obeyed God and not taken them with him.
Principle: Partial obedience to God can cause really bad consequences down the road. So, insist on living a life of instant and complete obedience to the Lord.
Spend Time in Prayer
- Ask God to show you where you may have previously disobeyed Him. Ask His forgiveness and seek to make things right.
- Ask God to give you the grace to be instantly and wholeheartedly obedient when He makes His will known to you.
Going Deeper
If you want to dig a little deeper into the topic of obedience, consider reading the following GotQuestions article:
“What does the Bible say about obedience?”
Sharing
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Matt Ellis is the pastor of First Baptist Church in Polk City, Florida (fbcpolkcity.com)
Matt’s Musings 