When we are children growing up under the authority of our parents we are taught obedience. Sometimes we had to learn it at the hand literally of our parents through trial and error. But learn we did. We were taught to listen to our conscience and make the right decisions based on that. We have an internal gauge that tells us when we are treading on thin ice, now we can choose to listen to it or plow ahead and suffer the consequences of our actions. Usually, consequences were a spanking, time out, no, you cannot go here or there etc.

We have laws on this earth that we are to follow or we can be fined, or jailed. We are to obey the speed limit, most do not, but if y9o9u get caught you get a ticket. We are told not to litter or we will be fined if caught, and so many more, however, many do not pay much attention to these laws and rules. They go about their day doing as they please, speeding and littering. Children disobey their parents on a regular basis because they think they know what is best. Sometimes rules and laws are put in place for our protection and to violate them can have bad consequences. Let’s just say you are at the beach and you see a sign that says, “do not swim,” it is probably there due to sharks or a bad current, something that makes the waters dangerous, but unfortunately many decide they can do it anyway and pay the price with their life or serious injury.

The Word of God is our guide. It tells us those things we are to do and not do in order to be obedient to the Lord and His Holy Word. They are not rules to keep us hindered and frustrated, but rather they are given to us to keep us safe. To protect us from the dangers of this world and the ruler of the air, Satan. When we obey His word we are blessed, our conscience clean before the Lord, but when we disobey we find ourselves at a place where we are in need of God’s discipline. We feel the weight of our wrong-doing and it hinders us in our prayers. God doesn’t stop loving us, but because of his Holiness, he must as a good Father punish and instruct in some way.

Is there ever a good time to disobey? Yes, there is. If we are pushed to do anything that violates God’s word and instruction for our lives then we should not do it. Usually, our conscience tells us it is wrong, and we should listen to that still small voice inside of us, why, because it is the Holy Spirit warning us we are about to do wrong. Even unbelievers have a built-in conscience that tells them when they are wrong when they need to say I am sorry etc., but we as believers have the Holy Spirit’s power at work in us making it clear when we are to walk away or run away. Also, we are told in scripture that we are to preach the gospel to all, that means even when they say we cannot. We have a higher authority that we obey than the ones on this earth. If anything goes against God’s word we are to obey God above all else, yes, even at the cost of our lives. Peter, John, Paul and the other apostles all knew this. Acts 5:29 “Peter and the other apostles replied: “We must obey God rather than human beings!”
Acts 23:1 “And Paul, earnestly beholding the council, said, Men and brethren, I have lived in all good conscience before God until this day.”

Do you want to live in good conscience toward God, not weighted down by sins disobedience? Folks time is running out, our days are coming to an end because Jesus will one day return to this earth, we need to be ready, in season and out. Yes, we have forgiveness for our sins, past, present, and future in Christ, but do you really want to live weighted down because you know you did something that violated God’s word and yes it feels just like a weight around your neck. It becomes something that the adversary of our souls can throw into our faces and keep us bent low. Let’s not give him any more ammunition than he already has!

Choose to obey God’s word above all else, walk in cleanness before your God knowing that He sees what you are doing and will either bless you or discipline you. He loves you too much to let you stay in disobedience for very long. It is His love that compels him to bring us out, reveal our wrong and set us on the right path again. As they say: “I have been there, done that!” It is hard to finally shed the final weight of our sin and disobedience. Live in the righteousness that is ours through Christ, walk with your spiritual shoulders squared, listen to the small voice inside that says run now, and know that when you do you will see the hand of God blessing you along your way, but most importantly you will one day hear, “Well Done!”