Obey Today

There was no Blog post yesterday because the Lord seemed to be saying, “You need to do what I lead you to not just what you always do.” It’s easy to get stuck in a rut and call it following the Lord. But just because He led us one way before doesn’t mean He will lead us that way again. Or maybe He will, but we have to be flexible. Sometimes it’s good to have a change of scenery but it’s also good to have a regimen. So the focus needs to be on following God not just wandering aimlessly or being so rigid that we’re unable to change our routine. We’re naturally inclined to go the way we’ve gone before but if we always do the same thing we plateau and don’t grow. We want to be free, but true freedom comes from following the Lord of liberty. Having our own agenda puts us in bondage to ourselves and its comfortable when we think that we’re in control. The main problem is that we don’t know the future and we’re not called or qualified to lead ourselves. That’s why we need to pray and be diligent to hear and bold to obey everyday. It’s important to discern what God’s telling us to do and not just what He told us to do. If we believe He told us to mow the yard on Monday, does that mean mow every Monday for the rest of our lives? If so, then pretty soon we’ll find ourselves mowing the snow, and saying “the Lord led me to do it!” But the guidance of the God is real time not past tense. It’s like playing Follow the Leader, but who wants to play with someone who waits to obey until another day? Like some kid who suddenly starts acting like a chicken in the middle of class and says, “well we were playing follow the Leader yesterday and so now that’s what I’m doing!” and he just gets himself in trouble and everyone thinks he’s a fruitcake. So the question at hand is, are we willing to do what God leads us to do TODAY? Or are we still trying to get around to doing what He led us to do, and all the while just going on doing what we’ve already been doing and calling our ruts God’s will because after all He led us that way before.

1 Sam 23:2-5

2 Therefore David inquired of the Lord, saying, "Shall I go and attack these Philistines?"

And the Lord said to David, "Go and attack the Philistines, and save Keilah."

3 But David's men said to him, "Look, we are afraid here in Judah. How much more then if we go to Keilah against the armies of the Philistines?" 4 Then David inquired of the Lord once again.

And the Lord answered him and said, "Arise, go down to Keilah. For I will deliver the Philistines into your hand." 5 And David and his men went to Keilah and fought with the Philistines, struck them with a mighty blow, and took away their livestock. So David saved the inhabitants of Keilah.
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2 Sam 5:17-25
Now when the Philistines heard that they had anointed David king over Israel, all the Philistines went up to search for David. And David heard of it and went down to the stronghold. 18 The Philistines also went and deployed themselves in the Valley of Rephaim. 19 So David inquired of the Lord, saying, "Shall I go up against the Philistines? Will You deliver them into my hand?"

And the Lord said to David, "Go up, for I will doubtless deliver the Philistines into your hand."

20 So David went to Baal Perazim, and David defeated them there; and he said, "The Lord has broken through my enemies before me, like a breakthrough of water." Therefore he called the name of that place Baal Perazim. 21 And they left their images there, and David and his men carried them away.

22 Then the Philistines went up once again and deployed themselves in the Valley of Rephaim. 23 Therefore David inquired of the Lord, and He said, "You shall not go up; circle around behind them, and come upon them in front of the mulberry trees. 24 And it shall be, when you hear the sound of marching in the tops of the mulberry trees, then you shall advance quickly. For then the Lord will go out before you to strike the camp of the Philistines." 25 And David did so, as the Lord commanded him; and he drove back the Philistines from Geba as far as Gezer.
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Num 14:8-12
8 If the Lord delights in us, then He will bring us into this land and give it to us,'a land which flows with milk and honey.' 9 Only do not rebel against the Lord, nor fear the people of the land, for they are our bread; their protection has departed from them, and the Lord is with us. Do not fear them."

10 And all the congregation said to stone them with stones. Now the glory of the Lord appeared in the tabernacle of meeting before all the children of Israel.

Moses Intercedes for the People

11 Then the Lord said to Moses: "How long will these people reject Me? And how long will they not believe Me, with all the signs which I have performed among them?
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Num 14:39-45

39 Then Moses told these words to all the children of Israel, and the people mourned greatly. 40 And they rose early in the morning and went up to the top of the mountain, saying,"Here we are, and we will go up to the place which the Lord has promised, for we have sinned!"

41 And Moses said, "Now why do you transgress the command of the Lord? For this will not succeed. 42 Do not go up, lest you be defeated by your enemies, for the Lord is not among you. 43 For the Amalekites and the Canaanites are there before you, and you shall fall by the sword; because you have turned away from the Lord, the Lord will not be with you."

44 But they presumed to go up to the mountaintop. Nevertheless, neither the ark of the covenant of the Lord nor Moses departed from the camp. 45 Then the Amalekites and the Canaanites who dwelt in that mountain came down and attacked them, and drove them back as far as Hormah.
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Deut 1:19-21
19 "So we departed from Horeb, and went through all that great and terrible wilderness which you saw on the way to the mountains of the Amorites, as the Lord our God had commanded us. Then we came to Kadesh Barnea. 20 And I said to you, 'You have come to the mountains of the Amorites, which the Lord our God is giving us. 21 Look, the Lord your God has set the land before you; go up and possess it, as the Lord God of your fathers has spoken to you; do not fear or be discouraged.'
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Deut 1:26-38
26 "Nevertheless you would not go up, but rebelled against the command of the Lord your God; 27 and you complained in your tents, and said, 'Because the Lord hates us, He has brought us out of the land of Egypt to deliver us into the hand of the Amorites, to destroy us. 28 Where can we go up? Our brethren have discouraged our hearts, saying,"The people are greater and taller than we; the cities are great and fortified up to heaven; moreover we have seen the sons of the Anakim there."'

29 "Then I said to you, 'Do not be terrified, or afraid of them. 30 The Lord your God, who goes before you, He will fight for you, according to all He did for you in Egypt before your eyes, 31 and in the wilderness where you saw how the Lord your God carried you, as a man carries his son, in all the way that you went until you came to this place.' 32 Yet, for all that, you did not believe the Lord your God, 33 who went in the way before you to search out a place for you to pitch your tents, to show you the way you should go, in the fire by night and in the cloud by day.

34 "And the Lord heard the sound of your words, and was angry, and took an oath, saying, 35 'Surely not one of these men of this evil generation shall see that good land of which I swore to give to your fathers, 36 except Caleb the son of Jephunneh; he shall see it, and to him and his children I am giving the land on which he walked, because he wholly followed the Lord.' 37 The Lord was also angry with me for your sakes, saying, 'Even you shall not go in there. 38 Joshua the son of Nun, who stands before you, he shall go in there. Encourage him, for he shall cause Israel to inherit it.
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Deut 1:34-38
34 "And the Lord heard the sound of your words, and was angry, and took an oath, saying, 35 'Surely not one of these men of this evil generation shall see that good land of which I swore to give to your fathers, 36 except Caleb the son of Jephunneh; he shall see it, and to him and his children I am giving the land on which he walked, because he wholly followed the Lord.' 37 The Lord was also angry with me for your sakes, saying, 'Even you shall not go in there. 38 Joshua the son of Nun, who stands before you, he shall go in there. Encourage him, for he shall cause Israel to inherit it.
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Deut 1:41-46
41 "Then you answered and said to me,'We have sinned against the Lord; we will go up and fight, just as the Lord our God commanded us.' And when everyone of you had girded on his weapons of war, you were ready to go up into the mountain.

42 "And the Lord said to me, 'Tell them,"Do not go up nor fight, for I am not among you; lest you be defeated before your enemies."' 43 So I spoke to you; yet you would not listen, but rebelled against the command of the Lord, and presumptuously went up into the mountain. 44 And the Amorites who dwelt in that mountain came out against you and chased you as bees do, and drove you back from Seir to Hormah. 45 Then you returned and wept before the Lord, but the Lord would not listen to your voice nor give ear to you.

46 "So you remained in Kadesh many days, according to the days that you spent there.
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1 Cor 10:11-13
11 Now all these things happened to them as examples, and they were written for our admonition, upon whom the ends of the ages have come.

12 Therefore let him who thinks he stands take heed lest he fall.
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See - Hebrews Chapter 3-4

Heb 3:7
7 Therefore, as the Holy Spirit says:

"Today, if you will hear His voice,

Heb 3:12-15
12 Beware, brethren, lest there be in any of you an evil heart of unbelief in departing from the living God; 13 but exhort one another daily, while it is called "Today," lest any of you be hardened through the deceitfulness of sin. 14 For we have become partakers of Christ if we hold the beginning of our confidence steadfast to the end, 15 while it is said:

"Today, if you will hear His voice,
Do not harden your hearts as in the rebellion."
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Heb 4:7
7 again He designates a certain day, saying in David, "Today," after such a long time, as it has been said:

"Today, if you will hear His voice,
Do not harden your hearts."
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Heb 4:16
16 Let us therefore come boldly to the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need.
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“TODAY IF YOU WILL HEAR HIS VOICE, DO NOT HARDEN YOUR HEARTS!”