Obedient to God

It is not sufficient merely to say that you trust Christ for salvation, then to imagine there is nothing further to be done.

This would be like someone hiring a pilot to safely bring a ship into harbor. But when the pilot arrives on board, the crew all go to their bunks and go to sleep.

The pilot would ask where in the helmsmen? Where are the men to run the engines and the men to catch the ropes and tie off the ship.

The men may say that they trust the captain to bring them into port, but their attitudes and actions show that they don’t care if they arrive safely in port.

We are looking at Tuesday, the third day of the week when Jesus was crucified. Jesus takes this time to teach in the temple before he was crucified.

One huge issue that we see with the Jews is that they knew, but they wouldn’t obey.

The Parable of the Two Sons

v.28-31

Jesus is making a statement to the people. You say you follow God, you say you know Him. But none of you actually follow Him.

The first son, he says that he won’t, then he does.

The second says he will, then doesn’t.

Who was it that did the will of God?

I Go Sir

This seams like a statement of obedience.

Leo does this, can you do......he says he can…then forgets.

Whether we forget, or don’t obey, the point is that they lip service, isn’t what God is searching for.

How many of our lives are much like this? We say we:

Have a relationship with Jesus, but our lives don’t show that we know Him at all.

Read the bible, but our actions show that we don’t believe it is sufficient for any of our problems.

We have a desire to know God, but how much do you pray?

When we say we go, how much effort are we willing to pour out?

Kyrios

For sir, the Greek word is Kyrios, where we get the word Lord.

Antinomianism is becoming very prevalent in our world today.

This means against, law. Or that we are freed from having to follow the Mosaic law becasue of the grace of Jesus.

Matthew 7:21-23

Not everyone who says Lord Lord will inherit eternal life.

Here Jesus says that they were lawless.

Someone who desires to not follow the law.

Romans 2:13

Romans 2:13 ESV

13 For it is not the hearers of the law who are righteous before God, but the doers of the law who will be justified.

Not those who hear the law, but act on the law.

We are not justified by the law, we are justified by Jesus Christ.

But your relationship with Jesus Christ will produce a change in your life.

James 1:22

James 1:22 ESV

22 But be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves.

If you don’t act on what you know to be right and true, you are deceiving yourself that you know God at all.

Changed His Mind

We should desire to be more like the other brother.

He made a mistake didn’t do what he should have.

Then he kind of says, “that was dumb, I should have acted different.”

He goes and does what is right.

We must examine our lives and deal with the sin we have.

The longer you continue in sin, the more difficult it will be to change your behavior and do what is correct.

The longer you delay, the more your sin gets strength and rooting. If you cannot bend a twig, how will you be able to bend it when it is a tree? -Richard Baxter

Will Of His Father

The will of the Father was made clear.

This wasn’t some mystical event taking place.

Go and work in the field

We have clear direction too.

2 Timothy 3:16-17

The word of God is breathed out by God.

Theopneustos, from Theos or God, and pneuma the Spirit.

That the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work.

What kind of job you should work, who you should marry, how to deal with your spouse, how to deal with you kids, who to vote for.

Though the bible might not come out and directly say do this. It does show us the Father’s will and guide us in how to follow God.

Here’s the big idea, do you love God enough to know Him?

Will you take the time to examine the scriptures, so you know what God wants?

When you know, will you follow?

Half the time the problem isn’t that we don’t have enough information. The problem is we are to stubborn to follow.

This is one of the last parables that Jesus taught. Many people knew what they should do, and not many were doing it.

We need to be those who will follow.