“Through him we received grace and apostleship to call all the Gentiles* to the obedience that comes from faith for his name’s sake.” (Romans 1:5)
Faith is supposed to lead to obedience. Paul clearly states that through Christ the disciples were called to become apostles with the mission to convert not only the Jews, but now also the Gentiles. A disciple is a follower, but an apostle is one sent on a mission. Although the twelve disciples wavered in their faith from time to time, once they experienced Pentecost and were filled with boldness and God’s Holy Spirit, they were ready to proclaim the grace and mercy of God to the nations.
I want to address the notion of faith leading to obedience. There must be a reason why Christ went to the cross on our behalf. Could it be that we are simply to accept the gift of forgiveness and move on? No. There is supposed to be a change that occurs within our heart, soul and spirit. Biblical obedience simply means that we will allow ourselves to be guided by an external force, which in this case is the Holy Spirit of God. How can we know this guidance that is being offered? It can only be known through close contact or fellowship. Spending time with someone is how you will come to know them intimately. We must spend time with God each day so that we become familiar with His promises and His requirements. Jesus said in Matthew 11:28-30 – “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.” His promises and His requirements are always in our best interest and shall bring Him the greatest glory. God wishes to bless us; however, we must give something up. While we will always have our free will, we are to willingly give it up to God so that He can effectively instruct us and then use us to minister His grace and mercy to a lost and dying world.
God is in complete control of all things and knows what He is doing. If we say we believe in God we need to start to trust Him to use us for the sake of the Kingdom. We can do mighty things in the name of the Lord if we will surrender to the leadership of Christ in our lives. Our lives are not our own. We were bought with a price and because of that purchase, we are once again in right standing with our Creator God. Allow Him to mold you and use you for His glory today.
WALK WITH THE KING TODAY AND BE A BLESSING!
* “But the Lord said to Ananias, ‘Go! This man (Paul) is my chosen instrument to proclaim my name to the Gentiles and their kings and to the people of Israel. I will show him how much he must suffer for my name.’” (Acts 9:15-16)
