Let’s face it, humans are inherently carnal and self-absorbed. We want what we want – and we want it NOW.
Now, this is not to say that we can’t overcome those natural inclinations of the flesh and pursue a holy life, but the fact of the matter is that in our most basic state, we are ALL carnal and self-absorbed.
Just look at infants and children. They are only interested in getting their needs met. They don’t care that mom is exhausted or that dad had a hard day. It’s all about “me, me, me and what I want.” Hopefully, as they grow up, they will be raised to stop doing things “through selfish ambition or conceit, but in lowliness of mind, esteeming others better than themselves.” (Philippians 2:3)
But that part of our psyche that is driven by instinct, pleasure seeking, and focused on instant gratification is ingrained in our flesh. It is our carnality and is an ongoing battle for believers as we pursue to be holy as Yehovah is holy.
It is what drives our desire (and at times our obsession) with being in the driver’s seat. Newsflash, this walk isn’t about YOU. It’s about Yehovah and what He is doing IN you – What He is doing in your life and how He is using it for HIS glory, not yours.
Still, we see the “me, me, me” and the “I, I, I” in believers who claim to love Yehovah and who say they want to be obedient.
How does it show up?
They want to be obedient on their own terms.
Sorry, Sunshine, it doesn’t work that way.
Obedience is not selective.
A God on Your Terms
When confronted with this carnal approach to obedience, the response is often, “Well, that’s just human nature. I’m just a flawed human.” That is supposed to excuse their disobedience. Out of one side of their mouth, they proclaim to love Yehovah and obey Him. But out of the other side of their mouth, they worship the world and their flesh.
Actions speak so much louder than words.
The truth is, we as believers are supposed to rise above that, to deny our flesh – we are called to it! Our flesh, gratification of the flesh, is a worldly pursuit. Yeshua called us OUT of the world.
We should be putting that flesh down every day. More than that, we should be praying that Yehovah fill those dead spots with His desires so that we can become like Him.
Obedience is not selective. You don’t get to choose to obey certain commandments, certain portions of Yehovah’s law, while ignoring others. If you break one law, you’re a lawbreaker – and no one can keep the law perfectly. Yehovah knows that. But walking in blatant disobedience is rebellion. That is quite different from doing your best to obey Yehovah and keep His laws, even though you make mistakes, but are in a constant pursuit of obedience.
This is why we have the Holy Spirit. It is why Yeshua died on the cross. It’s all because we can’t keep the law. That doesn’t mean that the law was done away with, quite the opposite! It was to make a way for us to increase our understanding (submission to the Holy Spirit does that) and to give us access to forgiveness when we stumble by making repentance possible.
You can’t proclaim to love Yehovah in one breath, then pursue your own carnal flesh in the next.
You cannot have Yehovah, your God, on your terms.
Rejecting Obedience to the Deepest Scriptural Truths
Still, self-proclaimed “devout” and “committed” believers will argue tirelessly over key scriptural truths. Strangely enough, all of these have to do with obedience.
They reject the requirement for obedience to Acts 2:38, even though it is not only taught by the disciples as well as Yeshua Himself, it is also demonstrated over and over in scripture.
They reject the requirement to lead others to Yehovah. You are not an island in this life. When you love Yehovah and obey His commandments, part of your role is reproductive in nature. This includes supporting the body and loving the people in it. Unfortunately, there are people who twist this and become judgmental, even cruel. They put demands on those new to the faith that they are not ready or equipped to handle. In short, they act like Pharisees.
They reject the requirement to keep Yehovah’s law, denying that His law even exists, even though it is repeated through the entire Bible – yes, the ENTIRE Bible, Old and New Testaments – from Genesis to Revelation.
They reject the requirement to keep the Sabbath as described in Exodus 20:8-11. Some outright reject the whole thing, claiming that they are no longer “under the burden of the law.” Since when did the Sabbath become a “burden”? Why would anyone who loves Yehovah call a gift that HE gave us a burden? That is beyond me. Then there are others who claim to “keep the Sabbath” but reject the instruction contained in verses 9-11, which say do not work and don’t make anyone else work. Partial obedience is still disobedience.
They reject the requirement to keep the Feast Days of Yehovah, claiming that they “are not under the law” when they have no idea what “the law” even is. The Feast Days were given to us as a remembrance and as a prophetic timeline. They all point to Yehovah and what has passed, what is going on now, and what is to come. At this point in our history, the Spring feasts have been fulfilled, but the Fall feasts have not.
And you can’t get to any of His Holy Days on the Gregorian calendar. You must use the biblical lunar calendar, HIS calendar. If you aren’t keeping the Feast Days, you are not only missing out on having a deeper, more meaningful relationship with Yehovah, you are also going to miss key events that will affect mankind profoundly – including the Second Coming of Yeshua.
They reject the requirement that we are to separate ourselves from the world. They still love the world and the things of it, but scripture says those who do that are an enemy of Yehovah (James 4:4). This is not just the presence of a carnal mind; it also means failure to study so that you understand certain things that you do and ideals that you hold are of the world and contrary to Yehovah.
They reject the requirement that we are not to worship like the pagans worship their gods (Deuteronomy 12:29-32). They don’t want to give up their pagan traditions like Christmas and Easter. They cling to their traditions, their idols, putting them above Yehovah – and He said don’t do that. Yet they continue in their disobedience – and will fight tooth and nail to defend it.
If you love Him, you will keep His commandments. You can’t get any plainer than that.
They reject the requirement of the First Commandment. We are told explicitly throughout scripture that we are to have no other gods before Yehovah. He is to be first and foremost. Yet many believers have no problem breaking the Sabbath and violating scripture to pursue the things they hold dear. If you are putting anything, including your family, before Yehovah, then that is your god. Yehovah wants your commitment – all of your commitment.
If He is your God, truly your God, then you need to show Him because lip service is not enough. Going through the motions is vain and hollow. You have to learn to say, “We need to do this another day, it’s Sabbath,” or “Can we meet later? I attend Sabbath service during that time.” Or “I can’t do that at that time; I have a prayer meeting.”
It’s all about making choices that put Him FIRST. It’s all about choices that making choices that show He is your God. You can use all the words you want to say it, but until you start showing it, those words mean nothing.
But, instead of digging in and studying these scriptural truths, many believers choose to twist scripture, isolating portions of scripture to support their rebellion instead of reading it all in context.
They use the Word of Yehovah to reject the Word of Yehovah.
This is in part thanks to the cherry-picking culture that the church has instituted and validated. But believers are also culpable because they are the ones who are carrying it out, promoting it, and, worst of all, teaching it.
The Truth About the Commandments
No, the law was not “nailed to the cross.” Yeshua never did away with it. In fact, He taught it over and over throughout His ministry.
Yeshua said, “If you love Me, keep My commandments.” (John 14:15)
What are those commandments?
37 Jesus said to him, “‘You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind.’ 38 This is the first and great commandment. 39 And the second is like it: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ 40 On these two commandments hang all the Law and the Prophets.”
Matthew 22:37-40
These are Yeshua’s words, and He is summing up the law of the “Old Testament,” the Ten Commandments. The crux of this is love. We do these things, keep His law, in love – because we love Him.
Let’s break it down, though.
37 Jesus said to him, “‘You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind.’ 38 This is the first and great commandment.
This is pretty straightforward. Yehovah is first. He must be first in your life. Period.
This covers the first five commandments. Yes, that includes the fifth commandment to honor your father and mother. This is the only commandment that comes with a blessing – and it is the only commandment with a dual application.
We honor our parents that Yehovah gave us, just as we honor Him as our father. The parent-child relationship we have with our parents is a type and shadow of the Father-child relationship we have with Yehovah. We learn how to honor Yehovah by honoring our parents. Now, are there toxic parents that blatantly reject Yehovah? Of course there are. Sin corrupts, and unfortunately, people can choose to sin just as they can choose to follow Yehovah. They can create a toxic or dysfunctional parent-child model that many people have to overcome when they choose this life with Yehovah.
But WE are responsible for our own salvation and our walk with Him. WE are responsible for our own choices to live a life that seeks holiness or a life that chases the pleasures of the world.
Honor does not mean access. You can honor them without giving them access. Always, always choose Yehovah first. Seek Him FIRST.
39 And the second is like it: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’
This covers the second half of the commandments, 6 through 10. That’s pretty straightforward. It’s about loving people.
But then there’s the part that gets glossed over or left out completely.
40 On these two commandments hang all the Law and the Prophets.”
There’s that pesky word again, “the law.” What law? Well, the Ten Commandments, you know, the law that says Yehovah must be your ONLY GOD and you must keep the Sabbath.
Yeah, that law.
Crucify That Flesh
We talk a lot about crucifying our flesh. But no one talks about what to do next.
Big surprise. There’s Bible for that.
43 “When an unclean spirit goes out of a man, he goes through dry places, seeking rest, and finds none. 44 Then he says, ‘I will return to my house from which I came.’ And when he comes, he finds it empty, swept, and put in order. 45 Then he goes and takes with him seven other spirits more wicked than himself, and they enter and dwell there; and the last state of that man is worse than the first. So shall it also be with this wicked generation.”
Matthew 12:43-45
Now, many ministries relate this to deliverance. And that is what it’s about. However, it does show a biblical principle that has a much broader application than that.
When you have those things within you that feed your flesh, those carnal things that you have clung to for so long, once they are removed, it leaves an empty space.
Those empty spaces must be filled with something, or the carnal things will slowly seep back in.
The prayer for this is simple yet powerful. Ask Yehovah to kill off the things within you that are not pleasing to Him and fill those places with His things. Fill you with Him.
This life is not about you. You must decrease so that He can increase. THAT is when you will live your full life of holiness, fulfilling the purpose that He has for you.
And the only way that will ever work, the ONLY way, is for your complete submission to Him. Get out of your own head and give yourself room for the possibility that you aren’t as obedient and compliant as you think you are. Yehovah loves you and He wants you with Him, but on HIS terms.
And that starts with complete obedience.
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