Speaker: Sis Nelia Cosio ,Elder, Elim Community, Hong Kong

“ Obedience and Commitment”

Following Jesus

“W hen Jesus saw a crowd around him, he gave orders to cross to the other side. A scribe approached and said to him, ‘Teacher, I will follow you wherever you go,' Jesus answered him, ‘Foxes have dens and birds of the sky have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to rest his head.'” (Matthew 8:18-20).

T he term “foxes” refers to kings in general and “birds” refers to the Roman Legion that had an eagle for an emblem and was the occupying force in Israel at the time of Jesus. The Son of Man refers to Jesus. Jesus was saying that the king, the Romans, and the soldiers who ruled over them had palaces and places to go home. He added he did not have a place where to lay his head. He was telling his followers that following him would not be easy.

“A nother of [his] disciples said to him, ‘Lord, let me go first and bury my father.' But Jesus answered him, ‘Follow me, and let the dead bury their dead.'” (Matthew 8:21-22).

T he man was saying that he would follow Jesus but he would do it later because he had to do something first. The words “bury my father” could mean attending to his family obligations. Jesus was saying that the man should follow him outright and forget the fears or worries of the world. He should never be afraid to commit himself to Jesus. When he follows and believes in Jesus, he has everything he needs.

Commitment

C ommit means entrust, give, consign, hand over or assign something. If something is committed to you, you take care of it. You deal with it and you are responsible for it.

W hen you commit to the Lord, you should be ready to bear the cost and face the challenges. T he longer you stay in your community, the more you will be challenged in your commitments to the Lord. The conditions becomes tougher but as you stay longer in your Community, you get your training and your strength from the Lord. You become tough enough and ready for the next challenge.

The Process of Commitment

“T hen he said to all, ‘ If anyone wishes to come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me.'” (Luke 9:23).

W ould-be-followers of Jesus must undergo a three-step process of commitment:

1. D eny yourself – Denying yourself means that your own opinion does not count: only God's will counts. It means asking God his will. You set aside your opinion, or what you like, or what satisfies you. You deny yourself. For example, you answer God's call for generosity for you to deny yourself and to give something to others. When you learn to deny yourself, you see the glory of God in your life.

2. T ake up your cross daily – Taking up your cross does not mean taking up suffering. It means doing the will of God everyday of your life. God's will is perfect; He has something in mind for you every single minute of the day. You must be willing and freely deciding to do what God wills – not what you want.

3. F ollow Christ – Following the Lord is the toughest part of commitment. Real servants are differentiated from pretending servants. Obedience to the Lord should be absolute and unadulterated. For human beings, following the Lord's will is hard because of their free will. Their self-will oftentimes goes against the will of God. Moreover it is easier to commit sin than to do good. Only real servants have absolute obedience to Christ.

True Commitment

W hat is true commitment to the Lord?

1. C ommitment must be complete . When you commit to the Lord, you should commit completely and without conditions like “burying your dead first.'” You should commit to the Lord without other commitments at the same time.

2. C ommitment must be consistent . What you say with your mouth is what you do. When you say you love God or serve God you do what you say. Your true interest should be the Lord's interest – not yours.

I ntegrity means that what you say and what you do are the same. When you commit to serve Jesus, you freely make the choice. No one forces you to do so. When we continue to desire or to do what we like even when we are already servants of the Lord, we are committing a quiet form of rebellion. This is disobedience! You might not have grown yet in your spirituality!

I n the kingdom of God , your faith walk towards God is up an inclined “moving walk” that runs in the opposite direction. When you stop in your walk, you stagnate and find yourself backsliding.

3. C ommitment is obedience . Obedience and commitment can never be separate. They go together; they are intertwined. When you commit to do something, you also commit to obey a person. When you are disobedient to the person, the commitment is no longer there.

A commitment to your community is a commitment to obey your elders. A commitment to your elders is a commitment to Jesus, our Lord. Your commitment to your elders and to Jesus necessitates your obedience to your elders and to Jesus.

4. C ommitment is a trust issue . Real trust in God starts with commitment to God. “Commit your way to the Lord; trust that God will act.” (Psalms 37:5 ). Sometimes, you do not trust that God will act for you; you do not let him take over your life; you do not reserve a space for God 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. You have to be totally committed to God and to trust him completely.

Lack of Commitment

1. S ome people are afraid to commit to the Lord because they are afraid of change. They believe they are satisfied with a life that has no other “boss” but themselves. They are afraid that their presumed “easy life” as Sunday church-goers would be changed to a hard life of “denying oneself and taking up crosses” when they let the Lord take over their lives.

2. S ome people are afraid to commit because they think they will lose their freedom (as the world defines freedom – doing freely whatever one likes). They do not realize that it is when they commit themselves to the Lord that they are truly free from the slavery of sin.

W hen you do not give up worldly freedom like doing things your way, the results may be sins: factions, divisions, self-interest, misguided loyalties, etc. Doing anything freely is not having no boundaries for you. God sets boundaries for you so that you will stay safe – where you can do what He wills for your good.

“C onsequently, you too must think of yourselves as [being] dead to sin and living for God in Christ Jesus. Therefore, sin must not reign over your mortal bodies so that you obey their desires.” (Romans 6:11-12).

I f you belong to Christ, you are not slaves of sin but you are slaves of obedience and righteousness. We must shut the door to sin and not leave it open. If you leave a door open to your past sins and weaknesses, the enemy will use that door for you to go back to sin. Satan “is prowling around like a roaring lion” . (1 Peter 5:8).

“D o you not know that if you present yourselves to someone as obedient slaves, you are slaves of the one you obey, either of sin, which leads to death, or of obedience, which leads to righteousness? ” (Romans 6:16).

P eople who are afraid that they would no longer be free if they commit to the Lord are actually holding on to the power of sin to make them sin again and be led to spiritual death. If they commit to Jesus, they are not slaves of sin but slaves of righteousness. “ Freed from sin, you have become slaves of righteousness.” (Roman 6:18 ). This is true freedom! Jesus set us free though his sacrifice on the cross so that we can live free from sin!

Y ou must commit to spend the rest of your lives remaining free from sin so that the power of the Holy Spirit can flow through you and help you. It will be a heroic effort because human nature is very strong and the world is so tempting; but the power to commit to the Lord is with you. Choose to be slaves of Jesus Christ for life rather than be slaves of sin. Everyday, you must deny yourself and take up your cross and follow Christ!

P raise and thank God the Lord that there are teachings coming to your life about knowing God's will and his promises. The grace to obey is within you through the Holy Spirit.

Rewards for Obedience and Commitment

1. T he final rewards of obedience and commitment to God are the crown of righteousness (2 Tim. 4:8) [ or crown of life (James 1:12 )] and eternal life in heaven (Romans 6:23 ).

2. T hose committed and trusting in the Lord are entitled to a life of abundance on earth. “……I came so that they might have life and have it more abundantly .” (John 10:10). It is an abundant life where there is peace of your mind, peace in your heart and peace in your family. It is a life of answered prayers and divine protection. It is a life filled with healings, miracles, signs and wonders, and financial prosperity. It is a life whose needs in all areas are met abundantly.