Quickly and cheerfully carrying out the direction
of those who are responsible for me

Vs. Willfulness 

·    Obey my authorities immediately.

·    Have a cheerful attitude

·    Complete all that I am expected to do.

·    Not complain

·    Go the “extra mile.”

Used with permission of Character Training Institute
www.characterfirst.com

Obedience is freedom to be creative under the protection of divinely appointed authorities. 
(Power for True Success)

Obedience is so foundational to the Christian walk and so basic to our response to the Lord (the very essence of being called LORD  is that He is to be obeyed) that a family or small group could focus on this quality forever.  However, willfulness is one of the “basic principles of this world” (Colossians 2:8) as we show pride in “being my own man” or “doing my own thing,” etc.   

So many scriptures teach obedience that parents or group leaders could just take a concordance and look under obey, obedience, will, etc. and gain so many rich insights.  God will speak to you through His Word!   

LIKE JESUS IN OBEDIENCE:  On earth the “fullness of the Deity lived in bodily form”  in Jesus; in addition, He is “the head over every power and authority” (Col. 2:9-10) and had supremacy over all things – but even Christ was obedient to both God and delegated authority.  Discuss the following scriptures to see Christ’s obedience:
v     Luke 2:51-52:  As a child, He was aware of His divine mission in life, but was obedient to Mary and Joseph, his human authorities.   How did his obedience lead to growth?  Is this a principle in our lives?
v     John 14:31:  Even as an adult, his relationship to Father God was one of obedience:  “But the world must learn that I love the Father and that I do exactly what my Father has commanded me.”   What was the extent of his obedience?   
v     John 15:10:  “If you obey my commands, you will remain in my love, just as I have obeyed my Father’s commands and remain in His love”   How do love and obedience work together?  
v     Luke 22:39-44: When Jesus faced the extreme trial of the cross, he submitted his will to God, “Not my will, but thine be done.”   Does the need for obedience end when facing difficult circumstances?
v     Philippians 2:5-8 shows that Christ’s own mind (attitude) was one of submissive obedience, “became obedient to death – even death on a cross!”  To what extent did He obey?
v     Hebrews 5:8:  “Jesus learned obedience through the things he suffered” How does suffering and hard times teach us obedience?  How does Jesus’ example help us face opposition and difficult circumstances?
v     Romans 5:19:  “For just as through the disobedience of one man the many were made sinners, so also through the obedience of the one man the man will be made righteous.”  How did His obedience benefit us?  How does our obedience affect others?
v     Hebrews 10:9,10:  “Here I am, I have come to do your will.”  By that will, we have been made holy through the sacrifice of the body of Jesus Christ once for all.”  What long-lasting (even eternal) consequences came from Christ’s obedience to God’s will?
Are we like the Lord in having an attitude of obedience?  If Christ is in you, how does your obedience affect others?  What could be the result of your willfulness, seeking your own will? 

In Jesus’ teachings, what did he emphasize about obedience:

• Matthew 7:24-27 --  He begins this parable of the wise and foolish builders by asking, “Why do you call me, ‘Lord, Lord’ and do not do what I say?”  What is the difference between the wise and foolish men? (both heard, but the wise obeyed) 

• Matthew 12:50 – “For whoever does the will of my Father is heaven is my brother and sister and mother.”  What is the family trait of being in Christ’s family?
• John 7:17 – “If anyone chooses to do God’s will, he will find out whether my teaching comes from God or whether I speak on my own.” Which comes first, choosing to obey or understanding?  The world’s way is to understand first, then decide whether to obey.  Decide BEFORE you read God’s Word that you will obey!
• John 14:23 – “If anyone loves me, he will obey my teaching.  My Father will love him, and we will come to him and make our home with him.”  What is the telltale sign of our love for Jesus?
• Matthew 28:20 – His final directions to his disciples in the Great Commission include, “teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you.”  What is the mandate when we go out for Christ?

 One approach to learning about any subject is to look at it through the five questions:  Who? Why? Where? When? How?

 WHO SHOULD WE OBEY?  The principle of Romans 6:16-18 is that whoever you obey becomes your master.  Therefore, it is important to know who to obey because listening to every voice and obeying the wrong voice leads to confusion and disastrous consequences.  Read John 10:1-6 and discuss, “Why is it so important to know the right voice to listen to and obey?”  How can we know the voice of Christ?   In Romans 13:1-7, who is the authority behind delegated authority; what is the consequence of rebelling against them?   Obedience is to God and His Son, Jesus Christ, but also to earthly delegated authorities. Look up these scriptures to see who we are instructed to obey:

• Deuteronomy 26:16
• Ephesians 5:22,23, Colossians 3:18
• Ephesians 6: 1; Colossians 3:20
• Ephesians 6:5; Colossians 3:22
•  Hebrews 13:17, Romans 13:1,2

WHEN SHOULD BE OBEY?  Although we are to obey delegated authorities, absolute obedience to every command is only to be given to God.  When Peter and the other apostles were told by the authorities to stop teaching about Jesus, what was their reply? (verses 29-32)  Learning how to appeal to a delegated authority when asked to do wrong is an important part of obedience; study the example of Daniel in Daniel 1 and 6.  In the first incident, the authority listened and changed his mind, but in the second Daniel had to pay a price for obeying God rather than the king.  The character bulletin gives guidelines for how and when to appeal.  Also, the IBLP Basic Seminar material has extensive help on this.   Power for True Success (p. 137) gives three guidelines from the Lord’s Prayer that apply to making a wise appeal: 

1. Protect the authority’s reputation:  “Hallowed be thy name.”
2. Advance the authority’s program: “Thy kingdom come.”
3. Honor the authority’s position: “ Thy will be done.”

WHERE SHOULD WE OBEY?  It is important to understand the principle of jurisdictions in order to wisely obey.  An employer has jurisdiction in his business, but not in your home.  A father has jurisdiction in his own home, but not in a court of law.  A policeman has jurisdiction in his city, but not in a neighboring city or outside the city limits. Look at each of the delegated authorities (family, church, work, government) and discuss the extent of the jurisdiction of each.  What happens when an authority steps outside his jurisdiction?  What happens when those under authority begin to give directions on their own without the authority of those over them?  On the other hand, what happens when a person goes out with the authority of the one over them?  How does this give new power to Matthew 28:18-20?  Where is Jesus’ jurisdiction?  Where does He send us?

WHY SHOULD WE OBEY?  Note in the definition from Power for True Success  that obedience gives the freedom to be creative.  How does obedience give freedom and safety?  Authorities are given to us to give  provision, direction, protection, but are often seen as someone to resist.  How often we miss the blessing because we are not obedient!  In these scriptures, what are the promises and blessings that come with obedience:

• Exodus 19:5
• Deuteronomy 5:29
• Deuteronomy 30:11-20
• Joshua 1:8
• James 1:25
• I John 3:21-24

HOW SHOULD WE OBEY?  Obedience is responding quickly and cheerfully.  “Delayed obedience is disobedience.”  Why is it important that we do it cheerfully?  See these other scriptures how we are to obey:
            Ephesians 6:6-8  wholeheartedly, as if you were serving Chrisr
            Colossians 3:22-25
            Matthew 5:41 -- Doing more than expected
            Luke 17:7-10 – doing all that you are told to do.

The keys to building obedience also are good guidelines in “how”:

• Get full instructions
• Have a good attitude
• Act immediately
• Go the extra mile
• Follow the rules.

Examples of obedience from the Bible:  Look at these Biblical examples see the results of their obedience or disobedience:

• Noah:  Genesis 6, by complete obedience, Noah saved his family and the beginnings of a new civilization after the flood.
• Abraham:  Genesis 22: 15-18, when Abraham obeyed by being willing to sacrifice his son, the angel promised to bless him, his descendants, his possession, and all nations of the earth.
• Tabernacle workers:  Exodus 36:1, those with talent worked under the authority of Moses and the Lord and built a tabernacle for the worship of God.  (How often do we allow our “talent” to excuse doing our own thing without working under the direction of authority?)
• Joshua:  Joshua 11:15, his complete obedience to what Moses, who was now dead, had commanded allowed Joshua to take the promised land and be a mighty leader of Israel.
• Hezekiah:  II Kings 18:5- 12, note the blessing for King Hezekiah and Judah for his complete obedience and the consequences of disobedience for Israel.
• Saul:  I Samuel 13:7-14 tells of Saul’s disobedience in offering the sacrifice which only the priest Samuel was to do.  The result affected his future as king.
  I Samuel 15 tells of Saul’s battle with the Amalekites in which he disobeyed the directions given him from God by Samuel to not take any plunder from the battle.  When confronted by Samuel , Saul excused his disobedience in three ways:  1.  by claiming obedience when it was only partial (“I went on the mission the Lord assigned me.  I completely destroyed the Amalekites and brought back Agag their king”); 2.  By blaming those under him (“the soldiers took sheep and cattle from the plunder”), 3.  it was for religious reasons (“in order to sacrifice them to the Lord”).  How do we excuse our disobedience in these ways?
  I Samuel 28 tells of a third time King Saul disobeyed, by consulting the witch of Endor, and asking her to bring up a spirit to give him direction.  Only it was Samuel that appeared and rebuked him for his disobedience.  The result was forfeiture of his life. 
  How we need to realize that disobedience is not a one-time thing and that if it is not handled, it will escalate and incur increasingly strong consequences!

 WOOD DUCK:    Tell the amazing story of the wood duck or have someone else tell it.  Another resource in the CFM library is a video about this animal, showing how it must quickly obey or face death.

 Prepared  by Deanna J. Guy