Times When Obedience is Hard Hebrews 5:7-8

When I Am Not “In The Mood” If we decline to do the right thing when we simply don’t feel like it, what kind of commitment to God does that reflect? We need to be “instant in season and out of season” (2 Tim. 4:2)

When It Is Not “Convenient” Felix is an example of this (Acts 24:25) It often only gets harder (Matt. 19:21-22) If we are not careful we may reveal that our schedules, routines, habits, etc. are more important to us than the Lord’s will It is possible to be so possessed by our usual routine that the Lord has to “make an appointment with us!” The work of the Lord rarely fits into “con-venient” openings in our lives (Mt. 10:34)

When I Do Not Understand Why God Has Required Something We may not always comprehend the “why” of God’s will or how more good than ill can come from doing what God wills People of true faith have always trusted God enough to obey: Noah (Gen. 6:13-22) Abraham (Gen. 12:1-4) Moses (Ex. 3:7-10) Understanding can wait; obedience can’t

When My Preferences Are Different Human “wisdom,” “emotion,” etc. often interfere with genuine obedience But, again, people of true faith have always been willing to subordinate self-will to God’s will: Abraham (Gen. 22:1-3) Naaman (2 Kgs. 5:10-12) Jesus (Lk. 22:42)

When It Would Embarrass Me We often use the word hypocrite to describe the worldly person who comes to church Hypocrite also describes the person who pretends not to be a believer in order to avoid the displeasure of others: Among the chief rulers (Jn. 12:42-43) Peter (Gal. 2:11-13) Refusal to obey because of embarrass-ment is really denial (Mk. 8:38)