Who Are You Listening To?

It comes as no surprise to anyone who reads these pieces regularly that a large focus is placed upon faithful “obedience”. Specifically, obedience to doing what we hear God tell us to do. That, after all, is what “living unfiltered for God” is all about. If we hear God say it, we do it. No questions asked. No dilly-dallying. Just make it happen. Is it easy? Not. At. All.

I don’t know about you, but it always makes me feel good when I read biblical accounts of people who are like me. And by “like me” I mean, people who don’t get it right all the time. The examples are legion, which should make us all feel a little bit better. I came across one such example a couple of days ago…

I’ve been reading through the Old Testament lately, working my way through the early kingdoms of Saul, then David and then Solomon. Shortly after Solomon dies and Jeroboam takes the throne, we come across a little account of a couple of prophets in 1 Kings 13. I’ll let you read the whole passage on your own, but here’s a quick rundown…

 
“Man of God” hears the Lord tell him to (1) prophecy to the King, (2) don’t stay to eat or drink and (3) don’t go back the way he came.

 “Man of God” takes care of (1). Jeroboam tries to make him stay, but he stands firm and does not, so he accomplishes (2). And he did not go back the same way. So, (3), check! But, wait…

 A seemingly jealous, “Old Prophet” catches wind of all this and goes to meet the “Man of God”.

 “Old Prophet” plays the, “I’m a prophet too” card and blatantly lies, telling “Man of God” that he heard God say (via an angel) that “Man of God” was supposed to go back with “Old Prophet” to his house.

 At first “Man of God” resists, but eventually he acquiesces and goes home with the “Old Prophet”. (At this point you should be saying, “Nooooooo!!!!!!!”)

 During dinner (um, see (2) above), “Old Prophet” hears from God – this time for real – and informs “Man of God” of his disobedience (that had to hurt) and the because of this, “Man of God” would not be buried with his ancestors.

 Sure enough, after dinner, “Man of God” leaves and ends up being killed on the road by a lion. “Old Prophet” goes to collect his body and buries it in his own tomb, where he too would eventually be placed, as well. 

Now… there is obviously a LOT going on in this story. I want to just focus on three quick takeaways:

1. We need to be careful who we listen to and not let our guard down. Just because someone is a peer or like us in some way, does not mean they can be entirely trusted.
2. See it through. If God gives you a task, finish it. Don’t get complacent. If it has multiple parts, each part is just as important. Don’t think just because you did what you think is “the main thing” (like delivering the prophecy, above), don’t get lax on the rest.
3. No one should be allowed to over-rule God’s voice or direction in our lives. This can be trickier than it sounds. Listen to Godly counsel, yes! Listen to the wise voices in your life, yes! But if you are certain that God has given you a direction (and yes, that is sometimes tricky to discern in its own right), let no man or woman get in the way of that. Discernment is key, but then obedience must follow.

This reminds me of something I read once that said, “partial obedience is still disobedience.” Ouch. That has implications. When it comes to obedience, it’s a “pass/fail” kind of thing. No “just good enough” and no grading on a curve. There is no gray area. You are either obedient… or you’re not. Period. 

My prayer for you is that you would learn to hear God’s voice more and more clearly. And with that, that you would have the confidence and courage to be quickly obedient to what you hear.