The Privilege of God's Honor

Greetings Leaders and welcome to today's edition of ...

Learn and Grow with Jesus EVERYDAY.

Today's Topic is: The Privilege of God's Honor.

Date: Friday, January 22, 2021

Bible Reading: Luke 11:24-26 NKJV

And it happened, as He spoke these things, that a certain woman from the crowd raised her voice and said to Him, “Blessed is the womb that bore You, and the breasts which nursed You!” But He said, “More than that, blessed are those who hear the word of God and keep it!” Luke 11:27‭-‬28 NKJV

Discussion Question: Who would Jesus honor?

As a parent, I have learned that one of the greatest frustrations with raising children is repeatedly telling your kids something of vital importance and they neither listen nor do what you say. One thing I find very frustrating is telling my children not to do something and two minutes later, they do it again right in my face.

While growing up, I was a repeat offender of the exact same thing. Thinking about it now,  I cannot fathom for the life of me, why I just didn't listen much or follow directions. And most of the time I would get in trouble for not listening, I would often wonder what I did wrong. Now that I have my own kids, I have a very deep sense of gratitude and appreciation of my parents for their legendary patience with us. If they had punished us every time we erred as we deserved instead of correcting us in love, I don't know what would have been of us.

Today's bible reading reminded me of my childhood and also unveiled a mystery to me. In God’s scale of preference,  there is absolutely no sentiment or emotion, only truth and obedience to the truth. Jesus was teaching, and a certain woman in the crowd was so impressed, fascinated and moved by His eloquence, mastery of the scripture, demeanor, youth, handsomeness and deliciousness exclaimed, "Blessed is the womb that bore You and the breast that nursed You."And Jesus, meaning absolutely no disrespect and dishonor for His family responded, “More than that, blessed are those who hear the word of God and keep it!” Jesus said this to emphasize and underscore the importance of being a DOER of the Word of God.

By implication, Jesus clarified that while He has a filial connection with His mother, MUCH MORE THAN THAT is the connection and closeness He has with those who hear the Word of God and keep it (do it, meditate on it, and treasure it in their hearts). As a parent, this is totally relatable. It is so easy to treasure any of your kids that not only listen to you, but go out of their way to admonish their siblings when they get out of line. Truly, obedience is one of the best ways to show that we believe. 

Eli heard the word of God through Samuel and did not repent and his lineage was deleted from the face of the earth forever. King Saul heard the word of God and did not do as the Lord commanded and it cost him his throne and eventually his life. Moses heard the word of God and did not do exactly as the Lord commanded and he never entered the promised land. Jonah heard the word of God and ran away instead of obeying and he found himself spending three nights in the presidential suite of the belly of a fish. King Asa heard the word of God and did not turn to God and he was afflicted with foot disease and he died. Queen Vashit heard the word of King Ahasuerus and did not obey and it cost her the throne forever.

The bible is clear...And he went out to meet Asa, and said to him: “... The Lord  is with you while you are with Him. If you seek Him, He will be found by you; but if you forsake Him, He will forsake you. II Chronicles 15:2 NKJV

Jesus asked the multitudes, “But why do you call Me ‘Lord, Lord,’ and not do the things which I say? Luke 6:46 NKJV

If you want Jesus to know you by name and honor you, be a DOER of His Word for the Word was made flesh and it pleased Him to make His dwelling among the children of men. So whenever you begin to experience network connectivity issues with God in prayer, check your WORD life for any trace of disobedience or misalignment. Do a deep personal introspection and find out what went wrong. 

Just like my kids think about me sometimes, know that the Word of God is not old fashioned. There is nothing under the sun that can ever trend more that God and His Word. No matter how and what this world may evolve into, the Bible can never be rewritten to accommodate our dysfunctional sensationalism and God’s word stands sure forever. Heaven and earth shall pass away but the Word of God shall never ever pass away. So do the needful. If you call Jesus Lord and He is indeed your Lord, hear His word, read His word, meditate on it night and day, cherish it in your heart, treasure it in your spirit and let it find expression in you through your actions. Believe Nike and JUST DO IT.

Stay uplifted in Christ always and live Cheerfully everyday. 

Leader Chinedu Nicholas Obodo for EXOLOM Fellowship. Find us at Exolom.com