From the Pulpit ................................................................Pages

How many of us as kids remember our parents telling us not to go to a place that was unsafe to play around? At times we would listen and stay away, but how many other times did we not listen and went to play in that area anyway? I did that a couple of times. But I remember the last time, and it didn't feel great. After the punishment was done though, I would be talked to and told that, when you're told not to do something but you go ahead and do it anyway, then there are consequences for your actions. Remember when you were punished? It didn't feel very good, did it?

Well, that is what happens when we sin against God. He loves us very much, yet He has no choice but to punish us for our sin; He will take so much from us. Sin naturally to the flesh feels really good and it can be enjoyable and God will let this go on, but only for a season. Then He will punish us if we don't repent, because there are always consequences that come from sinning.

Obedience is what is required to show God that we love Him, so obey His word, as Sergeant York did. We see his obedient heart in action...This comes from the 1941 movie, Sergeant York; the true story of Alvin York who grew up a Tennessee mountaineer. He was a hard drinking, brawling and a sharp shooting man, who would become an American hero of World War I.

When Alvin York was growing up in Tennessee, he was a hard case. He would spend his time split between working the family farm, out hunting in the nearby mountains and causing a whole lot of trouble. But when Alvin was a young man, everything changed in his life when he gave his live to Jesus Christ. Alvin stopped fighting and drinking; he also began to read and study his Bible passionately. Everyone in the mountain community noticed that Alvin was a changed man.

It was the arrival of World War I that clearly brought light to Alvin's changed life. He was drafted and with the harsh reality of war, he felt that he no longer liked fighting. Alvin applied for the status of a 'conscientious objector;' he did this hoping that he could escape joining the army and going to war. But Alvin's request was denied and he joined the army as a Private.

Alvin's commander, Major Buxton, was a Christian also. He told Alvin to study his Bible and all the scriptures that were linked to war,

From the Pulpit...Obedience!

self defense and obedience to country. Up to this point, Alvin was prepared to face whatever the penalty would be for disobedience to his orders when it came to killing during war Owner/Publisher: Rob Wood time. But after some time to reflect, he decided to take Major Buxton's advice and study his Bible and go through all the scriptures to see whether he should take a stand for his beliefs, or to go to war. After he studied and did some soul searching, Alvin came to the conclusion that he could, in good conscience, go to war. He wouldn't be disobeying God by obeying his government, which was important to him. In September of 1918, he was in his first battle in the Argonne Forrest in northeastern France. It looked like hell; bare dirt heaved up by hundreds of artillery shells with areas of bushes, dead soldiers and burned trees, surrounded by

June 2021 Happy Father's Day! Page 5 From the Pulpit...Obedience! mud. Alvin was in a manmade hell where he earned one of the sergeant stripes.

Alvin's unit had become pinned down because of machine gunfire. Most of his fellow soldiers were wounded or had been killed.

Alvin remembered his woodsman skills to stop the guns from firing. He ran, crawled from bush to bush, then to a tree and a large rock for protection from the flying bullets in the air. He crawled all the way up the hill where the gun was. Alvin's marksmanship shooting came through and machine gun after machine gun was finally silenced when German after German gave up and surrendered. After this one man had finished shooting, his unit was safe and he had captured 132 German soldiers, and those German soldiers carried Alvin's wounded buddies to safety.

For Alvin, he had come to the conclusion that God's orders to him were that he should obey the orders of the Army and to go and fight in war. It had been a soul wrenching decision for him to make, but because he obeyed, he was able to take out 35 machine guns and he captured 132 German soldiers. For all of his bravery in battle, Alvin received many honors worldwide for his courageous fight, but what meant more to him was just knowing that many men in his unit would live because he had taken those machine guns out. Alvin showed us how important it is to obey God and not man. There are so many different stories of obedience in the Bible; we will start with Noah and how he obeyed God. Let's think about Noah and what God asked him to do. He did everything that God had asked of him, even though it seemed pretty crazy. When you think about it, there had been no rain where Noah was, and yet Noah was telling everyone that there was a worldwide flood coming and that flood would destroy everything. Then he started building a huge boat (ark) that would carry every animal, bird, crawly things as well as his family. He was doing this simply because God told him to build it. Genesis 6:14-16 says, "Make yourself an ark of gopherwood; make rooms in the ark, and cover it inside and outside with pitch. And this is how you shall make it: The length of the ark shall be three hundred cubits, its width fifty cubits, and its height thirty cubits. You shall make a window for the ark, and you shall finish it to a cubit from above; and set the door of the ark in its side. You shall make it with lower, second, and third decks." God called Abraham in the book of Genesis, chapter 12. We see that Abraham did not hesitate when God called him; he just decided to obey Him. God had an amazing plan for Abraham, as we see in Genesis 12:1-2 which says, "Now the Lord had said to Abram: "Get out of your country, from your family and from your father's house, to a land that I will show you. I will make you a great nation; I will bless you And make your name great; And you shall be a blessing." Let's put ourselves in Abram's shoes (that was his name before God changed it to Abraham.) He was told to just leave everything he knew behind, his family, friends, his work, his home and he had to leave and stop all of his worshiping false gods, to begin his long trek to a land that he knew nothing about or had no idea what it looked like. Abraham was obeying God, even though at that time he didn't know Him or had not been called before. But Abraham obeyed; he didn't ask God 'Why?', He didn't take time to think about it, or even the cost of this big move for him, as in Genesis

Page 6 Happy Father's Day! June 2021 From the Pulpit...Obedience! 12:4 says, "So Abram departed as the Lord had spoken to him, and Lot went with him. And Abram was seventy-five years old when he departed from Haran. Then Abram took Sarai his wife and Lot his brother's son, and all their possessions that they had gathered, and the people whom they had acquired in Haran, and they departed to go to the land of Canaan. So they came to the land of Canaan."

How many of us would give up everything, leave it all behind, then move on to a strange place and follow a God that is totally unknown to us? God would later call on Abraham again and ask him to sacrifice his only son, Isaac, the son that God promised. It's the best example in the Bible of obedience, next to Jesus. I can't even imagine the confused state of mind that Abraham would have had at that time. You can almost see him sitting under a cycamore tree in the heat of the day relaxing, then he hears God's voice and He says, 'Abraham, I want you to sacrifice your son for Me.' What would you do or say? I can't even imagine what and how he felt at that very moment. Whatever Abraham felt, he did what God asked him to do. Genesis 22:13 says, "Now it came to pass after these things that God tested Abraham, and said to him, "Abraham!" And he said, "Here I am." Then He said, "Take now your son, your only son Isaac, whom you love, and go to the land of Moriah, and offer him there as a burnt offering on one of the mountains of which I shall tell you." So Abraham rose early in the morning and saddled his donkey, and took two of his young men with him, and Isaac his son; and he split the wood for the burnt offering, and arose and went to the place of which God had told him." Now Abraham left and went to Moriah, no doubt all the way there thinking of what God wants him to do. When they arrived, his son Isaac asked him where was the lamb for the burnt offering. Genesis 22:710 says, "But Isaac spoke to Abraham his father and said, "My father!" And he said, "Here I am, my son." And he said, "Look, the fire and wood, but where is the lamb for a burnt offering?" And Abraham said, "My son, God will provide for Himself the lamb for a burnt offering." So the two of them went together. Then they came to the place of which God had told him. And Abraham built an altar there and placed the wood in order; and he bound Isaac his son and laid him on the altar, upon the wood. And Abraham stretched out his hand and took the knife to slay his son." So now Abraham was ready to make a burnt offering to God when he heard a voice; it was the voice of the Angel of the Lord, who called his name from heaven. The Angel of the Lord told him not to harm his son and He supplied Abraham with a ram instead. Genesis 22:11-13 says, "But the Angel of the Lord called to him from heaven and said, "Abraham, Abraham!" So he said, "Here I am." And He said, "Do not lay your hand on the lad, or do anything to him; for now I know that you fear God, since you have not withheld your son, your only son, from Me." Then Abraham lifted his eyes and looked, and there behind him was a ram caught in the thicket by its horns. So Abraham went and took the ram, and offered it up for a burnt offering instead of his son." Why did God do this to Abraham? Why did God ask him to sacrifice his son? God was testing Abraham; He wanted to see if he would actually do what God had commanded him to do. When Abraham obeyed, God then

June 2021 Happy Father's Day! Page 7 From the Pulpit...Obedience! blessed Abraham for his obedience. Genesis 22:15-18 says, "Then the Angel of the Lord called to Abraham a second time out of heaven, and said, "By Myself I have sworn, says the Lord, because you have done this thing, and have not withheld your son, your only son - blessing I will bless you, and multiplying I will multiply your descendants as the stars of the heaven and as the sand which is on the seashore; and your descendants shall possess the gate of their enemies. In your seed all the nations of the earth shall be blessed, because you have obeyed My voice." God was very pleased with Abraham for his obedience to Him.

Now we will look at the obedience of Jesus Christ; noone was any more obedient than Jesus. He always did His Father's will, even if was going to be painful to Him.

This was so relevant when, in the Garden of Gethsemane, He had demonstrated His own desire to have the cup taken away from Him, but Jesus said in Luke 22:3944: "Coming out, He went to the Mount of Olives, as He was accustomed, and His disciples also followed Him. When He came to the place, He said to them, "Pray that you may not enter into temptation." And He was withdrawn from them about a stone's throw, and He knelt down and prayed, saying, "Father, if it is Your will, take this cup away from Me; nevertheless not My will, but Yours, be done." Jesus knew that the Father was always with Him, because for those who obey Him, He will be there with them. Jesus always wants to please the Father. John 8:29 says, "And He who sent Me is with Me. The Father has not left Me alone, for I always do those things that please Him." He also said in John 4:34: "Jesus said to them, "My food is to do the will of Him who sent Me, and to finish His work." Jesus also knew why He came to earth; He knew He would have to die on the cross for all of us. He knew that He would have to suffer greatly for us and yet He obeyed the Father and went to the cross. Philippians 2:811 says, "And being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself and became obedient to the point of death, even the death of the cross. Therefore God also has highly exalted Him and given Him the name which is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of those in heaven, and of those on earth, and of those under the earth, and that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father." No one was or ever will be any more obedient than Jesus, but that doesn't mean that we shouldn't be. Obedience is one of the most important things we can do. Our lives are so much better when we obey God than if we go out and do what we want to do. So many people do their own thing every day and wonder why their lives are all messed up, then they blame God. Let's stop blaming Him and start doing what we are supposed to do, what we were meant to do; let's start obeying God today and let's start doing what He has been asking us to do, then see how much better our lives will be. WOOD Ministries

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Lynne Wood Owned and published by Rob Wood of Wood Ministries. Contact us @ 905-380-4489, or email us at wood.ministries.2020@gmail.com