Implicit obedience from an honest heart

Now the time that the sons of Israel lived in Egypt was four hundred and thirty years. And it came about at the end of four hundred and thirty years, to the very day, that all the hosts of the Lord went out from the land of Egypt. It is a night to be observed for the Lord for having brought them out from the land of Egypt; this night is for the Lord, to be observed by all the sons of Israel throughout their generations.

And the Lord said to Moses and Aaron, “This is the ordinance of the Passover: no foreigner is to eat of it; but every man’s slave purchased with money, after you have circumcised him, then he may eat of it. “A sojourner of a hired servant shall not eat of it. “It is to be eaten in a single house; you are not to bring forth any of the flesh outside of the house, nor are you to break any bone of it.

“All the congregation of Israel are to celebrate this. “But if a stranger sojourns with you, and celebrates the Passover to the Lord, let all his males be circumcised, and then let him come near to celebrate it; and he shall be like a native of the land. But no uncircumcised person may eat of it. “The same law shall apply to the native as to the stranger who sojourns among you.” Then all the sons of Israel did so. This is the text: They did just as the Lord commanded Moses and Aaron. And it came about on that same day that the Lord brought the sons of Israel out of the land of Egypt by their hosts. Exodus 12:40–51.

God is teaching us that when He begins to deal with our hearts, we are to do exactly what He tells us. To dwell on the tedious details of the Passover is not the point of this message. We want to emphasize the implicit obedience that God requires, down to the very last detail.

We are concerned with this playing with the will of the Lord, this doing what you want to do and backing off from what is difficult, from the harsh dealings of the Lord that you do not want to face, this withdrawing and putting up a wall.

No one really knows the difference; you go on worshiping and singing. The strangest thing about Israel’s obedience to God was the way they kept the Passover down to the smallest detail that God demanded. That is the way God is dealing with us now.

This walk with God is not a generalized profession of faith (a handshaking membership), but it narrows down to the Lordship of Jesus Christ over His bondservants and their complete, absolute obedience to the Lord. And that is the way we are going to keep the feast—with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth. (I Corinthians 5:8).

Let us read something about the life of Herod Antipas, or Herod the tetrarch, the son of Herod the Great, that will show you exactly what we mean by implicit obedience.

Mark 6:14–28: And King Herod heard of it; for His name had become well known; and people were saying, “John the Baptist has risen from the dead, and therefore these miraculous powers are at work in him.” But others were saying, “He is Elijah” (this is speaking of Christ). And others were saying, “He is a prophet, like one of the prophets of old.”

But when Herod heard of it, he kept saying, “John, whom I beheaded, he has risen!” For Herod himself had sent and had John arrested and bound in prison on account of Herodias, the wife of his brother Philip, because he had married her. For John had been saying to Herod, “It is not lawful for you to have your brother’s wife.” And Herodias had a grudge against him and wanted to kill him; and could not do so; for Herod was afraid of John, knowing that he was a righteous and holy man, and kept him safe.

And when he heard him he was very perplexed (instead of the phrase, “he was very perplexed,” I prefer King James version which translates it from the Greek: “he did many things”) but he used to enjoy listening to him.

“What are you doing, Herod?”

“Well, a lot of things. After I listened to John the Baptist, I made a number of reforms. I started a movement to improve the Roman baths in the city. I promoted a charity program to help the little orphans. There are also reforms needed in the procedure of the legal system under Roman law.”

“Yes, Herod, you can do many things, but you can’t leave that woman alone. You still take that harlot to bed; you still live with her. The whole nation sees your adultery, but still you enjoy John’s preaching, don’t you, Herod?”

And a strategic day came when Herod on his birthday gave a banquet for his lords and military commanders and the leading men of Galilee; and when the daughter of Herodias herself came in and danced, she pleased Herod and his dinner-guests; and the king said to the girl, “Ask me for whatever you want and I will give it to you. “And he swore to her, “Whatever you ask of me, I will give it to you; up to half of my kingdom.”

And she went out and said to her mother, “What shall I ask for?” And she said, “The head of John the Baptist.” And immediately she came in haste before the king and asked, saying, “I want you to give me right away the head of John the Baptist on a platter.”

And although the king was very sorry, yet because of his oaths and because of his dinner-guests, he was unwilling to refuse her. And immediately the king sent an executioner and commanded him to bring back his head. And he went and beheaded him in the prison, and brought his head on a platter, and gave it to the girl; and the girl gave it to her mother.

Secular traditions say that Herodias withdrew a pin which held her hair in place and rammed the pin through the tongue of John the Baptist crying, “Now will you shut up!” But she could not stop that word. There would be another who would speak the Word of God.

There are other references to this same Herod. Mark 8:15: Jesus said,… “Watch out! Beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and the leaven of Herod.” Luke 13:31, 32: Just at that time some Pharisees came up, saying to Him, “Go away and depart from here, for Herod wants to kill You.”

Now he is after Jesus. He was sorry after the first step, but now it is a little easier. Now he is even trying to kill Jesus. And He (Jesus) said to them, “Go and tell that fox, ‘Behold, I cast out demons and perform cures today and tomorrow, and the third day I reach My goal.’ ”

Luke 23:6–11: But when Pilate heard it, he asked whether the man (Jesus) were a Galilean. And when he learned that He belonged to Herod’s jurisdiction, he sent Him to Herod, who himself also was in Jerusalem at that time. Now Herod was very glad when he saw Jesus; for he had wanted to see Him for a long time (he was still saying in his heart, “This man is John the Baptist whom I beheaded”), because he had been hearing about Him and was hoping to see some sign performed by Him. And he questioned Him at some length; but He answered him nothing.

You cannot hear the Word and play with it, can you? Why did Jesus have nothing to say to Herod? It was all over for Herod. God had nothing more to tell him.

 And the chief priests and the scribes were standing there, accusing Him vehemently. And Herod with his soldiers, after treating Him with contempt and mocking Him, dressed Him in a gorgeous robe and sent Him back to Pilate.

Acts 13:1 names a number of men, including Manaen, who had been raised in the same palace with Herod the tetrarch.

What happens when we start taking a dim view of sin? We become calloused and it is not long until we become quite tolerant of it.

I have been thinking how David sinned. He stood on the roof and saw Bathsheba bathing on the adjoining roof, and he seduced her. When she sent him word that she was with child, he sent her husband into the front lines of battle, and Uriah was killed. It looked as if everything was all right. He married Bathsheba.

Their sin was covered up until one day Nathan the prophet came to him. He told David about a rich man who had a great flock of sheep and a poor man who had only one little lamb that was the pet of the family, and how the rich man had taken the poor man’s lamb and killed it for his guests.

 David rose up in wrath and said, “That man is going to die! I’m the king. I believe in justice and that man has to die for his deed.”

Nathan said, “Thou art the man! You took another man’s wife and trouble will never leave your house. The day will come that your wives will be raped in broad daylight. You will be humiliated and scorned. The sword will not depart out of your house.”

And it did not. One of his sons raped his half sister. Another slew the boy who did it and later usurped the kingdom from David, causing much blood to be shed in Israel.

Yes, David, you reap what you sow. It all starts in the heart. David was not a liar. He was a man after God’s own heart, but he was not facing the wickedness he had hidden in his heart.

I know human nature. It is easy to say, “My sin isn’t so great. But the sin of that man over there is terrible. I will condemn him.” Of another man we say, “He is a liar,” but when it comes to ourselves we say, “I exaggerate once in a while.” Of another man we say, “That is a sin of adultery,” and of ourselves we say, “It was a beautiful relationship, one of those things that just happened.”

When someone else does it, we call it fornication; when we do it, we say, “Well, we got to petting a little too heavy.” In another person we call it lust, but in ourselves we dignify it and call it love. You see a man walking in arrogance and say, “That is pride and to be condemned!” But you walk in your own plumes and feathers and call it self-confidence. Another man you condemn as being greedy; of yourself you say, “I am just a little ambitious.”

It is rather amazing how people draw the line on one another. They can be harsh and unforgiving, carrying in their hearts condemnation of another person, but what about themselves? What are they doing? God warns, “Judge not, that you be not judged. For with the same judgment you judge, you shall be judged again; and with the measure you use, it shall be meted unto you again” (Matthew 7:1–2). That means exactly what it says.

God, bring us to the day of honesty of heart. Bring us the Living Word like a sharp two-edged sword that pierces even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the hearts. For all things are laid open before Him with whom we have to do” (Hebrews 4:12–13).

Young people, I am pleading for the purity of your walk. I am pleading for the remnant to come forth, purified and made white, sanctified and made ready for the Master’s use. I am pleading for something more than what I have seen. I am pleading for a carefulness in the way you live, a carefulness without legalism, not walking back to the deadness of the letter of the law, but walking with a carefulness before the Lord. Be careful how you live, what you eat, what you drink. Be careful in your relationships with each other. I am beseeching with you—be that people God called you to be.

It begins with purity in the heart. …Thou desirest truth in the inward parts… Psalm 51:6.

Face the truth about yourself and what you need. God is merciful. He will forgive you and cleanse you, but He cannot do it as long as you lie to yourself. Be not deceived; God is not mocked: for whatsoever a man sows he will also reap. If you sow to the flesh you will of the flesh reap corruption. If you sow to the Spirit, of the Spirit you will reap life everlasting (Galatians 6:7–8). Face the thoughts and intents of your heart.

God, loose us! Loose us from deception. We plead for that absolute pure obedience to God.

A passage of Scripture has recently been recurring to me: “For forty years I loathed (to feel revulsion toward someone) that generation, and said, they are a people who err in their heart. And they do not know My ways. Therefore I swore in My anger, truly they shall not enter into My rest.” Psalm 95:10–11.

God said, “For forty years I loathed them.” God loathed that whole generation. He said, “They do always err in their heart. They do not know My ways.”

I wonder, do you have the walk with God that you want? Are you walking with God? Face it: Do you err in your heart? Is there something down deep within that admits, “I don’t know the ways of the Lord. I don’t love Him as I should. I don’t desire after Him. I don’t really walk with Him. I am fooling myself, saying that I am walking with God when I am not. I am not walking with God. I am erring in my heart and it is time that I face it.”

According to my standards, there are far less people really walking with God than you would think. You may know the A B C’s, the first principles, and think you have all the answers.

God is not looking for another denomination, nor is He looking for another movement. He wants those who will walk with Him. I would rather you would walk with God than be able to argue about it with someone else. Walk with God! Begin searching your heart, as Israel did when they kept the Passover with implicit obedience, right down to the smallest detail. Do not let the final revelation over this move of the Spirit come thundering from heaven, “I swear in My anger, you will never enter into My rest.”

I want us to sweep out the leaven of malice and wickedness. My heart is crying for the holiness and righteousness of the Lord to come and fill us.

I abhor legalism with a perfect hatred and I love grace with all my heart, but I do not want to mock that grace. I want grace to come and loose me from every sin. I do not want to look upon a brother and condemn him for the speck in his eye, and ignore the plank in mine (Matthew 7:3–4). I do not want to do that, but it is a characteristic of human nature. David did it to his own hurt, and you can do it to your own hurt.

Lord, search our hearts. My heart aches, for I know God is speaking to us. I know He is asking us to open our hearts. You have a chance to get rid of those hidden sins. What will happen if you do not? You know as well as I what will happen. It may not happen today or tomorrow or the next day, but one day it will show up and it will not take long. You cannot phony anything, nor can you let anything ride, for God keeps working on it.

The Word of God is living and active and cutting. This Living Word is telling us what God will do for us, what we can become, how we can enter into it. God is not letting us walk in deception.

There is no area that God does not search out, down to the very thoughts and intents of your heart (Hebrews 4:12). He is searching you, searching you, searching you. It is time for a meeting with God. Stop your coasting. Stop drifting. Stop walling yourself off from God. Knock down those walls. Let God deal with your heart.

Some may take offense at this word. Why is it so harsh? Why does it hit so hard? Because it came in one flash of revelation. God burned it in my mind like fire. I do not assume—I know that you need it.

Lord God, search our hearts. We must give diligence that no one miss the grace of God, that no one’s heart be hardened because of the deceitfulness of sin until they do not even know their condition or realize their state.

If we do not have the groundwork laid in our hearts, we will be guilty of promoting and pushing and will run out of gas down the road as surely as anything.

The world will not be met; nothing will happen unless the people who are involved will rise up with a dedication of heart and throw off the lethargy, throw off the lukewarmness and passivity and get down before God, saying, “God, I have to have a meeting with You.” Humble your heart before the Lord.

I am not as tolerant as I have been in the past. I will have no more of the sickening, nauseating tolerance that says, “Well, this person is on the drug scene and therefore we should be tolerant.”

We shall help him, but I have a growing hatred for sin. Even when the grace of God comes, I see how people are annihilated by the deceitfulness of sin. I watch it. They turn into freaks who cannot even think straight. Ephesians calls it the lusts of deceit (4:22).

Those who are hooked on cigarettes or marijuana or some other habit ought to dump the whole thing. There is too much of a sliding-by attitude, instead of a determination to get rid of sin. You do not hate it enough.

Instead you say, “Well, maybe one day it will go away if I do not talk about it.” It will not go away until you repent of it, until you hate it in your heart and want to be loosed from it.

The habits in your life, this idea of being a little too loose in your morals and in your character—get rid of it! You are to be saints of God who love righteousness.

You are to turn away from sin without looking back at it. You will have a wholesome righteousness with grace in it, with love and forgiveness in it. You will not be one who points long, bony fingers at everyone else, condemning them harshly for their sin, while overlooking the beam in your own eye. You are not going to do that.

You will have a good wholesome attitude about what is in your own rotten heart. Honesty before God, truth in the inward parts is what we are going after and God will meet us.

Away with deception. It has to go. God has called us and He is faithful. He can save us thoroughly and completely from the inward things of defeat that will trip us up down the road if we do not get rid of them now.

Do you want to get rid of some habits in your life? By faith take the first step and determine to have a new way of life, a new life style. The old habits, the old ruts are going to be filled up. Develop new habits as God opens them up by the Holy Spirit. Take your stand in faith and believe that God will do it.

We must also repent of excusing ourselves. Sometimes the young people drink a little wine, thinking, “It doesn’t hurt me. This is grace.” But the next thing you know, that wine has swayed the processes of your thinking just enough so you talk nonsense instead of the way God wants you to.

It was not the wine that was the big thing, but the fact that for a little while you began thinking crooked. Any time you play with the world, you are playing with dynamite. This has to go. It has to change. That includes reading the books of the world, and listening to its attitudes.

It is rough enough just going to the public school system and constantly facing their brainwashing. Think like the world thinks? No! Let us think the way God thinks. We need to not only repent of what we are doing wrong; we must also repent of the sins of omission—what we are failing to do that we should do. We must become a people of the Word, all the way through. Love that Word, live in it and speak it until it comes alive with all its power.

God will teach us how to live as His disciples, and there will be a joy in doing it. It will not be a burden. We are going to love it.

When you walk fully with the Lord, you lose a lot of the heaviness you carry in your heart. Everlasting joy will be upon your head. (Isaiah 51:11). You will come to Zion with great rejoicing and singing.