In May of 2020 I was studying the word “sacrifice” and was led to the passage below in 1 Samuel. I wrote that it is better to obey than to repent. This morning I as I study the word “obey” I came to this passage and what I see is the amount of effort needed for obedience as opposed to repentance.
“22And Samuel Said, ‘Has the Lord as great delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices, as in obeying the voice of the Lord? Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice, and to listen than the fat of rams. 23For rebellion is as the sin of divination, and presumption is as iniquity and idolatry. Because you have rejected the word of the Lord, he has also rejected you from being king.’” – 1 Samuel 15:22-23 (ESV)
As I go through my days doing what I do, I am presented with choices to obey and do what God would have me do, or do what might be easy in the eyes of society. Yes, I have the choice in those cases. Each choice presents a result and those result either create more action.
When I have chosen to go with society I end up having to back track and explain my actions and ask for forgiveness and hope that at some point I will be able to move forward. And that is so deflating as I spend so much of my time trying to fix or undo what was done as opposed to just moving on.
I have found that when my choice is in line with God and I am obeying Him, the resulting action is positive in some way and I am able to simply move forward. I put the item in my past and the next task up is now the focus of my attention. Sure, I may have to revisit my choice at some point, however it is just to explain and as I have found it ends there most of the time. I am not required to defend my actions with a herculean effort, I simply explain and move on.
Samuel explains the same in the passage above. Yes, we will be repenting continuously as we progress in this world, we are sinners and that does not change. God wants for us to acknowledge our shortcomings and ask Him to continue covering them with His blood and grace.
Now, I think of the time and effort needed to recall and repent from all of my sins and transgressions that I could have avoided by simply obeying God. That effort would have been better served in thanking God for the blessings He provided and asking for His care and love bestowed on those in need. My prayers would be guided to thanksgiving and pleas for others as opposed to backtracking on all of the known ways I failed Him that day.
I know that I consciously and unconsciously sin each and every day. For each of those I am responsible and should be asking for repentance. How much shorter would my list of known sins be if I were synced with God and obeying His commandments in my life.
When you are presented with a choice, which direction do you tend to lean? Are you “okay” with choosing society over God and then spending an inordinate amount of time “fixing” your choice? How much less effort would be needed if you simply obeyed God?
Trevor's Thoughts 