People who try
to do God’s will, do not all approach obedience
from the same standpoint, nor hold the same
attitude toward it. The quality of the obedience
is not in the act, but in what lies back of the
act. It is the right attitude toward God’s will
and the right intent in doing it that is the
true essence of obedience. Obedience may be
given in a way that magnifies and glorifies the
obedience, or in a way that robs it of most of
its value. A retrospective view of past history,
and perhaps even of our own lives, may furnish
us many illustrations of the different kinds of
obedience that may be rendered. We shall notice
some of these kinds of obedience.
There is a partial obedience
which, with the will of God well known, draws
back from part of it. It does not fill the cup
of obedience to the brim. It does not follow the
entire specifications. It falls short of the
full demands of duty, even when that duty is
well known. We have a striking example of this
in King Saul. The will of God was definitely
revealed to him. He did not stand in doubt
concerning it. He was to destroy utterly the
Amalekites and all that was theirs. He went with
his army, fell upon them, and slew, not only the
people, but many of the cattle; but when Samuel
went out to meet him, perhaps to congratulate
him upon his success and upon his obedience to
God, he found that Saul’s obedience had not been
full and complete.
The Prophet heard the lowing herds, and
the bleating flocks, and saw King Agag, who had
been reserved alive for some future purpose. Did
Saul appear, acknowledging his guilt, with the
consciousness that he had not fully obeyed? No,
he came to the Prophet with the full-voiced
assertion of duty completed, of the will of God
fully performed. Perhaps there was a secret
sense of unrest and fear in his soul, but he did
not show it. He boldly declared that he had done
the will of the Lord.
There are may “Sauls” today. They do a
part of the will of God and make much of what
they have done, but say nothing of what they
have not done. What has not been done, takes
away all the virtue of what has been done. Saul,
instead of receiving approval for what he had
done, was severely condemned for what he had not
done. When we obey only partially, our obedience
is not acceptable to God, for it leads only to
rebellion. When the obedience has gone as far as
there is willingness to obey, it comes to a wall
of rebellion, to a will set on disobedience,
which is exceedingly hateful to God, and which
shows that the partial obedience that has been
rendered has not come from a genuine disposition
to obey, but from some other consideration.
Where there is a genuine disposition to obey
God, there is no choosing of what part of his
will we shall do. One part of his will is then
just as acceptable as any other part of it.
Another series of examples concerning
such partial obedience is seen in the various
reformations that took place under different
kings of Israel and Judah. After telling what
good things had been done, how the idols had
been destroyed, how the worship of Jehovah had
been renewed, again and again we find this
statement, “Nevertheless the high places were
not taken away” The kings did well so far as
they went, but they stopped short of their full
duty, and so left a continuous temptation before
the people, who, in secret, still worshiped at
the high places. This secret worship, as soon as
the people dared to make it such, again became
public worship.
When we turn to God, we should not leave
the high places standing in our lives. But many
are doing just this. There is not a complete
severing of the ties that bind to the world.
There is still a secret attraction that is
drawing world-ward. This secret attraction,
draws the soul away from the fullness of God’s
will, and prevents the fullness of that
communion with him that makes the Christian life
so blessed. These high places that are left
undestroyed in the life are elements of
continual danger, and are hindrances to complete
obedience. Thousands of souls have drifted away
from obedience altogether, back to the old
world-life, back to the old rebellion, because
in the beginning of their Christian lives they
did not completely do the will of God, fully
sever every bond that held them to the world,
and become wholly, unreservedly, and for all
time, only the Lord’s
We repeat---partial obedience is
rebellion. It is rebellion because it puts our
will above God’s, will. We determine within
ourselves what part of God’s will we will do,
and what part we will not do. This puts God in
the second place. This makes his will subject to
our will. This sets our will upon a throne above
his will, and no acceptable service can be
rendered while we hold such an attitude. Not all
persons who only partially do God’s will are
bold to declare they have done the will of God
as Saul declared. In the secret depths of their
heart many of them have a feeling of guilt and
shame, which tortures them. They may hide this
from the eyes of men. People may suppose them to
be very good Christians, but they themselves,
know the canker that is eating at their hearts.
There is a lack of spirituality in their lives,
a lack of those Christian graces and virtues and
that whole-hearted trust in God and reliance
upon him that it is the privilege of those who
do God’s whole will, to have. To do God’s will
fully, to throw one’s whole heart into it, to
have the conscious assurance that our service is
acceptable, brings a satisfaction and rest to
the soul, which cannot be put into words. This
is one of the most blessed experiences of the
Christian life, and only he who has experienced
it, can know what a glorious thing it is.
There are those who do God’s will fully,
or try to do it fully, yet who do it reluctantly
or hesitatingly. They are driven by conscience,
or by constraint of duty, or by fear that they
will be lost if they do not do it, or that God
will chastise them, or let something evil happen
to them unless they obey him. So, like the
slave, they obey, even when they prefer not to
do so. Or, perhaps they fear that their pastor
or church will discipline them if they do not
accomplish their duty: or they are driven to
obedience by what people will say of them if
they profess to be Christians and do not obey.
Reluctant obedience is never acceptable
obedience. Compulsory service can never bring
pleasure to the one serving or to the one being
served. It is unsatisfactory to both, because it
lacks the elements that give it worth. Reluctant
obedience is, at bottom, disobedience, for the
will does not obey---it is coerced. When it
shrinks from obedience, it lacks the disposition
of obedience, and lacking this disposition, it
can never offer anything higher in the way of
service than that which the task-driven slave
renders to his master.
There are others who obey, not
reluctantly or hesitatingly, but carelessly and
half-heartedly. Like a poor workman, they care
more about getting through with the job than
about doing it well. They may be partly absorbed
in other interests, so that they are not enough
concerned about doing of God’s will, or perhaps
they shrink from the effort necessary to do well
what they undertake. Such service robs them and
God of the pleasure that comes from careful and
whole-hearted service. Careless and half-hearted
Christians are always lukewarm Christians, and
they themselves cannot be satisfied with their
Christian lives.
There are others who obey, not simply for
God’s eye to see them, but because they have a
disposition to do things so as to attract the
attention of those about them. They have a
desire to be noticed. There is “a something” in
their actions, which straightens itself up
self-righteously and says, “See what I do.” Like
the Pharisees, they blow a trumpet to call
attention to their good deeds. Jesus said, “They
have their reward.” That is, the reward they
receive for such service is the reward that they
get from men, for their service is not directed
toward God, but toward men. As the Indian
warriors delighted to recount the tales of their
prowess around the campfire for their own
glorification, so these persons delight to tell
what they have done. Nothing is more-sweet in
their ears than the praise of men. Verily, they
have their reward, but it is not a heaven-sent
reward. Such service can never be acceptable to
God. It is always based on selfish
considerations and is done for self or at least
this element more than any other enters into it.
Acceptable Service
Acceptable obedience to God has in it
certain characteristics that give it its
acceptable quality. First, it must be a sincere
service, directed toward God. It must be done in
view of his will, and with the earnest purpose
of fulfilling his will in an acceptable manner.
It must be based solely on the intent to obey.
In such service there is singleness of heart,
earnestness of purpose, zealous faithfulness.
These qualities give even the lowliest service
the same qualities and worth that characterize
the highest service in the greatest things, and
thereby lowly service is glorified and brought
upon a highly exalted plain.
Acceptable service is willing service, a
service that is gladly rendered from choice. The
language of the soul is, “I delight to do they
will, O God!” and as Jesus said, “My meat is to
do the will of him that sent me.” In such
service there is no feeling of constraint or
compulsion. It is the out-flowing of love, the
carrying out of the heart’s desire; and so all
tasks are made light and all service a pleasure.
The nature of obedience is inward; that is, it
begins with desire in the heart. Nothing is true
obedience that is not cheerfully given and
prompter by love. It is never a sullen yielding
to necessity; it is never task-work; but it is
ever the soul’s joyous oblation.
Acceptable service is humble service. It
is not done to be seen of men, nor for the
purpose of bringing their praise to us. It is
not done for their esteem, but simply to please
God. Pride and display are inconsistent with
true service. Sometimes people plan a course,
which they hope will lead to preferment in the
church, or which will give them influence and
leadership. These are the things for which they
are working; therefore their service cannot be
an unselfish, devoted service, a humble and
consistent service, such as is precious in the
eyes of God. In seeking such rewards for
service, men miss the true and great reward of
service, and at the same time fail to give God
the service that is due him.
Acceptable service is patient service.
Life often seems long and the round of service
sometimes grows wearisome; so we have to put
patience into our service, lest we grow weary in
well-doing. The kind of service that counts is
not some spectacular service today, and then
little service tomorrow---it is the every-day
round of doing duties and rendering cheerful
obedience that counts. If we can be relied upon
to be at our post and render never-failing
obedience, no matter under what circumstances,
then God and men can trust in us. What each of
us should do is to purpose to do God’s will from
day to day---purpose to do his will during our
whole lives; that is, have a settled
determination that God’s will shall be done, a
fixed purpose to do his will. We shall not then
approach God’s will doubtfully. Whether we shall
obey or disobey will then have been determined
already, before the question arises; and having
decided to obey God’s will, there is no
indecision or hesitation.
We shall approach his will with only one
thought---that of doing it. We shall meet
hindrances in doing God’s will, hindrances
within ourselves, hindrances in circumstances,
hindrances from our fellow men. If our purpose
to do God’s will is sufficiently strong, it will
enable us to surmount all these hindrances and
to go forward, rendering acceptable service. We
shall be able to shut our ears against what
people say that would otherwise hinder us. We
shall be able to surmount the obstacles that
they place in our way; and no matter whether the
world approves of our obedience to God or
disapproves of it, our purpose to carry out what
he wills will enable us to go forward
undismayed. The tongue of the gossip, the
criticism of the critic, the sneers of the
scoffer, the misrepresentations, and
misunderstandings of our motive, and whatever
may come to us as a result of our obedience to
God, will then be borne with quiet patience and
not allowed to hinder us in our service.
Three Steps to Obedience
There are three steps we must take before
we can render acceptable service. The first is
to have a right view of God. The idea of God
that is most prominent in our minds will be most
potent in forming the idea of his will that we
shall entertain. If the text, “From everlasting
to everlasting, “ expresses our predominant idea
of God; that is, if we look upon his majesty and
greatness, his eternity and unchangeableness, as
his supreme characteristics, we shall stand in
such awe of him that our service will be
inspired by fear more than by love.
If we look upon him as the august
Sovereign, we shall most easily render obedience
from a sense of duty. But if our greatest
thought of God is expressed in the words, “Our
Father,” then we can realize that his will
toward us is the will of a father---a kind,
loving, devoted father. Then we can serve from
love, and put fear and duty in the background.
Service to our Father “instead of being slavish,
is filial; instead of being reluctant submission
to a mightier force, is glad conformity to the
fountain of love and goodness; instead of being
sullen resignation, is trustful reliance;
instead of being the painful execution of
unwelcome duties, it is the spontaneous
expression in acts which are easy because of the
indwelling love.” And so the character of our
service to God is determined by whether or not
we have this sense of his fatherhood. If we lack
this, let us draw nigh to him. Let us seek him
until he comes and fills the place of our hearts
with himself, and we come so to know him that
instinctively our hearts will call him Father.
The second step in acceptable obedience
is to say, “Not my will be done.” So many try to
say, “Thy will be done,” when their hearts are
saying, “My will be done.” Jesus was the
greatest of all servants. He set us an example
of obedience, being obedient even unto death. He
says in regard to his attitude toward the
father, “I came down from heaven not to do mine
own will, but the will of him that sent me”
(John 6:38). He exemplified this all through his
life. In his prayer in Gethsemane, we hear him
saying, “Father, if thou be willing, remove this
cup from me: nevertheless not my will, but
thine, be done.” Every desire that our own wills
may be done is a barrier to our doing God’s
will. So we must fight the hot battle, and
perhaps the long one, of conquering our wills,
so that we can say, “Not my will.” Right here is
where so many fail. They try to say, “Thy will
be done,” they try earnestly, they struggle
desperately, and yet in the depths of their
hearts they find a reluctance, a hesitation, a
shrinking from God’s will. Why is this? They
have begun at the wrong place. They have not yet
crucified their own wills. We may say, “Thy will
be done,” from our lips, but never truly from
our hearts, until we have first said, “Not my
will.” But when we have crucified our own
desires, when we have mastered ourselves so that
we can say without reluctance or hesitation,
“Not my will,” then we have laid well the
foundation for acceptable service.
The third step is to say, “Thy will be
done.” Having taken the other two steps, this is
easy, because it is the soul’s most earnest
desire. But there are many who say, “Thy will be
done,” who do not comprehend what a scope in
their natures and lives this covers. First, it
means “Thy will be done in me.” It means
a surrender of the heart, its desires and
purposes, its ambitions and hopes, its plans and
expectations. It means to submit to God that he
may make in us such changes as are desirable to
him. It means for us to allow him to refashion
us, to cleanse, to prune, in fact, to make of us
what he desires.
“Thy will be done” means “Thy will be
done for me. This means that we shall
allow God to choose the future course of our
lives, and turn them into whatever channel he
wills. It means that we will allow him to do
what he will with all the we call ours---our
possessions, our relatives, our friends, our
business, our reputation, our standing with the
world. It means that we will allow him to choose
for us, to will for us, to plan for us. It means
a full submission of all things into his hands,
with our hands taken off, and our claims given
up in order that we and ours may be his fully,
irrevocably, eternally.
It means “Thy will be done by me.”
This requires the dedication of all our powers
to the active performance of his will, without
hesitation or reluctance. It means making this
the chief purpose of our lives, the purpose
which runs through all other purposes and lies
back of all of our activities, under all
circumstances and conditions, amid all
influences and environments, whether things go
easy or hard, whether circumstances are
favorable or unfavorable, whatever desires may
arise in ourselves or in others, whatever
sacrifices are demanded. “Thy will be done
by me” means all this.
“Thy will be done” means “Thy will be
done through me.” “Whatsoever thou mayest
desire to accomplish through me, I yield myself
as the instrument of thy will, whether it be
through honor or dishonor, through sickness or
health, prosperity or adversity, good report or
evil report, whether it means service at home or
in a foreign land, to the high or to the low, in
life or in death, whether I may understand or
not---thy will be done through me.”
And finally it means “Thy will be done
to me.” If it be needful to God’s purpose
that we suffer persecution and endure the
malignant hatred of his enemies and that our
names be loaded with reproach, if it means the
prison or the cross, “thy will be done to me.”
It means the meek suffering of persecution and
opposition, and the patient endurance of
hardness of whatsoever sort. Although it does
mean all this, it also means the joy of God’s
salvation and the presence of his living Spirit
with his strengthening, comforting influences.
It means joy unspeakable that no man taketh
away. It means the abiding “peace that passeth
all understanding.” It means having a sense of
God’s approval. Finally, it means eternal glory
at the Father’s right hand forevermore.
When we have said, “Thy will be done,”
from the heart’s depths, there is no jealousy or
envy of others when they excel us. There is no
holding back from God’s will and no undue
pushing forward into things without considering
his will. We are content to await the revelation
of his will, knowing that he has promised to
lead the way. When the heart says, “My Father,
not my will, but thine, be done,” it enters the
vale of sweet content to feast in the green
pastures by the still waters. While storms may
come into such a life, there is: a deep,
undisturbed calm, that the winds of trouble
cannot ruffle, nor can the waves of tribulation
reach its depth. Here we dwell hard by the gate
of heaven, ready to enter in when the Master
shall bid us.
Many times people find the will of God
hard to do. Wherein does the hardness lie? It is
not so much in what must be done, though that
may require earnest endeavor; the hard part lies
in the heart. It is caused by unwillingness or
unbelief, hesitation or reluctance. When the
heart is willing, we shall always find “his yoke
is easy and his burden is light,” but a very
small burden may be heavy to the unwilling
heart. The glory in service comes to the
willing-hearted. So let us follow the three
steps earnestly, faithfully, till we reach the
place where we can do his will without
shrinking, or without wishing it were otherwise,
but content to have things as he will have them,
and fully satisfied in his will.
Immediate Obedience
When Paul, after having been for a time
without a knowledge of the will of God
concerning him, was made aware of “that will” in
a vision, his responsiveness was shown by these
words, “After he had seen the vision,
immediately we endeavored to go” (Acts 16:10).
This disposition should characterize every
Christian. If the heart says, “Thy will be
done,” there is no occasion for delaying, but
immediate obedience can be rendered. What does
delay indicate? First, it indicates a lack of
fervor, a want of zeal. When love is warm,
obedience can be rendered. What does delay
indicate? First, it indicates a lack of
fervor---a want of zeal. When love is warm,
obedience is ready; so a lack of responsiveness
to God’s will shows a lack of love toward him.
Secondly, delay shows a disinclination to do his
will. It show either a desire that his will were
otherwise than it is, or a reluctance to make
the effort necessary to its accomplishment.
Thirdly, delay leads to disobedience. A
disagreeable, or difficult duty always becomes
more so by delay. The Psalmist says, “I made
haste, and delayed not to keep they
commandments” (Psa. 119”60. “Delayed duty is
present discomfort.” The heart can never be
quite at ease with a sense of duty undone. The
longer it is delayed, the harder it becomes to
do that duty. Immediate obedience is the only
satisfactory obedience, the only easy obedience,
and the only kind that opens the gates of
blessing to the soul.
Delayed duty means loss of opportunity.
When the business man sees an opportunity, he is
quick to grasp it. How many times the Christian
sees opportunity and delays taking advantage of
it, only to see the opportunity pass unused,
perhaps to regret it for years! Immediate
obedience, therefore, is the only safe way.
Failure to obey means an hour of duty left
empty, and that hour of duty once left empty can
never be filled. If that neglected duty ever is
done, it fills another hour that might have held
another service , and so an hour of service is
lost and lost forever. And shall not those empty
hours mock us? Shall not the slighted
opportunities rise up to condemn us? Therefore,
let us fill each hour with its duty, with its
loving service, and thus we shall have no
regrets.
Faithful Service
Faithful service includes the doing of
the little things, and the doing of these
seemingly little, unimportant things with the
same care and earnestness and with the same
faithfulness that we put into the greater
things. The true disposition of our hearts is
revealed in our attitude while doing the little
things. Jesus said, “He that is faithful in that
which is least is faithful also in much: and he
that is unjust in the least is unjust also in
much. If therefore ye have not been faithful in
the unrighteous mammon, who will commit to your
trust the true riches? And if ye have not been
faithful in that which is another man’s who
shall give you that which is your own?” (Luke
16:10-12). Here the principle is revealed that
unfaithfulness in one thing is inconsistent with
faithfulness in anything else. In other words,
if we do not show a faithful spirit in the small
things, we shall do the greater things if we do
them, not because of faithfulness, but from some
other consideration. Jesus said that those who
broke the least commandment, and taught men to
do likewise, should be least in the kingdom of
heaven. The spirit of true obedience, makes one,
esteem the smallest portion of the will of God.
He, who can neglect God’s will in the little
things, cannot rightly esteem it in the greater
things. He who has not the true spirit of
obedience in the little things does not obey in
the greater things because of faithfulness.
It is not a question of the importance of
the thing commanded, but of the importance of
obeying or rebelling. It is one’s attitude
toward God’s authority. Many, who will obey God
in the greater things, because they feel the
constraint of conscience, neglect or ignore a
multitude of little things which are just as
much the will of God for them to do as the
greater things, and still feel no compunction of
conscience. When people do only that part of
God’s will, which they wish to do, it is not
obedience to God; it is obedience to self. Many
times in the past, God revealed his will through
the prophets. The people listened and approved,
but they did not obey. This spirit is manifested
today in ten thousand instances. People sit
under the preaching of God’s word; they approve
what the minister says; they go away, and
straightway do the opposite. They do not feel
bound to obey. They read in the Bible things
that reveal their duty, but they shut the Book
and go on as though they had not read it. Have
these a true spirit of obedience? Not so. They
have a spirit of disobedience. They disregard
God’s will without any consideration of what
attitude of heart is thereby revealed. Such
persons cannot hope to be in the spiritual
condition, where joy, peace, and contentment are
their lot, or where the approval of God will
rest upon them.
Lacking the disposition of heart to
render obedient, cheerful, faithful, loving, and
full obedience, we lack what nothing else can
supply, and it is impossible for us to be
pleasing and acceptable to God, and to reap the
reward in our hearts and in our lives that it is
God’s good pleasure to give to those who render
unto him whole-hearted service.
