John Bevere - Obey Even If It's Painful
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Because Peter actually wrote in his letter that we are to obey governing authorities, when a governing authority tells you to do something contrary to the Word of God, we must do what the Word of God says. Okay, great job! You finished now Chapter 26. I am so proud of you for the way you’re journeying faithfully through this book. I know your life is being changed. Let me say this: many times when God is transforming our lives, we don’t actually see it happening; we don’t even know it’s happening. But God is faithful. When you continue to put His Word into your heart, it changes you from the inside out. Now, to tremble at God’s Word, let’s go back to it.
Number one, we obey Him instantly. Number two, we obey God even if what He asks us to do doesn’t make sense. Number three, we obey God even if we don’t see a benefit. And now the fourth one: we obey God even if it hurts. When God told Abraham to offer up Isaac, Abraham wasn’t jumping up and down about the opportunity to go sacrifice his son. If you look at Jesus, He’s the greatest example. The Bible says that He became obedient even to the point of death. Why did He obey to the point of death? Well, He didn’t just obey to the point of death; He did die for us because it was of utmost importance for Him to do the will of His Father. And Peter comes along and says to us, as Christ has suffered for us in the flesh, arm yourselves with the same mind.
Now, listen to the word: «arm yourself.» To arm yourself means you’re prepared; you’re ready. The best example I can see of someone who’s armed versus someone who’s not armed are commercial airline pilots. Every six months, they go into a flight simulator, where they face every adversity that can confront a pilot. They may crash a time or two, but they learn how to engage with that difficulty. I look at the passengers; when planes are in trouble, they often start screaming and crying, while the pilots take control, feather the engines, and lower the landing gear. They are armed for that adversity.
I wonder what would happen if persecution came to our nation, if the government said to us, «You can’t preach or teach in the name of Jesus any longer.» Well, Peter and John faced that. They looked at the government leaders because the Sanhedrin were not only the religious leaders of the nation but also the governing leaders. Rome would allow its occupied territories to continue to rule themselves under its supervision. Can you imagine the government saying you can’t preach or teach? What did Peter and John say? «Whether we obey God or whether we obey you, you should judge; but we must speak the name of Jesus.»
Now, because Peter actually wrote in his letter that we are to obey governing authorities, when a governing authority tells you to do something that is contrary to the Word of God, we must do what the Word of God says. And let me say this: that’s where I see a lot of people struggling. They’re struggling when their friends want to go and do something disobedient to the Word of God. When their classmates and the people they’re working for want to do shady things, we must stand up for truth in a way that demonstrates a loving heart. But in a way that expresses that I fear God more than I fear you, so I will obey God. I will do this as kindly and as lovingly as I can, but I am going to obey God.
When we have that kind of resolve, that is a fear of God that will literally attract His blessing into our lives. Jeremiah was terribly persecuted for speaking the truth. All the other prophets were speaking lies, but he spoke the truth and even got thrown into the dungeon. But look at what happened: those other prophets were exiled into Babylon, while Jeremiah was taken care of when he was exiled there. The other prophets suffered great loss in the end. Let me tell you, it’s always best for you in the end when you obey God, even if it looks like it’s going to cost you something.