THE COST OF DISOBEDIENCE

WHAT IS DISOBEDIENCE?

Disobedience is a negative response to God’s Revelation, Word or Warning! When God speaks, we hear and we respond either in obedience or disobedience. Disobedience can also mean being rebellious and lost in our own ways and disregard the ways or commandments of God.

HOW DOES DISOBEDIENCE COST US?

Zedekiah the last of the Davidic kings, tried in vain to hold off the Babylonian assault against Jerusalem. The siege lasted for about a year and a half, but eventually the invaders stormed the city, killed his sons before him, blinded him and took him prisoner to Babylon. Unlike Winston Churchill who said he was not elected to preside over the dissolution of the British Empire, Zedekiah did preside over the dissolution of the Judean Empire. See, (Jer. 52:2-11), “Zedekiah also did evil in the sight of the Lord, according to all that Jehoiakim had done. For because of the anger of the Lord, this happened in Jerusalem and Judah, till He finally cast them out from His presence. Then Zedekiah rebelled against the king of Babylon. Now it came to pass in the ninth year of his reign, in the tenth month, on the tenth day of the month, that Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon and all his army came against Jerusalem and encamped against it; and they built a siege wall against it all around. So the city was besieged until the eleventh year of King Zedekiah. By the fourth month, on the ninth day of the month the famine had become so severe in the city that there was no food for the people of the land. Then the city wall was broken through, and all the men of war fled and went out of the city by night by way of the gate between the two walls, which were by the king’s garden, even though the Chaldeans were near the city all around. And they went by way of the plain. But the army of the Chaldeans pursued the king, and they overtook Zedekiah in the plains of Jericho. All his army was scattered from him. So they took the king and brought him up to the king of Babylon at Riblah in the land of Hamath, and he pronounced judgment on him. Then the king of Babylon killed the sons of Zedekiah before His eyes. And he killed the princes of Judah in Riblah. He also put out the eyes of Zedekiah; and the king of Babylon bound him in bronze fetters, took him to Babylon, and put him in prison till the day of his death.”     

How could Zion be sacked, the holy city on which the light of God had shone for centuries? And her leader humiliated? No country, no institution, no church is impregnable or inviolable. At the end of a history of disobedience, God may remove His hands from any of these and make it vulnerable to suffering unimaginable. In some way Zedekiah forced Nebuchadnezzar’s hand. Appointed to the throne by Babylonian king, he attempted to lead a rebellion against his appointee Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, contrary to the Lord’s own direction (See this from Jer. 37). Zedekiah through his disobedient to the word of God cost him dearly as he put a noose around his own neck in the process. Beloved, think of how many of our problems are self-caused. Unadulterated foolishness and stupidity can often lead us into affliction. For Zedekiah, disobedience of the highest level, cost him dearly making him to die like a fool; his generation ended just like that of Omri, Ahab and Jezebel because of stiff-necked heart and disobedience of the highest level (beloved brethren, more about this check my blog post about God Pronounces Judgment- Part 1). Like these too, Zedekiah also lost the entire generation and died like a dog living no heir behind him. His sons, princes and his noble men being killed before his eyes, his daughters who were left as remnant in Judah, Johanan son of Kareah, all the captains of the forces, and all the people who would not obey the voice of the Lord to remain  in the land of Judah; but carried themselves to the land of Egypt contrary to God’s command, were destroyed in the land of Egypt according to prophet Jeremiah’s prophesy (More of this beloved, see my blog posts the Sin Of Unbelief). Unfortunately, his wife, the Bible does not talk much about her whereabouts!  The high level of Zedekiah’s disobedience cost him to lose focus, knowledge and wisdom at the same time; what was the use of life for him anyway after losing the precious things that he was holding dear to him and would not pave way for the voice of God and obey His words? Beloved, this is what I would call empty life away from palace, loyalty life, without loved ones and in prison without eye sight! I would suggest for him, if he would be wise enough, he would have faced death bravely together with his sons.   

KING SAUL’S DISOBEDIENCE

Saul the son of Kish was the first Israelites king chosen by God Himself to lead His people the children of Israel. But when he disobeyed God through the word of His servant prophet Samuel; it did contribute to his downfall and his neighbor and servant who had no qualification of being a king even from the sight of his family, exceeded him and became the next king of Israel. Even though he developed a spirit of jealousy and anger towards the king’s elect and a son-in-law, God often preserved His servant David while Saul and his sons fell down by the sword and perished in one day. King Soul before his fall, he was left empty; the spirit of God had departed from him, and a distressing spirit came upon him and God ceased answering causing him to sought a medium (1 Sam.28:5-8) “When Saul saw the army of the Philistines, he was afraid, and his heart trembled greatly. And when Saul inquired of the Lord, the Lord did not answer him, either by dreams or by Urim or by the prophets. Then Saul said to his servants, “Find me a woman who is a medium that I may go to her and inquire of her.” And his servants said to him, “In fact, there is a woman who is a medium at En Dor.” So Saul disguised himself and put on other clothes, and went, and two men with him; and they came to the woman by night. And he said, “Please conduct a séance for me, and bring up for me the one I shall name to you.” (VV. 15-19), “Now Samuel said to Saul, “Why have you disturbed me by bringing me up?” And Saul answered, “I am deeply distressed; for the Philistines make war against me, and God has departed from me and does not answer me anymore, neither by prophets nor by dreams. Therefore I have called you that you may reveal to me what I should do.” Then Samuel said, “So why do you ask me, seeing the Lord has departed from you and has become your enemy? And the Lord has done for Himself as He spoke by me. For the Lord has torn the kingdom out of your hand and given it to your neighbor, David. Because you did not obey the voice of the Lord nor execute His fierce wrath upon Amalek, therefore, the Lord has done this to you this day. Moreover the Lord will also deliver Israel with you into the hand of the Philistines. And tomorrow you and your sons will be with me. The Lord will also deliver the army of Israel into the hand of the Philistines.” Disobedience indeed is costly my brethren and it is my prayer today, that the Lord may deliver us from this spirit of disobedience! What distressed Saul most , and what he feared most indeed did befall upon him and his sons, armor bearer  and his army (1 Sam. 31:1-6), “Now the Philistines fought against Israel; and the men of Israel fled from before the Philistines, and fell slain on Mount Gilboa. Then the Philistines followed hard after Saul and his sons. And the Philistines killed Jonathan, Abinadab and Malchishua, Saul’s sons. The battle became fierce against Saul. The archers hit him, and he was severely wounded by the archers. Then Saul said to his armor bearer, “Draw your sword, and thrust me through with it, lest these uncircumcised men come and thrust me through and abuse me.”  But his armor bearer would not for he was greatly afraid. Therefore Saul took a sword and fell on it. And when his armor bearer saw that Saul was dead, he also fell on his sword, and he died with him. So Saul, his three sons, his armor bearer, and all his men died together that same day.” Unlike Zedekiah, Saul could not bear to see his three sons dead before his eyes; but he had to finish himself likewise without a thought of his wife or daughters, because the once he had hope for exceeding him to the throne were no more. So in his wisdom, he had to admit that life was indeed meaningless and the price of disobedience is indeed costly. Beloved brethren, when we study the word of God, for those who disobeyed God, indeed it is costly; more of this on my blog post again (God Pronounces Judgment both part one and two); one must realize that those who disobeyed God, never have time to repent and God pronounce judgment against them; faces the curse of the third to fourth generation being swept away with them! (Exod. 34:7), “The Lord keeping mercy for thousands, forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin, by no means clearing the guilty of the fathers upon the children and the children’s children to the third and the fourth generation.” And in case anyone is left like for the case of Soul, the remaining ones are always defect and vulnerable, sorry to say so! 

ADAM AND EVE AS THE PRINCES OF DISOBEDIENCE

Adam and Eve ruined the good relationship between them and God; the authority and dominion that they were given over all the creation. God had assigned them just imagine to subdue and dominate all that God had created as they enjoy the beauty of Eden. (Gen. 1: 27-31), “So God created man in His own image; in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them. Then God blesses them, and said to them, “Be fruitful and multiply; fill the earth and subdue it; have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, and over every living thing that moves on the earth. And God said, “See, I have given you every herb that yields seed; to you it shall be for food. Also, to every beast of the earth, to every bird of the air, and to everything that creeps on the earth, in which there is life, I have given every green herb for food”; and it was so. Then God saw everything that He had made, and indeed it was very good.”  All these good things when Adam and Eve disobeyed God, they lost everything, sent out of the garden empty handed and received a curse to till the land and eat from their sweat.  Beloved did you know that in God’s dispensation and of His good plan to mankind;  we were not supposed to be slaves of work as we are today – working hard to make our ends meet! But our first parents spoiled everything, making us slaves to work and at the same time, enmity to all the creation that we were to subdue and dominate over? Do we really understand what it means to subdue and dominate? These  wild animals that we do go to see at the national parks; we were to be friends with them and in any way we meet with them headlong they are to pave way for humanity because we are as their king (much more than lion as the king of the jungle). And today what happens when you meet with a beast animal? In case one survives and not destroyed, then count yourself lucky and be grateful for the mercies of God and His preservation.  From the beginning it was not so, but the sin of disobedience, indeed is costly and one has to pay a higher price for it.

JONAH’S DISOBEDIENCE

Just before I end, let’s see this man Jonah, how his disobedience cost him. He was swallowed but the fish, God making sure that he repent though prayer and fasting by force three days and three nights in the belly of the fish (Jon.1:1-4), “Now the word of the Lord came to Jonah the son of Amittai,  saying, “Arise, go to Nineveh, that great city, and cry out against it; for their wickedness has come up before Me.” But Jonah arose to flee to Tarshish from the presence of the Lord. He went down to Joppa, and found a ship going to Tarshish; so he paid the fare, and went down into it, to go with them to Tarshish from the presence of the Lord. But the Lord sent out a great wind on the sea, and there was a mighty tempest on the sea so that the ship was about to be broken up.” The psalmist the son of Jesse wrote, “Where can I hide from the presence of God? And where can he hide from the Lord? His eye goes to and fro in heaven, on the earth and under the sea. (VV. 1:15,17), “So they picked up Jonah and threw him into the sea, and the sea ceased from its raging. Now the Lord had prepared a great fish to swallow Jonah. And Jonah was in the belly of the fish three days and three nights.”  Many of us today are like Jonah, instead of going to Nineveh, the city where God has sent us to; we tend to get down into a ship leading to Tarshish away from the presence of the Lord.  I personally had been a victim of this, and leave alone Jonah three days in the belly of the fish; mine was twenty one good days. You may not have heard about it over the news because its time and season is not yet but I think it will be ripe in my second book.

“Grace to you and Favor from God our Father and the Lord Jesus be with you all. Amen and Amen and Amen.”