Let me paint you a story adapted from the bible. It’s show how man could obey the instructions of a fellow mortal man, their father, yet the people of God would not even acknowledge the commandments of God, their Father.

One day, a popular man of God notably regarded as a prophet received a word from the Lord directing him to speak to a particular tribe so as to invite them into the house of the Lord, and into one of the inner rooms. Then he was instructed to offer them wine for them to have something to drink.

He acting upon the word invited the members of this clan, a particular family which includes the father and his sons.

He called them into one of the inner rooms in the church premises belonging to man of God in charge of the church, there he offered them wine to drink. The prophet (well known and respected) then instructed them to drink the wine he offered them but they declined the offer in a claim that they had never tasted wine and as such would not drink the wine they were offered. They said ‘our father instructed us not to drink wine neither should any of our children.’ They went further to say their father instructed them not to build houses, nor sow seeds. They were not to plant or own a vineyard according to the commandments of their father. They claimed their father only permitted them to dwell in tents and if they fulfilled all this commandments, they are guaranteed to live long in any location the find themselves.

And so it was that moment, after a very long time since the instructions have been given, they have obeyed it to the letter, never tasted wine and all members of the family, never built houses, never owned a vineyard but they have been tent dwellers.

Using this experience, the Lord asked the prophet a fundamental question saying “will the people not learn from this people so that they will learn to obey my words? If the words of a mere mortal man can be sustained and obeyed by his children and children’s children, what excuse will they have not to obey my words?”

As I read this powerful story from the bible, I couldn’t but ask why I have been so reckless with the instructions of God as regarding the way I conduct my life. Many of us fear the police more than we fear God. We fear what the people will say more than what God will do, hence we engage in some funny acts.

As I bow my head to pray for mercy, I hear God say, “keep my words that you might br kept”. We rarely realise that the reason why God instructs us not to do certain things is not because He is interested in catching a sinner and wanting to punish people for their wrong acts but to protect us from self-destruction. Sin is destructive. It is a cancer. It is a cankerworm that has capacity to eat up something from the root such that it will not be able to stand anymore.

Fear for your life and.depart from iniquities. Obeying instructions may seem hard, difficult and stressful but at the end, you will see that that is God’s way of preserving you.

If you can obey the instructions of man, why is that of God difficult? I get. You need Grace for to obey. By self-effort, we may not be able to, but Grace will help us to. Like the disciple of Jesus asked, ‘who then shall be saved?’ Jesus.responded by saying “the things which are impossible with man are possible with God.” Luke. 18:27.

This means when you abide in God, obeying His instructions becomes possible. I didn’t say easy but of course not burdensome. Enjoy God. Enjoy Grace. God bless you.

@Oliyide Ayotunde.

Story adapted from Jeremiah 35.