OUR “NOW” RELATIONSHIP continuing.
2 Corinthians 6:2: “Behold, NOW is the day of salvation.” Our relationship with Jesus is to be RIGHT NOW, not only in the past, and not somewhere in the future.
When the God of Heaven and Earth invites us to be involved with Him regarding any matter—fellowship, prayer, speaking, or witnessing to someone He expects us to give Him full attention. After all, He is a very great King. In fact, He is the King of kings and the Lord of lords.
God’s acceptable time is always RIGHT NOW.
Malachi 1:6: “A son honoreth his father, and a servant his master: if then I be a father, where is mine honor, and if I be a master, where is my fear? Saith the LORD of hosts unto you.”
We do not honor or fear our great God when we drag our feet to respond to His call upon our lives.
We notice in Matthew 4:18 that when Jesus was walking by the Sea of Galilee that He saw Peter and his brother, Andrew casting a net into the sea. Verse 19, 20 says: “He saith to them, Follow me, and I will make you fishers of men. And they STRAIGHTWAY (IMMEDIATELY) left their nets, and followed him.”
Then he noticed James and John in a ship with their father mending their nets, and He called them. Verse 22 says: “And they IMMEDIATELY left the ship and their father, and followed him.”
Matthew 10:37, 38: “He that loveth father or mother more than me is not worthy of me: and he that loveth son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me. And he that taketh not his cross, and followeth after me, is not worthy of me.”
With our most joyous and gladdest response, we should give instantaneous obedience to our great and mighty God, especially because of all that He has done for us.
Hebrews 3:7-15 (NET) talks about the NOW response of our hearts to God’s call: “Oh, that TODAY you would listen as he speaks! Do not harden your hearts as in the rebellion, in the day of testing in the wilderness.”
The word TODAY is mentioned three times in this passage. Check it out. To refuse to give instant obedience and willing response is to do what the Scripture says is to “harden your hearts.” To harden the hearts is serious with God.
Proverbs 21:29: “A wicked man hardened his face.”
Proverbs 28:14: “Happy is the man that feareth always, but he that hardeneth his heart shall fall into mischief.”
Proverbs 29:1: “He that being often reproved hardeneth his neck, shall suddenly be destroyed, and that without remedy.”
And Jesus reminds us in Matthew 19:8 that the “hardness of your hearts” is the root of all divorce.
How can we who are fathers hope that our children will give spontaneous response to God if they have not been trained to give it to you?
Be encouraged.
Colin Campbell
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