What Does the Lord Require of You?
by Margaret Silvester
I recently heard a fascinating talk on bird migration in which the speaker said that the first recording of this is in the Bible. He quoted the text above. I have wondered how migratory birds find their way year by year to the exact place in the two countries where they spend their lives. Many young birds make their first migration without their parents, while others learn the route from their parents during their first migration. In any event they obey their God-given instincts to take them on a safe journey.
Jeremiah compared migratory birds to God’s people. He says that, unlike the birds, His people did not know His requirements; they went their own way and did not obey Him. So, what about us today? Do we know in our innermost being that the one thing God requires of us is obedience? Uncalculated, spontaneous obedience like that of a child to its Father; obedience that comes from heart relationship with Him, not calculated obedience which argues with Him, nor from a divided heart that says, “What’s in this for me?”
Much prayer takes place for many good things, but even prayer can’t be a substitute for obedience. Jesus spoke much about it to His disciples. He told them that if they loved Him they would obey Him; His words are still the same for us today. Obedience is not doing what is good in your own eyes – it is abandoning your own good ideas and doing what He says, however costly it may appear, and however foolish it may seem to others.
It doesn’t make sense to pray for guidance about the future if we are not obeying in the lesser things God asks of us today. If Jesus is Lord He demands all and deserves all. In a heart that truly loves Him there is real desire to please Him. Obedience is the proof of love; it is also a foundation of security. If I desire His will alone and am prepared to obey Him utterly, what have I to fear? What does the Lord require of you? Simple, childlike, uncompromised, loving obedience!
Prayer: Father, thank You for making Your ways so clear in Your word. Please forgive me for the times I have gone my own way for my own gain. Purify my heart and fill it with divine love. I choose to surrender myself to You, so that, day by day, I can live in the joy of obedience, for the glory of Jesus. Amen.
Margaret Silvester had a career as a teacher prior to being called into full time Christian Ministry with her husband, David, in 1986. They were involved in establishing a Healing Ministry in the local church and Margaret has a passion to see lost and wounded people found and restored. She and her husband joined the Ellel Ministries teaching and ministry team in 2000 after a clear call from God. Margaret`s book "Stepping Stones to the Father Heart of God" has recently been published.
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