Before God saved me from myself, I was the guy who was defiant, just because I could be. I was not one to follow the rules or take orders from anyone. This behavior began in and because of my childhood. I never knew what was right or wrong because of the mass confusion in our family. However, once that behavior took root, it extended beyond life at home and my adolescent years. I despised being told what to do so I had no respect for any kind of authority. In fact, for many years my mantra was that rules and locks were made to be broken. Through my experiences in life, I realized that I was not alone. Whew! What a relief! Right?
Adam and Eve did the same thing in the Garden of Eden and that brought a death sentence to everything and everyone. God has been opening my eyes to the horrible and very real outcome of disobedience. By-the-way, defiance is the same as disobedience with a slap in the face. Since the fall of man in the Garden of Eden, “all sin and fall short of the glory of God” (Romans 3:23, NASB, 1995). The sad part is that all this came about because man could not keep one commandment. Neither can we but Adam and Eve only had one commandment. Don’t go bashing Adam or Eve. You couldn’t obey it either and now you have two commandments that should keep you too busy to worry about the disobedience of the first couple on the planet.
The first commandment given to man told man what he should not do, and he broke it. Observe: Today we are given two commands that tell us what we should do but we just can’t get it right. I have wondered what life would be like today if God had used reverse psychology. “Adam you shall only eat of the fruit from the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil and none of the other”. Again, using the reverse psychology principal, God’s law today would be “You shall hate the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and all you might”. Therefore, if those were the laws God issued, 1. Man would still have brought the death penalty, and 2. Man would exude love worldwide. Wouldn’t that be something? Reverse psychology is not in God’s nature because it is manipulative and even deceptive.
Defiance is only natural. Sin is the terminal condition of man and sin rules the flesh. As a result, the flesh is ruthless and incessantly defiant. The flesh must and will die because of its sinful nature. The good news is that YOU do not have to die with the flesh. The best start is with the first and greatest commandment, “You SHALL love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your might” (Deuteronomy 6:5, NASB 1995). Do you want to be loved? Well, I have great news! God does love you. He loves you even if you do not deserve it. All He expects is for you to love Him.
Defiance: It's Only Natural
Before God saved me from myself, I was the guy who was defiant, just because I could be. I was not one to follow the rules or take orders from anyone. This behavior began in and because of my childhood. I never knew what was right or wrong because of the mass confusion in our family. However, once that behavior took root, it extended beyond life at home and my adolescent years. I despised being told what to do so I had no respect for any kind of authority. In fact, for many years my mantra was that rules and locks were made to be broken. Through my experiences in life, I realized that I was not alone. Whew! What a relief! Right?
Adam and Eve did the same thing in the Garden of Eden and that brought a death sentence to everything and everyone. God has been opening my eyes to the horrible and very real outcome of disobedience. By-the-way, defiance is the same as disobedience with a slap in the face. Since the fall of man in the Garden of Eden, “all sin and fall short of the glory of God” (Romans 3:23, NASB, 1995). The sad part is that all this came about because man could not keep one commandment. Neither can we but Adam and Eve only had one commandment. Don’t go bashing Adam or Eve. You couldn’t obey it either and now you have two commandments that should keep you too busy to worry about the disobedience of the first couple on the planet.
The first commandment given to man told man what he should not do, and he broke it. Observe: Today we are given two commands that tell us what we should do but we just can’t get it right. I have wondered what life would be like today if God had used reverse psychology. “Adam you shall only eat of the fruit from the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil and none of the other”. Again, using the reverse psychology principal, God’s law today would be “You shall hate the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and all you might”. Therefore, if those were the laws God issued, 1. Man would still have brought the death penalty, and 2. Man would exude love worldwide. Wouldn’t that be something? Reverse psychology is not in God’s nature because it is manipulative and even deceptive.
Defiance is only natural. Sin is the terminal condition of man and sin rules the flesh. As a result, the flesh is ruthless and incessantly defiant. The flesh must and will die because of its sinful nature. The good news is that YOU do not have to die with the flesh. The best start is with the first and greatest commandment, “You SHALL love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your might” (Deuteronomy 6:5, NASB 1995). Do you want to be loved? Well, I have great news! God does love you. He loves you even if you do not deserve it. All He expects is for you to love Him.