Obedience to God Is More Than a Ritual - PowerPoint PPT Presentation

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Obedience to God Is More Than a Ritual

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In a relationship with God, the rules and rituals are less important than a sincere and submissive spirit. True obedience to God means choosing to follow the right path, even when it deviates from personal desires. – PowerPoint PPT presentation

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Title: Obedience to God Is More Than a Ritual


1
Obedience to God
  • More Than a Ritual

2
  • Does the Lord delight in burnt offerings and
    sacrifices
  • as much as in obeying the Lord?
  • To obey is better than sacrifice,
  • and to heed is better than the fat of rams.
  • -1 Samuel 1522 (NIV)

3
Sacrificial Offerings
  • The practice of animal sacrifices dates back to
    the time of Cain and Abel.
  • Offerings to God were a means of atonement for
    sin.
  • At their core, these sacrifices were a physical
    manifestation of a spiritual submission.

4
Attack the Amalekites
  • God commanded Saul to utterly destroy the
    Amalekites for their past transgressions.
  • This included the total slaughter of every
    animal.
  • Instead of following the Lords instructions,
    though, Saul saves the best of the cattle and
    sheep.

5
You cant fool God
  • Saul tried to excuse his disobedience by claiming
    that he spared the best of the sheep and cattle
    to sacrifice to the Lord your God.
  • Samuels reply was very blunt To obey is better
    than sacrifice, and to heed is better than the
    fat of rams.

6
True Obedience
  • Ritual without genuine, heartfelt obedience is
    meaningless.
  • Submission to Gods will is the start of real
    freedom it enables us to live as He intended in
    relationship with Him.

7
What obedience isnt
  • Obedience doesnt mean becoming a mindless drone.
  • A Godly life means making choices we must
    choose to live in submission to Gods will.

8
Consequences of Sauls decision
  • For rebellion is like the sin of
    divination,    and arrogance like the evil of
    idolatry.Because you have rejected the word of
    the Lord,    he has rejected you as king.
  • Saul chose to rely on the basic action of the
    ritual offering rather than obey Gods
    instructions.
  • As a result, his time as King of Israel would
    soon come to an end.

9
The opportunity to obey
  • There arent many kings in todays world, but
    obedience still has a place in the life of a
    follower of God.
  • One of the most important opportunities is to
    obey a clear message from God.
  • For men and women who are listening, those
    messages are all around us we only need to take
    the actions required.

10
Tell Them That I Love Them
  • One amazing story of such a message comes from
    author John DiBattista.
  • Through a miraculous vision, John was visited by
    Jesus Christ.
  • Jesus gave John a new calling on his life, and he
    now travels the world to share the love of Christ
    and the powerful truths that can set people free.
  • We must simply have the courage to obey God when
    He commands us!

11
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