WILLING AND OBEDIENT
Isaiah 1:19 (NKJV) If you are willing and obedient, you shall eat the good of the land.
We all want to eat the good of the land. What does that mean? You will experience the best there is to offer where you live. God wants to bless His children in all areas of life. Jesus said, in John 10:10, that He would give us life and that to the abundance until it overflows. The Lord’s hand is open to satisfy every living thing. God is not withholding anything from you. The Father wants you to have it. God is able to give it to you, but it is not dependent on His ability or even His will. These truths are established by the Word of God. He is able and willing to bless you. Today’s verse makes it very clear why some people are not able to walk in the good of the land that God has provided. Are we willing and obedient?
There are two things we must be in order to qualify for the good of the land. Some people will pop in here and say, “But Jesus has qualified me, so I don’t have to qualify myself; you are preaching works.” No, I am teaching responding to the Word of God and to the Holy Ghost. Jesus did qualify you through His blood, and you are part of the beloved. You are righteous, and you are holy; but you still have to respond to what God has said. You and I still must be a doer of the Word. To say you and I have to do absolutely nothing is to throw out a lot of Scriptures. You must be both willing and obedient to eat the good of the land.
How do I know if I am willing? That is of the heart. People sign up to serve, who are inspired and led by the Holy Ghost to do it, but never do. It’s like, “I thought about getting my wife flowers but didn’t,” or “I have the money and decided to pay someone’s mortgage but never did.” These things are wonderful, and my thoughts show the willingness of my heart, but they don’t count because they never happened. The thought alone doesn’t count. It is great that I was willing, but if there is no follow-through, I disqualify myself from eating the good of the land.
On the other hand, “I bought flowers only because I had to.” “I serve every Sunday, I mean every Sunday, because I have to. It is expected of me; it is required.” “I paid their mortgage. Why did I have to do that? I have my own mortgage, but I did it.” That is someone who did it, who obeyed, but they don’t qualify for eating the good of the land either. It takes both.
In Matthew 21:28–31, this is the account of two sons whom the father asked to go to the vineyard. One son said, “Yes, father; I will go.” What a good son, but then he never showed. He just told the father what he wanted to hear, or he really did intend to go but never did it. The other son said, “No, I am not going,” but later the son had an “aha moment” and said, “I better go and obey my father.” I think, in this case, the second son became willing and obedient. My point: it takes both. Are you willing and obedient?