TOPIC: THE BENEFITS OF OBEDIENCE

BIBLE TEXT: 1 KINGS 17:8 16

OTHER SCRIPTURES: ISAIAH 1:19, EXODUS 19:5, 1 SAMUEL 15:22

INTRODUCTION:
From the Bible days until now what God is interested in the life of every
Christian is our obedience. And that is why the Bible which is the written word
of God is given to us to act in obedience.

WHAT IS OBEDIENCE?
Obedience is to hear Gods word and act accordingly. It is when we act
according to what is written in the word of God. As children of God we should
obey God. Just as a child is expected to obey his or her parents, our
obedience to God through His word is what determines how far we can go in
our relationship with him.
By the obedience of the men and women in the Bible days they obtained a
good report i.e. Abraham, Joshua, Simon Peter, Elijah and the Widow of
Zaraphath etc. Heb. 11:2

THE BENEFITS OF LIVING IN OBEDIENCE
1. Obedience brings blessings i.e. Abraham Genesis 12:1-3
2. Obedience attracts favour with God and man i.e. Joseph Genesis
39:2-4
3. Obedience brings healing i.e. Naaman II Kings 5:1-14
4. Obedience leads to prosperity i.e. Job Job 36:11
5. Obedience leads to deliverance i.e. Israelites Exd. 14:21-22
6. Obedience conquers failure i.e Simon Peter Luke 5:1-10
7. Obedience brings miracles i.e. Widow of Zaraphath I Kings 17:8-16

HOW CAN WE LIVE IN OBEDIENCE
1. By keeping His commandment and acting on the Word of God by faith.
Hebrews 11:6
2. By trusting in God wholeheartedly Psalm 125:1
3. By living a humble life 1 Peter 5:5-6
4. By praying to God always 1 Thessalonians 5:17
5. By studying and meditating on the Word of God - Joshua 1:8
6. By sponsoring the work of God with our resources and other financial
commitment Luke 6:38
7. By living in Love 1 John 4:16 21

SUMMARY
As Christians and children of God our primary goal is to first of all obey our
Heavenly father. Our main objective should be to do what will please our
Father. As Christians we should obey our spiritual fathers, we should obey
persons in authority 1 Peter 2:13 14. As citizens we should obey the
laws of our nation as children we should obey our parents and just as
servants are required to obey their masters. Obedience is the key that
opens the door of our relationship with God.
THE DANGER OF ANGER
Be angry but do not sin; do not let the sun go down on your anger, and give
no opportunity to the devil (Eph. 4:26-27). Many have lost their lives today
because of their temper or the temper of another. Many promising
relationships has hit the rock because of temper. Many lost their jobs because
of their temper or the temper of their bosses who could not bear with them.
Many marriages have failed because of the effect of anger on the marriage.
Some are in prison custody today, because they lost their temper. A lot of
families are in shambles because the people concerned gave in to anger.
Many organizations, institutions and even churches are still suffering from the
effects of bad decisions made in times of anger. Anger is evil, anger is deadly,
and anger is destructive. The consequences of anger are too numerous to
mention. Thence, we should learn about it and how to deal with it because its
the devils opportunity. Anger is an emotional expression of dissatisfaction
caused by another. We also experience anger, sometimes with a just cause
and sometimes out of selfishness.

What can make one laugh, can make another angry. This is because peoples
like, dislikes and temperament differs depending on individual. Different
things can make one angry i.e. false witness and accusation, jesting, insulting
words; disobedience to superiors instruction and many more. And it is also
important to note that anger can be expressed in words or action.
Friends, from the scripture above you will understand that God made you with
a capacity for anger, but it should be constructive and handled the right way
to bring a positive change. Jesus expressed his dissatisfaction towards those
who turned the fathers house into market place-here Jesus expressed his
dissatisfaction for a just cause to bring a positive change and not for selfish
reason John 12:12-17
In other words, anger if properly handled can right a wrong and bring a
positive change. God speaking through Paul in Ephesians 4:26-27, says we
can be angry but do not sin-we should not carry it too far to the extent of
taking the law into our own hands. Your anger must not see the next day.
You must not sleep with anger till the next morning. If you do allow your
anger to see the next day, you are giving the devil an opportunity to come
into that matter.
You can be angry but do not let your anger control you. Its okay to express
your dissatisfaction and feel bad, but please control your temper. Remember
God expects us to practice forgiveness as we are offended Mark 11:25-26.

HOW TO DEAL WITH ANGER
When it comes to dealing with anger, your mind has a lot to do with it.
Because its your thought that the devil invades when provoked, its your
thought that fuels it. You give devil the opportunity to mess around youre
your thought when you fail to control your thought.
1. Learn to control your words. Be quick to hear, slow to speak, slow
to-anger (James 1:19), A soft answer turn away wrath, but a harsh
word stirs up anger (Prov. 15:1), let your speech be always with grace,
seasoned with salt, that you may know how you ought to answer every
man (Col. 4:6)
2. Ask the Holy Spirit to help you through prayer. We will need the
help of the Holy Spirit to overcome anger because it is not something
we can do alone. Through prayer you can ask the Holy Spirit to help
you to forgive the person and overlook the offender. Pray about any
offence immediately and settle the matter with God. Never let the sun
go down on your anger, in other not to give opportunity to the devil.
3. Go and settle the matter with the person. Confront your offender
and tell the person you do not like what he or she did to you,
nevertheless, you have forgiven him or her. And give the person
opportunity to respond. Some acknowledge their fault and apologize
and some would not. However be calm and forgive.
What if you are the offender? Please throw away pride and or in
humility apologize for your wrong.
4. Control your thought. If you continue to think and mediate on the
offence or the offender, you will give the devil the opportunity to
counsel you, and you know his mission is to steal, kill and destroy which
will form the bedrock of his counsel.
Finally brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are
honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are lovely,
whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if
there be any praise, think on these things (Philippians 4:8).

Anger is a tool in the hand of the devil, it is destructive, it is the devils
opportunity. Keep your temper in check, refrain from anger, and
practice forgiveness. May the enemy not use your anger as an
opportunity to steal, kill or destroy your destiny, in Jesus name!

TOPIC: IDENTIFY PEOPLE BY THEIR CHARACTER
TEXT: MATHEW 7:20

Yes, just as you can identity a tree by its fruit, so you can identify people by
their actions. Mathew 7:20 (NLT)

Friends, the place of character in the life of a Christian cannot be
overemphasized.

WHAT IS CHARACTER?
Character can be defined as the inner qualities that form a pattern for an
individual behaviour. Character is a life style and sum total of a person.
Christian character is what makes you count and relevant to your world,
especially. Those you meet with and spend time with daily.
It is by peoples character and behaviour that you know them.
Your character is your real you. It is who you are on the inside.
Your character is what you manifest when you are provoked or
challenged.
A believer must be known, acknowledged and indentified by his
character.
A mans beauty and what he attracts in life is a function of his
character.
Anointing without character makes the carrier stink.
Therefore, in order not to lose focus and relevance in life you must work on
your character. Character is a serious business and God is very much
interested in our character. Our God also has those qualities that make Him
the ALMIGHTY GOD, one of such qualities is holiness Leviticus 19:2.
The inner qualities transcend the physical beauty. Yes, because someone can
look beautiful on the outside adored with all the make-ups and expensive
wears and still suffer from character disease.
Friends, character is what determines how far you go in life and also
determines the flow of Gods blessing, favour, connections, contacts and
opportunities into your life.

One reason why many prayers are still not answered today is because of
character. God is a God of character and standard 1 Cor. 14:40. He cannot
fall short of His standard because of your disobedient character

WHAT MAKES UP A MANS CHARACTER
1) Thoughts - Prov. 23:7
2) Imagination Gen. 11:1-6, Gen. 13:14-18, Eph. 3:20. Ability to
create mental picture in your mind and it can influence your character a
great deal. Also create the time to think and imagine in Gods word.
3) Attitude: Attitude refers to mens disposition or tendencies and has great
influence on mens character
4) Actions: This gives expression to the totality of our character


QUALITIES OF A CHRISTIAN CHARACTER
(1) LOVE: 1 John 4:7-8, Gal. 5:6, 1Cor. 2:9 to exhibit love is to give
expression of Gods nature, because God is love.
(2) HUMILITY & MEEKNESS: Philippians 2:5 11, Psl. 25:9,
Having the right attitude in service. Being teachable and easily
correctable
(3) DISCIPLINE: This is doing what is required to get what you desire.
It is denying yourself of certain privileges in order to reach your goal
that is being hard to yourself with a view to achieving a set target.
- It is imposed self control 1 Cor. 9:24-27, II Timothy 2:3-4
(4) HOLINESS: Holiness is having right standing with God and men. It
means right living in accordance with Gods law.
EFFECTS OF HOLINESS
- Sin is put to death in your body Rom 6:1-4, Gal. 5:19-23.
- Release of your miracles Hosea 5:13-17, Mark 2:5, II Chronicles
7:14
- Guarantees Liberty II Cor. 13:17
- Guarantees Gods presence II Cor. 5:8
- Delivers you from poverty Deut. 28:16-18, Psl. 34:10, I Tim. 6.
(5) HONESTY: This is the state of being truthful, trustworthy, and
faithful to God and men in all areas of life Acts 6:3.
(6) INTEGRITY: This is saying what you mean and meaning what you
say, that is, a man of your word. It is being right in character, Prov.
11:3, James 1:3-4.
(7) DILIGENCE: This is to be dutifully productive, hardworking
spiritually, physically, and mentally Prov. 22:29, Prov. 10:4,
Prov. 12:24.
(8) COURAGE: It is the ability to control fear in the face of danger in
order to triumph. Ability to continue and not give up. I Samuel
30:1-8
(9) MORAL EXCELLENCE: It is a blameless conduct without blemish
I Timothy 3:7, Mathew 7:20, Prov. 23:7, Mathew 12:34, I
Samuel 2:3
(10) SERVANTHOOD: Servanthood is a sure pathway to honour. A
believer who desire greatness must learn to serve and be ready to
serve others. It entails attending to the needs of others, in the name
of the Lord. It is being faithful in whatever you find yourself doing.
Luke 16:12, Luke 22:7.
(11) WISDOM: Wisdom comes from information that gives knowledge
and brings understanding when skillfully applied. It is the skillful
application of learned or acquired information or knowledge Matt.
7:24-25. i.e. a wise man is someone applying skillfully information
learned.
- It is the rightful application of knowledge
- It is knowing what to say and saying it Luke 21:15
- It is knowing where to go and going there Eccl. 10:15, Prov.
4:8-10.
- God is the giver of wisdom
(12) OUTWARD APPEARANCE: Decency in our outward appearance for
Glory and Beauty to the Grace of God. Rom. 12:1

WAYS TO DEVELOP CHRISTIAN CHARACTER
Christian character is not a gift, but a choice. It is a virtue developed overtime
by taking advantage of the help of the Holy Spirit I Cor. 15:10.

1. Desire, determination and passion Daniel 1:8, Prov. 18:1. It comes
from the heart.
2. Word study and meditation II Timothy 2:15, Col. 3:15, Joshua
1:8.
3. The help of the Holy Spirit: The Holy Spirit not only teaches us but also
empowers us Jude 20, John 14:26, I John 2:27, Isaiah 30:21.
4. Keep wise company: The company you keep either makes you or mar
you Prov. 13:20.
5. Practice of the word: we must practice the word James 1:22.