Some thoughts have a trail that follows, like a banner attached to an airplane, but my thought this week is short and sweet.

When I first came back to the Lord, I was led by the Holy Spirit to a long since passed preacher, David Wilkerson. I began to listen to his sermons on YouTube, of which there are hundreds. It was through many of these sermons that I truly began to understand both holiness and obedience.

On the surface, you may not think that these two things go hand in hand, but in fact they are so closely linked together, I would argue that it’s impossible to separate the two. The Bible says in Hebrews 12:14, “Follow peace with all men, and holiness, without which no man shall see the Lord.” That means holiness is a requirement if you want to see Him. His grace is sufficient for us, but His grace is not a license to sin; to do so is itself willful sin. Cast aside every weight that easily besets and run the race set before you if you want to see Him and look upon His face! Consider this passage:[Hebrews 5:7-9 NLT] While Jesus was here on earth, He offered prayers and pleadings, with a loud cry and tears, to the One who could rescue Him from death. And God heard His prayers because of His deep reverence for God. 8 Even though Jesus was God’s Son, He learned obedience from the things He suffered. 9 In this way, God qualified Him as a perfect High Priest, and He became the source of eternal salvation for all those who obey Him.

We all know obedience is the antipode of rebellion. To be disobedient is to be rebellious; and to be in rebellion is as the sin of witchcraft. So if Jesus Himself was required to learn obedience, what makes us think we have wiggle room? We are living stones that God has purposed into His spiritual temple– His dwelling place. We are His holy priests. Through the suffering and obedience of Jesus Christ, we are able to offer spiritual sacrifices that please God. “You must be holy because I, the LORD, am holy. I have set you apart from all other people to be My very own.” [Leviticus 20:26] “…Obedience is better than sacrifice, and submission is better than offering the fat of rams.” [1 Sam 15:22] If you want to please Him, live holy and obedient to Him in all things, from the great to the small. We are His possession and holiness and obedience is required. [Psalm 100:3] “Know that the LORD He is God: it is He that made us, and not we ourselves; we are His people, and the sheep of His pasture.”