It wasn’t until I experienced the magnitude of Christ’s love and built a solid relationship with Him that I was able to fully grasp the severity of my sins. I also began to understand more clearly the amount of grace I had been afforded throughout my life. I came to realize that in my obedience to Him, He began to work mightily in my life. The more I decreased, the more He increased. As I recognized that I was in a fallen state, the reality of His sovereignty began to be magnified. As I read about the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, I began to understand exactly why He is worthy of praise and exaltation. He was merciful and forgiving towards them, yet His Word remained the unchanging, steadfast pillar in their lives. He is a still small voice, yet the voice of a thousand thunders. Their lives began to change as they grew in not just the admonition of the Lord, but in obedience to Him. Once they allowed Him to be the Lord in their lives, situations changed. Atmospheres changed. I began to follow suit and could testify the same. In fact, almost everything I had been taught and raised to believe about Jesus Christ made much more sense after getting to know Him not just as my Savior, but as my Lord.
Most recognize Christ as their Savior. At the most basic level of our faith, we acknowledge the fact that He died on the cross for our sins. But I believe that the true transformation occurs when we reverence Him as our Lord. When we realize that He is our Lord, we do our best to obey Him. Obedience is an act of worship. Obedience goes against every carnal instinct we have. Obedience says to God “not my will, but Thy will be done.” Obedience will cause us to follow Christ no matter what the circumstance because we rely on Him.
In science, there are dependent and independent variables. The dependent variable represents the output or effect, or is tested to see if it is the effect. This is most commonly known as the “controlled” variable. The independent variables represent the inputs or causes, or are tested to see if they are the cause. They respond to additives and can change from their original form as a result. We as Christ-followers must be the “control” variables. Regardless of what is added to our equation, we must remain constant and unchanging. The world is ever “evolving” into a morally corrupt mess. In our Christian walk, we will be criticized and accused of devolving as a result of not conforming to this world.
Are we ready to stand firm in our beliefs regardless of what society deems right and wrong?
Are we ready to truly love Christ more than we love our sins and iniquities?
Are we ready to remain the same people of integrity no matter what variable comes our way?
Just as a well-trained dog will hold the “stay” position as long as his owner desires regardless of the fact that the very core of this animal may instinctively be screaming “Go chase the squirrel!” the dog will hold its owner’s gaze until given permission to make a move. This does not make the dog weak, this does not make the dog angry at the squirrel for attempting to distract him; this makes the dog intelligent, submissive and obedient to his master. He knows his master, and trusts him. He knows that while chasing the squirrel may provide instant gratification, he has been trained to react differently. He has been trained to have self-control that extends beyond his animal instincts. We must remain in whatever position Christ has us in; we must keep our eyes locked in on Him until we receive that definite command to do otherwise. The dog and his owner have established a relationship based on trust, security, and obedience. Instinctively, the dog would have rather chased the squirrel to satisfy his carnal instincts. Instead, he had been adequately trained to hold his peace. We must do the same; we must not act out in our flesh when dealing with situations in life. Perhaps the owner knew that the squirrel would lead the dog into heavy traffic. Perhaps the owner knew that the dog would appreciate his reward more than he would appreciate the instant gratification that chasing the squirrel would provide. Obedience just makes every situation a little clearer. Regardless of what may be the “squirrel” in our lives, we would do well to obey the Master. We must remain the control while surrendering our control.
Dominique Bradley loves God and is embracing her new role as wife and First Lady to her husband Matthew, a Youth Pastor. She operates in the healing, deliverance, and prophetic ministry alongside him as well. Dominique is a firm believer in holiness and the power of the Holy Spirit, and encourages others to make a real, honest commitment to Christ. She applies biblical standards to both her social and political life and is an advocate for the Pro-Life movement. You can connect with Dominique on Instagram @theniqueshow4.
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