Willing and Obedient

Apr 26, 2024 | by Anthony Wade

It is such a blessing to know that we have a covenant with God. He is so faithful to His Word, and I truly cannot imagine where I would be or what my life would have become by now if it weren’t for His goodness. Speaking of goodness, I was meditating on a verse of scripture earlier that has ministered to me and encouraged me a lot through the years. However, this time was different, as I saw a whole new level of Kingdom truth to be received.

Isaiah 1:19 says, “If you are willing and obedient, you will eat the good of the land.” Pretty straight forward, I guess. In fact, I looked up the Hebrew words for willing, obedient, and good in this scripture, and do you know what they mean? They mean willing, obedient, and good! No hidden or deeper concept there. It means what it says. However, as I was pondering this verse and allowing the Holy Spirit to speak to me about it, I saw a connection that I had never seen before.

For years, I have honored this scripture and desired to see its promise come to pass in my life. And by years, I mean lots of years. As of this writing, I have probably been quoting this verse for over thirty years. I can remember in high school reading it and thinking of how I need to be both willing and obedient to see good things come to pass in my life. After all, if you are willing to do what God asks you to do in life, but not obedient to do it, you’ll never realize a harvest. Yet, at the same time, God doesn’t just want obedient robots. He desires willingness from His children. It’s sort of like the little boy who got in trouble and had to go sit in the corner for punishment. Upon hearing his mother’s instructions, he said, “I may be sitting on the outside, but I sure am standing up on the inside!” As in anything in the Kingdom, a willing heart is key.

I’m not trying to imply that this straight-forward interpretation of this verse is wrong. In fact, it holds so much truth. However, I saw something much deeper when I read the preceding verse along with it. Isaiah 1:18 says, “Come now, and let us reason together, says the Lord. Though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they are red like crimson, they shall be as wool.” God is telling Israel here that He is going to take their bright red sins and cleanse them so thoroughly that they will be as white as wool. Please note here that He is telling them that He is going to do this. He isn’t asking them to clean themselves!

Here is what I would like us to see today. This passage is prophetic about what Jesus would accomplish for, not only Israel, but for the entire world at the cross. The willingness and obedience that is critical to experience the good of the land is not based on our performance, but on how we choose to believe and receive all God desires to do in our lives. You see, believing is the manifestation of being willing and obedient. As Romans 10:10 says, “For with the heart one believes unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.” A true belief will always produce a corresponding action as we learned from James 2:14-26, and faith without obedience is ultimately inoperable in our lives.

So, step out today and be willing and obedient; but don’t rely on your own strength in the process. This is religion’s primary trap. True Kingdom willingness and obedience are based solely on your belief that you have been cleansed by the blood of Jesus and are now complete in Him. Live every waking moment on mission to prove that Jesus is alive in you, and you’ll eat the good of the land simply because God is a good God, and you are His.

Pastor Anthony