Commitment to God

David, pressed on all sides by his humanity, - his sin nature as well as the circumstances and situations around him that were constantly tempting him - cried out to the Lord. “LORD, make me to know mine end, and the measure of my days, what it is: that I may know how frail I am.” (Psalm 39:4) This is indeed a prayer that should be on the lips of every Believer… all the time. We have the same sin nature as David, though we are born again, and we are faced with the same circumstances and situations living in an ungodly world just as he did. We too know the Lord. We too love the Lord. We too have made a covenant with the Lord sealed with His blood – a commitment to keep believing in Him, to abide in Him, to have His words abide in us, to be separated from the world and consecrated unto Him, and to allow Him to live His life in us and through us by walking in truth, humility, righteousness, and obedience to His commands. Are we truly endeavoring to keep this covenant? Are we truly committed to Him who has purchased our souls from hell, having paid the highest price?

The Word of God teaches us that our time on earth is very short. “As for man, his days are like grass, he flourishes like a flower of the field; the wind blows over it and it is gone, and its place remembers it no more.” (Psalm 103:15, 16). The songwriter writes, “I am a flower quickly fading, here today and gone tomorrow. A wave tossed in ocean, a vapor in the wind.” Compared to eternity, our entire lifespan on earth is but a fleeting moment. Our bodies are our temporary dwelling places (tents) and our permanent homes are in Heaven, “Now we know that if the earthly tent we live in is destroyed, we have a building from God, an eternal house in heaven, not built by human hands. Meanwhile we groan, longing to be clothed with our heavenly dwelling.” (2 Cor 5:1, 2). Our physical homes and material possessions do not belong to us, but we are to be only stewards (managers) over all earthly things, “For the earth is the Lord's, and the fulness thereof.” (1 Cor 10:26). “As every man hath received the gift, even so minister the same one to another, as good stewards of the manifold grace of God.”(1 Peter 4:10). We are strangers and sojourners in this earth, simply passing through. “For the land is mine, for ye are strangers and sojourners with me.” (Lev 25:23) We are here simply on a temporary journey to fulfill a destiny in Christ; to live a life of commitment and obedience in preparation for our lives in eternity.

David, like all of us in the Lord today, constantly battled within himself and entreated the Lord often to show him how fleeting his life was; how temporary all his possessions were. David knew that unless he apprehended this truth deep in his innermost being, every moment of his life, he would succumb to the distractions of the world and the pleasures of sin: lust of the eyes, lust of the flesh and the pride of life. He knew that the everyday cares of the world, burdens of the soul, and sinful pleasures of the flesh would separate him from God – if he were not constantly alert and watchful in the Spirit, knowing the measure of his days. We too, like David, must also entreat the Lord to make us to know the measure of our days. We must be ever mindful of the brevity of our earthly life and we must purpose to spend every moment of it on things that will have eternal value. “Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things. For you died, and your life is now hidden with Christ in God.” (Col 3:2, 3) We should be watchful and alert to recognize the distractions and temptations that visit with daily, and when they do we should forever be crying out to the Lord to keep our eyes from worthless things and focused on Him like David did. “Turn my eyes away from worthless things; preserve my life according to your word.” (Psalm 119:37), David cried. David realized that everything was worthless, only the Lord was worthy.

Many in the church proclaim to be Christians, and many constantly profess complete, undying love and commitment to Christ in spoken words and great emotional songs of worship. But alas these are only words, carelessly spoken, meaningless words. These are those who are not willing to serve God, placing every worldly concern, personal agenda, and fleshly desire before God. They have every appearance of godliness, but there is no life within. Thus, they bear no fruit. Titus 1:16 states it this way, “They profess that they know God; but in works they deny him.” They fail to realize that there is no love without commitment, just as there is no faith without works. For, though we cannot be saved by works, if the works do not flow from our Salvation then we are not truly saved. We cannot say we have faith in Christ and not demonstrate that faith through works, just as we cannot say we love someone and not demonstrate that love to them. The demonstration of love is what proves love. Similarly, a Christian’s work is what proves their salvation and faith. When One is saved, One worships and serves the Lord in whatever capacity He chooses. It is no more a decision. It is natural outcome of the state of being in love, and of being saved. We made our decision at the cross when we first repented of our sins, asked Jesus Christ to be our Lord and Master, and gave our lives to Him as a living sacrifice. Now our lives belong to Him. Our commitment to keep His every command and serve Him must now flow purely out of our love and desire for Him.

Someone said, “Commitment to God boils down to a desire for God. He is our treasure, our hope, our value, our supreme goal. He is our God — and there is no competitor. The way we serve God is by desiring God, by wanting him. We see him as the answer to our innermost needs. We spend our time seeking him, obeying him, wrapping our lives around him. Notice that I did not say that we are seeking the stuff that God gives. We are seeking God himself — not to possess him, but to be with him. Our ultimate desire is not material stuff that will someday rot away — our ultimate desire is a friendship with the eternal God.” Is He your treasure, your hope, your value, your supreme goal? If He is, then commitment to Him will come as naturally as breathing. There is nothing else you will desire but to please Him by committing your life to Him: love, family, resources, possessions, talents, time, weaknesses and strengths. You will gladly serve Him… on His agenda, not your own. You will willingly be instructed by Him. You will love His correction and rebukes as He sanctifies you, and you will hunger and thirst after His righteousness.

Why do people not commit? The Lord says, "Because they hated knowledge and did not choose the fear of the LORD, they would have none of my counsel and despised my every rebuke. Therefore they shall eat the fruit of their own way, and be filled to the full with their own fancies ... But whoever listens to me will dwell safely, and will be secure, without fear of evil" (Proverbs 1:29-33). You may question…does our love for God really demand our total commitment to Him? The answer is found in the word of God, "If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross and follow me.” (Mark 8:34-38). The Lord is looking for a committed people. Love breathes commitment, otherwise it is not love.

Beloved the Rapture is coming soon. All prophesies that were supposed to be fulfilled before the Rapture were fulfilled. All remaining unfulfilled prophesies are to be fulfilled after the Rapture. There is nothing standing in the way of the Lord. No one knows the hour or the day, but it is clearly upon us. Be very sure that you are one of the saints who will be caught up in the air to meet Him. The Lord is very clear in His letter to the seven churches in the book of Revelation, that only those who are totally committed to the end will be saved; loving and serving God through poverty, sickness, sorrow, persecution, and all manners of trials and tribulation; never compromising their faith, condemning sin in the church and in themselves, and enduring all things to the end. If you truly love the Lord, you will be fully committed to Him and you will serve Him. When you are committed to the Lord, your life is not your own. It belongs to Him. This means all that you have and all that you are is His. You should no longer be living according to your own agenda, but according to His. You should no longer attend church services, evangelize, do good works, minister to sick etc, when you have the time or when you can fit it in your calendar, but when the Lord says so. His commands and Call are first priority, everything else comes in second place. A wise person said you can always identify a person’s God by looking at two things: their calendar and their checkbook. Won’t you take a look at yours?

I was in a Sunday worship a few weeks ago when the Lord spoke very clearly to our church about the coming days. He told us in this time we must be diligent to do three things: Know the measure of our days, learn to redeem the times, and understand the season we are in. This is very critical to living victoriously and to bearing everlasting fruits in every season. Know the measure of our days: How fleeting is our life, how little time we have left on earth, and how quickly it will be gone. Learn to redeem the times: Make sure that everything we do has eternal value. Do not spend any time on anything that would not be stored up in Heaven. Do not make excuses, and do not be deceived by self and the world. Make every moment count. Do not be distracted. Focus only on the Lord and what is important to Him. Know the season we are in: If the Lord says “be still and know I am God”, do not move. When the Lord instructs us to move, then we do so. We must be very alert to follow the guidance and leading of His Holy Spirit to know what the Lord is trying to accomplish through us in every season so that we will not wander away from His perfect will and end up trying to serve Him in our own strength and wisdom. I firmly believe if we adhere to these three things always, our walk in Him will be sure.

If your commitment to the Lord is weak, I encourage you to renew your commitment to the Lord today. Lay yourself upon the Alter as a living sacrifice and call upon the Lord to consume your life and to live His life through you. Do not be concerned with the situations and circumstances surrounding your physical life keeping you busy. Do not be concerned with cares and responsibilities that entangle you daily. The word of God tells us “No man that warreth entangleth himself with the affairs of this life; that he may please him who hath chosen him to be a soldier.” (2 Timothy 2:4) The Lord will take care of everything. It is time to get serious with God. Love Him, dedicate your life to Him, serve Him, and keep His commands. He is coming again….very soon. The Lord says in Revelation 2:26 “To him who overcomes and does my will to the end, I will give authority over the nations.”

If you do not know the Lord and would like to receive Him and commit your life to Him today, earnestly pray “Lord Jesus, I believe you died for my sins and God has raised you again on the third day. I repent of my sins and ask you to wash me clean and come into my heart. Be my Lord and My God. I commit my life into your hands. Thank you Lord Jesus.”