Aspects of Christian Character: Obedience

Over the next few weeks, I shall be going through a study of Christian character and Christian characters. Meaning I shall take an aspect of Christian character and apply it to a Christian character of the Bible. Confusing? Maybe, but let's get into it shall we?

The first aspect I'll talk about is obedience. This aspect of Christian character is almost famously attributed to the Biblical character of Abraham. Abraham (Or, formerly Abram) was called by God to:

"1 The LORD had said to Abram, "Leave your country, your people and your father's household and go to the land I will show you.

2 "I will make you into a great nation
and I will bless you;
I will make your name great,
and you will be a blessing.

3 I will bless those who bless you,
and whoever curses you I will curse;
and all peoples on earth
will be blessed through you."

4 So Abram left, as the LORD had told him;"

-Genesis 12:1-4

How many people would just get up and leave, far away from their home, taking their family with them? Even though this came with a promise of blessing from the Lord, not many people would. But, as it says in verse four, Abram did. Abram was probably a poor farmer, and probably didn’t have very much, but he left anyway. We find out later that there was a great famine in the land that the Lord had told him to go, so he had to relocate his family once again to Egypt, an even greater test. But, the Lord looked after him as promised, and Abram moved on. Now, the Bible is a much better teller of Abram’s story than I, so I shall piece together some key verses that tell his story:

1So Abram went up from Egypt to the Negev, with his wife and everything he had, and Lot went with him. 2 Abram had become very wealthy in livestock and in silver and gold.

(Genesis 13:1-2)

Just for reference for the next verse, Abram then learned that his relative Lot had been captured, and rescued him. This is a short dialogue involving him and the King of Salem after Abram and rescued Lot, as well as many other people.

18 Then Melchizedek king of Salem brought out bread and wine. He was priest of God Most High, 19 and he blessed Abram, saying,
"Blessed be Abram by God Most High,
Creator of heaven and earth.

20 And blessed be God Most High,
who delivered your enemies into your hand."
Then Abram gave him a tenth of everything.

21 The king of Sodom said to Abram, "Give me the people and keep the goods for yourself."

22 But Abram said to the king of Sodom, "I have raised my hand to the LORD, God Most High, Creator of heaven and earth, and have taken an oath 23 that I will accept nothing belonging to you, not even a thread or the thong of a sandal, so that you will never be able to say, 'I made Abram rich.'

(Genesis 14:18-22)

This is a strong proclamation of faith on Abram’s part, because he was very content in letting God, and God alone fulfill the promise of blessing that He had given him. Later, God did fulfill part of his promise to the now christened Abraham, by giving the barren Sarah the gift of a child, named Isaac. The time of Abraham’s obedience was not yet over, though:

1 Some time later God tested Abraham. He said to him, "Abraham!"
"Here I am," he replied.

2 Then God said, "Take your son, your only son, Isaac, whom you love, and go to the region of Moriah. Sacrifice him there as a burnt offering on one of the mountains I will tell you about."

(Genesis 22:1-2)

6 Abraham took the wood for the burnt offering and placed it on his son Isaac, and he himself carried the fire and the knife. As the two of them went on together, 7 Isaac spoke up and said to his father Abraham, "Father?"
"Yes, my son?" Abraham replied.
"The fire and wood are here," Isaac said, "but where is the lamb for the burnt offering?"

8 Abraham answered, "God himself will provide the lamb for the burnt offering, my son." And the two of them went on together.

9 When they reached the place God had told him about, Abraham built an altar there and arranged the wood on it. He bound his son Isaac and laid him on the altar, on top of the wood. 10 Then he reached out his hand and took the knife to slay his son. 11 But the angel of the LORD called out to him from heaven, "Abraham! Abraham!"
"Here I am," he replied.

12 "Do not lay a hand on the boy," he said. "Do not do anything to him. Now I know that you fear God, because you have not withheld from me your son, your only son."

(Genesis 22:6-12)

This was the greatest test that Abraham could possible receive. His wife Sarah had been barren for some time, and the Lord blessed them by giving them a child. But even that one child Abraham did not hold from the Lord when He asked him to give him up, and sacrifice him as a burnt offering. This brings forth one of the greatest qualities of Christian character that Abraham had, and that was strict obedience to his God. He would let nothing stand in the way of him fulfilling God’s wishes, and did as he was told, even to the utmost extreme. I think this is an example that we can all take home and apply to our own lives, because many of us are reluctant to comply with what God wants in our lives.

I can recount a personal story that my mother has passed down to me:

When she was single, after graduating from college, she told God, “Take me wherever you want me to go, and I will go. Once place, that I will not go is New York City. Please don’t take me to New York City.” Who is my mother to negotiate with God? Guess where she spent the next eight years of her life? New York City. This just goes to show that even when you sometimes don’t want to obey God, He’ll still fulfill what He wants for you in your life.