Not So, Lord!

RISE AND SHINE FOR JESUS!
By Pam Iannello - my late mother
A ministry of New Beginnings Baptist Church 



Acts 10:9-16 (KJV)
On the morrow, as they went on their journey, and drew nigh unto the city, Peter went up upon the housetop to pray about the sixth hour: [10] And he became very hungry, and would have eaten: but while they made ready, he fell into a trance, [11] And saw heaven opened, and a certain vessel descending unto him, as it had been a great sheet knit at the four corners, and let down to the earth: [12] Wherein were all manner of fourfooted beasts of the earth, and wild beasts, and creeping things, and fowls of the air. [13] And there came a voice to him, Rise, Peter; kill, and eat. [14] But Peter said, Not so, Lord; for I have never eaten any thing that is common or unclean. [15] And the voice spake unto him again the second time, What God hath cleansed, that call not thou common. [16] This was done thrice: and the vessel was received up again into heaven.

How prone are you to protesting God’s commands? Have you ever objected to doing something you’ve never done before? Have you ever protested God’s instructions simply because it would require you to engage in an unfamiliar activity? The entire chapter of Acts 10 is centered on the Lord prompting and preparing Peter to reach a group of people with whom he was not expecting or planning to interact. In fact, Peter wasn’t the slightest bit open to the idea at all. Nor had it ever occurred to him that such a possibility would arise… But God began revealing His will to this man by presenting a vision containing food Peter was not used to eating and commanding him to “Rise, kill, and eat.” Alas, Peter’s initial response was, “Not so, Lord; for I have never…”

TWO PRIMARY HINDRANCES TO OBEDIENCE
  1. Tradition
  2. Personal experience

Notice that the Lord had to tell Peter three times what He wanted him to do before Peter would consider doing something out of the ordinary! How many times has God required something of you that you still haven’t followed through on? Ladies, stubborn, rebellious refusals are wrong. None of us would argue that fact. But so are polite refusals wrong! Whatever God prompts us to do we must say “yes” and obey. Forget about the fact that you’re used to doing certain things a certain way. Big deal if God’s will comes as a surprise to you! So what if you didn’t think of the idea first! And it doesn’t matter that you’ve never had a particular experience that you might think would qualify God’s requests of you. Whether or not you would enjoy doing something unconventional is also an irrelevant argument. Our feelings about things should not be permitted to interfere with our obedience. What God hath cleansed, that call not thou common. God expects us to respect and accept HIS perspective on all matters, not elevate our own.

So then, dear lady, are you above “common” practices? Are there certain things that God might ask you to do that would short circuit your personal belief system? What if the Lord wanted you to repeatedly interact with an unsaved, unsanctified individual, someone of an extremely “unclean” nature? What if God prompted you to express His love in a way that you had never expressed it before? What if the Holy Spirit presses you to make an apology even though you aren’t in the habit of repenting? What if your pastor asked you to carry out a particular assignment that you’ve never taken on before? What if you discovered by way of the Word of God that your husband’s needs weren’t being met properly, would you make the appropriate alterations even though the behavior may be foreign to you as a wife? Would your reply be, “Not so, Lord, for I have never…” What is the state of your obedience, dear lady? Peter’s initial attitude can and will permeate many areas of our lives if left unchecked. Stop and consider whether or not you are guilty of permitting tradition and personal experience to direct your submission to God! We must “Rise, kill, and eat” as we’ve been told; we’ve got to get more aggressive about taking on all our holy assignments! The Lord has new territory He wants all of us to assertively conquer for His glory and honor. But I wonder how many of us are truly open to God’s will and will do what He bids, in spite of our own perspective. Let’s make it our heart’s desire to do whatever the Lord asks of us, common or not!

God Bless,
Pam
Isaiah 60:1&2

Copyright 2006 Pamela A. Iannello

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