19 But Peter and John replied, “Judge for yourselves whether it is right in God’s sight to obey you rather than God.
We often fail this test in our lives. We obey someone other than God. This happens every time we listen to our sinful flesh. Each time we are drawn into sin, we are obeying someone other than God. We often obey the voice of sin and temptation. We too quickly give in, rather than standing our ground. As soon as the going gets tough, we yield. Sometimes we obey a coworker by matching their work ethic rather than working with everything we have, recognizing we are working for the Lord and not for men. Other times we adopt the world’s value system. We grumble and complain instead of being thankful. Peter and John’s path seemed rather clear-cut. If they obeyed these rulers, they would be disobeying God. Sometimes our choices don’t seem so clear-cut. There are choices that are not sin, but are not what the Lord wants for us. I am not sure the Lord cares whether we eat at McDonalds, Burger King or Chick Filet. He might care that we are spending money to eat out when others around the world are struggling to even find food of any kind to eat. But notice that the Lord didn’t write the command “don’t eat out” in the Scriptures. That is because the Spirit will guide and direct each of us into our unique path working out for us what obedience looks like. Peter and John call these leaders to “judge for yourselves” on these matters. We are each responsible for our own actions and inactions. We must each give an account to the Lord. So today as you make choices, stop for a moment and listen to the Lord. Is this a choice of sin versus non-sin? Choose non-sin! Maybe it isn’t a sin issue. Perhaps He prefers one choice over the other for an eternal reason. Maybe one choice brings you across the path of someone ready for harvest. Are you willing to be used today?
The Arnold Journey 