Episode 9
Obedience is Key: How Listening to God's Word Transforms Lives
Obedience to God is essential, expected, and beneficial, as Brother Dre emphasizes throughout this podcast episode. He reflects on personal experiences, particularly the importance of honoring commitments and the impact of obedience in both spiritual and everyday life. Dre highlights the current societal trend where individuals resist authority and fail to listen, leading to a cycle of disrespect and disobedience. He supports his points with biblical references, particularly from Isaiah and Hebrews, and shares the story of Saul's disobedience to illustrate that partial obedience is still disobedience. Listeners are encouraged to recognize the significance of adhering to God’s word and the transformative power that comes from genuine obedience in their lives.
Takeaways:
- Obedience to God is essential for spiritual growth and personal fulfillment in life.
- Disrespectful behavior in children often mirrors the actions and attitudes of their parents.
- To truly follow God's word, you must also submit to the authority around you.
- Obedience magnifies faith and allows you to realize God's plan for your life.
- Half obedience is equivalent to full disobedience; it doesn't fulfill God's commands.
- Listening to God's instructions is crucial, especially during times of plenty to avoid future troubles.
Transcript
Hey, what's going on?
Brother Dre:This is brother Dre on the mic.
Brother Dre:And welcome.
Brother Dre:Welcome to Remnant Ministries, where the word is being taught.
Brother Dre:Hope that you're having a good day on today.
Brother Dre:Hope that you tuned in to hear the word of God, because that's what we do on this channel.
Brother Dre:But before we get into the word on today, I just want to give a big shout out to someone very important to me.
Brother Dre:I think I've done this already before, at least a couple times.
Brother Dre:But today, well, tomorrow will actually mark a milestone.
Brother Dre:Me and my wife will officially be together for 15 years.
Brother Dre:Yes, 15 years of marriage.
Brother Dre:And I can honestly tell you that when I look at the decision I made, you know, a lot of times we think about whether we made the right decision or not.
Brother Dre:And when I look back, yes, there's been ups.
Brother Dre:Yes, there's been downs.
Brother Dre:Yes, there's been quiet moments.
Brother Dre:We've never really been wanting to be throwing stuff at each other or arguing and having to get anybody involved, but there have been moments.
Brother Dre:But through it all, we've maintained, and I can honestly say that I don't regret the decision at all.
Brother Dre:She is my peace.
Brother Dre:She is my healer.
Brother Dre:You know, sometimes you don't need the Lord to touch it.
Brother Dre:Sometimes I just need my wife to touch me.
Brother Dre:Hallelujah.
Brother Dre:She's everything to me.
Brother Dre:And I just thank God for her.
Brother Dre:Amen.
Brother Dre:Don't get me teary eyed in here, because we got things to do, okay?
Brother Dre:But anyway, let's get into the word.
Brother Dre:If you're going to follow me on today, we're going to go to Isaiah, chapter one, looking at verse 19 and 20.
Brother Dre:Isaiah, chapter one, verse 19 and 20.
Brother Dre:Father God, I thank you for this day.
Brother Dre:I thank you, Lord God, that the people's hearts and minds are ready to hear what you have to say.
Brother Dre:I do not do this just to do it.
Brother Dre:You don't say anything without purpose.
Brother Dre:Lord, let your purpose be fulfilled in this place in Jesus name.
Brother Dre:Amen.
Brother Dre:As always, we always make this declaration.
Brother Dre:I just want you to say with me, I believe that God's word is true.
Brother Dre:It is the final authority in my life.
Brother Dre:Therefore, everything that God has said concerning me shall come to pass.
Brother Dre:Amen.
Brother Dre:Isaiah, chapter one, looking at verse 19 and 20.
Brother Dre:It says, if you are willing and obedient, you will eat the good things of the land.
Brother Dre:But if you resist and rebel, you will be devoured by the sword.
Brother Dre:For the mouth of the Lord has spoken.
Brother Dre:What I want to talk about on today is obedience.
Brother Dre:Obedience.
Brother Dre:I know it's not a word that people like to hear.
Brother Dre:And it's one of those words when people hear it.
Brother Dre:I'm not.
Brother Dre:I almost said young people, but just people in general.
Brother Dre:When you hear that word, people kind of suck their teeth.
Brother Dre:You know, when you bring up something that people really don't want you to touch on, they like, oh, Lord, here they go again.
Brother Dre:But, yes, we're going to talk about obedience today because obedience to God is expected, essential and beneficial to you.
Brother Dre:It really is.
Brother Dre:Let me say that again.
Brother Dre:Obedience to God is expected.
Brother Dre:It is essential and beneficial to you.
Brother Dre:Hallelujah.
Brother Dre:Right now, we are living in a time where really nobody wants to talk to anybody, or should I say, obey anybody.
Brother Dre:Nobody wants us to submit to anybody.
Brother Dre:Everybody wants to be a chief.
Brother Dre:Nobody wants to be the indian.
Brother Dre:Everybody thinks they have all the answers.
Brother Dre:And, you know, it's just a.
Brother Dre:It's a.
Brother Dre:It's gotten to the point where no one is growing because no one wants to submit to the other person.
Brother Dre:There was a time where we took God's word as gospel.
Brother Dre:We valued God's word.
Brother Dre:There was a time where young people valued the advice and the wisdom of old people.
Brother Dre:There was a time where, you know, people in the workplace, they would actually listen to their boss, not just do what their boss says, because that's a different thing, but actually listen to their boss and hear what they got to say because they understood whatever they got to say could be beneficial to their life.
Brother Dre:But now we're at a time where nobody wants to listen to nobody.
Brother Dre:It's amazing.
Brother Dre:It's amazing that kids no longer want to listen to their parents.
Brother Dre:They just feel like they know everything.
Brother Dre:And the Bible talks about that happening in the last days, and how many know that we are in the last days?
Brother Dre:Kids don't want to talk to anybody.
Brother Dre:Don't want to listen to anybody.
Brother Dre:Kids are just being disrespectful.
Brother Dre:And, you know, we oftentimes we harp on the kids and.
Brother Dre:And we high five each other, or we come into agreement that, yes, kids are disrespectful.
Brother Dre:But I want to ask the question on today.
Brother Dre:Where did the kids learn that disrespect from?
Brother Dre:Where did the kids learn that disobedience from?
Brother Dre:It's a question that must be asked, because a lot of times when we're looking at the kids and we're talking about how disrespectful they are, and we're talking about how they won't listen to anybody, we are actually giving them the blueprint.
Brother Dre:We are the ones that have made them like that.
Brother Dre:Now, I know this is not going to be a popular conversation or a popular quote, but it is the truth.
Brother Dre:Many times, the same people that are talking about how disrespectful and how disobedient their kids are are the same people who are disrespectful and disobedient.
Brother Dre:The same people.
Brother Dre:It's the same people.
Brother Dre:You just got your little mini me.
Brother Dre:And I don't want you to get this wrong because sometimes people will see how the kids are acting and they will say that that particular parent is reaping what they sold.
Brother Dre:You know, you was, you was, uh, you was bad when you was a, when you was a child.
Brother Dre:You was disrespectful when you was a child.
Brother Dre:You was disobedient when you was a child.
Brother Dre:And so therefore, now you got disobedient children and disrespectful children.
Brother Dre:And, and I just don't believe that.
Brother Dre:I don't believe that.
Brother Dre:Yes, I know, you know the thing about karma, but I really don't believe that.
Brother Dre:What I believe is really going on is the kids are constantly seeing that same parent do what they're being called out for.
Brother Dre:See, you think it's something you did in your past, but a lot of times you're reaping what you're doing now.
Brother Dre:The kids are doing what you do now.
Brother Dre:The kids see that you're not respectful.
Brother Dre:The kids see you talking about everybody.
Brother Dre:The kids see you being disobedient.
Brother Dre:You don't like to listen to nobody.
Brother Dre:The kids hear about all the times you went to your job and you told your boss what you ain't gonna do.
Brother Dre:They're hearing all of it.
Brother Dre:The kids see your post on social media, how only God can judge you and all this other stuff.
Brother Dre:The kids see that.
Brother Dre:So it's not something that you did in your past that's hurting them.
Brother Dre:A lot of times, it's what you're doing in your present that's hurting them.
Brother Dre:Oh, boy.
Brother Dre:Yes.
Brother Dre:It's in your presence, it's the present you that's a lot of time hurting them.
Brother Dre:And so we just can't, we can't say that.
Brother Dre:It's just, it's the kids fault because they had to get it from somewhere.
Brother Dre:Are you the culprit, though?
Brother Dre:Think about it.
Brother Dre:So we're talking about obedience.
Brother Dre:What is obedience?
Brother Dre:What is obedience?
Brother Dre:Obedience is compliance with an order, request, or law, or submission to another's authority.
Brother Dre:I like that last one in particular.
Brother Dre:Let me read that again.
Brother Dre:Obedience is compliance with an order, request, or law or submission to another's authority.
Brother Dre:Amen.
Brother Dre:It's actually you're submitting to another's authority.
Brother Dre:Hallelujah.
Brother Dre:You're submitting to another's authority.
Brother Dre:And since we're talking about obedience in the God arena, in the spiritual arena, is submitting to God's authority.
Brother Dre:Submitting to God's authority where you have made up in your mind that, no, you don't have all the answers.
Brother Dre:No, you're not the biggest dog in the yard.
Brother Dre:I submit to his authority.
Brother Dre:No, it's not going to be my will, but it's going to be God's will.
Brother Dre:No, I'm not going to do it how I would like to do it, but I'm going to do it how God would want me to do it.
Brother Dre:It's submitted to his will.
Brother Dre:Amen.
Brother Dre: let's look at Hebrews chapter: Brother Dre: Hebrews: Brother Dre:And it says, have confidence in your leaders and submit to their authority because they keep watch over you as those who must give an account do this so that their work will be a joy, not a burden, for that would be of no benefit to you.
Brother Dre:Ooh, let me read this again.
Brother Dre: Hebrews: Brother Dre:Have confidence in your leaders and submit to their authority because they keep watch over you as those who must give an account do this so that their work will be a joy, not a burden, for that would be of no benefit to you.
Brother Dre:Now, before you start tuning me off and you start saying, well, I thought we was talking about God.
Brother Dre:Well, we are talking about God being obedient to God.
Brother Dre:And how many know that part of being obedient to God is being obedient to God's word.
Brother Dre:Oh, goodness.
Brother Dre:You can't say that you're being obedient to Goddesse God and not being obedient to God's word.
Brother Dre:You know, yes, God tells you things in your private time.
Brother Dre:When y'all are in fellowship together during prayer, he will tell you certain things, but there's a lot of things that he has already said in his word that if you live by it, you will be doing what God has told you to do.
Brother Dre:Amen.
Brother Dre:So we can't throw away the Bible and say, well, I don't believe in the Bible.
Brother Dre:You know, I just talked to God, you know, on my own.
Brother Dre:You know, me and him got a connection.
Brother Dre:No, his word, you can't separate God from his word.
Brother Dre: d says, once again in Hebrews: Brother Dre:As those who must give an account do this so their work will be a joyous, not a burden, for that would be no benefit to you.
Brother Dre:So what is it talking about?
Brother Dre:It's talking about being submissive to your spiritual leaders, more or less being submissive to your spiritual leaders.
Brother Dre:He says, don't make their work a burden, but make it a joyous.
Brother Dre:He said, make it a joy.
Brother Dre:He says, have confidence in your leaders.
Brother Dre:You know, the Bible says he will give you leaders after his own heart.
Brother Dre:He will give you pastors and all the five fold.
Brother Dre:He say, I'm going to, what he's basically saying is I'm going to give you people that will invest in your life so that you can reach the will of God for your life.
Brother Dre:Let me say that again.
Brother Dre:God is going to give you people that will invest in your life so you can reach the will of God for your life.
Brother Dre:And so he says, have confidence in them and submit to them.
Brother Dre:Submit to their authority because they keep watch over you and they have to give an account for how they treat you and they have to give an account for what they tell you.
Brother Dre:He says do this so their work will be a joy.
Brother Dre:Don't make the pastor's job so hard.
Brother Dre:One of the reasons why we got a lot of pastors leaving the pulpit is because the members make the job so hard, because the deacon or people in position make the job hard.
Brother Dre:Every time the pastor tells them something or sets order, you know, there's somebody always talking about, well, I just don't believe that's what needs to be done.
Brother Dre:And the Lord ain't telling me that.
Brother Dre:Well, he told the leader that, though.
Brother Dre:He told the leader, it's just like if, oh, goodness.
Brother Dre:It's just like if a man makes a rule in his house, for the house, why would you tried to kick against his rule as a spouse?
Brother Dre:Is he, is he being led by God?
Brother Dre:Is it something, is it something that's going to hurt you?
Brother Dre:If he says just something simple, babe, just before you spend more than dollar 200 at the account, just let me know?
Brother Dre:He tells you that now you spend $300 out the account without saying anything.
Brother Dre:And then when he asks you about it, now you blowing up.
Brother Dre:Oh, I mean, who you think you're talking to?
Brother Dre:I am your wife, not your child.
Brother Dre:Wait a minute, but that was, that was the rule.
Brother Dre:That's, that's, that's, he's just trying to, you know, uh, uh, have structure in the house.
Brother Dre:Why wouldn't you, what's, what's wrong with the, the rule.
Brother Dre:You understand what I'm saying?
Brother Dre:You know, sometimes we make a big deal out of nothing.
Brother Dre:And that's why sometimes men don't even say anything anymore.
Brother Dre:They don't even talk no more.
Brother Dre:Oh, I better get out of that before I go into a whole nother thing.
Brother Dre:And I'm gonna get off this message.
Brother Dre: So, Hebrews: Brother Dre:Make it a joy, because.
Brother Dre:And so it tells you why later on in scripture, make sure that it's not a burden, for that would be no benefit to you, not the pastor.
Brother Dre:The pastor going to be all right.
Brother Dre:But if you make his job hard, guess what?
Brother Dre:He can't pour into you all that he could pour into you.
Brother Dre:If you're saying, I don't think the pastor is doing enough, well, why is he not doing enough?
Brother Dre:Could it be that he's stressed out because he's having to deal with foolishness all the time?
Brother Dre:So the Bible says, don't make his job hard, for that would be no benefit to you.
Brother Dre:He needs to be able to focus on investing, pouring into you.
Brother Dre:And the best way for him to be at a place where he can really pour into you is when you make his job a joy.
Brother Dre:Right now, at this present time, I am a trainer at the job that I'm at, and I can tell you wholeheartedly, when I have people that make the job easy for me, it makes me want to pour more into them.
Brother Dre:When they come with the right attitude, it makes me want to pour more into them.
Brother Dre:Now, I start going beyond just the textbook, but I actually give them pointers from my personal life so I can speed up the process so that they can be more successful at their job.
Brother Dre:Somebody better talk to me on the day.
Brother Dre:It's all about, how do you make that person who's pouring into you feel?
Brother Dre:Do you make it worth his while or her while?
Brother Dre:Hallelujah.
Brother Dre:And so we should do our pastors the same way.
Brother Dre:Hallelujah.
Brother Dre:Praise God.
Brother Dre:Now look at Romans, chapter 13, verse one.
Brother Dre:So we was talking about on the spiritual side.
Brother Dre:Now let's look at Hebrews 13, verse one.
Brother Dre:It says, let everyone be subject to the governing authorities, for there is no authority except that which God has established.
Brother Dre:The authorities that exist have been established by God.
Brother Dre:Wait a minute.
Brother Dre:God established government?
Brother Dre:Yes.
Brother Dre:God is very structured.
Brother Dre:I don't know if y'all know this or not, but God is very structured.
Brother Dre:He loves structure, he loves strategy.
Brother Dre:So Hebrew, not Hebrews, Romans, 13 and one.
Brother Dre:Let everyone be subject to the governing authorities.
Brother Dre:But there is no authority except that which God has established.
Brother Dre:The authorities that exist have been established by God.
Brother Dre:So obey them that have rule over you.
Brother Dre:I got to obey the laws of the land.
Brother Dre:It is a sad testimony where you have a Christian breaking law.
Brother Dre:It is a sad situation where you have a Christian breaking law.
Brother Dre:I can't say, well, I'm obeying God.
Brother Dre:If I can't listen to the law.
Brother Dre:The law says don't speed.
Brother Dre:I'm just using this one as a, as a, as a light example.
Brother Dre:If the law says don't speed, the speed limit, 60 miles an hour, and then you going 80 miles an hour, how do you pray?
Brother Dre:Lord, please don't.
Brother Dre:Let me just, just make sure I don't get caught by the cops.
Brother Dre:Lord, no, you're breaking the law.
Brother Dre:The law is 60 miles an hour.
Brother Dre:If you're speeding, 80, you are subject to penalty.
Brother Dre:And let's just say you don't get caught.
Brother Dre:Well, that, that wasn't the Lord keeping you.
Brother Dre:That wasn't the Lord keeping you.
Brother Dre:You broke the.
Brother Dre:You just happened to get away with it.
Brother Dre:But if you get caught up, you can't blame the Lord for that either, because he's telling you, obey them that have rule over you.
Brother Dre:Let everyone be subject to governing authorities.
Brother Dre:Going back to the home, why would you go against the head of the house?
Brother Dre:You don't want your kids to go against you, so why would you go against, you know, the head of the house?
Brother Dre:You understand?
Brother Dre:We have to get to a place where we can obey the law.
Brother Dre:We have to get to a place where we can submit to those in authority, obey them that have rule over us.
Brother Dre:Hallelujah.
Brother Dre:How in the world are you going to obey people?
Brother Dre:How are you going to disobey people that you can see and then obey a God you can't see?
Brother Dre:I have never met somebody who can truly say they have the ability to obey someone they can't see and can't obey the people they see.
Brother Dre:It ain't gonna happen.
Brother Dre:It ain't gonna happen.
Brother Dre:Now, of course, we all know that God's rule is first, that he, his, his word is the final say.
Brother Dre:We understand that.
Brother Dre:And so if it were to be that you know, someone, that someone in leadership position told you to do something that goes against the Bible, okay, or God's word, now, we got an issue.
Brother Dre:If you can show it to me in God's word, that they're not doing what God told you, they're not doing what God told them to do, or they're going against God's word.
Brother Dre:Then we have a problem.
Brother Dre:Other than that, you have to submit.
Brother Dre:You can't get in your feelings.
Brother Dre:Obedience is not about your feelings.
Brother Dre:Oh, boy.
Brother Dre:Let's go to first Samuel chapter 15.
Brother Dre:1st Samuel, chapter 15.
Brother Dre:I'm going to prove this out.
Brother Dre:Hallelujah.
Brother Dre:First Samuel 15, looking at 17 through 22.
Brother Dre: ,: Brother Dre:Samuel said, although you were once small in your own eyes, did you not become the head of the tribes of Israel?
Brother Dre:The lord anointed you king over Israel, and he sent you on a mission saying, go and completely destroy those wicked people, the Amalekites.
Brother Dre:Okay, so now let me give you the backstory.
Brother Dre:So here it is.
Brother Dre:Samuel has told Saul what the Lord has said.
Brother Dre:The Lord has said, destroy the amalekites, not defeat them.
Brother Dre:Destroy them.
Brother Dre:I want you to destroy them.
Brother Dre:I want you to kill everything.
Brother Dre:Burn everything.
Brother Dre:Kill the men, the women, the children.
Brother Dre:Burn the cattle.
Brother Dre:Destroy.
Brother Dre:Completely destroy them.
Brother Dre:And so here it is.
Brother Dre:We're going to find out Saul didn't do that.
Brother Dre:So let's pick it up in 18.
Brother Dre:Well, let's go straight right back to 17.
Brother Dre:Samuel said, although you were once small in your own eyes, he's talking to Saul.
Brother Dre:Did you not become the head of the tribes of Israel?
Brother Dre:The Lord anointed you king over Israel, and he sent you on a mission saying, go and completely destroy those wicked people, the Amalekites.
Brother Dre:Wage war against them until you have wiped them out.
Brother Dre:Why did you not obey the Lord?
Brother Dre:Why did you pounce on the plunder and do evil in the eyes of the Lord?
Brother Dre:But I did obey the Lord.
Brother Dre:Saul said, I went on the mission the Lord assigned me.
Brother Dre:I completely destroyed the Amalekites and brought back Agag, their king.
Brother Dre:So there we see.
Brother Dre:He didn't obey the soldiers, took sheep and cattle from the plunder.
Brother Dre:He didn't obey the best of what was devoted to God in order to sacrifice them to the Lord, your God at Gilgal.
Brother Dre:But Samuel replied, does the Lord delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices as much as in obeying the Lord?
Brother Dre:To obey is better than sacrifice, and to heed is better than the fat of rams.
Brother Dre:Did you see that?
Brother Dre:So the Lord told them to destroy everybody and everything.
Brother Dre:And Saul's answer is, I did that, but I just kept the king alive.
Brother Dre:And I kept the best of everything so I could sacrifice it to God.
Brother Dre:We kept the plunder, but we kept the best of the cattle, too, so I could make a sacrifice to God.
Brother Dre:And so Samuel is saying, but that's not what he told you to do.
Brother Dre:He said, obedience to obeydehen is better than sacrifice.
Brother Dre:And to heed is better than the fat of the rams.
Brother Dre:God don't want no sacrifice when you're not doing what he told you to do.
Brother Dre:Which brings me to my point.
Brother Dre:You cannot give enough to have the ability to ignore God's word.
Brother Dre:God cannot be bought.
Brother Dre:And sometimes I think we forget that.
Brother Dre:We feel like, you know, if we.
Brother Dre:We can do whatever we want to do.
Brother Dre:But if we give a big enough offering in church or if we do something good, you know, after we've done all this sin, you know, it'll be all right.
Brother Dre:No, God cannot be bought.
Brother Dre:If you don't get anything else out of this message, get that God cannot be bought.
Brother Dre:You can't give him enough money to make him forget about what he told you to do.
Brother Dre:You can't give him enough money or do enough good things for him to overlook your disobedience.
Brother Dre:Sin is sin.
Brother Dre:He wants you to obey.
Brother Dre:What does the Bible say in John 14 and 15?
Brother Dre:He says, if you love me, keep my commands.
Brother Dre:In other words, if you love me, if you really love me like you say you love me, do what I ask you to do.
Brother Dre:But Saul didn't do that.
Brother Dre:He figured he could.
Brother Dre:He could give his way out of disobeying God.
Brother Dre:And notice what he said.
Brother Dre:He said, I did what the Lord said, but we know that he didn't.
Brother Dre:I say this all the time.
Brother Dre:This is something I say all the time.
Brother Dre:A half truth is a whole lot.
Brother Dre:Somebody ought to write that down.
Brother Dre:A half truth is a whole lie.
Brother Dre:There's no.
Brother Dre:There's no way you can be halfway truthful.
Brother Dre:No, if you're halfway truthful, halfway truthful, then you have just told a whole lot.
Brother Dre:So half obedience is just full disobedience.
Brother Dre:You didn't complete the mission.
Brother Dre:You didn't do what I told you to do.
Brother Dre:Hallelujah.
Brother Dre:If you're taking notes, write this down.
Brother Dre:I hope you listen to this.
Brother Dre:Obedience magnifies your faith and exercises the plan of God for your life.
Brother Dre:Let me say that again.
Brother Dre:Obedience magnifies your faith and exercises the plan of God for your life.
Brother Dre:What do I mean by that?
Brother Dre:Obedience.
Brother Dre:When you are obedient to God, it magnifies.
Brother Dre:It shows how much you really trust God.
Brother Dre:It shows how much you really trust God.
Brother Dre:And it exercises the plan of God for your life.
Brother Dre:You will never become what God has called you to be.
Brother Dre:If you are not obedient, you can have that word over your life.
Brother Dre:There are many of us that have a word over our lives, and unfortunately, some of us will never see it because we will not be obedient.
Brother Dre:We have gifts.
Brother Dre:We can be an anointed at times.
Brother Dre:We can have moments in our lives where God can use us or God uses us, but we will never fully be what God has called us to be unless we are obedient.
Brother Dre:Hebrews eleven and eight says, by faith, Abraham, when called to go to a place he would later receive as an inheritance, obeyed, obeyed and went, even though he did not know where he was going.
Brother Dre:That's that faith part.
Brother Dre:That's that faith part.
Brother Dre:I don't know the end result to this, but still, yet I'm going to be obedient to your word, God.
Brother Dre:I don't know what you're trying to do in my life.
Brother Dre:I can't see the light at the end of the tunnel.
Brother Dre:But I heard your voice.
Brother Dre:I read your word where you said, you know, do this and do that.
Brother Dre:And I don't quite understand how that works, but you said it.
Brother Dre:So therefore my faith in you, I just believe that you won't lead me wrong.
Brother Dre:Therefore, I'm just going to follow your word.
Brother Dre:I'm just going to do it.
Brother Dre:We will get there at some point.
Brother Dre:I trust you.
Brother Dre:Abraham left everything he had, left his kinfolk, left his substance, or a lot of it, to follow God, not knowing where he's going.
Brother Dre:And it is because he was faithful to God like that, that God called him a friend.
Brother Dre:It is because he was faithful to God like that that he became known as the father of the faith.
Brother Dre:It is, it is something where even other religions look at you as a man of faith.
Brother Dre:Oh, God.
Brother Dre:Jews and Muslims all agree Abraham was a man of faith.
Brother Dre:He is the father of the faith.
Brother Dre:We can argue about a lot of things, but there's not really a religion that, that says he was not a man of faith.
Brother Dre:He is recognized as the father of the faith.
Brother Dre:Why?
Brother Dre:Because he just trusts God.
Brother Dre:He just trusts God.
Brother Dre:That was the faith and he exercised it.
Brother Dre:Look at Joseph in Genesis 41.
Brother Dre:When you read the account of Joseph interpreting a dream for Pharaoh, you know the story.
Brother Dre:If you don't, it's in Genesis 41.
Brother Dre:It was, it was a dream pharaoh had, and it, it made him distraught.
Brother Dre:It, it bothered him.
Brother Dre:And so here it is.
Brother Dre:Joseph has interpreted the dream.
Brother Dre:And basically what it was is the dream said he would have seven years of plenty of, and then seven years of scarcity.
Brother Dre:And so Joseph gives him the plan.
Brother Dre:We're talking about obedience.
Brother Dre:Joseph gives him the plan, gives Pharaoh the plan.
Brother Dre:In these seven years, you need to be mindful of what's coming ahead.
Brother Dre:I want you to save this certain amount of grain so that when the seven years of scarcity or seven years of drought comes, you won't be destroyed.
Brother Dre:He said, now.
Brother Dre:And Joseph said, this is what I love about Joseph.
Brother Dre:Joseph didn't say, well, I think I should head it up.
Brother Dre:Joseph said, find someone who can execute the plan.
Brother Dre:And pharaoh, being smart, being very smart in seeing what just transpired and how he heard from God, he said, well, who can I find better than you?
Brother Dre:Who can I find?
Brother Dre:Is there any man in Egypt with the wisdom that he has?
Brother Dre:And so he appoints Joseph over the matter.
Brother Dre:And sure enough, the seven years of plenty came.
Brother Dre:Now we're talking about obedience.
Brother Dre:It is easy for us to devalue the word of God when we are in plenty.
Brother Dre:Oh, goodness.
Brother Dre:Have you ever noticed that most people come to God when they're broke or most people come to God when they're distraught, they have a tendency to listen a little better and obey a little better when they need God to do something for them.
Brother Dre:But Joseph and Pharaoh, who gave Joseph all the power that he needed, all the authorities that he needed, they followed the plan to a t in the years of plenty.
Brother Dre:Now, we're not just talking normal years.
Brother Dre:These were years of plenty.
Brother Dre:When they had more than enough, it could have been easy for them to say, okay, I don't believe what, you know.
Brother Dre:They talking about seven years drought.
Brother Dre:I mean, look at all that we're doing.
Brother Dre:Look, all of that we're bringing in.
Brother Dre:But they stuck to the plan.
Brother Dre:And because they stuck to the plan, they were not destroyed.
Brother Dre:I want to ask you a question.
Brother Dre:Has God ever told you something to do and because you didn't see a problem, you didn't value the word like you should have?
Brother Dre:I've done it.
Brother Dre:I've done it.
Brother Dre:You hear God telling you something.
Brother Dre:But because you don't have a need right now, because you're not in a critical situation, you devalue the word or you don't take it seriously, or sometimes we will allow the enemy to talk us out of that word, saying, look, you got plenty.
Brother Dre:You got plenty.
Brother Dre:The Lord didn't tell you that you got plenty.
Brother Dre:You can do that stuff tomorrow.
Brother Dre:And so because we don't do it when he told us to do it, now we're in a situation and we're begging God to get us up out of it, you got to always be careful to listen to the word of God.
Brother Dre:Be mindful.
Brother Dre:Always hear what he's saying.
Brother Dre:God don't just talk to you when you're in trouble.
Brother Dre:He talks to you so that you can avoid the trouble.
Brother Dre:God is a God of strategy.
Brother Dre:And if Genesis 41 don't tell you, I don't know what else will.
Brother Dre:God is a God of strategy.
Brother Dre:Yes, he'll make miracles, but he'll also give you strategy to where when the enemy does come, you won't even see it because you worked the strategy.
Brother Dre:Oh, God.
Brother Dre:Oh God.
Brother Dre:Somebody ought to hear me on today.
Brother Dre:And when you look at that story, Joseph and Pharaoh, you will find out the seven years of plenty came.
Brother Dre:And then there was seven years of scarcity, just like the dream was interpreted.
Brother Dre:And so when the seven years of scarcity or famine came, Egypt did not lose power.
Brother Dre:As a matter of fact, Egypt gained power.
Brother Dre:As a matter of fact, Egypt gained riches.
Brother Dre:Why?
Brother Dre:Because they worked the plan of God.
Brother Dre:So what ended up happening?
Brother Dre:Other countries had to come to Egypt because they had food and they didn't.
Brother Dre:The people of Egypt had to sell their cattle to Pharaoh, to Egypt so that they could survive.
Brother Dre:The people had to sell their land to Egypt, to Pharaoh so that they could survive.
Brother Dre:And it is, in case you don't know, the only people that didn't have to sell their land were the priests in the country because they always got, they were always taken care of by pharaoh.
Brother Dre:The other people that didn't have to sell anything was Joseph's father, which was Israel.
Brother Dre:All his people didn't have to sell anything because they had favor with Joseph.
Brother Dre:Won't God do it?
Brother Dre:But I'm showing you something.
Brother Dre:They had the seven years of plenty, then they had the seven years of famine or scarcity.
Brother Dre:And while the world is going through a famine, Egypt is growing.
Brother Dre:You know, I bought my house.
Brother Dre:Not when I went, when there was, when society was booming.
Brother Dre:I bought my house in the COVID years.
Brother Dre:I bought it in the COVID years.
Brother Dre:Now let me back up from that.
Brother Dre:God had told me six months prior to, I believe six months prior.
Brother Dre:I may be wrong in the, in the time, it might have been a little longer than that, but he told me prior to go get your house.
Brother Dre:And so I just obeyed.
Brother Dre:I started working towards the house and, and, you know, there were times where they told me no, but I just trusted the word of God.
Brother Dre:And so when Covid hit, I already had the down payment for the house.
Brother Dre:I had already picked out the house and I got the house at a very good price.
Brother Dre:And not only that the interest rate that they gave me initially dropped a whole nother percentage because now we're in Covid.
Brother Dre:So instead of getting it at a higher percentage, I got it at a lower percentage because the land was in a famine.
Brother Dre:I hope somebody's getting out of getting something out of this.
Brother Dre:And the importance of being obedient to God.
Brother Dre:Hallelujah.
Brother Dre:I want everybody to understand, do not start adhering to the word of God when you're in trouble or listening to what God tells you.
Brother Dre:When you're in trouble, do it while there is no trouble, and I promise you, you'll avoid some things and you'll even prosper when everybody else is drowning.
Brother Dre:Hallelujah.
Brother Dre:Praise God.
Brother Dre:I think I'm just gonna stop right there.
Brother Dre:That sounds like a good place to stop.
Brother Dre:There's some more I could talk about, but I'm gonna stop right there.
Brother Dre:Listen, people of God, it is important now more than ever that we be obedient to God's word.
Brother Dre:God's word is true.
Brother Dre:God's word will bring you out of situations, keep you out of situations, but you got to be obedient.
Brother Dre:What good is instructions if you don't read them, huh?
Brother Dre:What good are instructions or rules if you don't obey them?
Brother Dre:What does the Bible say?
Brother Dre:It says, meditate on the word day and night, night and day, and you will be prosperous.
Brother Dre:He said, I need you to know my word.
Brother Dre:I need you to not only know it, but obey my word.
Brother Dre:Faith without works is dead.
Brother Dre:Being alone, I can't just know it.
Brother Dre:I just can't believe it in my heart.
Brother Dre:I got to put action behind it.
Brother Dre:And so, for many of us, it's not that God hasn't told us anything.
Brother Dre:It's not that he's not speaking to us.
Brother Dre:We have just failed to be obedient to his word.
Brother Dre:Be obedient to his word and watch God bring you out of situations.
Brother Dre:Be obedient to his word and see how you begin to prosper in life.
Brother Dre:And you know, I would be lying if I said the enemy wouldn't try to come in and make you think that's a lie.
Brother Dre:Because the Bible says the enemy comes immediately to steal, kill, and destroy.
Brother Dre:He don't want you to believe the word of God.
Brother Dre:He don't want you to stand on the word.
Brother Dre:He don't want you to, to have that faith.
Brother Dre:But if you be obedient.
Brother Dre:And what did we say?
Brother Dre:Obedience does.
Brother Dre:Obedience magnifies your faith and exercises the plan of God for your life.
Brother Dre:If you be obedient, you're gonna really see what God has for you.
Brother Dre:Be obedient, okay?
Brother Dre:I love you.
Brother Dre:I hope you got something out of the message on today.
Brother Dre:I see you next time.
