Obedience, Vision, and Provision
Leadership in Context with Keith Tucci
Episode 135
Obedience produces vision, and vision produces provision.
Often people look for provision or vision first. I believe there is a biblical sequence where first we obey, then we get vision, and then the provision comes.
Genesis 12:1-4
Now the Lord said to Abram, “Go forth from your country, and from your relatives and from your father’s house, to the land which I will show you; and I will make you a great nation, and I will bless you, and make your name great; and so you shall be a blessing; and I will bless those who bless you, and the one who curses you I will curse. And in you all the families of the earth will be blessed.” So Abram went forth as the Lord had spoken to him; and Lot went with him. Now Abram was seventy-five years old when he departed from Haran.
In this passage, we see the order: First you obey Me. Then I’ll show you what you are to do. Then I’ll provide for you how you will do it.
God asked Abram to separate himself from that which was familiar and secure. There is a “leave and cleave” truth taught in the Bible. It is taught in the context of marriage. What is the purpose of marriage? Two people will be more fruitful together than they could be separate. They must take the leap of faith and separate themselves from that which is familiar and give their full attention to nurturing and caring for each other and their future.
That principle doesn’t just apply to marriage—it applies to a covenant with God. When you are in covenant with God, there will be a time when He asks you to leave--not that which is evil, but that which is secure and familiar. This is a pattern in Scripture and a pattern that we see in great men and women of God. This is raw, faith obedience responding to God. This is where we can trust God’s oversight in our life by boldly obeying Him and understanding that He is the responsible party, now that we have been obedient to Him.
Obedience is God’s way of separating us from things that are a distraction or something we would be tempted to rely on.
After obedience, then there is vision.
Genesis 12:7
The Lord appeared to Abram and said, “To your descendants I will give this land…”
God took them to a place. It wasn’t a straight line.
Genesis 12:6
Abram passed through the land as far as the site of Shechem, to the oak of Moreh. Now the Canaanite was then in the land.
It wasn’t that Abram obeyed and then everything was perfectly clear. He obeyed and sustained that obedience. It wasn’t a try. He was all in. That is what real obedience looks like.
Genesis 12:7
The Lord appeared to Abram and said, “To your descendants I will give this land.” So he built an altar there to the Lord who had appeared to him.
Abram had a manifestation from God as the Lord appeared to him. What he saw there was vision. Abram knew from that point on that God’s mission was real in him and that God had shown him something that He wanted to do in Abram’s life. How did this happen? Abram responded in obedience.
First comes obedience. Second comes vision. If you are lacking vision in your life, check your obedience criteria. Is there an area in your life that God is trying to get you to leave to free your hand up so He can take your hand?
First comes obedience. Second comes vision. Then comes provision.
Genesis 12:9-10
Abram journeyed on, continuing toward the Negev. Now there was a famine in the land; so Abram went down to Egypt to sojourn there, for the famine was severe in the land.
God led Abram right to where the provision would be. Abram didn’t know there was a famine coming. God led him right into the blessing.
If you look at your life and you see some surprise blessings, it’s not just because they happened. It’s because God led you to that place where the provision was. There was one time that I was jailed in Egypt. As a result, I was interviewed by the Arabic newspaper which is heavily Muslim. They called me a Christian minister and said the reason I was jailed was because I was defending human life. That was bolder than any American newspaper would be. That was a route I wouldn’t have picked, but nonetheless, when you are obedient, God gives you vision and brings you into provision.
Make sure you are being obedient. Open your eyes to vision (even if there are Canaanites around). Be sensitive to how the Lord wants to give you provision. Then receive it in the Name of Jesus.
Join us next week as Keith Tucci continues to put leadership truth in the context of the local church. And as always, please like, share, rate/review, and invite others to listen. See you next week!
Comentarios