JUST ONE THING
“For whoever shall keep the whole law, and yet stumble in one point, he is guilty of all.” James 2:10.
There is a story about a farmer who was going out of town for a while and instructed his son to tend to the farm while he was gone. The farmer gave his son a list of specific instructions to complete. “I want the barn painted red, the fence around the chicken coop repaired, corn planted in this field and a well dug right here.” The farmer points to a specific spot. The son says, “I will do what you have asked” and his father leaves. When he returns he finds substantial improvements on his farm. The barn is red, the fence around the chicken coop has been repaired, corn planted neatly in the field, and the well dug, but in a different spot. The farmer notices everything that is done and rebukes his son saying, “Why did you not obey me?” The son replied, “But I did! Everything you told me to do has been done.” His father replies, “No you didn’t! The well is in the wrong place.” The son answered, “I know, but as I look around I thought this was a much better spot.” The Father replies, “I had a reason for wanting the well where I asked for it. Why did you disobey me?” The son reasoned, “I did everything you asked! Look the barn is painted, the chicken coop repaired and the corn planted, but I thought this was the better place for the well.” The farmer finally said, “You did not truly obey me. If you had you would have followed my instructions completely. The only reason you painted the barn red was because you agreed with me. The only reason you planted corn was because you agreed with me. If you have disagreed with my instructions in these, I am convinced you would have changed them as well. So you did NOT obey me at all.”
This illustration helps us understand James 2:10. James noted that while we might be fervent and exact in every aspect of God’s laws except one, we are guilty of breaking the Law. People might ask, “Why is it that only one little thing will condemn me to hell?” It might seem unfair, but the reason is not so much the one little thing, but the ATTITUDE about that “one thing.” When we disobey God in even one little point, what we are really saying is that the only reason we obey everything else is because we agree with it and don’t mind doing that. If for some reason we didn’t like something else about the law, we would probably change that too. When Jesus said, "Not everyone who says to Me, 'Lord, Lord,' shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father in heaven. Many will say to Me in that day, 'Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in Your name, cast out demons in Your name, and done many wonders in Your name?' And then I will declare to them, 'I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness!'” (Matthew 7:21-23), He was speaking of the importance of TOTAL obedience. When He told the rich, young ruler, “…One thing you lack; Go your way, sell whatever you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come follow Me” (Mark 10:21), He was teaching the importance of TOTAL obedience.
Consider the example of king Saul in 1 Samuel 15. In that text, he was ordered to utterly destroy the Amalekites (vs. 3). Saul and his army defeated them, but he spared King Agag and the best of the animals (8-9). Interestingly, vs. 8 also says that Saul utterly destroyed all the people with the edge of the sword. When he returns and is confronted to Samuel, Saul even declares that he had obeyed the commandment of the Lord (13). When confronted about the animals and the king, Saul replied that they were to sacrifice and that it was the people who took them (passing the blame) (14-15). IN his reply Samuel said to him,
"Has the LORD as great delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices,
As in obeying the voice of the LORD?
Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice,
And to heed than the fat of rams.
For rebellion is as the sin of witchcraft,
And stubbornness is as iniquity and idolatry.
Because you have rejected the word of the LORD,
He also has rejected you from being king." (22-23)
Note several things Samuel pointed out relevant to our topic. First, an act of worship as prescribed is useless unless it is based upon our desire to COMPLETELY obey God. Second, God considers an attitude of obedience when it is convenient rebellion, stubbornness, and rejection of His word. And third, such will NOT go unpunished. As a result of Saul’s disobedience, God rejected him from being Israel’s king.
As Jesus was about to ascend to heaven He gave His disciples these instructions, “Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age." Amen.” (Matthew 28:19-20). Here Jesus gave two requirements for becoming His disciples: 1) baptism [obeying the gospel], 2) observe all things I have commanded. In this, Jesus was not calling for a perfect knowledge of His will, but an ATTITUDE that would do whatever He commanded, whether we agree with it or not.
I am afraid that many preachers today are teaching God’s word while leaving one thing undone. They are willing to accept “obedience” while they overlook that one thing they know will cause trouble if they address it. Some reason, God won’t hold them accountable for that one little thing. But who are we to determine what God is willing to overlook? Whether we like God’s laws or not, we are in no position to decide which ones we must keep and which ones we can ignore.
Thus we have to obey God completely or it is not obedience at all. How is your obedience to God? Is there some one thing in your life that you know you are not doing according to God’s pattern? I am convinced that in each of our lives there is something that will test the sincerity of our obedience to Him. For some that one thing might be more difficult than for others, but it is there. And in that one thing, we will show Him just how loyal we are and whether or nor we are willing to FULLY follow after Him in all things. Are you obeying God?
TATJR