Obedience is Better Than Sacrifice!

And Samuel said, Hath 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 t ohearken thn the fat of the rams.
For rebellion is as the sin of witchcraft, and stubbornness is as iniquity and idolatry.
Because thou hast rejected the word of the Lord, He hath rejected thee from being king.
1 Samuel 15:22,23

Just to give you a little background information on 1 Samuel 15, Samuel gave King Saul a word from the Lord to go and destroy the Amaleks. He and his people were instructed to kill every man, woman, child and animal. Instead, Saul and the people were disobedient and they spared the Amalek king, Agag, and the best of their sheep, oxen and lambs. When Samuel questioned Saul about the sparing of the animals, Saul replied that he and the people kept the best of the livestock to sacrifice to the Lord. The Scripture above was Samuel's reply given by the Lord.

Many of us believe that spending a Sunday or Wednesday in praise, prayer, worship, and Bible study is suffice enough in pleasing God.Many of us are sadly mistaken. i consider those who "do" only these things in "routine and ritual" are so far from God. To obey is defined as to carry into effect, execute, as a command. Saul thought that sacrifices of the Amaleks' best livestock would be more pleasing to God than being obedient to His commandments given to the king by Samuel. Many Christians are so secure in the routines and rituals performed inside the four walls of their churches that we fail in obedience. We go to church and we listen, hear, and even learn God's word, but we fail to be doers, thus being disobedient- not carrying out and executing God's Word, when we leave the confines of the sanctuary. Do not misunderstand! Yes, prayer, praise,worship, and Bible studies are all a part of our walk with God. But what does the world profit from it if we only "participate" in Christianity on certain days of the week within the buildings we call "the church?"Nothing. Too many Christians get caught up in "show" instead of letting our everyday lives speak for the goodness and graciousness of God. We don't pick up our Bibles until Sunday and/or Wednesday and we sing and shout and dance all during the service, but when the sun goes down and the services end, we 'show' no signs of Christlike-ness. And we wonder why people don't respect our faith! God wants and requires the obedience of His people! He wants those who are not only readers and hearers of His word, but those who carry out and execute His commandments in reverence and love for Him! Routines and rituals are dead without sincerity in spirit and truth! Singing, praying and even paying tithes seem irrelevant if we are not walking the walk and talking the talk! Obedience is better than sacrifice!