I.  Essential To Your Blessings

                                          OBEDIENCE

OBEY GOD……..YOU CAN’T LOSE               DISOBEY GOD….YOU CAN’T WIN 

(1)          Essential to your blessings

(A)        God will always tell you to do something first and then gives you a promise.

In other words…If you will do this , I will do that. 

OBEY GOD…YOU CAN’T LOSE…[Malachi 3:10,11] 

This scripture has to do with the law (or ordinance) of tithing and God is talking to His people
through the prophet Malachi.

He begins in verse 6 and says, I AM the Lord, I change not.

Then He begins to tell them they have not kept His laws regarding the tithe.

[verse 8 & 9]

God says they have robbed Him in tithes and offerings and that they are cursed with a curse.

[v. 10]

He tells them (us) what to do first and then says to Prove Him or (Put Him to the test).
When you have followed His commandment, the ball is in His court!

Now come the blessings and the promises in verses 10,11.

[verse 16]

For those that Obey, a Book of Remembrance is written before Him.

I wonder, how many of our names will be in it?

DISOBEY GOD…..YOU CAN’T WIN…[1^ST Samuel 15] 

[ verses 1/7]

God has anointed Saul to be King over Israel and has told him to go to war with the A/mel/e/kites
and to utterly destroy them and their goods. (fulfilling Ex. 17:14)

This is where God told Moses to write down in a book a memorial (or a statement of facts)
that He would destroy the Amelekites from off the face of the earth. 

(Here is where you are going to need your Bible to follow what I am explaining) 

[1^st Samuel 15:8,9]

   Saul disobeyed because of Greed.

[verses 10,11]

   God is very displeased with Saul

[verses 13,14]

   Saul lies and Samuel calls him on it.

     (We need to do the same thing that Samuel did and never agree to a lie or with a liar but call
them on it and maybe they will stop)

[verse 15]

   Saul starts giving an excuse for not obeying God and Blames some one else.  (sound familiar?)

[verses 18,19]

   Samuel tells Saul that God sent him to do a job and he disobeyed.

[verses 20,21]

   Saul again lies and blames it on some one else.   (there are some people you cannot change)

  Saul also says that they used the animals for a sacrifice unto God.

     (SOME SACRIFICE!!!  Sheep and cattle that should have been killed as per God’s instruction.

(They were unclean and not considered as worthy as a sacrifice to God as they
belonged to the Amelekites)

Don’t ever think you can take your HABITS and SINS  that you should have gotten rid of (killed)
and sacrifice them to God! (or in other words, say, if God wants them, He can have them.)

   What makes you think He would want your habits and evil ways?

   Paul says, in Ephesians 4:22, YOU put off the OLD MAN And put on the NEW!

[verse 22]

   The Lord would much rather have your obedience than any sacrifice you could give Him!

[verse 23]

   Now we see what God really thinks of Disobedience.

   He calls it REBELLION and STUBBORNNESS (same) And also calls it a SIN.

   It is as repulsive to Him as WITCHCRAFT, SIN and WORSHIPPING IDOLS!