Then Abram took Sarai his wife and Lot his brother's son, and all their possessions that they had gathered, and the people whom they had acquired in Haran, and they departed to go to the land of Canaan. So they came to the land of Canaan.
Obey All the Way
Louis Cassels once wrote, "Obey . . . take up your cross . . . deny yourself . . . it all sounds very hard. It is hard. Anyone who tells you differently is peddling spiritual soothing syrup, not real Christianity." Perhaps that's why so many Christians stop short of complete obedience.
Even Abraham struggled with this problem. As a great man of faith, Abraham had obeyed when God told him to "get out of your country" (Gen. 12:1). Immediately he packed up his possessions and left. But God also had said, "from your kindred and from your father's house, to a land that I will show you" (emphasis mine). It was here that Abraham stumbled. Genesis 12:5 notes that he took "Lot his brother's son" with him. Perhaps Abraham felt responsible for his nephew since Haran, Lot's father, had died. But this act of incomplete obedience became a cause of grief for himself (Gen. 13:5-7) and eventually for his nephew as well. Lot lost everything but his two daughters in the destruction of Sodom (Gen. 19:12-26).
Obedience is often hard, but partial obedience will not make things easier. The lack of total obedience may seem justified--especially if it involves a family member. It may even seem as if we are shirking our duty to loved ones if we do as God has instructed us. But God has a reason for every command, and not to obey Him completely always means forfeiting a blessing.
What is God asking of you today? What obedience is He prompting from you right now? Are you willing to obey all the way? Remember, incomplete obedience is the half-brother of disobedience.
Trust and obey--there's no other way.