It appears most Evangelical Christians are afraid of God. They would not dare to say they would obey God no matter what He told them to do. I find this absolutely incomprehensible.

Very few people would say they would obey Satan no matter what he told them to do. This is understandable. But God? Of course we are to obey God. To disobey God is rebellion.

The rebellion began in Heaven around the Throne of God. From there it spread to the earth. Now rebellion is so rooted in the hearts of people that after the thousand years of the Kingdom Age have come to an end, Satan will still be able to deceive the nations of the earth into rebelling against God. Inconceivable!

When the thousand years are over, Satan will be released from his prison and will go out to deceive the nations in the four corners of the earth—Gog and Magog—to gather them for battle. In number they are like the sand on the seashore. (Revelation 20:7,8—NIV)

What do people use for brains? Can't they consider the six thousand years of the howling insanity of the earth and see the product of rebelling against God and serving Satan?

The spiritual forces are so great that not to obey God is automatically to serve Satan. There is no place in the middle. Either you serve God or you default to the will of Satan. Human beings are only dust being tossed around by the titans of the spirit world.

Our God is to be trusted and served in every possible way no matter what He requires. Faith is trust in God's faithfulness. God never gives us something to do without adding the grace to enable us to do it. Never! Never! Never!

The original problem in Eden was lack of trust in God's goodness and faithfulness. Satan persuaded the innocent Eve that God was not to be trusted.

After centuries had passed God tested the faithful Abraham as to his unqualified obedience. Abraham passed the test marvelously.

Again in Gethsemane, God tested the Lord Jesus as to His unqualified obedience and trust in God's faithfulness. Christ passed a test so terrible as to be incomprehensible to human beings.

Every would-be ruler, every member of the royal priesthood, must be tested to a degree corresponding to his appointed rank in the Kingdom of God. The higher the appointment the more severe the test. No ruler is excepted. God will not trust anyone with the keys of the Kingdom until He is satisfied there will be no disobedience under any provocation or temptation.

It appears redundant to stress the necessity for and the rewards associated with stern obedience to the Father. Of course we obey the Father! The Father is God, our Creator. Were He the most wicked of persons there still is nothing we could do about it. He can squash us like a bug any time He chooses. If we think we can resist God then we really are foolish!

Fortunately for us God is good, faithful, loving, merciful. If He were of the nature of Satan, coming into existence would be for us a terrifying fate, inconceivably horrible, disastrous, deadly, ugly, hideous beyond all imagination.

To be continued.