2 Kings 12-1-3 – “In the seventh year of Jehu, Jehoash became king, and he reigned forty years in Jerusalem; and his mother’s name was Zibiah of Beersheba. ² Jehoash did right in the sight of the Lord all his days in which Jehoiada the priest instructed him. ³ Only the high places were not taken away; the people still sacrificed and burned incense on the high places.”

As I read, prayed, and meditated on the Word of God today, the phrase “Incomplete Obedience” reverberated inside my head and heart. This is totally unacceptable to God and leads to snares.

In 2 Kings 10:31 – “But Jehu did not carefully and wholeheartedly obey…He did not repudiate the sins which Jeroboam had encouraged Israel to commit.”  As a result, God reduced the size of Israel. Incomplete Obedience weakens us.

2 Kings 12:2-3, Jehoash did what God approved…BUT.  That’s the problem, but he failed to be complete and let idolatry continue in some areas.  As a result, the temple was in disarray, and King Hazael of Syria seized its sacred items.

2 Kings 13:14-19, Elisha gave the king a prophetic directive, which he obeyed half-heartedly. The result: Incomplete victory.   2 Kings 14:1-6, King Amaziah obeyed, but not totally.  He allowed temple worship to be mixed with idolatry. The result: they were defeated in battle.

God requires total obedience.   He expects explicit obedience.  He is gracious and patient, but we must remember that disobedience and Incomplete obedience open the door to the devil.  If we give him legal ground, he can and will do damage.   

If we want victory, we must close the door to him.  It is then that we can walk through the Open Door as John in Revelation 4:1. In Revelation 3, in the message to the church at Philadelphia, we have the promise of an open door unshuttable by man or the devil. Total victory for total obedience.

It is not a small thing to disobey. Small acts of disobedience become cumulative and large! Every act of disobedience should be followed by immediate repentance.

Let’s close the doors to the devil and receive the open doors of God! Total victory in total obedience.