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**Favor is the Shadow of Obedience**


 ## THE RELENTLESS TIDE: How Obedience Unleashes Heaven’s Chase  

> *"No good thing does He withhold from those who walk uprightly."*  

> **— Psalm 84:11 (ESV)**   

### I. RAIN-SOAKED AKASIA: A MODERN ARK  

Last Tuesday, as Gauteng’s skies bruised purple and the *June floods* raged in the Eastern Cape—killing 88 and displacing thousands —I stood at my window in The Orchards, Akasia. Rain lashed the jacarandas. Wonderpark Shopping Centre’s neon sign flickered like a distress signal. My mind replayed the news: *Minister Thembi Simelane assessing flood damage; Premier Ntuli touring collapsed bridges* . And I wondered: *When the waters rise, what floats a soul?*  

I remembered Noah—not the cartoon version with smiling giraffes, but the man who *"walked uprightly"* when the world mocked. His ark wasn’t built in a day. It was hammered together by decades of *"yes, Lord"* while cynics scoffed. Today, our arks are built through:  

- **Silent obedience**: Choosing integrity when the contract tempts  

- **Unseen surrender**: Praying over a sick child when panic screams  

- **Costly alignment**: Rejecting tribal politics when hatred trends  

### II. JESUS: THE UNEXPECTED PHILOSOPHER  

> *"Ancient Christians depicted Jesus wearing the philosopher’s robe... He taught wisdom as truth about what’s real"*   

While sipping rooibos at Netcare Akasia Hospital’s cafe, I opened Jonathan Pennington’s *Jesus the Great Philosopher*. His thesis electrified me: *We’ve reduced Jesus to "Savior" while ignoring His brilliance as Wisdom Incarnate* . Ancient Athenians debated Paul as a philosopher rivaling Stoics and Epicureans (Acts 17:18). Early church frescoes painted Christ in *philosopher’s robes* . Why does this matter?  

**Philosophy asks life’s core questions**:  

1. *Metaphysics*: What is ultimate reality? → *"The Lord God is a sun"* (Psalm 84:11)   

2. *Epistemology*: How can we know it? → *"I am the way, the truth..."* (John 14:6)  

3. *Ethics*: How then should we live? → *"Walk uprightly"* (Psalm 84:11)   

Jesus answers all three: Ultimate reality is *a Father of mercy* (Luke 6:36). We know Him through Christ’s incarnation. We live through *obedient trust*. This isn’t abstract—it’s *braai-level practical*.  

### III. FAVOR’S FINE PRINT: THE UPRIGHT WALK  

> *"No good thing will He withhold from them that walk uprightly"*   

Let’s be brutally South African: Many preach this verse as a *blank check for blessings*—career advancement, BMWs, R1.2m homes in The Orchards . But theologian Paul Bucknell warns: *"Some rewrite ‘good’ to mean anything they lust for... this is pandering, not philosophy"* .  

**Walking uprightly demands**:  

- **Moral coherence**: Your Sunday prayers and Monday decisions align  

- **Covenantal courage**: Staying faithful to your spouse while *"Side Chick" culture trends*  

- **Economic integrity**: Refusing bribes even when municipal tenders tempt  

> *"The text’s condition—‘walk uprightly’—describes believers whose lives are shaped by God"*   

I learned this at Akasia Golf Club. A developer offered me a deal: *"Fudge the environmental report. We’ll split the profit."* The jacaranda outside glowed purple. I recalled Pennington: *"Jesus saves us to experience fullness now"* —not *instead* of eternity, but *within* it. I walked away. Two months later, that project drowned in legal battles. My obedience floated.  

### IV. CHASING HOLINESS IN TSHWANE’S NOISE  

Modern SA drowns in distractions:  

- **Political theater**: DA and ANC sparring while floods devastate the poor   

- **Consumerist sedation**: Wonderpark’s "Playtown" babysitting kids so moms shop   

- **Tribal nostalgia**: Clinging to apartheid-era identities  

Yet Psalm 84:11 whispers: *"The Lord will give grace and glory."* Not *glamour*. Not *headlines*. *Glory*—the weighty presence that turns:  

- **Critics into advocates**: Like Saul becoming Paul  

- **Barred doors into thresholds**: Like prison chains freeing Paul and Silas (Acts 16)  

- **Adversaries into allies**: Like Potiphar’s household blessing Joseph  

### V. THE TIDE IS RISING: YOUR INVITATION  

As I write this, the latest *Daily Maverick* reports: *"Gauteng Legislature probes maladministration in flood relief"* . Our nation’s foundations are shaking. But remember:  

> *"Divine favor isn’t a gentle nudge—it’s a relentless tide chasing those aligned with God’s heartbeat"*  

**Build your ark**:  

1. **Anchor in metaphysics**: *"The Lord God is a sun"*—your light in ESKOM’s darkness   

2. **Employ Christ’s epistemology**: Test every idea against *"What would Wisdom incarnate do?"*  

3. **Embody obedient ethics**: *Walk uprightly* through corruption’s minefield  

Favor will find you. Not as a pampered VIP, but as an *ark-builder* weathering the storm.  

**PRAYER**:  

> Father, as the Eastern Cape floods rage and Tshwane’s streets shimmer with rain, align my will with Yours. Make me a philosopher of the Cross—where obedience meets favor, sacrifice births glory, and the upright walk becomes a relentless tide. In Jesus’ name, who out-thinks every Stoic and out-loves every critic, Amen.  



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