My Dear Precious Child,
Obstinance, which is stubbornness, was very often mentioned in your collection of History and Instruction Books called the Bible. (I Samuel 15:20) The wisdom of Samuel said that rebellion is the same as witchcraft and stubbornness is the same as idolatry and iniquity. The political and religious leaders in the day of Jesus Christ stubbornly refused to change their beliefs and accept that He was the Messiah for whom they waited. The image in their minds was certainly not that the coming Messiah would be a servant of all. Their image was of a Messiah who would be more like their earthly kings with opulent regalia fitting for royalty. Jesus Christ was nothing like that. It was because of their rebellion and obstinance that they were kept out of My kingdom of heaven, not as being My will, but as it being their own will as a result of their obeying the temptations in their minds placed there by the devil.
A stubborn and obstinate person will not take advice from other people, even knowledgeable, educated, wise people. Their beliefs are locked into their minds as being right and they will not yield to any sort of wisdom and knowledge, not from Me, not from experts, not from medical doctors, not from scientific experts, not from anybody. I told the Jewish people that they must circumcise the foreskin of their hearts so that they will no longer be stiffnecked people (Deuteronomy 10-15).
Steven, the disciple of Jesus Christ, after preaching to the stiffnecked, haughty Jewish religious and political leaders about the errors of their stubborn, obstinate ancestors, told them that they were also stiffnecked with unbelieving ears and hearts. He told them that they were always resisting the Holy Spirit, just like their ancestors did. (Acts 6:8-Acts 7:54) He was stoned to death for alerting the obstinate political and religious leaders to the error of their ways in not believing in Jesus Christ but instead they resisted the ministry of the Holy Spirit. As a result, a great persecution began against the followers of Jesus Christ and most of them left Jerusalem for other countries. It was then that I called a worker who was trying to destroy the Christian church, a man named Saul, causing Him to be born of My Holy Spirit and baptized in My Holy Spirit. I passed the mantle of evangelism to the Gentiles to him after giving him a new name, the name of Paul. Even though he had formerly been a devout Jew who had persecuted My own children, I chose him because he did not have an obstinate, rebellious, stubborn, stiffneckd heart. He had a heart of flesh. Paul turned out to be a man who received more revelation from My Holy Spirit, as commanded by Jesus Christ, than all of the religious and political people put together. He had a malleable, pliable heart that was easy to change by Me, not stiffnecked and obstinate like the religious and political leaders. His beliefs were not like the men in authority over him who were extremely conservative, which means to be reluctant to change.
The poor political and religious people perished in their unbelief. Heaven on earth had been offered to them but they refused because of their hardhearted confidence in their own righteousness and religious teachings. They did not enter into My kingdom of heaven while they lived in the earth, all because of their political and religious stiff necked beliefs of having loyal confidence in their ineffective religious laws saving them from evil.
My children must have a heart of soft flesh which is easily taught and transformed into a reflection of My kingdom of heaven while they live in the earth.(Ezekiel 11:19; Ezekiel 36:26) To be obstinate, rebellious, stubborn, reluctant to change and hardhearted will take you down the path to hell on earth, just like the devil desires. Rigidity creates stiff necks and hard hearts. Pliability and flexibility create loving characteristics.
My Holy Spirit gives to My children who hear His voice the desire to constantly change until they are conformed into My image and the image of Jesus Christ in their flesh as well as in their spirits. When that happens, the world can fall apart around you and you will be happy, prosperous, stable and mightily blessed because you have listened to My voice and changed according to My tutoring.
Your Heavenly Father
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