God Wants You to Obey Him

If you love me, keep my commands. John 14:15

I believe the concept of total obedience to God is a stumbling block for many people. They resist salvation because it will require them to do things they don’t want to do and avoid things they want to do.

Over the years, the church has done an excellent job of telling people what they must do to be Christians. Rather than talk about the free salvation Christ offers, we focus on behaviors.

The Pharisees focused on all the laws, not only the ones God gave them, but more importantly the laws they created. They wanted to control every aspect of the Jewish people’s lives.

They weren’t interested in a person’s reason for obedience; the person’s heart was not their focus.  They didn’t focus on their own hearts either; their pride came from obeying the law. And Jesus called them on this more once.

Obey the covenant

As early as Genesis 17, God demands obedience. He tells Abraham, “Your responsibility is to obey the terms of the covenant. You and all your descendants have this continual responsibility.” Genesis 17:9

And God’s promise to Abraham for his obedience was that he would bless Abraham and Sarah, giving them descendants who would outnumber the stars.

God kept his promise, but the Israelites failed again and again to obey the law. They focused too much on obeying the law to the letter and not enough on their desire to obey because they loved and trusted God.

With our sinful nature, even though we want to obey the law, we often fail. Our imperfection prevents us from perfectly obeying the law. In other words, the motivation behind the task lacked what we needed to obey.

Deuteronomy

Most of Deuteronomy is Moses’ final message to the people right before they entered the Promised Land. God is clear, speaking more than once about the rewards of obeying the law: “And now, Israel, what does the Lord your God require of you? He requires only that you fear the Lord your God, and live in a way that pleases him, and love him, and serve him with all your heart and soul. And you must always obey the Lord’s commands and decrees that I am giving you today for your own good.” 10:12-13

Notice the last three words in this passage, “for your own good.” God doesn’t ask you to obey him to feed his ego. He doesn’t ask you to obey him because he likes to boss people around. He doesn’t ask for obedience so that you can’t do anything fun. He wants us to obey him so that our lives are good.

And in the following chapter, God promises them that if they are obedient, he will give them long lives and he will, “...send the rains in their proper seasons – the early and late rains – so you can bring in your harvests of grain, new wine, and olive oil.” (11:14)

Keep God’s commandments.

Jesus echoes what we read in Deuteronomy; the same instructions are given to us that were given to the Israelites. “If you love me, obey my commandments.” (15)

The purpose of obedience is not to prove to God and everyone else that we are Christians; it is a response to all that God has done for us.

Obedience should never be thought of as a burden. That is not why God demands our obedience. He instructs us to obey because in obedience we live our best lives.

Many times, I have heard arguments about whether Christians are to obey all the laws of the Old Testament. One of my seminary professors addressed this question in class one day. I don’t remember many of the conversations in my seminary classes, but this one stuck with me.

And it reinforces what I have said earlier. We must look at the laws, not for what they say but for God’s intention in making the law. For instance, there is a law in the Old Testament mandating that the Israelites build a wall around the roofs of their homes. Now this would be a foolish law for us with our houses constructed the way they are.

But the purpose of this law was to ensure your house was a safe place for your family and friends. The Israelites used their roofs as places to gather, so it was important to have safeguards to prevent someone from falling off.

So, if we consider the spirit of the law, protecting our friends and family, then that law should be obeyed by us. We will use different means to do it, but we need to make our homes safe for ourselves and others.

Evidence of membership

As commentator John MacArthur points out, “Obedience is a hallmark of genuine saving faith and love for God. Those who are truly saved by grace alone will invariably respond with a life of submission and service. With their hearts regenerated and their minds renewed, genuine Christians cannot help but outwardly reflect who they are on the inside – new creatures in Christ.” (111)

Paul told the Romans, “But if through the power of the Spirit you put to death the deeds of your sinful nature, you will live. For all who are led by the Spirit of God are children of God.” Romans 8:13b-14

When I joined the Navy, I swore to uphold the Constitution and defend it against all enemies, foreign and domestic, and that I would obey the President of the United States. Had I not agreed to that oath, I would not have been allowed to wear the uniform, nor consider myself a member of the U. S. Navy.

The same is true when we are Christians. We are no longer accountable only to ourselves; we are now accountable and representatives of God.

When I joined the military, I became a sailor and knew my life would be safer if I obeyed the UCMJ. As a Christian, I know that my life is safer when I obey God’s commandments because the commandments were taught to me so that my life would be good, not necessarily easy, but good.

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Promise of Future

In the Middle Eastern deserts, trainers test a horse's trust by depriving it of water for days and turning it loose right at the edge of a watering hole. Just before the horse drinks, the trainer blows a whistle. If the horses have been thoroughly trained, they immediately turn their backs on the desperately needed water and return to their master. Only then does the master provide them with water. True obedience means choosing the Master over our most desperate earthly cravings. 

We all have a desire to fit in with our peers, and there are times that we want to do something that would cause us to disobey God. We must choose between the temporary satisfaction of doing things our way and the joy of knowing all the good that awaits us in the future.

With obedience, we are promised permanent sources of power and contentment from the presence of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. And with the power of the Holy Spirit, we can resist temptation and live within the will of God. We will talk more about this next week.

We are also promised eternity with the acceptance of the salvation Christ offers us. Additionally, when we live joyfully in God’s will, we are witnesses to others who wonder if being a Christian is worth it.

Conclusion

Obedience is at the core of our Christian lives. It’s a response to what God has done for us and what he will do for us in the future.

Obedience does not guarantee an easy life; in fact, it requires us to give up our desires and live for Christ. It demands we do hard stuff when God leads us in his will.

But I have found that the more I obey God even if it requires sacrifices, the more joy my heart feels. The smoother my life goes, and the greater benefits I discover.