Obedience is defined as compliance, agreement,
submission, or conformity. In short, obedience is doing the bidding of another
person, usually, the bidding of a person in authority over you, as in
parent/child, master/servant, or boss/employee relationships.
What are the
reasons for compliance in relationships? People usually obey or comply out of
fear of punishment. An insubordinate employee for instance could be fired; a
disobedient child could have privileges suspended. Other reasons for compliance
could be out of respect, being in agreement with the orders, or trusting that the
individual in authority knows better and is right.
So when it
comes to Christians’ relationship with God, why should we obey Him? All the
aforementioned reasons apply when it comes to relating to God, but in addition,
He commands us to diligently obey His command (see Deuteronomy 6:17). As our
Father, God is entitled to our respect; it is our duty therefore to respect and
obey Him. Through the prophet Malachi, God asked His people, the Israelites, “A
son honors his father, and a servant respects his master. If I am your father
and master, where are the honor and respect I deserve?” (Mal 1:6 NLT). If we
know God as well as we should, we’ll embrace His commands and instructions,
we’ll love to obey Him, because His commands are for our wellbeing (see
Jeremiah 11:29), and not for our detriment. He knows the outcome of all the
commands He gives us. Human parents on the other hand, are not always so sure,
and sometimes, outcomes of their own instructions take them by surprise. Not so
with God.
We
Christians need to obey God out of trust; let’s look to Abraham for that
example. God promised him a son, Isaac, through whom He’d bless the whole world
(see Genesis 17:19; 21:12). Then later, God told him, “Go and sacrifice Isaac
as a burnt offering” (Genesis 22:2 NLT). Was God speaking from both sides of
His mouth, had He forgotten His promise concerning Isaac? Of course not! But guess
what, Abraham did not ask any questions, and did not hesitate to obey; the very
next day, he set out to go and sacrifice Isaac as God had commanded. And he
would have killed Isaac had the angel of God not called from heaven to stop him
(see Genesis 22:). Abraham obeyed the command, because he trusted God. The book
of Hebrews tells us, “Abraham reasoned that if Isaac died, God was able to
bring him back to life again” (Hebrews 11:19 NLT).
There should
also be obedience out of fear for God, because He is capable of resisting and
disciplining us for disobedience. Jesus once said to His disciples, “Don’t be
afraid of those who want to kill your body; they cannot touch your soul. Fear
only God, who can destroy both soul and body in hell” (Matthew 10:28 NLT). This
of course doesn’t mean we should have a morbid fear of God; instead, we need to
have a reverential awe of Him. That will mean obeying Him out awe, love,
respect, and trust. If we choose to not obey, then definitely, we need to afraid,
very afraid! His holiness requires that He reprimand sin in any form including insubordination.
It is so wonderful to know that although God
is entitled to our obedience with no questions asked, and although obeying Him
is for our own good, He promises to bless us when we do (see Exodus 20:6).
Those are not empty promises either. In Deuteronomy 28:1-14, we’re given a list
of blessings that will come our way when we are obedient. When the Israelites
were being unfaithful about tithing, God challenged them, “If you do…I will
open the windows of heaven for you. I will pour out a blessing so great you
won’t have enough room to take it in! Try it! Put me to the test!” (Malachi
3:10 NLT).
So do you
think you should obey God? If so what would be your reason? Personally, I love
to obey Him, because He’s God and I’m not. He commands me to, and that should
be a good reason for anyone. In the absence of all that, I know He loves me,
and through His Son Jesus, He has saved my soul, and is preparing a place for
me in heaven. He has the power to do anything, He directs my life in ways that nobody
else could. His love for me overwhelms me, and obedience is the only way I can
prove my love for Him (see 1 John 5:3). Think
about it, and be obedient!
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