Obedience is one of those words that has a bad reputation. We often don’t like to be told what to do and if it wasn’t for the laws in society, with their subsequent penalties for breaking them, many of us would break them rather than obey them. By nature, we are born rebels that like to do things our own way.
But may I submit to you that when it comes to obeying God, there is a joy and reward that makes obedience the wisest decision we could ever make. Let’s look at both the joy and reward of obedience to see why obedience to God should be something we all want to walk in.
The joy of obedience
Whenever I obey God I am filled with a special joy and the knowledge that I am lining up with God’s will, helping to advance His kingdom, being a blessing to others, and most of all putting a smile on God’s face. While obedience to God may cause us some inconvenience, I choose to look at the situation as an opportunity to bring God glory; and this thought and my action is guaranteed to bring lasting joy. Even when we face trials and sufferings, obedience to God is often the pathway to great joy and having our faith strengthened. Just listen to what the Scriptures say on this point:
“In all this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while you may have had to suffer grief in all kinds of trials. These have come so that the proven genuineness of your faith—of greater worth than gold, which perishes even though refined by fire—may result in praise, glory and honor when Jesus Christ is revealed. Though you have not seen him, you love him; and even though you do not see him now, you believe in him and are filled with an inexpressible and glorious joy, for you are receiving the end result of your faith, the salvation of your souls.” (1 Peter 1:6-9).
I also like to view obedience to God as an investment in His kingdom. This point is well illustrated in the parable of the talents found in (Matthew 25) for we read: “So he who had received five talents came and brought five other talents, saying, ‘Lord, you delivered to me five talents; look, I have gained five more talents besides them.’ His lord said to him, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant; you were faithful over a few things, I will make you ruler over many things. Enter into the joy of your lord.’” (Matthew 25:20-21). Again, here we see that being faithful and obedient to the Lord brings great joy.
The reward of obedience
One of my favorite portions of Scripture can be found in (Psalm 19:7-11) which reads:
The law of the Lord is perfect, restoring the soul;
The testimony of the Lord is sure, making wise the simple.
The precepts of the Lord are right, rejoicing the heart;
The commandment of the Lord is pure, enlightening the eyes.
The fear of the Lord is clean, enduring forever;
The judgments of the Lord are true; they are righteous altogether.
They are more desirable than gold, yes, than much fine gold;
Sweeter also than honey and the drippings of the honeycomb.
Moreover, by them Your servant is warned;
In keeping them there is great reward.
Notice that what the psalmist says is perfect, sure, right, pure, clean, and true are the law, testimony, precepts, commandment, fear, and judgments of the Lord. In other words, it’s the Bible that is perfect, sure, right, pure, clean, and true. And notice again what knowing and living the Scriptures does for us. It restores the soul, makes wise the simple, rejoices the heart, enlightens the eyes, endures forever, and is totally righteous.
In other words, the Bible, according to the psalmist here, is so awesome and amazing that it is more to be desired than gold and much sweeter than honey. And in addition, by obediently following its timeless advice and admonitions, not only will we steer clear of life’s many pitfalls but we will receive incredible rewards now and a retirement plan that is simply out of this world!
When we obey God and the Scriptures we find that the Bible becomes our compass that always guides us in the right direction. And Jesus is always there cheering us on each step of the way as we journey through life. He also allows us the wonderful privilege to talk and pray to Him as often as we like. And if that were not enough the Holy Spirit is always there to illuminate the Scriptures to our minds and to comfort our hearts at all times.
Obedience. I pray that our journey through the Scriptures helps you view this word in a new and exciting way!