Are we obedient ?

A question we must keep asking ourselves…

As we go through the Bible, the Word of God, we can see that the word “obedience” carries special weight and is the key to many blessings.
From the Garden of Eden, through the Cross, and all the way to the revelations of the end times, obedience is shown to be of utmost importance.

In Eden, the only thing God asked of Adam and Eve was not to touch the tree of life. God required their obedience to this command. That was all He asked of them, apart from tending and keeping the garden.
It was not a matter of faith or humility, it was simply a matter of obeying!

At the Cross, we see the obedience of Christ to His Father for the salvation of our souls. In Revelation 22:14: “Blessed are those who do His commandments, that they may have the right to the tree of life.”
Throughout the Word we see that obedience opens the door to God’s favor.

Before asking for blessings, let us first seek to obey; the rest will follow…
And above all, let us obey fully, without leaving anything out. Let us not be like Saul, to whom the Lord had commanded to destroy everything belonging to his enemies, but who spared the best of the cattle… to offer them in sacrifice to the Lord!
This cost him his kingship! And Samuel reminded him: “To obey is better than sacrifice!”
(See 1 Samuel 15:13).

So let us be careful to obey God even in the smallest details. To know His will for us, we can rely on His Word and the voice of the Holy Spirit.
Jesus said: “Why do you call me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ and do not do what I say?”
He was a model of obedience from the beginning to the end of His life on earth.
“My food is to do the will of Him who sent me” (John 4:34).

And what about grace, you may ask ? Grace does not exempt us from obedience, but it is there to lift us up when we fall!
In 1 Peter 1:14 we read:
“As obedient children, do not conform to the evil desires you had when you lived in ignorance. But just as He who called you is holy, so be holy in all you do.”

And in Galatians 5:13: “Brothers and sisters, you were called to be free. But do not use your freedom to indulge the flesh.”

Obedience is the secret of a good conscience and the assurance that God hears us. In Romans 12, Paul exhorts us “to offer our bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God—this is your true and proper worship.”

If we truly offer Him this worship, obedience will naturally be part of it and should be the goal of our Christian life.
John confirms this by reminding us: “Whatever we ask we receive from Him, because we keep His commandments and do what pleases Him."

Franz