The Truth About Why We Obey God: It's a Powerful Act of Love
Discussing obedience and why we obey God pushes against our will. Something inside of us gravitates toward independence and freedom.
But obedience to God is required in a life following Christ.
Obeying God shows we choose to align our lives with the word of God and the ways of Jesus.
Choosing to obey God helps us experience the richness of His love.
When my kids were young, one of the parents in our community would say, “Delayed obedience is disobedience.”
I understand why obedience should be quick and complete, but my kids are skilled in delayed obedience.
If obedience only counted when it was immediate, most of us parents would have a rough-looking scoreboard.
Over the years, I’ve reflected on ‘delayed obedience’ and wondered about the importance of obeying God, and whether it has to be immediate.
Children often take time to obey instructions, but aren’t we the same when it comes to learning to obey God?
Just as children learn the benefit of obedience when suffering the consequences of disobedience, we learn that obedience to God leads to frutiful living.
When we obey God, we are saying we trust Him completely and that our faith is more important than our will. And the benefit of immediate obedience is freedom.
“When you obey my commandments, you remain in my love, just as I obey my Father’s commandments and remain in his love. I have told you these things so that you will be filled with my joy. Yes, your joy will overflow!”
John 15:10-11 NLT
Why We Obey God: What the Bible Says About Obedience
What does the Bible say about obedience to God? Obeying God is an important biblical theme mentioned over 100 times.
The Bible is full of stories of obedience and disobedience.
–Disobedience to God-Adam and Eve
–Delayed obedience to God-Jonah
–Immediate obedience to God-Noah.
Noah must have gotten the message that delayed obedience is costly.
As soon as God gave instructions to build the ark, Noah obeyed and got to work.
“So Noah did everything exactly as God had commanded him.”
Genesis 6:16 NLT
But Noah might be the exception. Jonah responded differently from Noah.
Jonah went in the opposite direction when God called him to Nineveh.
“But Jonah got up and went in the opposite direction to get away from the Lord. He went down to the port of Joppa, where he found a ship leaving for Tarshish. He bought a ticket and went on board, hoping to escape from the Lord by sailing to Tarshish.”
Jonah 1:3 NLT
Jonah’s decision to disobey God caused him and others pain, showing that disobedience has serious consequences.
Obedience to God by Bible characters and heroes was delayed or completely rejected.
-King David disobeyed God most notably by committing adultery with Bathsheba and still wrote a large portion of the Psalms, impacting us today.
“Then David sent messengers to get her; and when she came to the palace, he slept with her.”
2 Samuel 11:4 NLT
-Peter was willing to kill for Jesus in one moment, then showed disobedience by denying Him three times in the courtyard, but he is considered the rock on which the church is built.
Peter swore, “A curse on me if I’m lying—I don’t know the man!” And immediately the rooster crowed.
“Suddenly, Jesus’ words flashed through Peter’s mind: “Before the rooster crows, you will deny three times that you even know me.” And he went away, weeping bitterly.”
Matthew 26:74-75 NLT
We learn from these biblical stories and others that obedience to God can be difficult, but surrendering to God’s call is the best response, expressing our love, honoring Him, and living in Him.
Why We Obey God: Finding Love and Peace
Obedience tends to get a bad rap because it wrestles with our pride.
But when we obey God, we find peace and love.
We often have to obey God first, trusting His ways and surrendering our pride.
Surrender means turning away from what we want and turning towards what God is calling us to; that’s humility.
The key to obedience is remembering it is an expression of God’s love for us and our love for Him.
“But those who obey God’s word truly show how completely they love him. That is how we know we are living in him.”
1 John 2:5 NLT
Jesus obeyed as a sacrifice for us. He could have walked away, but He chose to obey out of love for His father and us.
When obedience is reframed with love, it propels us to run to do what God is asking of us.
But we are flawed and make mistakes.
If we disobey or delay obedience, God can still use us, but we bring unexpected and undesired consequences that tend to ripple around us.
I hope you join me in trying to live in obedience to God, as Noah did.
And when we fail, we can repent, surrender, and start again. God will be waiting to use us.
Prayer to Obey God
Dear Jesus, teach me to listen and trust You, even when the path is uncertain.
Give me a willing heart to love and obey your ways.
Help me surrender daily and walk in Your ways, drawing closer to You.
When I obey God, it stems from my love for you and my overwhelming sense of your love for me.
Amen
This article on Why We Obey God was published in part for Daily Daybreak Devotions on Crossmap.com.
Author
Mary Rooney Armand
Mary is the founder and writer for the faith-based blog Butterflyliving.org. Her writing is featured in multiple anthologies and websites, and she is the author of Uniquely Made: Understanding and Embracing Your Identity in Christ and Life-Changing Stories, a devotional collection available on Amazon. Get to know Mary and the other authors of ButterflyLiving on YouTube.
