As a child I hated hearing that word “obey”. When my parents used it, I felt like they were trying to hold something back from me and control me. It felt unfair. It felt like something I wanted to rebel from.
But as I grew older, I saw that my parents were actually loving and protecting me. My immature mind could not see it. But as an adult with children of my own, I completely understand why obedience is necessary.
As I am reading through the Old Testament, so far I continue to see a common theme throughout. God is asking his people to obey.
God, through his servant Moses, gave his people laws and decrees for everything from hygiene, diet, diseases, disputes, justice, and more! The laws were so specific and for those of us reading it now it can seem impossible to keep up with.
But these laws were not meant to control them. They were given for their protection and flourishing. You see they had been slaves in Egypt for over 400 years. As slaves, they could only do what they were told to do by their masters. They didn’t know how to live and be successful on their own.
But the Israelites couldn’t see that and broke God’s laws at every turn. And the consequences were not pretty.
In my own life, I am really understanding how loving God is when he asks me to obey him. He is not withholding good from me. But he is protecting me from what I do not know and understand.
There’s a line in an old Rich Mullins song (Hold me Jesus) that I was listening to recently that really reminded me of how I can be when God asks me to obey.
“Surrender don’t come natural to me
I’d rather fight you for something I don’t really want
Than take what you give that I need
And I’ve beat my head against so many walls
Now I’m falling down, I’m falling on my knees…”
This scripture in Deuteronomy gives a beautiful summary of God’s word on obedience for his people.
“If you obey all the decrees and commands I am giving you today, all will be well with you and your children. I am giving you these instructions so you will enjoy a long life in the land the Lord your God is giving you for all time.” (Deuteronomy 4:40 NLT)
The challenge I have for myself and for you is will you trust that God’s heart towards you is good and that you can obey him, even when it doesn’t make sense?
If he says to obey, I must obey. I’ve walked through a lot of life’s ups and downs, but through all of it the one thing I know is that God is good and he is faithful.
