Wednesday, January 27, 2010

Exciting Obedience

1 John 5:3
"This is love for God: to obey his commands. And his commands are not burdensome,"

God's love language is obedience. To love Him is to obey His commands. Th nature of God's commands are simple; avoid sin. Do not lie, steal, kill, covet, worship idols, etc. God has not called us to some impossible task but instead to simply avoid what will naturally destroy us. It would seem that this self preservative nature of His commands would make it easy to obey. However, because of our sinful nature, these simple commands are not easy. Jesus demonstrates this in Matthew 5:21-48 when he reinterprets the commands and raises the bar. To say that His commands are not burdensome is not to suggest that they are easy.
To love God is also to want to obey His commands. Those who are born of God do not view His commands as burdensome. Instead, we are excited to serve those in need, give and tithe, care for the church and share the Gospel. To those who are born of God, obedience is an exciting opportunity to participate in the divine nature of Christ in us and to overcome our sinful nature (1 Jn. 5:4)
Does obedience excite me? Am I overjoyed to win a victory over my worldly nature and identify with the sacrificial nature and love of Jesus Christ?

Lord - make me want and love obedience. Make me excited to overcome my worldly nature. Amen.

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