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"GOD...IS AT WORK IN YOU, BOTH TO WILL AND TO WORK
FOR HIS GOOD PLEASURE." PHILIPPIANS 2:13 NAS
A new approach to obedience (1)
Paul says, "God...is at work in you, both to will
and to work for His good pleasure." Most of us don't
connect obedience with pleasure. We're used to
obeying out of necessity or fear. Perhaps we had
parents who made us obey "just because I said so."
Now it's not wrong for parents to expect obedience
from children, or bosses to expect cooperation from
their employees. But it's not the best definition or
the highest motivation for obedience. The element
that's missing is the "want to" factor that God
built into each of us at the point of salvation.
This takes the "ought to, have to, better do it or
else God will zap you" element out of it. It
elevates obeying God to a level of joyful response
to all that He's done for you. Obedience is not
something you have to manufacture. It's something
you have to cultivate, then activate, because the
desire is already present in you. This is called
"serving the Lord with gladness." Anything else is
merely outward compliance. It's like the boy who
misbehaved and was told by his mother to go and sit
in the corner. After a few minutes she called to him
from the other room, "Are you still sitting down?"
He replied, "Yeah, I'm sittin' down on the outside,
but I'm standin' up on the inside." You could call
that obedience, but actually it's nothing more than
outward compliance without the inward response of
eager and joyful obedience. Biblical obedience is
gladly doing on the outside, what you really want to
do on the inside.
A new approach to obedience (2)
Jesus said, "Take My yoke upon you and learn from
Me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you
will find rest for your souls. For My yoke is easy
and My burden is light" (Mt 11:29-30 NAS). Some of
those who heard these words were farmers who used
oxen to plow. They understood Jesus because they
wouldn't dream of putting an ill-fitting harness on
their oxen that caused them to chafe. Nor would God!
And these farmers understood something else: without
a harness oxen can't be directed and won't fulfill
their highest purpose - to be productive. "But if
I'm supposed to have this desire deep down to obey
God, why can't I find it?" you say. First, because
you still live in a body of flesh. And until God
gives you a new body you'll contend with the lower
impulses of your old one. The second reason many of
us don't feel this inbuilt desire to obey, is that
it's been covered by calluses built up over years of
doing things because we had to. It's like the hard
dry skin that builds up on your feet. That hard
layer has to be removed to get to the soft skin
underneath. That's usually the first thing a doctor
does when treating your feet. In the same way, the
Holy Spirit has to remove the calluses from our
hearts as part of the softening process that makes
us receptive to God's will. And how does He do that?
Through love! Our love for Christ in response to
what He's done for us.
A new approach to obedience (3)
A man trying to win a woman will do anything for
her. She'll call him and say, "I know it's late,
you're tired and it's raining, but could you come
over and change my flat tire?" "Sure, I'll be right
over," he says. And over he comes with a smile. Now,
fast forward. They've been married 10 years; he's in
the same house with the same woman he courted and
won. She asks him to get up off the couch and do
something for her. She has to say it 3 or 4 times,
and you'd think she'd asked him to cut off his leg
the way he moans and groans. Then she gets upset.
What's happening? What was once a delight has become
a drudgery - because the love motivation has cooled
off!
Our problem isn't really obedience, it's keeping our
love for Christ strong, for love makes obedience a
joy. Less obedience is simply less love. Often we
replace grace with law, and love with rules. But we
don't enjoy the rules because we don't exercise the
love. Our new nature functions best when motivated
by relationship, not rules. Rules without love lead
to coldness. Christ said to the Christians at
Ephesus: "I have this against you, that you have
left your first love" (Rev 2:4 NAS). In other words,
"You don't love Me like you used to." Then He
commanded them to return to the point where they had
fallen, which is where they let their love for Him
slip. Is Christ saying the same thing to you today?
Taken from "The Word for You Today", Bob Gass
ministries @
http://www.hearbobgass.com. Just wanted to share
it with you today. |
