Bible Society of South Africa
Louise Gevers

Make a difference – Day 8

Obedience Makes a Difference to Life

Bible text(s)

1 Peter 1

14Be obedient to God, and do not allow your lives to be shaped by those desires you had when you were still ignorant.

1 Peter 1:14GNBOpen in Bible reader

Deuteronomy 28

The Blessings of Obedience

1“If you obey the LORD your God and faithfully keep all his commands that I am giving you today, he will make you greater than any other nation on earth. 2Obey the LORD your God and all these blessings will be yours:

3“The LORD will bless your towns and your fields.

4“The LORD will bless you with many children, with abundant crops, and with many cattle and sheep.

5“The LORD will bless your corn crops and the food you prepare from them.

6“The LORD will bless everything you do.

7“The LORD will defeat your enemies when they attack you. They will attack from one direction, but they will run from you in all directions.

8“The LORD your God will bless your work and fill your barns with corn. He will bless you in the land that he is giving you.

9“If you obey the LORD your God and do everything he commands, he will make you his own people, as he has promised. 10Then all the peoples on earth will see that the LORD has chosen you to be his own people, and they will be afraid of you. 11The LORD will give you many children, many cattle, and abundant crops in the land that he promised your ancestors to give you. 12He will send rain in season from his rich storehouse in the sky and bless all your work, so that you will lend to many nations, but you will not have to borrow from any. 13The LORD your God will make you the leader among the nations and not a follower; you will always prosper and never fail if you obey faithfully all his commands that I am giving you today. 14But you must never disobey them in any way, or worship and serve other gods.

Deuteronomy 28:1-14GNBOpen in Bible reader

John 14

The Promise of the Holy Spirit

15“If you love me, you will obey my commandments.

John 14:15GNBOpen in Bible reader

John 14

21“Those who accept my commandments and obey them are the ones who love me. My Father will love those who love me; I too will love them and reveal myself to them.”

John 14:21GNBOpen in Bible reader

Psalms 66

18If I had ignored my sins,

the Lord would not have listened to me.

Psalms 66:18GNBOpen in Bible reader

“As obedient children, do not conform to the evil desires you had when you lived in ignorance.” 1 Peter 1:14

Obedience is beautiful. Whether it’s seen in the response of a dog to its master, a child to his parents, an adult to his superior, or the wind and waves of Lake Galilee to Jesus, it evokes a positive response, because obedience brings with it serenity and harmony. Disobedience brings friction and robs us of our peace.

Obedience is powerful. It can revolutionise a person’s life and bring understanding, maturity and fulfilment. This is because obedience is undergirded by God and is what he requires of his children for their own well-being. It comes with great reward. Parents often reward obedient children and pet owners reward their pets, but it’s God’s rewards that hold great power. In Deuteronomy 28:1-14, God promises many rich blessings to those who obey him, including the promise to make them “the head, not the tail” (Deuteronomy 28:13). However, the greatest blessing is to know that God cares about us and wants to be in relationship with us.

Nevertheless, obedience is seldom a popular concept. It is often seen as a burden that will take away our rights and spoil our fun, but in reality, ignoring God’s commands actually brings us misery and strife, and robs us of our peace and self-esteem. Adam and Eve were deluded by the devil in the Garden of Eden; they hid from God and so do we. This hinders our growth in grace. Peter speaks to those chosen “for obedience to Jesus Christ” (1 Peter 1:2).

Jesus tells us quite clearly in John 14:15,21: “If you love me, you will obey what I command. Whoever has my commands and obeys them, he is the one who loves me. He who loves me will be loved by my Father, and I too will love him and show myself to him.”

Obedience brings us closer to Jesus’ heart, but disobedience blocks the way and also hampers our praying. The psalmist says, “If I had cherished sin in my heart, the Lord would not have listened …” (Psalm 66:18)

What is your experience? Do you feel that God hears your prayers? Do you respond positively when you hear God’s “still, small voice” or sense him urging you to do something? Do you rush to obey or quickly busy your mind with something else, or roll over and go back to sleep? Do you try to put Scripture into action? Do you try to break with things you know are wrong? Obedience to God is beautiful, powerful and honours him.

The wind and the waves obeyed Jesus, shouldn’t we?

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