know me by His scars.

Maybe the next post will be more of my summer (yikes, it’s not really already almost Thanksgiving, is it?) travels, but for now another pause. This time, let’s talk about obedience.

Jesus said, “‘My command is this: Love each other as I have loved you. Greater love has no one than this: to lay down one’s life for one’s friends. You are my friends if you do what I command.’” – John 15:12-14 (NIV)

If you find yourself somehow on this blog yet entirely unfamiliar with who Jesus is, then that may surprise you a bit. Sounds bossy. A bit demanding. ‘You can have a close relationship with Me if you obey my Words.’ – John 15:14 (Emily’s Reiteration)

But if you take a step (one verse) back, you start to see a little bit more of what His heart looks like on this topic – “‘I have told you this so that My joy may be in you and that your joy may be complete.’” – John 15:11 (NIV)

He’s not telling us this for His sake, as some kind of power trip. This is for us. For our good – that we may have His joy, and have that joy completely.

Jesus talked a lot about obedience. It almost gets repetitive. And as with any other topic, if it’s repeated, especially over and over again? It’s important. Let me give you a few examples of this repetition:

• “‘If you love Me, keep My commands.’” – John 14:15 (NIV)
• “Jesus replied, ‘Anyone who loves Me will obey My teaching. My Father will love them, and We will come to them and make Our home with them. Anyone who does not love me will not obey my teaching..’” – John 14:23-24a (NIV)
• “‘But he [satan] comes so that the world may learn that I love the Father and do exactly what my Father has commanded me.’” – John 14:31a (NIV)
• “‘If you keep My commands, you will remain in My love, just as I have kept my Father’s commands and remain in His love.’” – John 15:10 (NIV)

That’s another four times within just small segments of these two chapters of John. And it certainly doesn’t stop there; let’s skip further ahead to Hebrews for a minute. “Son though He was, He learned obedience from what He suffered.” – Hebrews 5:8 (NIV)

Jesus isn’t asking anything of us that He hasn’t already been through. He knows what obedience looks like; He knows exactly what obedience can cost. And because He Himself has submitted to this, He requires it of us as well. “In fact, this is love for God: to keep His commands. And His commands are not burdensome.” – 1 John 5:3 (NIV)

Obedience to God is how the fruit of love for Him is revealed in our lives, and obedience to Him is not burdensome, it’s a joy. He knows, completely, not only the cost, but also the benefits of obedience.

So what exactly is He asking of us? What is obedience?

Merriam-Webster defines being obedient at as “submissive to the restraint or command of authority : willing to obey.”

When I’m talking about it with my almost 3-year old, we keep it pretty simple, and there’s no need to complicate simplicity and sincerity. I define obedience to her as this:

Obedience is doing what you’re told, when you’re told to do it. Simple.

You receive a command, you do it. Period. You don’t hem and haw and think about it back and forth – because when you don’t obey immediately, you’re questioning the authority of the one who gave it to you. You’re determining whether they really mean what they say, whether they really have your best interests in mind. You’re trying to figure out the why’s and the how’s of things that are way out of your purview. You’re doubting.

Delayed obedience is disobedience. Because a hesitancy to obey is just a symptom of further underlying heart problems. “Before I was afflicted I went astray, but now I obey Your Word.” – Psalm 119:67 (NIV) Ask Him to root those things out that hold you back, that lead you astray, and don’t let them become a hindrance to following Him.

The book of Psalms is full of references to obedience, and so is Proverbs. What emphasis do they place on this step? That it’s wise to do so.

That obedience is not only right, but there is great wisdom in it. “Like an earring of gold and an ornament of fine gold is a wise rebuker to an obedient ear.” – Proverbs 25:12 (NKJV)

It’s such a great thing to have a wise word to someone, to exhort and encourage as you are led by the Spirit. And when that word lands on an obedient ear? It sets things in motion that no earthly thing can stop. Doors can be opened that no man can shut.

As you follow immediately, be sure you’re also following completely. There’s always blessing in full obedience. In Judges 4, Deborah was the current Judge of Israel. At a particular time, following the word of the LORD in obedience, she called for her general Barak and told him to fight a particular battle, to defeat an enemy God had called into time for judgment.

Barak had a half-hearted answer to the call – he’d fight, sure, but only if Deborah joined him in the battle. God had given Deborah an answer for this. She would go, they would still be victorious, but the glory wouldn’t be his.

Barak partially obeyed and got a partial blessing for it. How much greater could it have been if he had fully obeyed? He would’ve received the full blessing.

Don’t shortchange yourself. If you’re going to obey (and you most certainly ought to, believe me on that), do it right. Do it completely. See everything that God has in store for you.

He doesn’t want your sacrifice; He wants you. All of you. The good, the bad, the ugly that He can make beautiful. Your heart. Your WHOLE heart and nothing less. You can’t hold any of that back.

I want to take a quick pause here to make an important point. We know what obedience is, but what about what obedience isn’t?

Obedience isn’t knowing exactly what’s going on. Obedience isn’t knowing the full plan. It’s being willing. It’s just doing the next small thing that’s put in front of you. One small step of obedience at a time, which gradually grows bigger and bigger.

So how do you know the next step? How do you know where to go? You know Him. You know His Word. You have a relationship with your Father. Relationships require work, require fostering to grow, to go deeper.

“With my whole heart I have sought You; oh, let me not wander from Your commandments! Your Word I have hidden in my heart that I might not sin against You.” – Psalm 119:10-11 (NKJV)

“Your Word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path.” – Psalm 1119:105

“Your ears shall hear a word behind you saying, ‘This is the way, walk in it,’ whenever you turn to the right hand or whenever you turn to the left.” – Isaiah 30:21 (NKJV)

It seems clear to me there’s a definitive link between our obedience and the relationship we have with our Father. So are you asking Him? For the next steps but also for the heart to obey? The will to keep moving as He leads no matter the cost?

Nearly every instance where above we touched on obedience, there is a nearby call to pray. To ask, to seek, to knock. This is a pattern over and over. Go look those verses and chapters and surrounding context up. Go see for yourself. Do your own New Testament word study into obedience. And then you tell me how many times Jesus tells you to obey without also telling you to ask.

Ask. Seek. Knock. We’re just touching on this portion here; prayer is a whole other topic, as intertwined as all of it is.

When we knock, our Father says the door WILL be opened. When we ask, He says we WILL receive. And when we seek, He says we WILL find. There are no qualifications placed on this, no “you must do this first for this to be true.” It just is. Jesus said He said it – “So I say to you” (Luke 11:9a (NKJV)) – so there’s no question, no argument, it’s fact. It’s truth.

It’s His word, so take Him at it. He’s trustworthy.

Is that the pattern your life is following? Obedience? Stepping by faith into the next step and the next and the next? Asking for those next steps, taking them immediately, and taking them fully?

This is getting up there in length, so I’m going to leave you with one more closing thought. In Deuteronomy 11, God lays out what He asks of us: “to love the LORD your God, to walk in obedience to Him and to hold fast to Him.” – Deuteronomy 11:22b (NIV)

And then we’re given this very simple truth: “See, I am setting before you today a blessing and a curse – the blessing if you obey the commands of the LORD your God that I am giving you today; the curse if you disobey the commands of the LORD your God..” – Deuteronomy 11:26-28a (NIV)

Two choices before you: a blessing or a curse.

You decide. I hope you choose to obey. He is able to keep you.

You can trust Him; there is joy set before you.

The best is yet to come.

Emily