OBEDIENCE !

Obeying God is in our best interest. It's in the Bible, Deuteronomy 30:15-16, TLB. "Look, today I have set before you, life and death, depending on whether you obey or disobey. I have commanded you today to love the Lord your God and to follow His paths and to keep His laws, so that you will live and become a great nation, and so that the Lord your God will bless you and the land you are about to possess." Dueteronomy 10:12, 13, NIV says, "And now, O Israel, what does the Lord your God ask of you but to fear the Lord your God, to walk in all His ways, to love Him, to serve the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul, and to observe the Lord's commands and decrees that I am giving you today for your own good?"

What do law, grace, and obedience have to do with each other? It's in the Bible, Romans 5:20, TLB. "The Ten Commandments were given so that all could see the extent of their failure to obey God's laws. But the more we see our sinfulness, the more we see God's abounding grace forgiving us."

Obedience can keep us from disease. It's in the Bible, Exodus 15:26, TLB. "If you will listen to the voice of the Lord your God, and obey it, and do what is right, then I will not make you suffer the diseases I sent on the Egyptians, for I am the Lord who heals you."

Obedience is the key to a successful life. It's in the Bible, Joshua 1:8, TLB. "Constantly remind the people about these laws, and you yourself must think about them every day and every night so that you will be sure to obey all of them; for only then will you succeed" We will be evaluated in terms of our obedience to God's commandments. It's in the Bible, Matthew 5:19, TLB. "And so if anyone breaks the least commandment, and teaches others to, he shall be the least in the Kingdom of Heaven. But those who teach God's laws and obey them shall be great in the Kingdom of Heaven."

Obedience is a result of loving God. It's in the Bible, John 14:15 and 23, TLB. "If you love me, obey me; …Because I will only reveal myself to those who love me and obey Me. The Father will love them too, and we will come to them and live with them." The Holy Spirit will only be given to those who obey the Lord. It's in the Bible, Acts 5:32, NIV. "We are witnesses of these things, and so is the Holy Spirit, whom God has given to those who obey Him."

Jesus obeyed His Father, as an example of how we should obey Him. It's in the Bible, Hebrews 5:8-9, TLB. "And even though Jesus was God's Son, He had to learn from experience what it was like to obey, when obeying meant suffering. It was after He had proved himself perfect in this experience that Jesus became the Giver of eternal salvation to all those who obey Him."

God advises us to obey the laws of the land. It's in the Bible, Romans 13:1-2, TLB. "Obey the government, for God is the one who has put it there. There is no government anywhere that God has not placed in power. So those who refuse to obey the laws of the land are refusing to obey God, and punishment will follow."

Sometimes obedience to God and His law may require disobedience of earthly powers. It's in the Bible, Acts 5:29, NIV. "We must obey God rather than men!" Children are to obey and honor their parents. It's in the Bible, Ephesians 6:1-3, TLB. "Children obey your parents; this is the right thing to do because God has placed them in authority over you. Honor your father and mother. This is the first of God's Ten Commandments that ends with a promise. And this is the promise: that if you honor your father and mother, yours will be a long life, full of blessing."