If we walk down the spiritual lanes of time, we will realise that disobedience opened the door to sin and the fall of man. The disobedience of Eve led to this pathetic condition of man. Jesus Himself was “obedient unto death, even death on a cross” Philippians 2:8 “ And being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross.” For Christians, the act of taking up our cross and following Christ means obedience. The Bible says that we show our love for Jesus by obeying Him in all things: John 14:15 “If you love Me, keep My commandments”. A Christian who is not obeying Christ’s commands can rightly be asked as given in Luke 6:46 “And why call ye me, Lord, Lord, and do not the things which I say?”
According to Holman's Illustrated Bible Dictionary, a succinct definition of biblical obedience is "to hear God's Word and act accordingly." Isaiah 1:19-20 is a perfect example: “If ye be willing and obedient, ye shall eat the good of the land: 20 But if ye refuse and rebel, ye shall be devoured with the sword: for the mouth of the LORD hath spoken it.” In the Old Testament, obedience was a root from which the blessings of God came to pass. Part of the “good news” of the Gospel of Grace is that New Testament obedience has taken on a new dimension, a paradigm shift. Obedience is no longer a “root.” It is now a “fruit” of righteousness. Righteousness means “right standing with God.” Because of the obedience of Christ, the obedience issue is settled from Heaven’s perspective. II Corinthians 5:21 “For he hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him.” The obedience of Jesus settled the necessity of our obedience as a requirement for being right with God. That’s why II Corinthians 10:5 says “For he hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him.”
Since obedience means dutiful obedience, it logically follows that it is obligatory on our part to obey God, just as Jesus fulfilled His duty to the Father by dying on the cross for our sins. We need to yield our wills to God’s. When Jesus says if you love me keep my commandments it speaks of the Scriptures in which God has clearly delineated His instructions. Thus, for the Christian, obedience means complying with everything that God has commanded. It is, thus our fundament duty to do so.
The Pharisees in Jesus’ time relentlessly pursued acts of obedience to the Law, but they became self-righteous, believing they deserved heaven because of what they had done. The Pharisees’ external obedience still lacked something, and Jesus exposed their hearts attitude. Their hypocrisy in obeying the “letter of the law” while violating its spirit characterized their lives and speaks volumes of their attitudes which Jesus rebuked. Self-justification through works only makes us self-righteous, it does not open the door of salvation. If we love God, we will obey Him. We won’t be perfect in our obedience, but we will desire to submit to the Lord and display good works. When we love God and obey Him, we naturally have love for one another. Obedience to God’s commands will make us humble to walk in the Ways of the Lord and become recipients of the crown of heaven.
Dr Ashwin Drummond
Laddertoheaven.co.in