I
remember in my years as a legalistic Christian how important obedience to God
was to me. In my mind, it was THE issue upon which all Christianity
stood. My entire relationship with God was centered on obedience.
When I read the Bible, I was only looking for new ways to obey God where I
wasn't obeying him. This belief that obedience was THE issue in
Christianity led me into such burnout that when I read the Bible, it gave me a
stomach ache. I don't think reading the Bible is supposed to do
that!
I am not diminishing obedience to God in any way. 1 Samuel 15:22b says
"To obey is better than sacrifice". So, obedience
is extremely important but it is not THE issue in Christianity. THE
issue in Christianity is Jesus Christ and to take it further, it is Jesus
Christ in us, as Paul shares in Colossians1:27.
The Apostle Paul said it this way in Philippians 1:21, "For to me to live
is Christ." Knowing Jesus Christ in us through intimacy with Him is
THE main thing. Again Paul said in Philippians 3:10, "That I may
know him and the power of his resurrection, and may share his sufferings,
becoming like him in his death."
Knowing Christ and making Him known is the
essence of life. Obedience to God is the fruit of knowing Christ and
making Him known.
Anytime we are told in Scripture to obey God,
we can be sure of a few things. First, obedience to God is an expression
of our love for Him. Second, obedience to God is not a checklist but an
expression of our identity in Christ. Third, obedience to God is
completely dependent on our dependence on Christ in us. Forth, obedience
to God glorifies our Father when done by grace!
..Here
is an example. Jesus tells us in Matthew
29:18-20 to go into all the world and make disciples. This is known as known as The Great Commission.
So it's not optional but it's also not
to be done from legalism. I
remember that for many years, I shared the Gospel with those who did not know
Christ because I was motivated by guilt. As I came to understand
the completeness of the Gospel, that all changed. Now as I abide in Christ, I watch for
opportunities the Holy Spirit opens for me to share. It's so much more
exciting to live this way.
This happened the very day I wrote this. Ellen
and I were away speaking at Montreat College and were relaxing in town
for a couple of hours. When we visited a
running store, God showed up big time! I
asked the owner how business was and he shared with us that it had been good
until recently when his father died.
Ellen asked him if he had any kind of faith background. As a result, we thought we might get to share
the Gospel with him and we were ready.
It turned out that he was already a believer and God had sent us to pray
for him and comfort him. What a great
way to live life!
The complete Gospel frees us to obey God in such a way that we experience the
reality of what Jesus says in Matthew 11:29-30, “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."
Let's obey our God as we live out of our freedom in Christ. We may not always feel like obeying but we
can. It's not a heavy burden but a light
one because we are yoked with Christ. We
are in Him and He is in us. Hallelujah
for obedience by grace!
Live Free In Christ, Mark Maulding,
President and Founder
www.GraceLifeInternational.com
All Content Copyright © 2013 Mark Maulding
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