There are times when my father would be around when a child would be disciplined with a “time out”. He would always chuckle and say, “He may be sitting down on the outside, but he’s standing up on the inside.” What he was communicating was his belief that the child was not changing his actions out of a desire to do what is right but was simply adhering to the demands placed on him by the authority of a parent. These are two vastly different responses.
Being obedient to avoid further discomfort or consequence is motivated by fear and is often short lived. Obedience that comes from an understanding of wrong and a desire to do right is called repentance. It is a choice to change our actions because we recognize our actions are potentially harmful to ourselves or others. This is motivated by care and concern and usually brings long term change.
As men who lead our families and are often followed by others, we need to decide what obedience to God is going to look like in our lives. When we genuinely come into relationship with Jesus, the Spirit of God does something amazing. 2 Corinthians 5:17, reveals the extent of the miracle of our salvation, Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come! The power of God acts to recreate me. I get to start over. This newness comes with the removal of the eternal consequence of sin and allows me to have an intimate relationship with God. This is a free transaction. I offer nothing to God in return but an expression of faith in the life and death of Jesus.
As a Christ follower, I then search the Scripture to determine what this new life looks like. It is like a baby who needs to learn to walk and speak. I have all the body parts necessary to do these things but need to practice perfecting them. God has made me a new creation, I need to learn how to live out this new life.
My search leads me to statements like this in John 14:23-24, Jesus replied, “If anyone loves me, he will obey my teaching. My Father will love him, and we will come to him and make our home with him. 24He who does not love me will not obey my teaching. These words you hear are not my own; they belong to the Father who sent me. So, salvation is a free gift, but now I must obey a bunch of rules? Is this a bait and switch? I receive redemption for free, but now I’ve got to toe the line to keep it?
Unfortunately, this is how some view Christianity, as a bunch of rules to follow. They grudgingly avoid sin to keep from being zapped by God. They are sitting down on the outside but standing up on the inside. However, this is not what Jesus said. Obedience to the commands of God are not a means of appeasing his anger, it is a way of demonstrating love. This changes our motivation. Godliness in our lifestyle is a gift to God that says, “I love you more than I love the things that cause you pain.”
God offers an additional benefit. Obedience provides protection. God does give us some instruction in his Word of things we must do and other things we must avoid. If you consider these things practically you begin to understand his motivation. Obedience ALWAYS allows us to avoid circumstances that are guaranteed to bring pain and places us in situation where God’s joy is at its fullest.
God has made us a new creation for our benefit and his glory. Living as a new creation assures both are available.