The Blessings of Obedience

Deuteronomy 30:15-30  •  Psalm 119:105  •  Matthew 5:21-37  •  John 6:39-40

The Rev. Dr. Israel Ahimbisibwe

The Old Testament scripture for today from the book of Deuteronomy is known as the farewell speech of Moses to the Israelites; the Gospel reading from Matthew is a portion of the sermon Jesus gave in the place the Israelites call Har Zey-tin, or the Mount of Olives. These scriptures speak of the blessings that come with obedience to God’s word and the curses that come with disobedience. Today I will focus on the blessings that come with obedience.

From the list of things that Jesus mentioned in the Gospel – whether it is anger or insulting another person or murder, whether it is a lustful thought or actual unfaithfulness in marriage, whether it is swearing falsely or giving a “yes” answer when we mean “no,” and vice versa – He wants us to know that all parts of our bodies, beginning with the brain, should be holy and pure.

Elsewhere He said, “Your bodies are the temple of God.” This means that we need to have self-control of our actions and thought-control of our brains. When we are angry we violate God’s commandment of love, and you know He said that lustful thoughts are as bad as the sin of adultery. So it is imperative that we remain pure and holy all the time.

Jesus mentioned these things to us in order that we make conscious choices not to do them – what Moses called “walking in the ways of God,” which is to choose life.

Now for Jesus, life is not 60 or 80 or 100 or even 1,000 years. It is everlasting life, and about this we can take Him at His word because He said, “The will of my father is that I shall lose none of all that he has given me, but raise them up at the last day. For my father’s will is that everyone who looks at the Son and believes in Him shall have eternal life, and I will raise him up on the last day.” John 6:39-40.

So you can see that obeying the word of God is both reasonable and of great benefit.

But some people say and actually complain that it is complicated and difficult to obey what God requires. This is a mistaken notion. Saint Paul gives us an idea on how to start in his letter to the church in Rome: “If you believe in your heart and say with your mouth that Christ is the risen Lord, then you will be saved.” Romans 10:8.

This suggests that the most difficult part of obeying God is simply making the decision to start now.

After you invite Jesus to save you from the sins of this world, He gives you two gifts that will enable you to live in accordance with God’s will: His Word and His Spirit.

Let us first consider the Word of God. As the Psalmist described it, “Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light for my path.” Psalm 119:105.

We live in a world of evil, and walking in it is like walking at night in a thick and dark forest. We need a light so that we don’t trip over roots or fall into holes in this forest. The Word of God is the light that shows us the entangling roots of temptations, false values, and the false philosophies of life.

It is the Bible, the written Word of God, that will help us to see our way clear enough to stay on the right path that leads to abundant life.

Temptations will continue to come, but you will always be able to overcome the devil by saying “no” to his suggestions and by referring him to what the Word of God says in those particular circumstances:

  • God does not want us to be angry.
  • God does not want us to insult or murder others.
  • God does not want us to be unfaithful to our spouses or to be unfaithful in anything with which we have been entrusted.
  • God does not want us to be involved in any form of evil. He is holy and wants us to be holy.

Thus we need to know God’s Word and use it as our defense in making the desirable choices of life. This is exactly what Jesus did to overcome the devil’s temptation in the desert – three times He invoked the Word of God to rebuke the devil. Twice he said, “It is written” and lastly he said, “The word of God says.”

Knowing what the written Word of God says and using it as our defense in the face of temptations and difficult times is very fundamental to successful Christian living.

The second gift is the Spirit of God. Earlier today we prayed the Collect of the Day, where we admitted to God that we are weak and can do nothing – including keeping His commandments – without Him. The good news is that He gives us His Spirit, by which we call on him for help in times of trouble or temptation, and by which we know the fullness of His presence in our lives.

Jesus taught us that we should pray and ask God to deliver us from evil and to lead us not into temptation. And God will always do the things He promised. He is Spirit and as Jesus told the Samaritan woman at the well, we worship God in Spirit. He responds to us in Spirit when we are tempted by the devil and when we are surrounded by the most difficult moments of life.

In all cases, the Spirit of God is full of wisdom, love, kindness, and peace – and when He speaks, He does it with calmness and gentleness. Even so, He allows you to make the final decisions for your life.

  • He will tell you that what you are saying is wrong, but He will not close your mouth.
  • He will tell you that what you are about to do is wrong, but He will not stop you from doing it.
  • He will tell you that you are going on a wrong path, but he will not hold your legs.

He is the divine conscience that increases in us as we continue to trust and love God and stay away from evil. If we obey him we will have the blessing of eternal life.

Our heavenly Father and father of our Lord Jesus Christ: teach us Your ways and give us the will to do those things that You cherish. We ask this through your only son Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.