Love and Obey

God links certain concepts together. One that we see over and over again in the Bible is loving God linked with obeying Him.

Here are some of the many passages that join the two concepts:

• Exodus 20:6  And shewing mercy unto thousands of them that love me, and keep my commandments.

• Deuteronomy 11:1  Therefore thou shalt love the LORD thy God, and keep his charge, and his statutes, and his judgments, and his commandments, alway.

• Deuteronomy 11:13-14a  And it shall come to pass, if ye shall hearken diligently unto my commandments which I command you this day, to love the LORD your God, and to serve him with all your heart and with all your soul, That I will give you the rain of your land in his due season.

• Deuteronomy 19:9  If thou shalt keep all these commandments to do them, which I command thee this day, to love the LORD thy God, and to walk ever in his ways; then shalt thou add three cities more for thee, beside these three.

• Deuteronomy 30:16  In that I command thee this day to love the LORD thy God, to walk in his ways, and to keep his commandments and his statutes and his judgments, that thou mayest live and multiply: and the LORD thy God shall bless thee in the land whither thou goest to possess it.

• Deuteronomy 30:20  That thou mayest love the LORD thy God, and that thou mayest obey his voice, and that thou mayest cleave unto him: for he is thy life, and the length of thy days: that thou mayest dwell in the land which the LORD sware unto thy fathers, to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob, to give them.

• Joshua 22:5  But take diligent heed to do the commandment and the law, which Moses the servant of the LORD charged you, to love the LORD your God, and to walk in all his ways, and to keep his commandments, and to cleave unto him, and to serve him with all your heart and with all your soul.

• John 14:15  If ye love me, keep my commandments.

• John 14:23  Jesus answered and said unto him, If a man love me, he will keep my words: and my Father will love him, and we will come unto him, and make our abode with him.

Some people think that an emphasis on obeying God’s commandments becomes legalism. It can become legalistic if the person only does what’s right without the correct heart attitude. It also can become religion, if the person obeys the commandments as a way to “earn his place in heaven.” Scripture teaches us that rules without heart are just rules. (Matthew 7:21-23) It also says we could never earn our way to heaven by doing good works. (Ephesians 2:8-9) It’s only through faith in Jesus’ payment for sin on the cross that we can have eternal life.

Keeping God’s commandments is something like a child’s keeping a parent’s rules. The child loves his father and mother, and therefore, he gladly obeys them. Solomon told his son, My son, forget not my law; but let thine heart keep my commandments (Proverbs 3:1). The child’s heart and his obedience are linked together.

It’s exactly the same way with God. We love Him with our heart, and then we are happy to obey His will. We want to do what will please Him—out of love. Doing God’s wishes isn’t a burden; it’s the privilege of love. The Apostle John puts it this way, For this is the love of God, that we keep his commandments: and his commandments are not grievous (1 John 5:3). 

Let’s love God and do His will!