Obedience
Walking in loving submission to God
Introduction

When you are obedient to Christ and actively following God's leading, it shows in your outward life. People can see evidence in your Christianity.
Some acts of obedience are more internal. They have to do with attitudes, habits, motives, sense of values and day-to-day thoughts. These internal acts of obedience eventually surface in relationships with other people. The proof of your love for God is your demonstrated obedience to Him.
Jeremiah 7:23ESV
But this command I gave them: "Obey my voice, and I will be your God, and you shall be my people. And walk in all the way that I command you, that it may be well with you."
The Christian's Walk (Life)
1. The term "walk" signifies the whole of the activity of the Christian's life. List below how the Christian should walk (live).
Romans 6:4
Romans 6:4ESV
We were buried therefore with him by baptism into death, in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, we too might walk in newness of life.
Romans 8:4
Romans 8:4ESV
in order that the righteous requirement of the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not according to the flesh but according to the Spirit.
2 Corinthians 5:7
2 Corinthians 5:7ESV
for we walk by faith, not by sight.
Ephesians 2:10
Ephesians 2:10ESV
For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them.
Ephesians 5:2
Ephesians 5:2ESV
And walk in love, as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us, a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God.
Ephesians 5:8
Ephesians 5:8ESV
for at one time you were darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Walk as children of light
2 John 4
2 John 4ESV
I rejoiced greatly to find some of your children walking in the truth, just as we were commanded by the Father.
2 John 6
2 John 6ESV
And this is love, that we walk according to his commandments; this is the commandment, just as you have heard from the beginning, so that you should walk in it.
2. List below how a Christian should not walk (live).
Romans 8:4
Romans 8:4ESV
in order that the righteous requirement of the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not according to the flesh but according to the Spirit.
1 Corinthians 3:3
1 Corinthians 3:3ESV
for you are still of the flesh. For while there is jealousy and strife among you, are you not of the flesh and behaving only in a human way?
2 Corinthians 4:2
2 Corinthians 4:2ESV
But we have renounced disgraceful, underhanded ways. We refuse to practice cunning or to tamper with God's word, but by the open statement of the truth we would commend ourselves to everyone's conscience in the sight of God.
2 Corinthians 5:7
2 Corinthians 5:7ESV
for we walk by faith, not by sight.
Ephesians 4:17
Ephesians 4:17ESV
Now this I say and testify in the Lord, that you must no longer walk as the Gentiles do, in the futility of their minds.
When we were brought to spiritual birth by the Spirit, He made us a new creation (2 Corinthians 5:17). Our responsibility is to live pleasing before Him, strengthened by the indwelling of His Spirit.
2 Corinthians 5:17ESV
Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come.
3. Describe the contrast between the old self and the new self. (Ephesians 4:22-24)
Ephesians 4:22-24ESV
to put off your old self, which belongs to your former manner of life and is corrupt through deceitful desires, and to be renewed in the spirit of your minds, and to put on the new self, created after the likeness of God in true righteousness and holiness.
4. What is the chief element of a fruitful Christian life? (John 15:4,5)
John 15:4-5ESV
Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit by itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in me. I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing.
Main answer:
a. How does abiding in Christ affect our walk? (1 John 2:6)
1 John 2:6ESV
whoever says he abides in him ought to walk in the same way in which he walked.
b. What must we do in order to abide in Christ? (1 John 3:24)
1 John 3:24ESV
Whoever keeps his commandments abides in God, and God in him. And by this we know that he abides in us, by the Spirit whom he has given us.
c. How do we know that Christ abides in us? (1 John 3:24)
1 John 3:24ESV
Whoever keeps his commandments abides in God, and God in him. And by this we know that he abides in us, by the Spirit whom he has given us.
The Christian's Goal
1. What should be the goal before us? (1 Peter 1:13-16; Philippians 3:8-14)
1 Peter 1:13-16
1 Peter 1:13-16ESV
Therefore, preparing your minds for action, and being sober-minded, set your hope fully on the grace that will be brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ. As obedient children, do not be conformed to the passions of your former ignorance, but as he who called you is holy, you also be holy in all your conduct, since it is written, "You shall be holy, for I am holy."
Philippians 3:8-14
Philippians 3:8-14ESV
Indeed, I count everything as loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For his sake I have suffered the loss of all things and count them as rubbish, in order that I may gain Christ and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which comes through faith in Christ, the righteousness from God that depends on faith -- that I may know him and the power of his resurrection, and may share his sufferings, becoming like him in his death, that by any means possible I may attain the resurrection from the dead. Not that I have already obtained this or am already perfect, but I press on to make it my own, because Christ Jesus has made me his own. Brothers, I do not consider that I have made it my own. But one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead, I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.
2. If we are risen to a new life in Christ...
a. What two things will we want to do? (Colossians 3:1,2)
Colossians 3:1-2ESV
If then you have been raised with Christ, seek the things that are above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. Set your minds on things that are above, not on things that are on earth.
b. Unto whom will our eyes be turned? (Hebrews 12:2)
Hebrews 12:2ESV
looking to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God.
c. If our eyes are really on Him, what will follow? (Hebrews 12:1)
Hebrews 12:1ESV
Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight, and sin which clings so closely, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us,
d. What should be our constant desire? (Colossians 3:17)
Colossians 3:17ESV
And whatever you do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.
When a man is going up in a balloon, he takes bags of sand as weights. When he wants to go higher, he throws some of the sand out. The more he throws out, the higher he goes. Our Christian walk is the same. The more of the things of the flesh, the world and the devil we throw overboard, the higher we will mount in the heights of spiritual blessings.
The Dangers of Disobedience
1 Samuel 15:22ESV
And Samuel said, "Has the LORD as great delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices, as in obeying the voice of the LORD? Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice, and to listen than the fat of rams."
1. In 1 Samuel 15:18-23, instead of complete obedience, King Saul substituted excuses and his own way of worship.
1 Samuel 15:18-23ESV
And the LORD sent you on a mission and said, "Go, devote to destruction the sinners, the Amalekites, and fight against them until they are consumed." Why then did you not obey the voice of the LORD? Why did you pounce on the spoil and do what was evil in the sight of the LORD? And Saul said to Samuel, "I have obeyed the voice of the LORD. I have gone on the mission on which the LORD sent me. I have brought Agag the king of Amalek, and I have devoted the Amalekites to destruction. But the people took of the spoil, sheep and oxen, the best of the things devoted to destruction, to sacrifice to the LORD your God in Gilgal." And Samuel said, "Has the LORD as great delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices, as in obeying the voice of the LORD? Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice, and to listen than the fat of rams. For rebellion is as the sin of divination, and presumption is as iniquity and idolatry. Because you have rejected the word of the LORD, he has also rejected you from being king."
a. What was Samuel's reply?
b. To what are stubbornness and rebellion compared?
c. What did his disobedience cost Saul?
2. Consider Zechariah 7:8-14.
Zechariah 7:8-14ESV
And the word of the LORD came to Zechariah, saying, "Thus says the LORD of hosts, Render true judgments, show kindness and mercy to one another, do not oppress the widow, the fatherless, the sojourner, or the poor, and let none of you devise evil against another in your heart." But they refused to pay attention and turned a stubborn shoulder and stopped their ears that they might not hear. They made their hearts diamond-hard lest they should hear the law and the words that the LORD of hosts had sent by his Spirit through the former prophets. Therefore great anger came from the LORD of hosts. "As I called, and they would not hear, so they called, and I would not hear," says the LORD of hosts, "and I scattered them with a whirlwind among all the nations that they had not known. Thus the land they left was desolate, so that no one went to and fro, and the pleasant land was made desolate."
a. How did the people react to God's instruction?
b. How did it affect their prayers?
c. What was the result?
Examples of Obedience
1. What were two of Abraham's great acts of obedience?
a. Genesis 12:1-4, Hebrews 11:8
Genesis 12:1-4ESV
Now the LORD said to Abram, "Go from your country and your kindred and your father's house to the land that I will show you. And I will make of you a great nation, and I will bless you and make your name great, so that you will be a blessing. I will bless those who bless you, and him who dishonors you I will curse, and in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed." So Abram went, as the LORD had told him, and Lot went with him. Abram was seventy-five years old when he departed from Haran.
(Hebrews 11:8)
Hebrews 11:8ESV
By faith Abraham obeyed when he was called to go out to a place that he was to receive as an inheritance. And he went out, not knowing where he was going.
b. Genesis 22:1-3, 9-12
Genesis 22:1-3, 9-12ESV
After these things God tested Abraham and said to him, "Abraham!" And he said, "Here I am." He said, "Take your son, your only son Isaac, whom you love, and go to the land of Moriah, and offer him there as a burnt offering on one of the mountains of which I shall tell you." So Abraham rose early in the morning, saddled his donkey, and took two of his young men with him, and his son Isaac. And he cut the wood for the burnt offering and arose and went to the place of which God had told him. When they came to the place of which God had told him, Abraham built the altar there and laid the wood in order and bound Isaac his son and laid him on the altar, on top of the wood. Then Abraham reached out his hand and took the knife to slaughter his son. But the angel of the LORD called to him from heaven and said, "Abraham, Abraham!" And he said, "Here I am." He said, "Do not lay your hand on the boy or do anything to him, for now I know that you fear God, seeing you have not withheld your son, your only son, from me."
2. What was God's promise to Abraham's son in Genesis 26:4,5?
Genesis 26:4-5ESV
I will multiply your offspring as the stars of heaven and will give to your offspring all these lands. And in your offspring all the nations of the earth shall be blessed, because Abraham obeyed my voice and kept my charge, my commandments, my statutes, and my laws.
Answer:
What was God's remarkable commendation of David in Acts 13:22?
Acts 13:22ESV
And when he had removed him, he raised up David to be their king, of whom he testified and said, "I have found in David the son of Jesse a man after my heart, who will do all my will."
Why?
Christ's Example of Obedience
1. What was Jesus Christ's main concern on earth? (Hebrews 10:7, John 6:38)
Hebrews 10:7
Hebrews 10:7ESV
Then I said, "Behold, I have come to do your will, O God, as it is written of me in the scroll of the book."
John 6:38
John 6:38ESV
For I have come down from heaven, not to do my own will but the will of him who sent me.
2. Consider Romans 5:19:
Romans 5:19ESV
For as by the one man's disobedience the many were made sinners, so by the one man's obedience the many will be made righteous.
a. What was the result of Adam's disobedience?
b. What was the result of Christ's obedience?
Believer's Example of Obedience
1. In John 14:15, what does our obedience indicate? (Underline the correct answer.)
John 14:15ESV
"If you love me, you will keep my commandments.
a. Our sincerity in serving Christ. b. Our willingness to sacrifice for Him. c. Our love for Jesus. d. Our zeal for Christ's kingdom.
2. In 1 John 2:3,4...
1 John 2:3-4ESV
And by this we know that we have come to know him, if we keep his commandments. Whoever says "I know him" but does not keep his commandments is a liar, and the truth is not in him,
a. What does obeying the Word of God prove?
b. What does disobeying the Word prove?
3. What should be our attitude toward the leaders of our church? (Hebrews 13:7,17)
Hebrews 13:7,17ESV
Remember your leaders, those who spoke to you the word of God. Consider the outcome of their way of life, and imitate their faith. Obey your leaders and submit to them, for they are keeping watch over your souls, as those who will have to give an account. Let them do this with joy and not with groaning, for that would be of no advantage to you.
Promises and Blessings of Obedience
1. What helps us get answers to prayer? (1 John 3:22)
1 John 3:22ESV
and whatever we ask we receive from him, because we keep his commandments and do what pleases him.
2. In 1 Peter 1:22, what are two results of obeying God's truth? (Underline the correct answers.)
1 Peter 1:22ESV
Having purified your souls by your obedience to the truth for a sincere brotherly love, love one another earnestly from a pure heart,
a. It makes us more fervent in His service. b. It helps us love other Christians. c. It helps us become Christian leaders. d. It purifies our souls. e. It makes us more popular Christians.
3. True or False: Even if we fail to carry them out, good intentions are to our credit. (Matthew 21:28-32)
Matthew 21:28-32ESV
"What do you think? A man had two sons. And he went to the first and said, 'Son, go and work in the vineyard today.' And he answered, 'I will not,' but afterward he changed his mind and went. And he went to the other son and said the same. And he answered, 'I go, sir,' but did not go. Which of the two did the will of his father?" They said, "The first." Jesus said to them, "Truly, I say to you, the tax collectors and the prostitutes go into the kingdom of God before you. For John came to you in the way of righteousness, and you did not believe him, but the tax collectors and the prostitutes believed him. And even when you saw it, you did not afterward change your minds and believe him."
True or False?
4. To what does Jesus compare the life of a person who hears and obeys His Word? (Matthew 7:24-27)
Matthew 7:24-27ESV
"Everyone then who hears these words of mine and does them will be like a wise man who built his house on the rock. And the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house, but it did not fall, because it had been founded on the rock. And everyone who hears these words of mine and does not do them will be like a foolish man who built his house on the sand. And the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell, and great was the fall of it."
5. What blessings are reserved for the obedient Christian?
a. John 15:10
John 15:10ESV
If you keep my commandments, you will abide in my love, just as I have kept my Father's commandments and abide in his love.
b. John 15:14
John 15:14ESV
You are my friends if you do what I command you.
c. John 14:23
John 14:23ESV
Jesus answered him, "If anyone loves me, he will keep my word, and my Father will love him, and we will come to him and make our home with him.
d. 1 John 2:5
1 John 2:5ESV
but whoever keeps his word, in him truly the love of God is perfected. By this we may know that we are in him:
The Nature of Obedience
1. In the Old Testament, God's great standard for obedience was the Ten Commandments. What are the two Great Commandments in the New Testament? (Mark 12:28-31)
Mark 12:28-31ESV
And one of the scribes came up and heard them disputing with one another, and seeing that he answered them well, asked him, "Which commandment is the most important of all?" Jesus answered, "The most important is, 'Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one. And you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.' The second is this: 'You shall love your neighbor as yourself.' There is no other commandment greater than these."
In Matthew 22:40, Jesus indicates that the Ten Commandments were summarized in these two Great Commandments. The only one of the Ten Commandments that wasn't restated in the New Testament was #4, "Remember the Sabbath Day."
Matthew 22:40ESV
On these two commandments depend all the Law and the Prophets.
2. What should characterize our obedience? (Psalm 40:8)
Psalm 40:8ESV
I delight to do your will, O my God; your law is within my heart.
3. What is James' definition of disobedience? (James 4:17)
James 4:17ESV
So whoever knows the right thing to do and fails to do it, for him it is sin.
"Delayed obedience is disobedience."
-- ,
4. What should be our response when God's Word seems to contradict our own judgment? (Luke 5:4,5 -- and notice verses 6 and 7)
Luke 5:4-5ESV
And when he had finished speaking, he said to Simon, "Put out into the deep and let down your nets for a catch." And Simon answered, "Master, we toiled all night and took nothing! But at your word I will let down the nets."
5. In what area of your life does God want greater obedience?
An Obedient Christian Has...
- A mind through which Christ thinks
- A life through which Christ shows
- A voice through which Christ speaks
- A hand through which Christ helps.
- -- The Navigators
Suggested Reading
- The Root of the Righteous by A.W. Tozer
- My Heart, Christ's Home by Robert Munger