Daily Devotional

-July 14, 2021-

Good morning, happy Wednesday,

-Obedience And Love Go Together-

“If you keep My commandments, you will abide in My love, just as I have have kept My Father’s commandments and abide in His love.”

(John 15:10).

Love for the Lord and obedience to Him go together as a hand and glove. When we keep His commandments we abide in His love, and conversely when we love Him, we will obey Him. It is based on our relationship to Christ and on His relationship to the Father.

John 14:23 says, “Jesus answered and said to 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.’” We love Him because He first loved us and gave Himself for us on the cross. Love is the ultimate motive for obedience, and obedience is the ultimate expression of our love for the Lord Jesus. Jesus said in John 14:15, “If you love Me, keep My commandments.”

Obedience without love is duty, love without obedience is unthankfulness; but love with obedience is delightful devotion. We can never love Him enough nor can we obey Him as He deserves. Jesus, God’s Son loves the Father and obeys Him fully, doing His will. God never forces us to obey Him, but His great love for us compels us to comply to whatever He asks.

It is not hard to obey the Lord who loves us so much. He is our loving Lord and Savior. We may obey our parents to stay out of trouble; we may obey our bosses to keep our jobs; we may obey the law to stay out of jail; but we obey our Lord because of our love for Him and ourdesire to please Him.

Let us show our obedience because we love Him, and may we show our love by our obedience to Him. The closer we draw to the Lord, the more we love Him; and the more we love Him, the more we will obey Him. Jesus is the best example of love and obedience: He loved the Father and did His will fully.

Have a blessed day abiding in Christ’s love and obeying His will. There is nothing better than that. Stay safe and healthy.

In His grace,

Dean