John 14:21 (NIV)
“Whoever has my commands and keeps them is the one who loves me. The one who loves me will be loved by my Father, and I too will love them and show myself to them.”
Throughout the whole Bible, we see how important it is to God that His children obey His instructions. Jesus said that those who truly love Him wouldn’t just know His commands—they’d keep them in their hearts. That alone shows how essential obedience is in the Christian life, right?
Now, things like fasting, setting aside time to pray, worshiping with music, and even going to church are definitely important parts of Christianity. But the point of this article is to look at how those practices compare to obedience. Are they less important? Are they just as crucial? Let’s dive into it and find out!
1 – Obedience Is A Sign Of Trust
Genesis 22:12 (NIV)
“Do not lay a hand on the boy,” he said. “Do not do anything to him. Now I know that you fear God, because you have not withheld from me your son, your only son.”
Abraham is definitely a powerful example of both faith and obedience. He’s even called the “father of faith.” God gave him a tough test to prove his character—to see if he would really obey His instructions. The test? He had to be willing to sacrifice his only son, Isaac, the one he loved so much.
The reason for this is simple: God has specific plans for our lives. But if He blesses us without first testing us, there’s a chance we might drift away from Him once we receive that blessing. Since God is all-knowing, He understands our weaknesses better than we do. And sometimes, in order to help us grow, He allows challenges so we can be prepared for what’s ahead.
Abraham passed the test. He showed his trust in God when, before heading up the mountain to sacrifice Isaac, he told his servants, “We will go and worship—and then we will come back.” Hebrews 11:17–19 gives us amazing insight into that moment, showing that Abraham believed God could even raise Isaac from the dead. That’s some serious faith!
So here’s the thing: God is always on the lookout for people He can trust and work through—but don’t forget, the test often comes before the blessing!
2 – Disobedience Annul The Sacrifice
1 Samuel 15:22 (NIV)
But Samuel replied: “Does the Lord delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices as much as in obeying the Lord? To obey is better than sacrifice, and to heed is better than the fat of rams.”
God gave Saul a clear command: to completely destroy his enemies. But instead of fully obeying, he decided to go with partial obedience. His excuse? “I brought back some of their cattle to offer as a sacrifice to the Lord.” But here’s what I’ve come to understand—when you only obey God halfway, it still counts as disobedience in His eyes.
Because of that, Saul was rejected as King of Israel, and God chose someone else to replace him—a young man named David. This teaches us something powerful: it doesn’t matter how gifted or strong you are—if you disobey God’s instructions, He can raise up someone else to do what you were supposed to.
So listen, my advice is simple: choose the right thing. Choose to obey. That’s how you’ll walk in God’s purpose for your life—for real.
3 – Obedience Is The Basic
John 15:14 (NIV)
“You are my friends if you do what I command.”
Luke 6:46 (NIV)
“Why do you call me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ and do not do what I say?”
Obedience is a basic foundation when we talk about Christianity. Think about it—since we (the Church) are called the Bride of Christ, let’s picture a hypothetical situation: imagine a bride who constantly says she loves her groom but keeps cheating on him.
There’s no way that relationship could grow or thrive, right? The same goes for our relationship with God. If we truly want to live out His purpose for our lives, we have to obey His Word and follow His direction. Being a Christian isn’t just about a list of “do this” and “don’t do that”—it’s about relationship.
God doesn’t just want to be seen as our God—He wants to be our Father, our Friend, our Guide. He wants to walk with us and lead us. So open your heart, and make the choice to fully surrender to Him. When you do, He will be faithful to fulfill every promise He’s made for your life!
Conclusion
Today we learned that with God, there’s no such thing as “partial obedience”—it’s either full obedience or it’s disobedience. Saul was meant to be king for many more years, but his disobedience cut his time short. He missed out on living the full purpose God had for his life.
Brothers and sisters, this is not the time to play around with Christianity. The devil isn’t playing games, so we shouldn’t either. Take your walk with God seriously and live out the purpose He’s prepared for you!
If this article spoke to you, don’t forget to leave a comment and share it with your church group or with someone you know who needs to hear this message. May God bless you all!
