Obedience Is the Key That Unlocks God’s Promises

In review of Deuteronomy 5:33 this morning, I read that I am to “Follow all the directions the LORD your God has given you. Life will go well for you.” (GW)

God wants me to respect and obey him. There is a difference between doing something because it is required and doing something because I want to. God is not interested in forced exercises and rule keeping. He wants my heart and my life to be completely dedicated to him. If I love him, obedience will follow and life will go well for me.

There is a link between faith and obedience. When I trust someone, I do what they say. If I don’t do what someone tells me to do, it means I don’t trust them.

In the Bible, God links faith and obedience over and over again. The promises of God are conditioned on my following of the directions he has given me.

God has made some incredible, specific promises in his Word about obedience. In fact, there are so many promises that it’s hard to list of them, however here are a few:

. “God blesses those who obey him” (Proverbs 16:20 TLB).

. “He saves those who obey him” (Psalm 7:10 GNT). 

. “The Lord watches over those who obey him” (Psalm 33:18 GNT).

. “The Lord takes care of those who obey him” (Psalm 37:18 GNT).

. “God gives us what we ask for because we obey God’s commands” (1 John 3:22 NCV).

. “Always obey the Lord and you will be happy” (Proverbs 28:14 GNT).

. “Keep God’s laws and you will live longer” (Proverbs 19:16 GNT).

. “Those who obey him have all they need . . . Those who obey the Lord lack nothing good” (Psalm 34:9-10 GNT).

It's an incredible list of promises. If I follow God’s directions, I’ll be blessed, saved, watched over, taken care of, given what I ask for, and happy; I’ll live longer and lack nothing good.

Obedience is the premise behind all of the promises. God gives me his promises by grace. But I get to enjoy his promises when I follow his instructions.

Sometimes I understand God’s instructions. But sometimes I don’t. However, I need to obey whether or not I understand.

Some of God’s commands might sound confusing. Some may seem unfair. For example, the Bible says to take the first 10 percent of your income and give it back to him. It says that when people do evil to you, you are to do good back to them. These things don’t always make sense from a human standpoint. But the things that don’t make sense to me are the things God asks me to do by faith. He wants me to trust him and obey anyway.

To enjoy all of God’s promises. Obedience is the key that unlocks them. I should choose to follow his directions today in faith. He promises to reward me for my obedience.

In summary, Learn to follow all the directions God has given me, then life will go well for me. God wants me to respect and obey him. He wants my heart and my life to be completely dedicated to him. If I love him, obedience will follow and life will go well. There is a link between faith and obedience. When I trust, I'll do what they say. The promises of God are conditioned on my following of the directions he has given me. There are specific promises in his Word about obedience. If I follow God’s directions, I’ll be blessed, saved, watched over, taken care of, given what I ask for, and happy; I’ll live longer and lack nothing good. So I need to obey whether or not I understand. But the things that don’t make sense to me are the things God asks me to do by faith. He wants me to trust him and obey anyway. Obedience is the key that unlocks blessing. I should choose to follow his directions today in faith for he promises to reward me for my obedience.

As I consider my work, several things have happened and taken away that don’t make me feel that great. God’s Word and promises have been a tremendous growth area for me. While I don’t like what has happened and do not completely understand, I have God’s Word and perspective reminding me that I need to be obedient and follow his lead. God has something in mind through all of this that I don’t completely understand or maybe even want to understand. However I will keep doing what God’s Word has told me to do and trust him with the results. 

I pray this morning Father that through the Holy Spirit’s prompting and absorbing your promises, that I will continue in obedience. I ask you for wisdom and guidance for my day, my work, my leadership and my interactions with others. I pray this through your Son Jesus name, Amen.