Excerpt from John 14:15

"If you love me, you will obey what I command."
   
Reflection by Kenneth L. Samuel

I have heard John 14:15 used to justify submission to biblical literacy and unquestioning obedience to all of the onerous laws of the Old and New Testaments.  But Jesus never commanded us to obey the commandments;  Jesus commanded us to obey his commandments.  And as far as I can tell, the commandments of Christ are not draconian, outdated or sexist.  The commandments of Jesus are simply this: once we accept God’s love for us, we are commanded to love God and love one another.

Think about it.  We are commanded to love God who loved us first and gave God's self to us.  Then we are to share that love with everyone we encounter.  The commandments of Jesus kind of remind me of the following:

•     Take your children to their favorite amusement park.  Tell them that they can ride, they can play games and they can eat all the goodies they like.  Then command them to have a good time.

•    Meet the person that you've been praying and dreaming about.  Fall in love with him/her and accept his/her love for you.  Then command yourself to love, honor and cherish that person for the rest of your life.

•    Recognize that your life has been saved/redeemed by a goodness and a grace that is beyond you.  Then command yourself to offer that same goodness and grace to as many other people as you can.

•     (For us chocolate lovers)  Sink your teeth into a deep dark delectable two layer chocolate cake with creamy chocolate icing.  Then command yourself to enjoy it.

Are any of these really legalistic commandments?  Or are they inner compulsions to recognize and  to respond to the blessings we've been afforded.  I want to confess that obedience to Christ is not my duty; it is my delight.

Prayer

Dear Lord, we thank you today for transforming religious duty into real delight.  Thank you for the joy of our salvation and the gladness of our service.  Amen.

About the Author Kenneth L. Samuel is Pastor of Victory for the World Church, Stone Mountain, Georgia.

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