"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.'" — Jeremiah 7:23, ESV
It looks like there are a lot of commands in this verse, but it really is only one command in this verse. God told Abraham that he had given the people of Israel only one command. What was it? Obey my voice. That's it. Do what God said to do. And yet the simplicity of the command was not seen in the response of the people.
God told them to obey. He didn't tell them feel good about what he commands. He didn't tell them to follow their feelings. He didn't even say that they needed to agree with his commands. Rather, he simply told them to obey his voice.
It is so easy to look at the Israelites back when God spoke these words to Jeremiah with contempt for them, but how are we all that different? He is still saying the same thing to us. We are not called to obey him when it fits our schedules. We are not called to obey if we agree with his commandment. What has gotten into God's people that we actually believe that God's commands will always be commands that we agree with? Remember: he is calling us to a life that is different than our natural inclinations. Be prepared: you will disagree with many of his commands. That is why God has to tell us to obey.
I call myself a follower of Jesus. I have submitted my life to Christ and his Lordship. That simply means: I OBEY HIM. Paul said it this way: "I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me" — Galatians 2:20, ESV.
I live by faith. My faith is seen in my obedience to Christ and his commands, not in the feelings that I try to muster up when I see one of his commands. It's simple: do what he says. Now let's make it happen.
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