Matthew 5:43-48
43 Ye have heard that it hath been said, Thou shalt love thy neighbour, and hate thine enemy. 44 But I say unto you, Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you; 45 That ye may be the children of your Father which is in heaven: for he maketh his sun to rise on the evil and on the good, and sendeth rain on the just and on the unjust. 46 For if ye love them which love you, what reward have ye? do not even the publicans the same? 47 And if ye salute your brethren only, what do ye more than others? do not even the publicans so? 48 Be ye therefore perfect, even as your Father which is in heaven is perfect.
Sometimes God’s commands are difficult to understand. Maybe you’ve had the experience of reading along in your Bible, feeling great about God’s love for you, how He’s saved you, and how much He’s blessed you. You feel on top of the mountain. But then comes along something in your reading that hits you straight between the eyes. God convicts you of something in your life that needs to change. You instantly feel yourself slipping into the valley as the conflict between your flesh and His Spirit emerges.
I’ve had that experience before. I still do on a regular basis.
The above Scripture passage is one many believers have difficulty obeying. I know I do at times. But God has shown me at least three benefits that come from obeying His Word, particularly the hard passages we’d rather forget.
1.) Obedience Brings Blessing.
God promises in His Word if we obey Him, He’ll bless us.
Perhaps nowhere in Scripture does He make this point more clear than in Deuteronomy 28.
In Deuteronomy 28, God spoke to the Israelites concerning their obedience to Him. He set before them a number of principles for them to follow and He expected them to obey Him. If they did, they and all they had would be blessed. If they didn’t, they would be cursed.
The same principle still applies to us today.
How many times has God told you to do something and you didn’t do it? I know I’ve done it many times. Each time I disobeyed Him, things went wrong in my life, and I had to rely on Him to help me get back on the right path again. The way was often long and tedious, and could’ve been completely avoided if I’d made the right decision and obeyed Him in the first place.
The opposite is also true. I was greatly blessed when I obeyed Him.
Many people miss out on the blessings God wants to give them because they simply don’t want to trust Him and obey Him.
Jesus said in Luke 11:28, “Blessed are they that hear the word of God, and keep it.”
God has our best interests at heart. Our job is to trust Him and do what He wants us to do.
2.) Obedience Brings Health
The Book of Proverbs was written for our edification, for us to have the opportunity to get wisdom and understanding, so we may live the good life God wants us to live (see Proverbs 1:2-6).
Any Christian who wants to grow in their faith would be wise to read the Book of Proverbs regularly, for doing so will produce the healthy, good life God wants you to have. Proverbs lends itself easily to monthly reading, for the Book has 31 chapters. By reading one chapter per day and doubling up on the months that have less than 31 days, the Book can easily be read once per month. That kind of daily Bible reading, especially of Proverbs, will produce the healthy, growing relationship with God everyone needs. I recommend reading it once per month for at least a year. You’ll be amazed how much your faith will grow.
God promises in Proverbs 3:8 that obeying Him “shall be health to thy navel, and marrow to thy bones.” He also says in Proverbs 3:2 that “length of days, and long life, and peace” shall his commandments “add to thee.” In other words, health, peace, and long life result from obeying God and His Word.
Many people don’t realize they’d be much happier and would feel much better if they would simply read God’s Word on a daily basis and do their best to obey it.
3.) Obedience Brings Life
There’s a popular saying among some Christians that says, “Do what ministers life to you, not death to you.” I’m not sure where that phrase originated from, but there’s much truth in it as long as it’s based on the principles of God’s Word.
God’s Word brings life. Not only does it bring eternal life, but it brings life in the here and now. God made the world and each one of us. He made everything in it. Without His Word, none of us would be here and nothing that exists would be here, either.
Jesus said in John 10:10, “I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly.”
He wasn’t just speaking of eternal life. He was also speaking about the good life He wants us to have while we’re here on the earth.
Obeying God’s Word brings life to us because it is life. God authored it. It is God-breathed.
Jesus said, “I am the way, the truth, and the life” (John 14:6).
Since God’s Word is based on Jesus, who is the way, the truth, and the life, and since it’s authored by God, who is the giver of all life, we can know for sure that doing what it says will bring life to us also. Not just eternal life, but also a good life in the here and now. The good life God wants for us.
When we run into a hard passage in the Bible, it can be easy to throw up our hands and say, “I can’t do that. It’s just too hard.” Or, “What in the world is God thinking? He can’t possibly want me to do that.” It’s during those times we need to remember God loves us and wants His best for us. He’ll never tell us to do anything that isn’t for our benefit.
Do you need to forgive anyone? Has someone hurt you beyond what you can bare? Has anger, bitterness, or resentment gotten the best of you? If so, please know it’s possible to forgive. It’s possible to bless your enemies, instead of destroying them or yourself.
God doesn’t want you to drown in the poison of unforgiveness. He wants you to give your enemies to Him and let Him pay them back. He wants you to have a life of peace, blessing, and health, not a life of hatred, turmoil, and death. Bless your enemies and yourself by obeying God and trusting Him to take care of you.
Remember, “I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me” (Philippians 4:13).
King James Bible Inspiration 