The AC Phoenix
December 2006
Page 41
Obedience—
An Act of Love
I’m sure I’ve written on this before, but i thought the significance of
obedience was important enough to repeat here. It occurs to me that
obedience to God is an exercise in ‘want to’ as opposed to ‘have to.’
The analogy given in church is simple enough. When parents enforce
rules and discipline with regard to their children, if the chiid is to respond out
of respect and love, a relationship must exist between parent and child.
If a wholesome relationship does indeed exist, then the child’s love for the
parent will result in that child wanting to comply. If all one does is obey the
rules because of the consequences and punishment associated with dis
obeying the rules, and then the rules generally get thrown out the window
when the rule maker is no longer around.
I guess what I’m saying is that when grounded in love, people want to
respond favorably according to the wishes and will of the person who is the
object of that love. By our very nature we want to look good in the eyes of
someone we’re trying to impress.
Jesus says, “If anyone loves me, he will obey my teaching.” John 14:23.
Examine this use of the term obey. What Christ is saying is the same thing
that many a mother and a father believe about their kids. First and foremost,
we all know the things that would upset mom and dad. We know this
because they spent a lifetime (yours) instilling values and integrity into your
character.
You might still do things they wouldn’t condone, but you certainly know
the difference between the right and wrong of it because of your upbringing.
That upbringing, if nurtured in the spirit of love, reveals to all of us the source
and nature of the consequences and the resulting discipline. It’s love. Y’all
know that ‘this is going to hurt me more than it’s gonna hurt you’ thing. Christ
is merely reminding us that if you love Him, then obeying His rules. His
teachings, which were given to us out of the love of the Father, should come
from the heart. Our desire to please should override our mere compliance to
the rules. The point is obedience to God has so much more to do with want
ing to do the right thing for the right reason, than doing the right thing
because it is law.
One is the result of relationship and the other is the result of fear of con
sequence. Throughout scripture, Jesus constantly refers to the love of the
Father. How many of you do what your mother would expect of you and your
mother has been dead for many a year? How many of you pass those same
expectations along to your kids? Why?
I submit that you do this because of the relationship you had/have with
your mother. That’s why I’m convinced that the key to understanding obedi
ence to God is establishing, or for many of us re-establishing, a relationship
with the Almighty. This is achieved by studying His Word, getting inside of
His commandments and examining the life of Jesus Christ, who because of
a love thing with His Father, carried out His Father’s wishes to the letter.
“I will not speak with you much longer, for the prince of this world is com
ing. He has no hold on me, but the world must learn that I love the Father
and I do exactly what my Father has commanded me.” John 14:30-31.
To obey should be an act of love. Our goal should be to understand
God’s love for us and to simply do our best to return it; act accordingly, so to
speak.
May God bless and keep you always. James
My
Answer
In response to last month’s article:
Dear Ms K,
To help this lady, if words will do it, here goes. This creature probably had
other women he was sharing himself with. If not, I know he was taking the
Pills. Pills not a pill. If he was sharing himself with other women, they cut
him off so he had no other choice but to take it out on his wife. She also
needs to cut him off.
Curtis
Dear My Answer,
I would like to know who this monster is so I could shake him up a time or
two. How can a man do any woman this way? Maybe he should be caged
up with animals but that would be cruelty to the animals.
No Name Please
Dear Ms K,
I wish I knew this man. He could walk in my bedroom at anytime. This
woman is lucky. A couple of hours are better than a couple of minutes. I
think this gentleman is trying to please his wife, but he is over doing it. I
don’t think this should be an issue in a marriage that can’t be solved. With
this woman showing a little kindness instead of raising the roof, just might
make a difference. It would help your readers if we knew their ages. I’m at
an age where an hour pleases me but I would put up with a little longer if it
would please my husband. (I’m not married) but every night is much too
long. I hope they can work this out because sex I think should never cause
separation in a marriage. There are too many other things that cause mar
riages to fail. I think this man should slow down whether he’s taking pills or
this is just a stage of life he is going thru. If they love each other I’m sure
something can be done. Only the two of them can solve this.
Cathleen
Greensboro, NC
Merry Christmas to everyone from “Ms K, My Answer.” Many, many thanks
for your responses during the year of 2006. If you didn’t respond then we
couldn’t share our thoughts with others. Maybe some of your problems have
helped others who were experiencing the same. I hope some of our
answers have solved some of your problems. It has been a very success
ful year for us. Let’s continue to pray for peace throughout the world. We
are blessed at all times, but we will be blessed if we give at Christmas to
those that are in need.
Ms K, My Answer
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