Teaching Note 15
Faith Insight 15: Love Is the Heart of Obedience
“Whoever has my commandments and keeps them, he it is who loves me.” — John 14:21 (ESV)
Throughout this part of our Faith That Lives journey, we have been considering what happens when trust becomes obedience. We have seen that obedience makes trust visible. We have seen that obedience sometimes comes before complete understanding. Saul warned us about the danger of partial obedience. Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego showed us what it means to remain faithful even when the outcome is uncertain. But as we continue exploring obedience, we need to ask a deeper question:
Why does the believer obey God?
If we answer that question incorrectly, obedience can become little more than religious duty—something we do because we are ____________, because we want to earn God's __________, or simply because we believe we are supposed to. Jesus points us toward something much deeper. He connects obedience with ___________.
“Whoever has my commandments and ___________ them, he it is who loves me.” — John 14:21 (ESV)
This relationship between love and obedience did not begin in the New Testament. Centuries earlier, Moses told Israel:
“You shall love the LORD your God with all your ___________ and with all your ___________and with all your ___________t.” — Deuteronomy 6:5 (ESV)
God did not desire merely an outwardly compliant people. He desired their ___________. Jesus brings that same truth into the relationship between Himself and His disciples:
“If you ___________ me, you will ___________ my commandments.”— John 14:15 (ESV)
Notice what Jesus does not say. He does not say: “Obey Me so that I will love you.”
Instead, obedience ___________ within a relationship of ___________. That changes the character of obedience. Imagine the difference between serving someone because you fear punishment and serving someone you deeply love and trust. The outward action might look similar at times. But inwardly they are completely different. One says: “I have to.” The other increasingly says: “I want to please the One I love.” This does not mean obedience always feels easy.
___________sometimes does difficult things.
___________ can still hurt.
___________ can still require endurance.
___________ the ___________ can still cost us something.
Resisting ___________ can still involve struggle.
Following Christ can require ___________.
But love changes ___________ we do these things.
John later writes: “For this is the love of God, that we keep his commandments. And his commandments are not burdensome.”— 1 John 5:3 (ESV)
Faith ___________ God. Love ___________ God. Obedience ___________ God.
They belong together within a living relationship. This takes us back to the question behind this entire series:
What does it mean to have a faith that truly lives?
It means more than agreeing that God exists.
· God makes Himself known.
· We hear His Word.
· We come to know Him.
· We trust Him.
· We follow Him.
And increasingly, because we trust and love Him, His will begins to shape the way we live. But even here, we must be careful about the order.
We do not begin with our obedience and work our way toward God's grace.
God acts first. He makes Himself known. He calls. He loves. He gives. He forgives. He saves. Our obedience is not an attempt to persuade God to be gracious toward us. It is a response to the grace He has already shown. This is why obedience is not the destination of our relationship with God. God Himself is. We obey because the One who leads us is the One we are learning to know, trust, and love.
___________ comes before ___________.
A SIMPLE PRAYER
Father, keep my obedience from becoming empty duty. Help me know You more deeply so trust and love increasingly shape how I respond to You. Thank You that I do not obey to earn Your grace or persuade You to love me. You have loved first. You have acted first. Teach me to respond to Your grace with a willing heart, to trust Your wisdom, to love Your Son, and to walk faithfully with You. In Jesus' name, amen.
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