“In this is love, not that we have loved God but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins.”
–1 John 4:10
I want to follow God. I know the ultimate outcome will be for the best when we obey Him. One of my best friends once confided in me that she was actually anxious that she would disobey God and fall away from Him. At that time, I also had the same fear deep down inside. I’ve always known that my salvation is secure, but I still feared the consequences of my own mistakes.
Here are four important truths I have learned since then:
1. God wants to help us obey Him.
This is a fact the New Testament talks about a lot. When Jesus sent believers the Holy Spirit, He sent us someone to help us follow Him.
“For if you live according to the flesh you will die, but if by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body, you will live.” –Romans 8:13
“Walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh.” –Galations 5:16
God transforms us to be like Him, and in doing so, be begin to desire the same things as God.
2. Even if we don’t listen to Him, God is still in control.
While we’ll face consequences when we disobey God, He is still in control. If my son disobeys me by playing with a candle, he’ll certainly get burned. However, I’m not going to reject him as my child: as a matter of fact, I’ll apply cold water and aloe to his burn. No matter what he does, even if he grows up to make huge mistakes in life, I’ll still be his mother. Even if I make terrible mistakes in life, God is still my father, and that’s what my hope is founded in.
3. God’s forgiveness is complete.
Our sins disappoint us, but they don’t disappoint God.
“For I will be merciful toward their iniquities,
and I will remember their sins no more.” –Hebrews 8:12
“For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.” –2 Corinthians 5:21
On the cross Jesus saw all of the sins we would ever commit and he took all of the punishment we deserved on Himself.
4. God’s love is unconditional.
My mother told me when she was a child, songs were sung in her church which confused her idea of who God is. I found one of them:
“Oh, be careful, little eyes, what you see,
Oh, be careful, little eyes, what you see.
There’s a Father up above looking down in love,
So, be careful, little eyes, what you see.”
This song painted a picture for my mom and many of her peers of a harsh old father who is waiting to reward us if we’re good and punish us if we’re bad.
The Bible, however, tells us of Someone who loves us faithfully and unconditionally. He gave us everything in Him and died so that we could have a relationship with Him. Having a relationship with God is in itself the greatest blessing a person could have. Instead of fearing that we might disobey Him, He wants us to find peace and security in Him.
This Christmas season, may we remember why Jesus came into this world: to make a way to have a relationship with Him.
“There is no fear in love, but perfect love casts out fear. For fear has to do with punishment, and whoever fears has not been perfected in love.”
–1 John 4:18
Anna Sojourning 