Truly Obey God: Let Us Learn from Moses!

Obedience is a good quality, yet it is hard to practice. Why? Because we tend to obey when it benefits us. On the other hand, when we feel burdened, it is difficult for us to obey.

The same is true in our relationship with God. When the command of God feels easy and pleasant, it is easy for us to obey. But when His commandfeels hard, then obedience also becomes hard.

If we believe that God is good, it should not be hard to obey Him. Sadly, there are times when we trust our own thoughts or wisdom more, so we look for what we like rather than what pleases God.

Surprisingly, this is what happened to Moses.

Moses Who Did Not Obey

On the journey to the promised land (Canaan), the Israelites became thirsty because there was no source of water. Moses bowed down to ask for direction from God. 

Numbers 20:8  "Take your staff, and you and Aaron your brother are to assemble the congregation. Speak to the rock before their eyes, and it will yield its water. In this way you shall bring water out of the rock for them and give the congregation and their livestock drink." 

Clearly, God commanded Moses to tell the rock to bring forth water. That was all! Yet Moses did something else instead.

Numbers 20:10-11  When Moses and Aaron had gathered the assembly before the rock, he said to them, "Listen to me, you rebels, must we bring water for you out of this rock?" 

Then Moses lifted up his hand and struck the rock with his staff twice, and much water came out, so that the people and their livestock drank.

Perhaps because he was tired and angry with the Israelites, Moses struck the rock with his staff. What happened next was truly tragic.

One Failure to Obey, One Great Consequence

The water did come out and satisfied many people. However, Moses had to bear the consequence of what he had done: he would not enter the promised land.

Numbers 20:12 But the LORD said to Moses and Aaron, "Because you did not trust in Me and did not uphold My holiness before the eyes of the Israelites, therefore you shall not bring this assembly into the land that I have given them." 

Because of this one thing in which he did not obey, Moses could not enter the promised land. There was nothing else he could do except look at it from afar. It is truly sad, especially after Moses had done so much!

Deuteronomy 32:52 You may see the land spread out before you, but you shall not enter it, the land that I give to the people of Israel."

Because Moses did not obey the command of God, he would not enter the promised land. He could only see it from afar. What Moses experienced was truly tragic. Only because of his disobedience, he could not enjoy the promise of God to the people of Israel.  

Why Must We Obey God's Commands?

It is painful to read Moses' story. Only because of his disobedience, he failed to enjoy the promise of God. From this we also learn that obeying God is truly important: He wants us to follow Him wholeheartedly.

Yet, of course, there are reasons why God demands our obedience. What are those reasons?

1. God's Commands and Word Are Good for Us

Perhaps we have thought, the commands of God are so many and impossible to obey completely. It feels troublesome if life is always being regulated. We forget that all His commandsare good for us. 

Psalm 119:105  Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path. 

Psalm 19:8 The precepts of the LORD are right, rejoicing the heart; the command of the LORD is pure, enlightening the eyes. 

We need to remember again, God loves us deeply. What would be the point if the decrees of God were only to trouble us and control our lives as His creatures? Surely God does not mean that. 

As the verses above show, the word of God is the guide for our path in life. It will give understanding and wisdom for living this life. We will be given strength and hope. His word will become life's compass when we begin to lose our way, and it will keep us from temptation and destruction.

Seeing that the word and the commands of God are good, will motivate us to obey God.

2. God Has Greatly Loved Us

Do we realize that God has greatly loved us and continues to love us? Let us remember again the many times God has helped in our lives. When we pray and ask for a spouse, children, or work, God answers. Even if we feel that not a single prayer has been answered by Him, is it true that He does not love us?

Matthew 5:45 So that you may become children of your Father in heaven, who makes His sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the righteous and on the unrighteous.

As the verse above says, God causes the sun to rise and the rain to fall for everyone, without any reason at all. Even if God does not answer our prayers, who created us and gave us breath? Who has sustained our lives during this Covid-19 pandemic? It is God who has done that for us.

If God has loved us, will we not be moved to follow His will?

Like children who are grateful and feel loved by their parents, they will find it easy to obey them. So too should our attitude be in honoring the Father's love.

Obeying God is a form of appreciation for the love of God in our lives. 

Obey God, Live According to His Design

Seeing how good His commands and His Word are, we ought to decide to obey God. God wants to protect us and truly loves us; that alone should be enough to motivate us to obey His commands.

God always plans what is best. However, that only happens if we obey His commands. Are we willing to surrender and follow Him, so that God's plan may come to pass in our lives?

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