The Bible’s verses that we don’t understand, find difficult to apply, or may not even want to apply come to mind when we think about how vital the Bible is as our “Guide to God’s Will.” There are Christians who follow “the Bible says” in everything. Some Christians only want to learn from other Christians, and they don’t even want a copy of the Bible. Why should we seek advice from the Bible (ours!)?
Good or bad?
God did not intend for Moses to be unjust to the Israelites by imposing restrictions on what and how they might eat when He gave him the so-called dietary rules. But even in those days when most, if not all, other countries did not prioritize food hygiene, the Law’s cleanliness standards avoided a great deal of illnesses and food poisonings. God did not order terrible punishment when He declared, “An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth,” (Matthew 5:38, quoting Exodus 21:24). Rather, God intended to limit the penalty (so that those administering it would not make the punishment worse than the offense).
When God was severe with the people of Israel, it was not so that they would suffer, but rather so that He could lead them back to His purpose and bestow blessings upon them. God has always considered what is best for both of them and for us. Our God is GOOD!
But why should I listen to God?
Before we consider our own benefit, there is one major reason why we should listen to God that is more important than any other motivation. In John 14:15, Jesus says: “If you love Me, you will keep My commandments”. And in verse 21, “Whoever has My commandments and keeps them, he it is who loves Me. And he who loves Me will be loved by my Father, and I will love him and manifest Myself to him.” Basically, Jesus says that ignoring His words is not a sign of our love. If we love Him, we are called to show Him this – by keeping His commandments. Similar verses are in James 1:22; 2 John 1:6; 1 John 5:3, and many others. How do we know what His commandments are? We read the New Testament.
Remembering that God values obedience much is crucial. Philippians 2:8 reminds us that Jesus was obedient to the point of death, even death on a crucifixion. Since God has given us salvation as a free gift and knows that we will experience eternal goodness in His presence, obeying Him makes sense as a way to honor Him!
Why would God care what I do, or don’t do?
God is not a distant God. He didn’t just create earth and mankind, only to disappear until we die and meet Him face to face. God’s Spirit is with us every day, and He takes an interest in us, every day. In verses such as John 15:16, Jesus reveals that He specifically chose His disciples. And as we are His sheep, He, as our Shepherd, knows us, too (John 10:27). In Matthew 10:29-31, Jesus explains that God knows of every sparrow that falls to the ground, but that we are of more value than many sparrows. So does God care? – indeed He does. Ideally, He would want to protect us from any evil or sadness, illness or wrongdoing, and keep us in the palm of His hand (John 10:28 and others).
Why doesn’t He just allow us everything?
Our decisions and conduct have an impact on the outcomes of our actions. God is aware that many decisions and deeds result in negative outcomes, such as poor health, accidents, poverty, etc. He is omniscient, thus He is aware of the consequences of the decisions we make today. In addition, we must never lose sight of the fact that He is both a loving and a just God. Being righteous implies that if all we do is reject and disobey Him, He will be unable to continue bestowing gifts onto us. We deprive ourselves of His blessing when we reject and defy Him. He does not desire that.
Therefore, we are urged to pay attention to what God has to say because the life He has planned for us is far less than what we would experience without His assistance. Do we always see such blessings clearly and abundantly? Not at all! God’s teachings can occasionally “invade” areas of our lives that we would much rather keep independent. We find it hard to accept that, in the long run, He might be correct; we believe it is none of His concern.
Surely as we have free will, we can do what we like?
Yes, indeed. God gave Adam and Eve free will as well. Unfortunately, they misused it to disobey God’s exact instructions, which is why none of us are in the Garden of Eden today. Although we also possess free will, it is not as pure as that of Adam and Eve. Our free will is influenced by the Fall, the point in human history when sin entered the world via one person (Romans 5:12), when Adam and Eve ate the fruit that God forbade them from eating. This causes us to lean toward sin. We can’t undervalue this inclination.
Acts 26:18 reiterates John 12:46’s description of us as being in the dark, meaning that we are no longer “neutral.” We literally need Jesus to turn us from the power of Satan to God (Acts 26:18), from darkness to light, and from the Lord’s light to our own (Ephesians 5:8). Thus, we must exercise caution when using our free will. Though our “forbidden fruit” will most likely differ from an apple, we could utilize our free will to do the same error as Adam and Eve!
We can even wonder if listening to God is ever inferior than exercising our free will. We could be persuaded by the world’s darkness to reject God’s will by exercising our free will. We can never, however, “know better than God.” Whatever lies “around the corner” in our lives, God is aware of it. God has already seen the results, even though we may feel that we really shouldn’t do something else or that we really need something. He is aware. Furthermore, we can rely on His Word to lead us to reach our greatest potential.
We would advise you to attempt obtaining a copy of the Bible and educate yourself about God if you do not already have one. Yes, using our Bible reading plans or an online Bible is the most convenient option.
