WE LIVE WHAT WE LOVE

Recently I’ve been thinking about how I think about God’s commands. There definitely was a time in my life when I didn’t get too excited about all the “thou shalt nots” in the Bible. It pretty much seemed like if something was fun, satisfying, or fattening it was sin. I remember one time visiting a friend’s and near where he lived there was a vacant house. Someone had put sign on the house which said, ‘Don’t throw rocks.” Guess which window was broken? The one nearest the sign! There’s something about human nature and our sin nature, which causes us to resist or rebel against the rules. 

I have found that when we look at the commandments as rules that must be obeyed or else, isn’t all that helpful. I have been impressed by the attitude of the writer of Psalm 119. Check out the following verses from the longest chapter in the Bible:

Verse 16: “I delight in your decrees; I will not neglect your word.”

Verse 24: “Your statutes are my delight; they are my counselors.”

Verse 47: “…for I delight in your commands because I love them.”

Verse 48: “I lift up my hands to your commands, which I love, and I meditate on your decrees.”

Verse 92: “If your law had not been my delight, I would have perished in my affliction.”

Verse 97: “Oh, how I love your law! I meditate on it all day long.”

Verse 120: “My flesh trembles in fear of you; I stand in awe of your laws.”

Verse 127: “Because I love your commands more than gold, more than pure gold.”

Verse 129: “Your statutes are wonderful; therefore I obey them.”

Verse 159: “See how I love your precepts.”

Verse 174: “I long for your salvation, O LORD, and your law is my delight.”

I may have missed a verse or two in Psalm 119, but you get the idea. The psalmist didn’t look at God’s commandments [laws, precepts, decrees] as rules to throw rocks at or to be rebelled against. He understood that the “thou shalt nots” originated with a loving God, who had nothing but our very best in mind. 

If we can change how we think about the commandments, I believe it will dramatically impact our obedience to God. From the eleven verses above, the most common words used by the psalmist, to describe how he thinks are: delight and love. So, take some time to think about how you think about the commandments. We live what we love, so if we can develop a deeper love for, and delight in God’s commands, obedience will become a delight and not a huge drag.