I’m a doer. I love doing things. Sometimes it’s hard for me to stop doing things. When it comes to being a Christian, I do what I’m supposed to do. To be honest, sometimes I get frustrated at those who don’t do what the Bible says. But here’s the truth, doing what the Bible tells me to do isn’t what is going to make God love me more. God loves it when we follow him, but what if we are too busy doing what we ought to do that we don’t listen to him?
Let Me Clarify
By no means am I suggesting we should stop doing what the Bible calls us to do, but there is a balance. The Bible says we should share the gospel in Matthew 28, right? Well, how often should we share the gospel? Can we take some time off from sharing to sleep or eat? Or what about to enjoy fellowship with other believers? So, we should do what the Bible says, but the Bible says a lot and we can’t possibly do everything it says all the time.
What I’m getting at is that we should follow the whole Bible rather than just the commands. Instead of just doing the rules of the Bible, we should follow how the Bible tells us to follow God. In the end, we will be following the Bible, but we will be walking exactly the path that God desires.
Legalism Vs. Freedom
I think this is the main problem that Jesus had with the Pharisees. They were so busy doing what they ought to do that they never stopped and listened to God. They found their validation in how well they could follow all the meticulous commands they gave themselves from every little implication of the Old Testament. This is also the point brought up by Jesus when Martha comes and asks Jesus to tell Mary to help her with all the cleaning and prep work in Luke 10:38-42. Instead of telling Mary to do what was considered a woman’s duty at that time, he tells Martha that she should stop working and come be with him.
Instead of using all the rules in the Bible to imprison ourselves into a whole big list of dos and don’ts. We should follow God as he guides us through life. This brings freedom and joy, but—above all else—this brings us into a relationship with God. You might as well be a machine if you only ever do things. What a relief this is. We don’t need to feel pressured into always doing things. God is just as pleased with you when you take well-earned breaks and rest with him. You don’t need to be some workaholic, or some mega church pastor to feel good about your standing before God. All you need to do is be a faithful and wise steward with what God puts before you each day.
Follow God
Rules easily burden us, but good and strong relationships invigorate us. Following God doesn’t always mean working either. Often times, God wants us to sit and rest and enjoy him and the life he’s given us. My washing machine is far more useful than my dog, but I’d pick my dog over my washing machine any day. Why? Because my dog loves me and wants to be with me. I have a relationship with my dog.
God wants to have a relationship with you too. Don’t just be his washing machine. Yes, do as God says, but don’t just do, be. Be with God. You don’t need to work to make God happy. He loves you, and he wants to enjoy time with you. Walk with God. Follow God. Enjoy life with God. Laugh with him. Spend time with him. Listen to God and rest when he leads you into a season or time of rest. He gave us this beautiful planet, and he wants you to enjoy it with him.
In the end, we will be much better doers if we walk with God. Not only will we do exactly what he desires with each moment of each day, we will do all of this with joy. What good is a servant of God if he follow’s the Bible’s commands out of compulsion? That’s what other religions do. We fortunately get the chance to follow God and do as he says out of joy that we get to work alongside him.
So let’s follow God with joy as he leads us to take faithful steps just as the Bible says. Let’s live wilder . . . with God.
If you liked blog, I’d encourage you to check out my blog post: God Our Gardener
If you want to be more confident in your salvation or your relationship with God, check out my post: Facts Over Feelings
