Privilege verses Obligation
We don’t do the things we do, so that God can love us, God loves us because God is
love. No one could ever earn salvation, salvation is a free gift from God (Ephesians 2:
8-9) says “for by grace are you saved through faith, and that not of yourselves, it is the
gift of God. Not of works, less any man should boast”. This is our significant privileges
associated with our new life in Christ. We have personal access to God through Christ
and can draw near to Him without fear. It is an awesome privilege to be able to
approach God with freedom and confidence. Thanks to Christ, by faith we can enter
directly into God’s presence through prayer. We know that in His presence, there is
fullness of joy (Psalms 16:11). Jesus says “he that has My commandments and keeps
them, he it is that loves Me and he that loves Me shall be loved of My Father, and I will
love him, and will manifest Myself to him. Judas said to Him, not Iscariot, Lord, how is it
that You will manifest Yourself to us, and not to the world? Jesus answered and said to
him, If a man love Me, he will keep My words, and My Father will love him, and We will
come to him, and make Our abode with him” (John 14:21-23).
We must keep His commandments from the heart, and not by the letter of the law (I
John 2:3-6) “And hereby we do know that we know Him, if we keep His commandments,
he that says, I know Him, and keeps not His commandments, is a liar, and the truth is
not in him. But whoso keeps His word, in him verily is the love of God perfected,
hereby know we that we are in Him, he that says he abides in Him ought himself also so
to walk, even as He walked. Lets look also at Colossians 3:1-17,23-25. Christians
have both privilege and great responsibility. You have heard people say, “we are not
under the law”, and yes that is true, however we are not to continue in sin because we
are under grace (Romans 6:15) “what then, shall we sin, because we are not under the
law, but under grace? God forbid.” When you do the things that go against the word
of God, you open the door for the devil to come in and we know as John 10;10 says
“the thief comes not but to steal, and to kill, and to destroy”. Examples: when you eat
the things that God says don’t eat, you let in sickness and diseases. When you go into
debt, you become a servant to the lender, paying the minimum on your balances, will
keep you indebted and it will cost you many times more to pay for things that you buy
on credit.
Can life truly be lived out of obligation? We cannot love God out of obligation. There
is a difference between doing something because it is required and doing something
because we want to. God is not interested in forced religious exercises and rule-
keeping. He wants our hearts and lives completely dedicated to Him. If we love Him,
obedience will follow. The Bible says in Romans 2:4 “that the goodness of God leads
you to repentance” not the law. When you love anyone you want to please them.
Another privilege given to us is to know the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven
(Matthew 13:10-11) “the disciples came, and said to Him, Why speak You to them in
parables? He answered and said to them. Because it is given to you to know the
mysteries of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it is not given”. I Corinthians 2:9-10
says “But as it is written,. Eye has not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into
the heart of man, the things which God has prepared for them that love Him. But God
has revealed them to us by His Spirit for the Spirit searches all things, yea, the deep
things of God”.
Sermon by: Harriet Bond
Date: Sept 15, 2006