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Men of Integrity, July/Aug 2000
| Obeying God |
Saturday, August 12
|
Up Close & Personal with Bill
Hybels
Q. How in the world can following rules lead to freedom?
A. It's
a hard one to swallow. We honor rebels, buy radar detectors, smoke in the boys'
rooms. We learned long ago that freedom comes from avoiding, changing, even
breaking the rules. Obedience— following the rules—leads, we're convinced,
to binding, restrictive slavery.
But the disease of evil
is rooted in our hearts, and freedom comes through yielding our will to God.
Jesus stated it clearly: "If you love me, you will obey my
commands." Although obedience is to flow out of a loving relationship,
Jesus is not suggesting obedience; He's demanding it.
Don't Jesus' commands in
the Sermon on the Mount and elsewhere seem nearly impossible to meet?
Yes. But that's because
He sees the truth more clearly than we do. The appeal of sin, of sidestepping
God and fulfilling our own selfish desires, is much too strong to be taken lightly.
It's only through obedience that we can tame the beast of evil within us.
What are the purposes
of God's rules?
To protect us from harming
ourselves. Don't let anger and bitterness take root, don't go deeply into
debt, stay free of addictions. When we break rules such as these, we risk pain
and brokenness. Self-worth deteriorates and we suffer remorse, self-pity and
depression.
To keep us from hurting
others. Speak the truth to one another in love, put the interests of others
before your own, be generous to the poor. If we ignore rules like these, we
find ourselves set adrift, cut off from the stability and strength and support
we gain when we live peacefully and work joyfully with others.
To rescue us from wasting
our lives. Be lights to the world, stay clear of the applause of men, do
good deeds constantly. God tells us to turn the world's order of greed, selfishness
and hate on its head, and make people, not things, our priority.
— Bill Hybels is the senior pastor of Willow Creek
Community Church in South Barrington, Illinois.
Credits: Adapted from—and Rob Wilkins, Descending
into Greatness (Zondervan, 1993)
Copyright © 2000 by the author or Christianity Today International/Men of
Integrity. For reprint information click here.
July/August 2000, August 12, 2000
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