Come to be Obedient to God.

1 John 3:7-11, 21-24
7 Dear children, do not let anyone lead you astray. He who does what is right is righteous, just as he is righteous. 8 He who does what is sinful is of the devil, because the devil has been sinning from the beginning. The reason the Son of God appeared was to destroy the devil's work. 9 No one who is born of God will continue to sin, because God's seed remains in him; he cannot go on sinning, because he has been born of God. 10 This is how we know who the children of God are and who the children of the devil are: Anyone who does not do what is right is not a child of God; nor is anyone who does not love his brother. 11 This is the message you heard from the beginning: We should love one another.
21 Dear friends, if our hearts do not condemn us, we have confidence before God 22 and receive from him anything we ask, because we obey his commands and do what pleases him. 23 And this is his command: to believe in the name of his Son, Jesus Christ, and to love one another as he commanded us. 24 Those who obey his commands live in him, and he in them. And this is how we know that he lives in us: We know it by the Spirit he gave us.

In a way, I gave you a sneak preview about today's part of this week's discussion on Monday when I said to be righteous. We're talking about how you can feel confident that you will be saved by Christ. So far we've talked about this process involving trust toward the Lord and faith. Today I might mention that you must obey God.

God didn't give his commandments for nothing. He didn't create them for his own health. Instead it was intended for YOUR spiritual health so to speak. We are told that we should always "love one another." That's the greatest commandment that he tells us. If we do as God tells us to do and we are going down the right path, you will be rewarded. If you spend time with God a little each day you have more reason to follow his guidelines and they don't seem so difficult after a while.

Think of an owner walking his or her dog on a leash. A dog can either obey or disobey the owner. Typically if the dog is obedient, he will be rewarded with a treat. Any other behavior and the dog will surely have to face the consequences.

If you really love the Lord you will respect him to the fullest and follow the righteous path. When you do respect God you will see wonders. God will enclose his love around you and store it in you. He will free you from your sins when you obey him. Most of all, you will soon become more like Christ!

Being an obedient follower of the Lord is another step toward confirming your salvation.