John 14:15-17 / Empowered Obedience

15 “If you love me, you will keep my commandments. 16 And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Helper, to be with you forever, 17 even the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees him nor knows him. You know him, for he dwells with you and will be in you. 

Have you ever been given a task you didn’t think you could fulfill?

Maybe a new project at work, or an assignment that seemed impossible to finish?

In High School I interned for an architecture firm. The partner who had hired me oversaw my work and gave me tasks to complete around the office. I knew his kids and respected him and wanted him to be pleased with my work. The only problem was, he was not the best instructor! After decades of doing what he did best, sometimes he subconsciously assumed that someone who had not been doing a certain task for decades would instinctively know how to do something. 

So, he would give me a big new project to complete, give a few sparse details and then leave. I would readily get to work, wanting to please him, but very quickly realize I had no idea what I was doing. This was before smart phones, and googling something was a whole ordeal. I didn’t have a cell phone and calling him to ask a question wasn’t really an option.

As Jesus was preparing to ascend back to Heaven, he shared some instructions with his disciples to continue advancing the Kingdom after he left. He told them that their love for him would be displayed through their obedience to those commands. Thousands of years later, those commands and expectations are now given to us as well. We show our love for Jesus, by obeying the things he has clearly laid out for us in Scripture.

Now, I don’t know about you – but there are some of Jesus’ commands that are difficult for me to follow consistently! I want to show my love for Christ as a response to the love he’s shown me, but sometimes I am not sure I have what it takes to walk in obedience. I don’t always know how to overcome my shortcomings and I end up doing the opposite of what I know will please God.

Luckily, Jesus didn’t drop these commands and then leave us alone to figure it all out on our own. In his grace, he said he would “give you (us) another Helper, to be with you (us) forever.” A few verses down he said that he would “dwell with you (us) and will be in you (us). We are expected to show our love for Christ through our obedience, which is difficult at times, but he has not left us without the power to do it. 

Unlike my old boss who gave a task and left me without the tools needed to accomplish it, God has implanted the Holy Spirit in our hearts to enable us, if we will let him, to live lives of loving obedience. With the Holy Spirit, we have a live-in instructor who can bring the words of Jesus to life, help us interpret them correctly, and then empower us to follow them. 

Today as you are faced with choices to please God and display your love, or do things that go against his loving commands, choose obedience! Lean into Christ, and ask the Holy Spirit to help you do what is right. 

He is always with you and he can empower you to accomplish anything he asks you to do!

With much love, 

Pastor Dave

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