Heart & Commandment
by Harry Osborne
August 22, 2010

Obedience to God involves two elements which are both essential. First, we are to obey God from the heart and serve Him with a whole heart. Second, obedience to God demands that we follow His pattern of instruction as directed in His will. Notice how the Bible ties the two together:

But God be thanked that though you were slaves of sin, yet you obeyed from the heart that pattern of doctrine to which you were delivered. And having been set free from sin, you became slaves of righteousness (Romans 6:17-18).

God will not accept a cold, lifeless, half-hearted service from man. He has always demanded and continues to demand our reverential and loving service from the heart. Notice the clear instruction on this point from God's word:

Deuteronomy 6:5 - "You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your might."

Hebrews 10:22 - "Let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled from an evil conscience and our bodies washed with pure water."

James 4:8 - "Draw near to God and He will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners; and purify your hearts, you double minded."

1 Peter 3:15 - "But sanctify the Lord God in your hearts, and always be ready to give a defense to everyone who asks you a reason for the hope that is in you, with meekness and fear."

It is plain, then, that God will not be pleased with anything less than our whole-hearted devotion unto Him. No ritualistic attempt to please God without our hearts involved will be acceptable. If we are to live with Christ in eternity, we must give Him our hearts today!

However, service which is heart-felt without being guided by God's pattern of truth is not acceptable either. To please God, our hearts must be properly taught and act in obedience to His commands. The Scripture plainly declares that pleasing God demands both elements:

Psalm 119:2 - "Blessed are those who keep His testimonies, Who seek Him with the whole heart!"

Psalm 119:10 - "With my whole heart I have sought You; Oh, let me not wander from Your commandments!"

1 John 5:3 - "For this is the love of God, that we keep His commandments. And His commandments are not burdensome."

Some people today teach that God will accept whatever service one offers to the Lord with the heart, even if that service is not directed by His will found in the Bible. However, God has clearly insisted that we obey Him not only with a heart-felt service, but in keeping with His commands. Notice how plain that instruction is:

Now by this we know that we know Him, if we keep His commandments. He who says, “I know Him,” and does not keep His commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him. But whoever keeps His word, truly the love of God is perfected in him. By this we know that we are in Him (1 John 2:3-5).

We cannot forfeit either our whole-hearted service or our adherence to God's commands found in the Bible if we are to please God. Just as wheels and an engine are both essential to a functional car, so are man's heart and God's pattern of instruction essential in obeying our Lord. Therefore, let us daily yield our hearts and our conduct to His will.

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