Real Hope: A Study of 1 JohnSample

Commandment Following That Isn't A Burden

When I was younger, I remember having a chat with some of my school friends about my faith. I remember one of my mates saying - ‘It just seems too hard.’ Pressing further, I discovered his concern mostly arose around the life change that follows conversion, and a level of nervousness about breaking the rules that God lists in the Bible.

Now, I wasn’t the most learned Christian back then (and I’m still not!) but I did know that obeying God’s commands is not what saves us. By the grace of God, Jesus’ death and resurrection have completed the work of salvation, and we respond with faith and obedience.

This passage towards the end of 1 John shows us that loving God means keeping His commands – and having a heart that doesn’t see His commands as a burden. As John Piper writes of this passage, ‘having a kind of heart for God that means that commandment-keeping is not burdensome’. This really chimed with me, even though it’s something I’m still working on.

It’s easy to look at our friends and family who don’t know Jesus, and envy their lifestyles – but following God’s ways should not be a burden – it should be a joy. And thankfully, it’s not what saves us – for Jesus has already completed that work (praise God!).

written by SAM ROBINSON