"When you obey my commandments, you remain in my love, just as I obey my Father's commandments and remain in his love. I have told you these things so that you will be filled with my joy. Yes, your joy will overflow!" John 15 10-11
If you have children, raising them in today’s society can be challenging. We all love our kids and want to protect them and see them flourish, but to do so we sometimes have to restrict them doing what they want. Through experience and wisdom we can see the dangers ahead that they do not, and while they may not like it at the time, we are just acting in love for them.
These verses spoken by Jesus on keeping his commandments were not spoken to bring oppression but that the joy of the Lord might abound in us. The oldest trick of Satan is to tell people that the commandments of God are given to keep us from being happy and we will be happier making our own decisions. That’s the line he sold Eve. Was she better off trusting God in the garden, or going her own way outside it?
God gives us his commandments like a good Father cares for his children. He wants us to be happy and experience joy in our life and the truth is, we make mistakes when we think we know better than the one who created us and knows all things.
And Jesus tells us this joy will overflow in our life. That means others will see the difference in our lives and wonder why our life is full of joy and fullness. We will be able to point them to the one who loves us, guides us and delights in blessing us. A good Father.