The Commands of Jesus. 

The words of Jesus Christ recorded in all four Gospels are not mere suggestions to be left to the discretion of those who may hear them. No! They are the commands of the Father spoken through the lips of Jesus Christ; they are commands spoken with divine authority.

Jesus Christ set before all of humanity the principle of hearing and living by the Words that proceed from the mouth of the Father. ‘Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God.’ ”Matthew 4:4.

Jesus Christ, through His life and teachings, revealed the perfect will of the Father towards the lives of men; in so doing, Jesus Christ declared how to enter into the Kingdom of God and how to live in this kingdom. His words demand obedience for all who hear His voice.  Every command carries the authority of Heaven. To ignore them is to reject life itself, for His words are spirit and they are life.

The Requirement of Repentance.

Now when Jesus heard that John had been put in prison, He departed to Galilee. And leaving Nazareth, He came and dwelt in Capernaum, which is by the sea, in the regions of Zebulun and Naphtali, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by Isaiah the prophet, saying: “The land of Zebulun and the land of Naphtali, By the way of the sea, beyond the Jordan, Galilee of the Gentiles: The people who sat in darkness have seen a great light, And upon those who sat in the region and shadow of death light has dawned.”From that time Jesus began to preach and to say, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.”Matthew 4:12-17.

Some believers have been instructed that repentance just simply means having a change of mind, but true gospel repentance is a total change of heart, mind, purpose and direction. The accounts of repentance in the lives of the  Prodigal Son and Zacchaeus, the tax collector, are given to the believer as examples of the working of true biblical repentance. ( See Luke 15:11-32. Luke 19:1-9. )

True repentance turns a person completely from sin and self, and wholly toward Almighty God. It is the doorway through which the soul passes out of darkness and into the light of the Kingdom. Without repentance, there can be no reconciliation, no forgiveness, and no entrance into the Kingdom of God. Sin and rebellion cannot coexist with the Holiness of the Father.

This is very important. From that time Jesus began to preach and to say, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.”Jesus Christ not only began His public ministry with the command of repentance, but it was consistently in His proclamation of the gospel of the Kingdom throughout His ministry.

That same call remains the first step into life eternal. Repentance is not optional; it is essential, it is not just to be considered, it must be wrought in the lives of all who would hear, receive and act on the words, the commands of Jesus Christ. It is the first act of faith and the continual lifestyle of all who would follow Jesus Christ.

The Command To Follow Jesus Christ.

And Jesus, walking by the Sea of Galilee, saw two brothers, Simon called Peter, and Andrew his brother, casting a net into the sea; for they were fishermen. Then He said to them, “Follow Me, and I will make you fishers of men.”And straightway they forsook their nets, and followed him. Mark 1:16-17.

This command is a call to abandon all and walk in His steps with unwavering devotion. Years ago the Lord impressed a word to my spirit when He declared: To follow in the footsteps of Jesus, a person has to abandon their own shoes and abandon their own pathway.

The Spirit of the Lord has reminded me of the importance of learning from the life of Jesus Christ, He is the Father’s perfect example of how a person can live their life in this world, we are called to walk in our journey through always having Jesus Christ as our example.

For I have come down from heaven, not to do My own will, but the will of Him who sent Me. John 6:38.  From the mouth of Jesus Himself is the revelation that He had a Will of His own that He could have exercised, but He laid down His Will, He surrendered any ambitions of His own and gave of Himself to accomplish the Father’s Will.

When Jesus said, “Follow Me,” He demanded nothing less than full surrender. It was, and still is, a divine call to any would-be person to leave behind their old ambitions, discard any worldly comforts, and every form of independence.

To follow Jesus Christ is to forsake self-will and earthly security, trusting entirely in His leading, even when the path is uncertain or costly. For the Father’s Will and purposes to be wrought, we must adhere strictly to the empowering of the Holy Spirit; Jesus was always dependent on the Holy Spirit’s leading and anointing, and so too in our lives.

The command to follow Him may cost a person everything, yet it brings the only life that truly satisfies. This is of tremendous importance. What is lost in surrender is nothing compared to what is gained in Him.

To follow Jesus Christ is to find the true purpose for the living out of a person’s life in this world, experiencing peace that the world cannot give, and fellowship that endures forever.

Keep His Commandments

If you love Me, keep My commandments. And I will pray the Father, and He will give you another Helper, that He may abide with you forever the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees Him nor knows Him; but you know Him, for He dwells with you and will be in you. I will not leave you orphans; I will come to you. (John 14:15-18).

Jesus revealed that love for Him cannot be separated from obedience to Him, because love that does not act is not love at all. To disregard His commands is to deny His lordship and place one’s own will above His authority.

But to keep His commands is to walk in His love and truth, to live in the same obedience that He Himself lived toward the Father. Such obedience is not burdensome, for it flows from a heart transformed by love. It is the mark of the true disciple and the pathway into deeper fellowship with Him.

I am reminded of a word of the Lord concerning the imperative need for true love and obedience in our lives as believers, the Lord said: There have been many who have sought to do their own Will, and to walk their own walk, then ask of Me for My blessing upon their work, but My blessing is made manifest on those who will have a heart and a will for My Will and purposes to be made manifest, so that My Name is made known, a willing mind and a willing heart, being obedient to My Will is that which I have desired for My people

The Call To Remain Fixed In Jesus Christ.

I am the true vine, and My Father is the vinedresser. Every branch in Me that does not bear fruit He takes away; and every branch that bears fruit He prunes, that it may bear more fruit.  You are already clean because of the word which I have spoken to you. Abide in Me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in Me.

“I am the vine, you are the branches. He who abides in Me, and I in him, bears much fruit; for without Me you can do nothing. If anyone does not abide in Me, he is cast out as a branch and is withered; and they gather them and throw them into the fire, and they are burned. If you abide in Me, and My words abide in you, you will ask what you desire, and it shall be done for you.

By this My Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit; so you will be My disciples. “As the Father loved Me, I also have loved you; abide in My love. If you keep My commandments, you will abide in My love, just as I have kept My Father’s commandments and abide in His love. (John 15:1-10).

I was amazed as I read through this portion of scripture of the specific emphasis that Jesus Christ laid at the feet of the disciple of the importance of abiding, or remaining fixed in Him. Jesus Christ spoke of the blessings of abiding in Him, but He also gave the stark reality of the dangers that would happen if a believer were to leave this place of divine privilege.

This command calls for continual dependence on Him. Abiding is not a moment of faith but a life of communion. Apart from Jesus Christ, there is no fruit, no growth, no power. To abide in Jesus Christ is to draw every breath, every thought, every purpose from Him. Only through abiding does a believer become fruitful and alive.

The Command To Abide in His Love

“If you keep My commandments, you will abide in My love, just as I have kept My Father’s commandments and abide in His love” (John 15:10).

The commands of Jesus Christ are not burdens; they are the pathway into His love. The obedience He requires is the same obedience He lived. In keeping His Word, the believer remains within the circle of divine fellowship, where His love becomes the atmosphere of life. The Apostle John spoke from experience when he proclaimed in one of his letters to the early believers that: ” For this is the love of God, that we keep His commandments: and His commandments are not grievous. 1 John 5:3.”

Do Not Worry, Seek First the Kingdom

“Do not worry about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink, nor about your body, what you will put on. Is not life more than food and the body more than clothing? But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you” (Matthew 6:25, 33).

Jesus Christ taught His disciples to be kingdom-minded and commanded His followers to trust and not to fear.  Jesus Christ taught the disciples to seek first the kingdom, promising that those who seek the Kingdom first will never lack what they need.

Love God and Love Your Neighbour

“You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind. This is the first and great commandment. And the second is like it, you shall love your neighbour as yourself” (Matthew 22:37–39).

To love the Father wholly is to surrender every part of one’s life unto Him,  holding nothing back, therefore allowing the Will and desire of the Father to govern the believer’s every thought, desire, and action.

To love one’s neighbour is to demonstrate the mercy and compassion of being a follower of Jesus Christ; it is to take on His character, enabling one to see others as He sees them, and to serve without seeking reward.  It is to forgive as He forgave, to give as He gave, and to walk in patience and kindness toward all. “Love your enemies, bless those who curse you, do good to those who hate you” (Matthew 5:44).

Deny Yourself, Take Up Your Cross, and Follow

And Jesus said to them all, If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow me. For whosoever will save his life shall lose it: but whosoever will lose his life for my sake, the same shall save it. Luke 9:23-24.

The command to follow Jesus Christ leads through the way of the cross. Self is denied, pride is broken, and personal ambition is surrendered to the complete will of Jesus Christ, therefore laying down our will to take up the desired will and purposes of the Father.

Again, as believers, we must be ever learning of Jesus Christ in following Him in every aspect of our lives. I can of mine own self do nothing: as I hear, I judge: and my judgment is just; because I seek not mine own will, but the will of the Father which hath sent me. John 5:30.

The life of Jesus Christ, how He surrendered His Will, and His way of doing things, must confront every idea that we as believers may have concerning our self-preservation, as believers we must receive the call of our master to die daily to our will. Through the losing of our lives for the sake of the Father, we will find the true life of the call of Jesus Christ over our lives.

Go and Make Disciples

“Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you”(Matthew 28:19–20).

The commands of Jesus Christ carry authority for all generations, sending His followers into the world with the message of salvation and the responsibility to teach obedience to His truth. The commands of Jesus Christ are not burdensome laws but the words of eternal life.

They reveal the heart of the Father and the character of His Son. They lead those who will receive Jesus Christ as Lord from darkness into light, from bondage into freedom, from eternal death into everlasting life. Jesus said, “If you keep My commandments, you will abide in My love, just as I have kept My Father’s commandments and abide in His love”(John 15:10).

To walk in the commands of Jesus Christ is to walk in His love, to live in His truth, and to remain in His presence forever. The life that obeys His words is the life that abides in His love. The heart that yields to His will becomes the dwelling place of His presence.

Therefore, let every heart that hears His voice respond with faith and obedience, for in keeping His commands we find the joy of His love and the promise of everlasting life.