Since September, those who attend ‘Well in the Week’ on Thursday mornings at Seaton Road Methodist Church, Felixstowe, have been considering ‘Essentials for Wellness’. We probably all know the essentials for life – food, water, shelter, love, and we could, in these modern times, add a healthy diet, exercise, and mindfulness to the list. But what of our spiritual health? This series of Thought for the Day brings to mind what is essential to keep our souls healthy and well.
3. ‘OBEDIENCE’
‘By this we know that we love the children of God, when we love God and obey his commandments’ 1John 5: 2
We looked at ‘Study’ as an essential for wellness, and now we turn to obedience. Neither sound very easy, and this one could sound draconian and unpleasant. But, of course, if it is an essential for wellness, it shouldn’t be, so I hope to dispute and dispel that idea. There was a time in the past, and some say it should still apply, when the young should obey the old, women should obey men, the uneducated obey the scholar, the workman obey the boss. That obedience is based on strength, power, position and prestige. Obedience as an essential for wellness is based on earned respect and not on demand.
There is a huge outcry across the free world on behalf of the women of Afghanistan, who for the past 20 years have gradually gained a rightful place in society, within education, business, law, medicine and government, and now, with the Taliban governing the country, have had that freedom and independence and position taken away. The obedience the Taliban demand is not based on respect, but on fear.
For several centuries, but especially in Victorian times, Christianity and obedience to God and the Church was based on fear. Fear of going to hell if you didn’t behave yourself. This skewed a Christians’ idea of the nature of God. He was portrayed as the big policeman in the sky who was watching your every move, and likely to shower you with fire and brimstone if you put a foot wrong. And if you did, there was no going back, so you might as well be hung for a sheep as a lamb. ‘Christian children all must be, mild, obedient, good as he’, so the carol goes. Obedience based on fear, not respect.
Jesus spent most of his ministry trying to overturn that idea. Jesus was the new wine, with a new commandment of love. He spoke of his Father as a God of love, of mercy and forgiveness, not as a harsh, unjust God. Children learn obedience from the example of a loving, fair parent. If children are dealt with fairly, they generally respond with obedience. Sometimes for their own safety, children have to obey their parents and teachers, whether they want to or not. As adults, we need to obey road rules, and laws to keep us safe, even if it would be quicker, or easier not to.
Just laws and commandments are made to be obeyed, for safety, health and fairness for all, and not for selfish gain, power, and abuse. Jesus says, he gives us ‘a new commandment, that we love one another’. He also said, ‘Those who accept my commandments and obey them are the ones who love God. Obeying God, and living his way is not always easy, but as we grow to love God and know his love and care of us, we will learn to accept that he, as a loving parent, knows what is best for our well-being. Then we will discover that whether we want to or not, our natural response to God will be one of obedience, based on love. It is an essential for wellness.