Matt. 22:37-38 – And He replied to him, “You should love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind (intellect). Deut. 6:5 This is the great (most important, principal) and first commandment.”

John 14:23 – Jesus answered, “If a person [really] loves Me, he will keep my Word [obey My teaching]; and My Father will love him, and We will come to him and make Our home (abode, special dwelling place) with him.”

To love God is to obey His commands, to hear what He says, and follow His guidance.

Deut. 8:20 – Like the nations which the Lord makes to perish before you, so shall you perish, because you would not obey the voice of the Lord your God.

By not obeying Him, you will perish; die. (be a slave to sin in your life on earth; continuously partaking in it and die eternally)

Hearing God’s Voice

John 10:3 (hearing Jesus’ voice; the sheep of the Shepherd Jesus)

Rev. 3:20 (hearing and listening is important; His Spirit will continue to direct and command us because He’s alive and attainable if we fully believe in His resurrection)

Since Jesus died and resurrected to life, He is available to us for a relationship now.  As back thousands of years ago, the Lord spoke to His people and whoever listened and obeyed, they were blessed and favored by Him.  The Lord is the same as He was back then.  He continues to speak to us by His Spirit.  If we are ever in question about whether we are obeying what He taught, then we refer to the Bible for direction on how to become closer to Him.  Jesus gave many scenarios.  And, God gave many scenarios in the Old Testament.  Once we have worked in trying to be more like Jesus as He was the days He was on the earth than we begin to show our love for Him.  As we show our willingness to obey Him (which shows that we love Him), then He will open us to more revelation and power of Him, when speaking to us.  We will hear His voice better when we are obeying Him.  The Scriptures are a guide (tool) to refer to on how to become closer to Him, but He allows the power from heaven to reveal more.  He is the direct Source.  Hearing His voice continuously is the key to life with and in Him. 

Rev. 3:22 (hearing and listening to the Spirit)

John 5:25 (to hear Him is to live)

John 10:16 (when the entire church or Bride hears and obeys His voice, then unity will occur)

Disobeying the Lord

Ecc. 5:1b – For to draw near to hear and obey is better than to give the sacrifice of fools [carelessly, irreverently] too ignorant to know that they are doing evil.

Drawing near to the Lord is important for hearing Him, so that you can obey Him always.  This is done by believing in His death and resurrection, by reading the Scriptures, worshipping Him (song, dance, etc.), praying or speaking to Him, proclaiming His Word in full belief, learning about Him, and obeying His commands.  By sacrificing your eternal life for death is what is described as foolish because one hasn’t pursued the Lord with all His heart, soul, and strength.  Pursuing Him fully is not something to be lazy about as it states above, as being careless.  God always gives what we ask for.  If we pursue Him lazily, or not at all, then we don’t experience His salvation, sanctification, and power – the full and complete eternal peace and love that He’s offered to give to us. 

I Cor. 15:51 (falling asleep in death or sin)

To fall asleep in our walk with God is to slip up and fall into sin.  If we have not been transformed completely of our evil ways, then we have more to learn in Him.  We must cleave unto Him more, repent and change, seek Him more, obey Him more.  There’s always more to God.  If we knew everything about Him than we’d be Him and so it isn’t possible.  Since He is everything to us, than we have many venues to seek Him in understanding what all He is and can be.  The process is ongoing – the relationship is ongoing.  After all, we are the Bride and it is a covenant. 

II Peter 2:4-5 (Sin is the opposite of obeying.  Those that are sinning or ungodly are cast into hell, but those walking with Him in complete righteousness in obedience with Him are not).

Overcoming the death of sin cannot be done unless we are complete in Him, full of Him, and hear His voice directing us away from it when the temptations arise.

I Cor. 13:1 (without completeness and full transformation in Him, we are not inspired by His love; we only speak of His ways, but do not walk in them [righteousness]; we continue to disobey His will by sinning and not listening to His Spirit)

Romans 5:19 – For just as by one man’s disobedience (failing to hear, heedlessness, and carelessness) the many were constituted sinners, so by one Man’s obedience the many will be constituted righteous (made acceptable to God, brought into right standing with Him). 

Jesus obeyed the Father’s commands and listened to His words as He spoke direction to Him. We are to follow Jesus, in order to walk completely like Him; that is, in trying to attain full communication with the Father.  The only way for that to occur is by learning it from His Son, who teaches it to you.

Hebrews 2:3 – How shall we escape [appropriate retribution] if we neglect and refuse to pay attention to such a great salvation [as is now offered to us, letting it drift past us forever]?  For it was declared at first by the Lord [Himself], and it was confirmed to us and proved to be real and genuine by those who personally heard [Him speak].

By not hearing His voice, we miss out on the reality of a personal relationship with God. Through sin, we reject His companionship to further itself and manifest itself (become power within us) as being alive and in us (dwelling in our home) all the time; with the confidence that He is real and we have experienced His life within ourselves.

Ephesians 5:6 (to sin is to disobey and rebel against God; the ones who are in love with Him, will see the deception of sin like God does; God hates sin)

II Cor. 10:6 (when the church is fully complete in Him, then they will see sin as God does)

Psalm 1:5 “Therefore the wicked will not stand in the judgment, nor sinners in the assembly of the righteous.”

Titus 1:16 (profess to know God, but deny Him by what they do)

I Peter 3:20 (in Noah’s day the people were disobedient because they didn’t want to hear from God, nor believe Noah heard from God; God sends messengers to others to learn how to know and hear from Him)