God’s promise of a treasured possession and holy nation and a kingdom of priests came with a condition. The Lord said, “If you will obey My voice and keep My covenant.”

In the gospel of John, we are told that His sheep will know His voice, so not knowing if He’s saying something to us can’t be an excuse for not obeying and following.

He’s given us a new covenant. It’s one where He still has the desire to be with His people. It’s a promise that He will forgive sin and restore fellowship with those who turn their hearts to Him.

To keep a covenant is to guard a promise. He made the promise. He did the work to fulfill it. We just have to guard it. We have to believe it and not let any lie come along and destroy our faith in the promise.

To keep means to guard. Set a guard on your heart and mind and pledge to not allow any thought or feeling turn you away from the promise of fellowship, of relationship, of love between you and the Father. You have access to the Father through Jesus Christ. You, in Christ, can approach the Father freely as a beloved child.

Then there’s that little part about obeying. In the new covenant, we put off the old self and put on Christ. He is the very righteousness of God. He has fulfilled the law. In Christ, we have already fulfilled all the laws and have all the access to the blessing righteousness affords us.

When we aren’t walking in obedience, then we aren’t walking in Christ, not walking in the light. We’re deceiving ourselves that we are in fellowship with Jesus and can go with Him to approach the Father.

God so loved the whole world. God desires that all might be saved. God’s treasured possession is His children whom He will never leave nor forsake, whom He will forgive and make righteous and see as blameless.

BUT, walking in disobedience is walking in darkness. It’s walking away from the light. It’s rejecting His love. He allows the prodigal son to run back to open arms, but the son has to choose to come back and submit to being a son again.