Good morning!

There are over 3,500 promises in the Bible. A promise declares something will or won’t be done. They can be made with or without contingencies. Some promises will materialize no matter what, while others will only materialize when certain actions are taken in advance of the promise!

In this verse, Jesus explains the condition for this promise which was loving him and keeping his commandments. He shows the connection between love and obedience. Love is the root, and obedience is the fruit. We can claim to love Christ all day long, but our proof lies in our obedience to what He tells us to do.

Our two sons are now adults. When they were younger, we sometimes took them with us to events. Before we departed, I would give them contingent promises on what to expect from us if they behaved or misbehaved. The bottom line (And their bottoms) always rested on “Obedience.” On those occasions where they broke the contingencies, I ended up having to apply the rod of correction to the seat of knowledge (Proverbs 13:24).

God’s promises are there to bless us. His contingencies are designed to keep us from excessive exposure to life’s rod of correction. Disobedience leads to an undisciplined life and an undisciplined life always brings sorrow.

Although we should look for God’s mercy and grace in our trials (2 Cor 2:19), we must know the consequences following disobedience. God will not only love obedient believers, but he will take pleasure in loving them (Zephaniah 3:17).

Let us take hold of the promise that God will reside within us daily by being obedient to Him. Doing our best to always allow Him to flow through our life (Philippians 4:13) so we can avoid paralyzing His promises He desires to answer in our life.