Jesus said, Follow thou me.

I don’t believe in obedience


Maybe, I’m just a rebel, but I do not believe in doing something for no other reason than someone said I had to, or that I should. Even as a child, I wanted to know why. Why did I need to do the dishes right now? Mom would always tell me, because she said so. That answer infuriated me. It made me think she thought me too stupid to understand. The results were that we were always in opposition.

Fortunately, my father would take the time to explain. For example, he said that a potato cutting placed in the furrow with the eye up, had a better chance of reaching the surface. If the sprout from the eye had to wind its way around the potato it might die trying to find its way up to the sunlight.

He did not have to tell me that would mean wasted work, and a poor harvest if the cuttings were not placed properly. The end result of my father’s approach was trust. He showed me respect by explaining and he gained my respect. I felt I could talk to him about anything and he would explain. With Mom, I had to find the reasons myself. I think we are all a little like that.

I think the same is true with Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ. If we know them, if we pray, study, meditate and gain a personal relationship with them, then we trust, respect and love them. We have a personal relationship with them and we obey not for the sake of being obedience but out of trust, respect, and love.

In the words of Nephi, after he reminds us that Jesus said; “Follow thou me.” Nephi asks, “Wherefore, my beloved brethren, can we follow Jesus save we shall keep the commandments of the Father?” 2 Nephi 31:10