The One Who… Cares

“Humble yourselves, therefore, under God’s mighty hand, that He may lift you up in due time. Cast all your anxieties on Him because He cares for you.”

—1 Peter 5:6-7

I hate the word obedience.

Wait, whoa, what Kristen? Why would you start a blog out about God caring for us and then start talking about obedience?

We’ll get there, I promise.

Obedience is one of those words that we hear and then roll our eyes afterwards. It gives off like a “ping” of anxiety as soon as you hear it. If you aren’t careful, striving to obey can become very legalistic, very self-righteous and then when you mess up and aren’t perfect at it, very guilt-driven. It’s hard to teach obedience well, I think, especially in the church and our culture. I’m even sitting here right now, wondering why on earth this is the angle to this blog I’m choosing to take. But hang with me, maybe we can get to a better place with it.

I think to truly understand obedience, we need to understand what disobedience is or maybe rather what sin is. It’s interesting to ask middle and high schoolers what sin is, because they always give the same answer— regurgitating it from what they’ve heard over and over most of their lives. I believe a lot of adults would have the same answer. “Sin is breaking God’s rules” or “Sin is doing things against God”. But do we understand God’s heart behind it?

Let’s keep digging a little deeper.

Sin is actually an archery term. It means “missing the mark” or “falling short of the target”. So let’s break this down. God created us to live in the way of Shalom—flourishing, wholeness, harmony, and delight with Him, in Him, and through Him. The reason He created us to live in this way, is because this is best way for us to live. This brings the most peace to our hearts and lives, and ultimately this brings Him the most glory! It shows we trust Him. The law was given as a way of instructions on how to live within this shalom. So sin, is when we miss the mark of living in shalom. We fail to follow the instructions on how to live in shalom and instead we follow the way of death. Why does God hate sin? Not because we broke a rule. God hates sin, because sin (missing the mark) hurts us and leads us down the path of death, and we are the ones He loves. Enter, Jesus, taking on the sin of the world. This offered a way to the path of true, eternal life. In other words, He restored the path of shalom.

When I learned this, it shifted something inside me. For the first time, I felt like I saw the heart of God.

He cares.

He actually, really, wholeheartedly cares.

So true, biblical obedience is rooted in knowing deeply that God cares about us and loves us. It’s humbling ourselves to trust and know that we don’t have all the answers, but He does. We don’t know the way, but He does. We don’t know what’s best for us, but He does.

“In the days of His flesh, Jesus offered up prayers and supplications, with loud cries and tears, to Him who was able to save Him from death, and He was heard because of His reverence. Although, He was a son, He learned obedience through what He suffered. And being made perfect, He became the source of eternal salvation to all who obey Him, being designed by God a high priest after the order of Melchizedek.” — Hebrews 5:7-10

Jesus suffered.

Let that sink in for a minute.

Not just on the cross. I feel like we only focus on that sometimes. (Understandably, because it’s a huge deal and literally the gospel in a nutshell.) But let’s not forget He also suffered in the day to day— simply living His life. In the same way we suffer and struggle, so did He. Life is hard. The weight of struggle, feeling misunderstood…Jesus felt that. The grief, the emotions, the heaviness—He suffered.

Then it says, He learned obedience through what He suffered.

So often, we blame God for allowing us to suffer. My hand goes up for sure. I’ll be the first to admit this is my go-to move. Because it’s hard to picture a loving Father, who is all-powerful and all-knowing, allowing pain and suffering to happen to the ones He says He loves. It feels cruel and mean. Then, we often try to pinpoint why He would allow the suffering to take place. We need a reason, and a lot of time, the only thing we can come us with is, God is teaching us a lesson. This must be the consequence of some sin in our life that He is punishing us for. We broke that rule.

But let’s think about this, Jesus didn’t sin. God didn’t make Him suffer as a way of punishing Him for sin. Therefore, suffering can’t be rooted in that mindset.

So let’s break this down again, if true obedience is rooted in knowing deeply that God cares about us and loves us, then suffering seems to be the road that leads us there. Suffering allows us to actually see and experience His love and care. And when we understand this, we want to stay close to Him. We want to follow Him in His ways. Suffering produces an obedience that is rooted in His love for us, therefore our love for Him. What if this is the obedience He is looking for? One that is rooted in trusting His heart and fueled by His Spirit, knowing that He actually cares.

So, friend, let me encourage you.

God cares about your heart. He cares that it’s been broken and wounded. He sees the pain. He cares about your marriage. He can see through the sarcasm. He feels the silent treatment. He understands each perspective, perfectly. He cares about your friendships. He knows how hard it is to trust people. He knows what it feels like when expectations are broken. He cares about your dreams. The desires of your heart. The struggle to wait for Him, He gets it. He knows we can’t see like He does. He sees the loneliness that it brings, the confusion. He cares about your sexuality. Oh yea, He’s not afraid to go there. In fact, He longs for you to talk with Him about it, with brutal honesty. He can take it. He’s not embarrassed by it. He understands it all better than you do. He cares about your lack. The promise you are waiting for Him to fulfill, the healing you need Him to bring. He’s not running from your brokenness. No, in fact, He’s running towards it. He doesn’t misunderstand your disappointment. He encourages you to be honest with Him about it. He’s not offended by your fears and doubts. He’s not falling off His throne because of your lack of faith in Him. He is patient. He is kind. He is present in all of it. He is sure. He’s not worried or anxious. He is steady. He just keeps inviting. He keeps showing up. He keeps wooing, desiring to show you exactly who He is and what He’s like. He wants you to experience His love, not just hear about it. Yes, my friend, whatever it is, whatever you are suffering with, whatever you are struggling with, He cares. He cares about all of it. And He can lead you through it. You can trust. You can obey. You can wait and believe He is good. Because, He is The One Who… Cares.