2. A Gospel Dilemma: If the Gospel changes us internally so that we begin to desire what is right; why are there so many behavioral commands in The Bible, especially in the New Testament?

3. Reason #1 The Commands Enlighten Our Darkened Hearts to Appreciate Gods Design for Life.

7. Matthew 6:21 (The Message) The place where your treasure is, is the place you will most want to be, and end up being.

8. John 1:17 For the law was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ.

9. Deuteronomy 10: 12-13 12 And now, O Israel, what does the L ORD your God ask of you but to fear the L ORD your God, to walk in all His ways, to love Him, to serve the L ORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul, 13 and to observe the L ORD s commands and decrees that I am giving you today for your own good?

10. Gods love provides us with the motivation for obedience, while Gods laws provide the direction for the Biblical expressions of love. - Jerry Bridges

11. Reason #2 Obedience to the Commands Limits the Destructive Damage of Our Sinfulness.

12. Romans 13: 9-10 9 The commandments… are summed up in this one rule: Love your neighbor as yourself. 10 Love does no harm to its neighbor. Therefore love is the fulfillment of the law.

13. 1 Peter 2: 11-12 11 Dear friends, I urge you, as aliens and strangers in the world, to abstain from sinful desires, which war against your soul. 12 Live such good lives among the pagans that, though they accuse you of doing wrong, they may see your good deeds and glorify God on the day he visits us.

14. Reason #3 Disciplining Ourselves to Practice God-honoring Behaviors Helps Us Develop a Love for Them.

15. 1 Peter 2: 2-3 2 Like newborn babies, crave pure spiritual milk, so that by it you may grow up in your salvation, 3 now that you have tasted that the Lord is good.

16. Appetites grow as you feed them. Disciplining ourselves to do what we dont always want to do helps us learn to love the things we should love. - J.D. Greear

17. Spiritual Disciplines Are Like…

18. Spiritual Disciplines of Abstinence & Engagement Fasting Submission Sacrifice Solitude Silence Fellowship Worship Prayer Study Service Confession Celebration

19. These Disciplines Can Not Rearrange and Heal Your Heart.

21. God isnt just after our obedience. Hes after a whole new kind of obedience which is born out of a love and desire to follow Him.