God’s commandments are for everyone.  Some people think the Bible is only for the Christian, and though it’s true in the respect that the Bible is God’s handbook for His children to live by; the Bible is open for anyone to read and open their heart to receiving Jesus as Savior.

We must understand that God’s Word, His Commandments are eternal and meant to be followed by all people; whether a believer or a non-believer.  The problem is that too many people view God’s Word as suggestions rather than instructions and commandments.  A command is something we are told to do and a suggestion gives an indicates that there are options to whether we have to do them.

If we view God’s Commandments as suggestions, we miss the point, because we do not have an option of how we are to do what God tells us to do; we are to do it His way; our option is whether or not we obey.   God calls us to do what He wants, when He wants, and how He wants a plan to unfold.  Our job is to obey, step by step.  He reveals His plans and purpose for our lives one step at a time.

If we want to walk in the fullness of God’s plan for our lives, there are four steps we must take:

We must have a desire to follow Jesus.  Matthew 6:33 instructs us to, “seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you”.  The “all these things” although mostly refers to our needs in this world, such things as clothing and food, but I also believe it can apply to the necessary things we need to fulfill His purpose for our lives, such as wisdom and finances, etc.  However, as this scripture infers, to receive the promise of the latter part, we first, must obey the first part of the verse: we must seek first God and His righteousness.

We must replace our will with His will. Now if you think this is difficult, you’re probably right.  After all, it was not easy for Jesus either! Just take a look at His prayer in the Garden of Gethsemane. In Matthew 26:39, right before the soldiers came to arrest him, Jesus was praying; “O My Father, if it is possible, let this cup pass from Me; nevertheless, not as I will, but as You will”.  If Jesus had to submit His will to the Father, then we too must exchange our will for the Father’s will for us.

We must take up His cross.  Probably the first thing we think of when we hear the word cross is “the Cross” which Jesus died on. But there are other meanings for us to consider, such as: intersect or to meet and pass on the way; to cancel; contrary and opposed. As Christians, we are to follow Jesus’ examples in sharing God’s love with those we meet in our everyday lives. We are to share the Good News that Jesus’ death and resurrection canceled out our sin-debt. We are to stand against the opposing schemes of the devil that are contrary to God by taking up the eternal truths of the Cross of Jesus; preaching and teaching the Word of God.

We must follow Jesus.  To follow someone, we must engage in their way of life. To follow Jesus means we must pursue a long-lasting relationship with Him by daily communing with Him in prayer, Bible study, and obeying His Word in the way we live. Following someone means taking steps according to their way of doing things; making decisions based on their instructions or commands. Our steps to follow Jesus are taken one step at a time based on God’s precepts or rules; learning a little at a time, according to Isaiah 28:10. One step at a time because He is continually showing us and revealing to us how to walk holy as He is holy. A child learns to walk one step at a time and we are children of God.

Living for Jesus is a daily walk. Joshua 24:15 instructs us to choose each day who we will serve, and to be honest with you, you might have to make that decision more than once a day depending on the circumstance that rise in each given day.  This denotes that our choice to serve God is not just a one-time-decision but on-going-decisions as we walk to fulfill His plan for our lives.

Ephesians 2:10 states that we are God’s workmanship, created in Christ Jesus, to do good works. But let’s be honest with each other, to fulfill God’s purpose and plans for our lives, it is imperative that we have a desire for Jesus, that we submit our will to His will; and that we make necessary decisions to follow him step by step.