Ten Minute Bible Talks Devotional Bible Study - Why Does Obedience Matter? | The Gospels | John 8:48–59

Episode Date: July 14, 2026

Do you feel spiritually dry? Could one step of obedience be the path to greater intimacy with God? And what's the difference between legalism and true obedience? In today's episode, Tanya explores John 8:48–59 and shows how Gospel-centered obedience flows from love, not fear, and leads us into lasting freedom and transformation. Read the Bible with us! This year, we’re exploring the Gospels—Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John—and it's never too late to join! Download your reading plan now. Your support makes TMBT possible. Ten Minute Bible Talks is a crowd-funded project. Join the TMBTeam to reach more people with the Bible. Give now. Like this content? Make sure to leave us a rating and share it so that others can find it, too. Use #asktmbt to connect with us, ask questions, and suggest topics. We'd love to hear from you! To learn more, visit our website and follow us on Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter @TenMinuteBibleTalks. Don't forget to subscribe to the TMBT Newsletter here. Passage: John 8:48–59

Welcome to 10-minute Bible Talks, where we connect the Bible to your life. In the time it takes to get to work. I'm Tanya Wilmuth. Why does obedience matter to God? Obedience isn't a word that rolls off the tongue. We don't go around saying, I'm obeying God, the same way we say I'm following Jesus. It conveys something that doesn't feel natural to us. To be obedient means you have fully submitted yourself to doing what God wants and not what you want,

even when it is costly. Obedience isn't something we talk about all the time, but it brings into our lives a power that transforms our hearts, shapes our character, and makes us more like Jesus. It leads us into a deeper intimacy with God. Today, we're in John 8, where Jesus is talking about obedience. And the question I want us to think about today is this. How many times have you lost intimacy with God,

not because he grew distant, but because you weren't obeying him? There's so much peace on the other side of obedience that we don't talk about enough. Jesus brought it up because he wanted his people to have that peace. Even Jesus, who was in perfect unity with the Father, who knew the Father better than anyone who has ever lived, talked about his own obedience. In John chapter 8, verse 55, Jesus says, Though you do not know him, I know him.

If I said I did not, it would be a liar like you. But I do know him and obey. His Word. Obedience is an active trust that often comes before we really break through to the place where our hearts are aligned with God. If you are feeling spiritually dry, there's a good chance you need to stand back and ask yourself, am I obeying God, or am I living a self-directed life that has God on the perimeter? Even small steps toward obedience can open us up to life-giving change.

Luke 1128 says, Blessed are those who hear and obey. If obedience mattered to Jesus' relationship with the Father, it matters to ours. So let's talk about why. First, obedience matters because it's how God shapes our hearts. We have to slow down and listen, so we know the difference between what we want and what God wants for us. Considering what pleases God requires us to listen. We might need to stop what we're planning to do, so we can pray and ask for wisdom. Slowing down to consider God's word is hard and a close. culture, the values busyness, decisiveness, productiveness. But while our impulsive self-directed muscles are getting stronger by the minute, we need to slow down and strengthen the muscles of waiting,

praying, and listening. Outwardly, we are busy running around. We are watching videos, we are buying things, and inwardly, we are fighting against a spiritual laziness that makes us feel distant from God. Will you practice slowing down, slowing to read scripture, slowing to hear God's voice through his word and prayer, slowing down so that he can speak to you through his spirit? Our first dog, Max, is an absolute gym. He has the EQ of a therapist. He has the patience of a kindergarten teacher, and he has just enough vocabulary to know the words that really matter, like walk, sit, lay down, treat, dinner, ball, let's go, stay, and good boy, maybe. That's why we got a second dog.

We figured we were great dog parents and all dogs that we raise are going to be like this. Boone is not like this. Boone is ounce for ounce as much athleticism and chaos as Max's intelligence and patience. If Max is the model student, Boone is the guy you want on your dance floor at your wedding. I have high hopes for Boone, and honestly, he's getting better. Our walks are less of a sprint, and he sleeps past 5 a.m. sometimes. As he picks up obedience, as he actually listens when I use my voice, he's easier to be with. He's happier.

There's less stress, less anxiety in his wiggly little body, less of the zoomies running. running him around in circles. Boone has experienced what it's like to sit at my feet and just be at peace because he knows I'm taking care of everything. Obedience doesn't always lead us to a place where we lose freedom, can actually be a place where we gain freedom because we're sitting at the feet of the one who cares for us. The second thing about obedience is that it matters because it is a path to lasting change in our life.

We know how friends were above on one another. we know how the people that we spend the most time with are the people that we start to resemble. Real friendship is a kind of unity where people move toward each other until their desires and preferences start to overlap. It's the same with God. The more time you spend with him, the more your likes and preferences overlap with his. You will eventually begin to love and desire some of the same things he does. Sometimes we ask God to help us love people the way he does, but we don't spend time with him so that his character can truly mold us into that kind of love. When we spend time with God, we are shaped by His holiness,

and the things that we love and desire begin to shift to align with him. He is the one relationship, the vertical relationship that makes lasting change in us. So, who do you actually believe Jesus is? That's kind of the whole point of what he's doing here in John chapter 8. He's showing that he has gone in the flesh. He's showing that he is the one who has come to save these people from their doubt, from their disobedience, from their lack of relationship with the Father. He is showing that there's a difference between what the Pharisees were trying to do, legalism, and obedience motivated by outward approval, and gospel-centered obedience, which is motivated by God's approval, given to us through Jesus Christ. See, Jesus lived the perfect life of obedience so we can have this intimate relationship with the Father.

We aren't obeying God so that he'll see us and approve of us, but we want to obey him when we experience his presence and his approval. Later in John's Gospel, Jesus says, if you love me, keep my commands. True obedience flows from love, not fear, and leads us into deeper intimacy with God. this is where we find real joy and freedom and peace.