Following Jesus Christ’s example of obedience increases our faith in Him. “Is it any wonder,” said Elder Jeffrey R. Holland of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, “that Christ chooses first and foremost to define himself in relation to his father—that he loved him and obeyed him and submitted to him like the loyal son he was? … Obedience is the first law of heaven.”1
The scriptures teach “when we obtain any blessing from God, it is by obedience to that law upon which it is predicated” (D&C 130:21). Our spiritual growth takes place as we draw close to God through obedience and invite the power of the Savior’s Atonement into our lives.
“As we walk in obedience to the principles and commandments of the gospel of Jesus Christ,” said Elder D. Todd Christofferson of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, “we enjoy a continual flow of blessings promised by God in His covenant with us. Those blessings provide the resources we need to act rather than simply be acted upon as we go through life. … Obedience gives us greater control over our lives, greater capacity to come and go, to work and create.” 2
“Can the spiritual strength that results from consistent obedience to the commandments be given to another person?” asked Elder David A. Bednar of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles. “The clear answer … is no.”3
The parable of the ten virgins is an example of this principle. While all of the virgins took their lamps to “meet the bridegroom,” only five were wise and took oil in their lamps. The other five were foolish because they “took no oil with them.”
Then the cry came at midnight: “Behold, the bridegroom cometh; go ye out to meet him.” All the virgins trimmed their lamps, but the foolish virgins had no oil. They said to the wise virgins, “Give us of your oil; for our lamps are gone out.”
The wise virgins answered, “Not so; lest there be not enough for us and you: but go … and buy for yourselves.” And while the foolish virgins were gone, the bridegroom came and the wise virgins went with him and “the door was shut”
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Our obedience increases our faith in the Savior. As I read this, I asked myself "how?". How does obedience increase our faith? I came to the conclusion that our obedience increases our desire to be like our Savior and thus we are more closely drawn to Him. And, as we come closer to our Savior, we are granted greater light and knowledge, our testimonies grow, we begin to see the mysteries of God more clearly. Our faith grows. Jesus Christ was the perfect example, and His obedience showed us that obedience is the 1st law of Heaven.
As I was reading, I was picturing myself with my children. I ask them to obey because my wisdom and experience helps me know what is best for them. I love them, and so I teach them obedience to rules that will help them be happy and successful. For instance, Joshua hates homework. He hates it. It would be so much easier for me in the afternoon if I just said, "forget about homework! Just go and play." But, I don't do that because I want to teach him to be responsible. I want him to learn how to master something even when he wants to give up. And, so, we spend some grueling time together trying to master it together. When he puts in the time, his grades are better, and so is his confidence. His obedience to the law of homework (even if it is forced upon him right now), brings forth blessings. I also give my children boundaries. I know playing in the street is an activity that has to be earned by both age and responsibility. I know that Hannah would not take notice of cars and cars may not take notice of her. So, I give Hannah a boundary. She may play on the sidewalk where it is safe, but she may not play in the street. This causes her a lot of frustration because she has not learned how to obey. She is constantly testing this boundary. However, I continue to enforce it because I love her. I know that safe play is happy play. She is blessed for obeying the boundary. She stays alive. We, like my children, have a much wiser and loving parent. Our Heavenly Father gives us boundaries and laws because He loves us. He sent us His obedient Son to show us how to obey, because He wants us to return to Him. The blessings that come from obedience are not bribes (not like a father being manipulated by a misbehaved child and under duress saying something like: hey- behave better and then I'll give you this), rather, they are strictly tied to the law upon which they are predicated. The blessings are ours, they are promised to us as a covenant people, but they must be earned. Our loving Heavenly Father wants to bless us, but because he is a just God and a perfect God, blessings come through obedience.
I also found it interesting that spiritual strength that comes from consistent obedience cannot be transferred upon another. Just as a college student who studies and learns the material cannot automatically transfer that knowledge to another classmate. Each of us must put forth the effort to gain our own spiritual growth, and of course it must be this way. If it were not this way, we would be missing out on tremendous opportunity for growth and development. Imagine the difference between a farmer who toils for weeks to reap in the harvest and the customer who buys the fruit at the store. Who do you think gets more satisfaction from partaking of the fruit? My guess would be that the farmer who has spent time and effort preparing the soil and looking after the fruit would take more satisfaction in eating it than the one who merely goes and picks it up at the supermarket. To summarize, there is joy to be had through hard work and obedience.
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