Imagine I gave you instructions to my house.

Obeying the instructions does not earn you the right to come to my house. I already gave you that by inviting you over.

But you have to obey the instructions to get to my house. If you don't obey, you'll never arrive.

This is precisely why we obey God. He gave us instructions to His goodness. It's how we live in the overwhelming abundance of His kingdom.

We don't obey to earn it, because we can't earn something that's already been purchased by the blood of Jesus Christ.

We obey because, if we don't, we'll never get to where His goodness is. Without obedience, we are wandering around in the wilderness for no reason.

If you obey to earn, you're lost. If you think obedience isn't important, you're lost.

But when you understand that everything God asks us to do is so we can arrive at His goodness, you're living the abundant life Jesus died to give you.