Doing Our Duty, Part One

“So likewise ye, when ye shall have done all those things which are commanded you, say, We are unprofitable servants: we have done that which was our duty to do” (Luke 17:11). It is normal for we humans, when we do something good, to want to be rewarded. We work for a living, and we want our employer to pay us wages. This is fair and just among humans. And certainly, one of the major themes of the Bible is that if we are obedient to the commandments of God, we will indeed be blessed by the Almighty. But if that is the sole reason we serve Him, we have not yet attained the spiritual height we ought to attain.

Beloved, “Jehovah is worthy to be praised” (Psalm 18:3) whether He blesses us in return or not. This is an absolutely crucial point in understanding our relationship with our Creator. He made us, He is God, we are human, and thus we owe Him allegiance and humble obedience—period. We pray, we worship, we study, we do good works because it is our duty, not just so God will give us something in response. Yes, again, let me emphasize that Jehovah does promise blessings upon our obedience. But such should not be our primary motive—if a motive at all—for our service to Him. “ This is the end of the matter; all hath been heard: fear God, and keep his commandments; for this is the whole duty of man” (Ecclesiastes 12:13, ASV, the italics are in the text). The purpose of life is not to be happy or joyous. The purpose of life is to “fear God, and keep his commandments.” That’s our duty, whether God blesses us as a result or not.

Think of it: if we only serve Him for the rewards we think we ought to receive, then what would we do if we did not receive those rewards? Reader, God doesn’t owe you a blasted thing—you owe Him everything. Indeed, we are most fortunate that we have a beneficent Lord Who will compensate our faithfulness. But whether He does or not, it is still our duty to obey Him. We have no “right” to expect anything from Him. We obey, and then we trust in His goodness to provide us whatever He believes is just and proper for us. We cannot make “demands” of God—“all right, God, I’ve done thus and so for you, now it’s your turn to give me something good in return.” Again, if that’s our motive for honoring and obeying Him, then if He doesn’t provide what we think we want or need, chances are we won’t be honoring and obeying Him for long. Serving God is not tit for tat. Honor and obedience are our duty, regardless of His response.

I would love for God to get rid of this depression I’m suffering through, and I ask Him to daily. But what if He doesn’t? Does that in some way mitigate what I owe Him? Should I pray, “Ok, Lord, get rid of this depression, and I’ll give you X, Y, and Z”? No. I should give Him X, Y, and Z, regardless of what He does for me. And if He pours it on even worse, that still doesn’t relieve me of my responsibility to Him. Jehovah is worthy to be praised. He is worthy of it and that should be a supreme motive for service.

God recompenses our obedience, not because He owes it to us, but because He is a wonderful and loving Being. Reader, get down on your knees in prayer to God—because you are human and He is divine and that’s what you should do. Yes, you can let your requests be made known unto Him; He wants you to do that. But whether He provides those requests or not is wholly irrelevant to your duty and responsibility. Worship God because you ought to. Do good works because you are commanded to. And when you’ve done that, remember “we are unprofitable servants: we have done that which was our duty to do.” You take care of your end—dutiful obedience—and let God take care of His—blessing you as He sees fit. And be very thankful for what He does give you because you certainly don’t deserve it.