This problem begins with a mis-perception of salvation. For example, doesn’t the average person think that faith in Christ is something totally up to him? And isn’t this what the average evangelist tries to tell his target? “Faith is your choice, but I urge you to choose to believe the gospel and the Lord of that gospel.” Does the average evangelist ever command his prospect to believe on Christ? Perhaps this is seen even more clearly when it comes to repentance. The average person seems to be given a choice about the degree of repentance that he needs to make. He may have some vices which he’s not willing to lay down before the cross, so he simply doesn’t. Sure he is sorry that he is a sinner, but he doesn’t necessarily agree with the Lord about the nature of all his sins. He’s willing to sacrifice some of the more objectionable sins, but the most pleasurable, he’d really like to keep for a while longer. Then going on, the average professing Christian doesn’t believe that he is obligated to join one of the Lord’s churches, or else he thinks that whether or not he attends is a choice completely up to him. Prayer, support of the Lord’s work, tithing, missions, evangelism are all a matter of personal choice. And even though the Bible is quite clear about godly living, the average professing Christian thinks that he gets to choose whether or not to be holy, or to what degree he should be holy. And it doesn’t matter what the Bible says. Hebrews 12:14 – “Follow peace with all men, and holiness, without which no man shall see the Lord.” I Peter 1:15-16 – “But as he which hath called you is holy, so be ye holy in all manner of conversation; Because it is written, Be ye holy; for I am holy.” I fail to see any sort of option on our part in these words .
“Oh, but preacher, last week you said that we are saved by grace, and we are kept by grace.” Did I say that? Well, I guess that I did. But didn’t I also mention that God will stablish those whom He saves by grace? That “establishment” involves the Christian’s service and holiness; his constancy and his continuance, as well as a great many other things. We believe in the preservation of the saint and the perseverance of that saint in all the things of God. It’s not that he will become sinlessly perfect, but he will indeed “love the Lord, his God, with all his heart, with all his soul, with all his mind and with all his strength.” Just as salvation is by grace, and the saint of God will willingly love the Lord, that the Lord Jesus said this is “the first commandment” means that this love, with all that it involves, is expected and demanded by God from every believer.
Please follow me as I go through Paul’s closing sentence once again. “Now to him that is of power to stablish you according to my gospel, and the preaching of Jesus Christ.” Not only does God have the strength to establish you according to the gospel, but He has the authority to demand and expect our establishment. Then Paul goes on to say that the gospel which was being preached about Christ was a fulfilment of prophesy and a revelation of the ancient mystery. But now, since Calvary, that mystery has been revealed, and the Old Testament scriptures which so many found impossible to understand, are being taught to people from every nation – with the intention that they put their faith on the Jesus Christ as their Lord and Saviour. Praise God –“To God only wise, be glory through Jesus Christ for ever. Amen.”
Of course, it was obvious that I gave you the Oldfield paraphrase version. And I deliberately avoided the four words that I want to address this morning – “the obedience of faith.” To most lackadaisical Christian minds, “obedience” and “faith” shouldn’t go together. “Faith” and “grace” ought to be brothers, but “obedience” is opposed to “faith” – or so many people think.
Are there any other requirements and prerequisites for salvation? Should we command that man to get inside and share our pot-luck with us? Must we tell him that unless he is baptized and join our church there is no way that he can be saved? That is what the evangelist from the Church of Christ will tell the man. Must that man consent to take the Lord’s Supper with us at the first opportunity? That is what many Protestants would tell him. Should we tell him that if he smokes another joint of marijuana or drinks another beer, then he’ll surely go to Hell? That is what a lot of Baptists might tell him. Must he leave his common-law wife and forsake all those children that they have together? The only two things which the Bible instructs us to tell that man is that God demands repentance and that he must put his faith on Christ to save him.
Of course, I’m not saying that we approve of drunkenness, illegal drugs or adultery. These are terrible sins, and they should be condemned, even if they are found in Noah, David or Solomon. But if that man’s repentance is God-given, then these things will fall into their proper place. Or perhaps I should say that they will fall out of their current place – the man’s heart.
The only thing that we are told to say to this man with his excellent question – “what must I do to be saved” – is “repent of your sins before God and believe on the Lord Jesus Christ.” But how forceful should we be in telling this man these things? Some of us are rather timid; some are exceptionally shy and self-conscious. Some might be afraid of offending him or driving him off if we are too forceful in telling him to repent and trust Christ. Dare I say that we should command him to repent and believe? This is not only NOT unbiblical language, it is actually very appropriate language. And this is what our scripture is talking about. The gospel has been made manifest to the people of all nations, according to the commandment of God. And now it is the command of the Lord that people put their faith in Christ. There is such a thing as “the OBEDIENCE of faith.” Furthermore, to quote Acts 17:30 – “The times of (man’s) ignorance God winked at; but now commandeth all men every where to repent.” Repentance and faith are commanded by God.
A chapter earlier a large crowd of people had gathered in the Temple because of a notable miracle, so Peter took the opportunity and began to preach to them. “The God of our fathers raised up Jesus, whom ye slew and hanged on a tree. Him hath God exalted with his right hand to be a Prince and a Saviour, for to give repentance to Israel, and forgiveness of sins. And we are his witnesses of these things; and so is also the Holy Ghost, whom God hath given to them that OBEY him.” There is not a single place in all the scriptures which teaches that the Holy Spirit is given to people, or indwells a person, because that person is consistent in his service for God. Rather saints of God are consistent in their service because of the blessing of the indwelling Holy Spirit. The Spirt indwells people at the time of their salvation – when they are obedient in FAITH. “In (Christ) ye also trusted, after that ye heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation: in whom also after that ye believed, ye were sealed with that holy Spirit of promise, Which is the earnest of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession, unto the praise of his glory.”
In Romans 1, Paul describes his calling and ministry. In verse 5 he says, “By (Christ Jesus) we have received grace and apostleship, for OBEDIENCE to the faith among all nations, for his name.” Paul’s purpose in life, the work to which the Lord had called him, was so that people from among the nations would be obedient to the faith – that they would put their trust in Christ Jesus. And in chapter 15 he looks back on the ministry that he had thus far and says, “For I will not dare to speak of any of those things which Christ hath not wrought by me, to make the Gentiles OBEDIENT, by word and deed…. I have fully preached the gospel of Christ. Yea, so have I strived to preach the gospel, not where Christ was named.” What was it that Paul preached? The gospel of Christ. And what was it that he urged those gentiles to do with that gospel? To humbly obey it by faith. Did everyone believe? Unfortunately, no. And how did Paul express that in Romans 10? “But they have not all OBEYED the gospel.”
Hebrews 5:9 has been a problem for a great many people, because of Paul’s choice of language – or perhaps I should say – because of people’s misunderstanding of Paul’s language. Speaking of Christ the apostle said, “he became the author of eternal salvation…” When Jesus went to the cross it was for the purpose of dying for His elect. And when he paid the penalty for their sins, he became the author of eternal salvation for each of them. Elsewhere we are told that God demands repentance of sin and faith in Christ who died for them. But to finish this troublesome verse, Paul said, “And being made perfect, (Christ) became the author of eternal salvation unto all them that OBEY him. What was the obedience that he required? Repentance and faith. He’s not talking here about anything else, even though many other things are important and there are many other commands should be obeyed. Right here he is talking about the obedience of faith alone.
II Thessalonians 1 is a powerful passage, if people would pay attention to it. “To you who are troubled rest with us, when the Lord Jesus shall be revealed from heaven with his mighty angels, In flaming fire taking vengeance on them that know not God, and that obey not the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ: Who shall be punished with everlasting destruction from the presence of the Lord, and from the glory of his power; when he shall come to be glorified in his saints, and to be admired in all them that believe.” When the Lord Jesus returns – for the unbeliever it will be with swift and terrible judgment. It will be with everlasting destruction from the presence of God and the glory of his power. And how does Paul describe those people devoted to destruction? They are those who “obey not the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ.”
It seems that I quote I Peter 1 very, very often, and I did so last Sunday. It is filled with such good material; unfortunately, so many Christians refuse to listen to it, because it contains words and doctrines which go against their fallen nature. The chapter concludes by making a comparison between the human being and Word of God. “For all flesh is as grass, and all the glory of man as the flower of grass. The grass withereth, and the flower thereof falleth away: But the word of the Lord endureth for ever. And this is the word which by the gospel is preached unto you.” The verse preceding those two again addresses the importance of the Scriptures. “Being born again, not of corruptible seed, but of incorruptible, by the word of God, which liveth and abideth for ever.” I know that I am reading the chapter backwards, but it’s with a purpose. I Peter 1:22 says, “Seeing ye have purified your souls in OBEYING the truth through the Spirit unto unfeigned love of the brethren, see that ye love one another with a pure heart fervently. Being born again, not of corruptible seed, but of incorruptible, by the word of God, which liveth and abideth for ever.” What must I do to be saved? I must… “OBEY the truth through the spirit… being born again.” Again this obedience is not that of the Pharisees and in regard to laws and ordinances. This is the obedience of faith.
Finally there is one other passage from Peter which reminds us of I Thessalonians 1. I Peter 4:17-18 – “For the time is come that judgment must begin at the house of God: and if it first begin at us, what shall the end be of them that OBEY NOT THE GOSPEL OF GOD? And if the righteous scarcely be saved, where shall the ungodly and the sinner appear?” How were those, who are now righteous, saved? By obeying the gospel of God. Sinners are saved – they become righteous and saints – by obediently repenting of their sins and putting their faith in the Saviour, the Lord Jesus Christ.
Let’s close with one more reference to this business of obedience, but in this case it is by way of illustration.
Abraham did not become a child of God because he was circumcised as commanded – Paul clearly tells us. We could add that he didn’t become a Christian because he was sprinkled with water or even immersed. He was not one of the Lord’s saints because he left his homeland and his home town. There wasn’t anything that he did, in a physical or even a religious way, to induce the Lord to justify him or to “declare him righteous.” He merely believed what God was telling him. He believed the gospel in the form that it was given to him so many years before the cross of Christ. And because of his faith, he did what the Lord told him to do.
But Hebrew 11:8 says – “By faith Abraham, when he was called to go out into a place which he should after receive for an inheritance, OBEYED; and he went out, not knowing whither he went.” Abraham’s departure from Ur and Haran, his surrender to the word and will of the Lord, his worship of Jehovah, when he had been an idolater before. These things are illustrations and subsequent expressions of his faith and his salvation. Hebrews 11:8 says that Abraham “obeyed,” while Romans 4 says that Abraham “believed.” Hebrews 11 is a study of the nature of faith, both of the faith of salvation and the faith of daily living. Abraham obeyed God in believing and trusting the Lord.
This is the kind of obedience to which Paul was referring here in th closing words of Romans 16. This the kind of obedience which the Gentiles need in order to be saved from their sin. This the kind of obedience which God demands of you – repentance before God and faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. Have you been obedient unto salvation?