I read your article regarding\u00a0the role of obedience in salvation<\/a>.\u00a0 Very interesting.<\/p>\n I would have to agree with some of your take on obedience as long as it doesn’t take away from the redeeming work of Christ.<\/p>\n How does one deal with a difference of opinion on what obedience is\u00a0and what it is not?\u00a0 My Adventist friend calls my denial of Sabbath not only\u00a0disobedience but outright rebellion against God.\u00a0 He calls himself obedient because he keeps the letter of the ten commandments.<\/p>\n I, on the other hand, feel there is much more to the law than the Ten Commandments and I learn more of what sin is as I get older.\u00a0 Jesus talked about adultery and murder of the heart, oaths, sorcery, etc.\u00a0 Therefore, I could never keep all of God’s commands perfectly.<\/p>\n So, what exactly is obedience?<\/p>\n\t “Whoever believes that Jesus is the Christ is born of God, and everyone who loves Him who begot also loves him who is begotten of Him. By this we know that we love the children of God, when we love God and keep His commandments. For this is the love of God, that we keep His commandments. And His commandments are not burdensome<\/em>” (I John 5:1-3).<\/p>\n “If you love Me, keep My commandments<\/em>” (John 14:15).<\/p>\n “Now by this we know that we know Him, if we keep His commandments. He who says, “I know Him,” and does not keep His commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him. But whoever keeps His word, truly the love of God is perfected in him. By this we know that we are in Him. He who says he abides in Him ought himself also to walk just as He walked<\/em>” (I John 2:3-6).<\/p><\/blockquote>\n I’m curious how you can come to the conclusion that obeying Jesus Christ somehow takes away from Jesus’ gift to mankind. Jesus offers everyone a gift of eternal life, a gift beyond imagination. In response to that, we express our love and appreciation by truly making him Lord in our lives — we obey our king.<\/p>\n How do you obey the rules of the road that your government puts into place? How do you obey the laws of the land? You certainly don’t tell the judge the laws are too complicated. You won’t get far by saying well my friend thinks the law should say this and I think it should say that, so I’m just going to ignore the whole thing.<\/p>\n Do different people have different takes on any law, be it man’s or God’s? Obviously. So how are differences settled? By going back to the law and seeing what is actually said. Your Adventist friend ignores God’s statements that the law of Moses, which includes the Ten Commandments, was to be replaced with a new law. “Then He said, “Behold, I have come to do Your will, O God.” He takes away the first that He may establish the second<\/em>” (Hebrews 10:9). There is quite a bit of material on this site regarding the\u00a0Ten Commandments<\/a>\u00a0and the\u00a0Sabbath Day<\/a>, so you can refer to these two links to learn more. Open up your Bible and read the passages and see what God actually says about the matter and then start living by what you’ve learned from God.<\/p>\n God makes no request for perfect or flawless obedience. Instead, He tells us, “If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. If we say that we have not sinned, we make Him a liar, and His word is not in us<\/em>” (I John 1:8-10). What God requires of us is not to stay in our sins. Every one of us has sinned. Some people wallow in it, but the Christian is disgusted by it and strives to do something about removing sin from his life.<\/p>\n The fact that we will sin doesn’t mean we accept sin. “What shall we say then? Shall we continue in sin that grace may abound? Certainly not! How shall we who died to sin live any longer in it?<\/em>” (Romans 6:1-2). It is true that you haven’t and you won’t keep God’s law perfectly. That is why any man trying to earn his salvation on his own merits will fail. But to do nothing about your sins is a failure too. “I tell you, no; but unless you repent you will all likewise perish<\/em>” (Luke 13:3). A failure to obey God means you don’t really, truly believe Him. “What does it profit, my brethren, if someone says he has faith but does not have works? Can faith save him? If a brother or sister is naked and destitute of daily food, and one of you says to them, “Depart in peace, be warmed and filled,” but you do not give them the things which are needed for the body, what does it profit? Thus also faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead<\/em>” (James 2:14-17).<\/p>\n\t First, thank you so much for taking the time to respond.\u00a0 It is a generous gift of your time!<\/p>\n Second, I don’t believe obedience takes away from the atoning work of Christ unless someone thinks their obedience earns salvation.\u00a0 My Adventist friend drifts dangerously close to salvation by works in my opinion and that ongoing debate is the basis for my comment.<\/p>\n It sounds like we agree completely.\u00a0I understood salvation by grace at age 18.\u00a0 When\u00a0I finally embraced repentance and obedience about\u00a08 years ago, the blessings have been indescribable.\u00a0 I am far more obedient today than yesterday and, with the help of the Spirit, a little better tomorrow.\u00a0 But certainly never perfect.<\/p>\n Again, it sounds like we are on the “same page” although I envy your ability to express yourself.<\/p>\n Regarding Sabbath, the Spirit seems to tell me I’m fine celebrating The Lord’s Day rather than the original Jewish Sabbath.\u00a0 I will review the material on your website.<\/p>\n Thank you again and if I ever get to Nebraska, I’ll see you in church.\u00a0 If not, God willing, I’ll meet you in paradise.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Question: I read your article regarding\u00a0the role of obedience in salvation.\u00a0 Very interesting. I would have to agree with some of your take on obedience as long as it doesn’t take away from the redeeming work of Christ. How does one deal with a difference of opinion on what obedience is\u00a0and what it is not?\u00a0…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"advanced_seo_description":"","jetpack_seo_html_title":"","jetpack_seo_noindex":false,"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[20],"tags":[54],"class_list":["post-23011","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-answer","tag-obedience"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":54520,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/how-much-obedience-does-the-lord-demand-of-me\/","url_meta":{"origin":23011,"position":0},"title":"How much obedience does the Lord demand of me?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"November 8, 2018","format":false,"excerpt":"Question: Hey Jeffrey, I have a problem understanding the nature of obedience to God's laws. I read and hear that obedience is required for salvation, but no man (besides Jesus) has obeyed perfectly, so please help me understand the nature of the obedience required to please God and enter His\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Answer"","block_context":{"text":"Answer","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/answer\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":88756,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/love-service-and-obedience\/","url_meta":{"origin":23011,"position":1},"title":"Love, Service, and Obedience","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"July 18, 2025","format":false,"excerpt":"by Doy Moyer We serve what we love, and we obey what we serve. What does that mean? It is possible to be coerced into obedience, but this is not love. However, when we love something or someone, we serve, and in serving, we obey. I believe the word \"obey\"\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Article"","block_context":{"text":"Article","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/article\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":9880,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/the-role-of-obedience-in-salvation\/","url_meta":{"origin":23011,"position":2},"title":"The Role of Obedience in Salvation","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"September 17, 2006","format":false,"excerpt":"by Jack Holt Obedience is an obligation each human being sustains to God. This is so because God is the Creator and Ruler of the universe, and we are his creatures. Beyond the fact that God is Creator and Ruler, love places us under a moral obligation to obey. As\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Article"","block_context":{"text":"Article","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/article\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":92250,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/do-you-know-jesus\/","url_meta":{"origin":23011,"position":3},"title":"Do You Know Jesus?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"November 19, 2025","format":false,"excerpt":"by Zeke Flores Do you know Jesus? Or do you know about Jesus? Those are two very different things. Lots of people know about Jesus the same way they might know someone by reading their biography. It may include many of their interesting personal characteristics or incidents from their lives.\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Article"","block_context":{"text":"Article","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/article\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":86019,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/the-relationship-between-worship-and-obedience\/","url_meta":{"origin":23011,"position":4},"title":"The Relationship Between Worship and Obedience","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"March 24, 2025","format":false,"excerpt":"by Vance E. Trefethen Have you ever heard someone say that worship and obedience are essentially the same thing or that every act of obedience is an act of worship? I've heard these concepts expressed privately by Christians and even taught publicly. A few months ago, I decided to study\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Article"","block_context":{"text":"Article","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/article\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":30191,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/since-jesus-paid-the-debt-for-sin-isnt-hell-an-additional-payment\/","url_meta":{"origin":23011,"position":5},"title":"Since Jesus paid the debt for sin, isn’t Hell an additional payment?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"January 11, 2021","format":false,"excerpt":"Question: I have been posed a question by a conditionalist. He says:\u00a0The wages of sin is death.\u00a0Did Jesus pay the price at the cross?\u00a0Can we pay more than He paid at the cross? He then goes on to say that eternal hell would be paying more than Jesus paid and\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Answer"","block_context":{"text":"Answer","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/answer\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]}],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/23011","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=23011"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/23011\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=23011"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=23011"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=23011"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}Answer:<\/h2>\n
Response:<\/h2>\n