Generations of evangelical Christians have been eagerly taught that their salvation is a gift from God. By placing their faith in the sacrificial death of Jesus upon the cross, they receive forgiveness of their sins and can be reconciled to God. Those who have placed their faith in Jesus are given the status of “righteous.” That is, their sins no longer count against them in the divine court room. They have been brought into right relationship with God. They are therefore “saved,” primarily meaning that God assures they will spend eternity in his joyful presence. Within this scheme, faith is conceived as simple trust in what Jesus accomplished by his death. Such faith is passive in the sense that is requires no action or activity on our part. Indeed, any action on our part is expressly excluded. No matter how hard we strive, any morally good or noble actions we perform simply cannot measure up to the perfect standard of a holy God. Any attempts to achieve our salvation through the performance of morally positive actions are deemed “works” based righteousness. Such “works” are regarded by many Christians as a dead-end. As many Christians are fond of saying, “Salvation isn’t about what you do, it’s about what Jesus Christ has done.”
I wish to state at the outset that I believe that this viewpoint is seriously flawed and some parts need to be scrapped entirely. The longer I have studied the Bible, and studied things written about the Bible, the more problematic this scheme has become. I hope to carefully lay out in this blog series the reasons why I have reached this conclusion. For those of you who might be curious, I have held my current position on this subject for quite some time, roughly two decades. So this is not a passing fancy for me! I’ve had plenty of time to think and study, and then think and study some more. I also wish to re-affirm my fundamental belief that the Bible is the true, reliable word of God. At times I will appeal to reason, logic, and even experience. But ultimately, the argument must rest firmly upon the proper interpretation of the scriptures. So let’s dive in!
I’d like to begin by reviewing some of the ground we covered during the “Gospel” blog series. There we learned the fundamental purpose for which God created human beings: to exercise his reign over the created order so that the world can function and flourish as God intends. If humans are going to accomplish this purpose, two very closely related things must happen. Humans must offer to God proper worship and obedience. Many Christians, when they think about the purpose of humanity, include proper worship but downplay or ignore obedience. For example, I often hear it said that the really important thing is having “a personal relationship” with God/Jesus. Now I do think that one of the astounding claims of the Christian faith is that we truly can have personal relationship with the God of the universe. We can walk day-by-day with him; we can know him as our heavenly Father; we can “cast our cares upon him” and know that he is concerned about even the smallest details of our lives. But when we celebrate these truths we need to remember that proper worship of God fulfills only half our purpose! If the world is going to flourish as God intends, humans also need to live in obedience to God. That is, they must order themselves and the world around them according to the wisdom of God.
It will be helpful at this point to take a close look at Genesis chapter 2, the Biblical account of the garden of Eden. “Now the LORD God had planted a garden in the east, in Eden; and there he put the man he had formed. And the LORD God made all kinds of trees grow out of the ground – trees that were pleasing to the eye and good for food. In the middle of the garden were the tree of life and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.” Now within this ancient story, the man can be understood both as an individual but also as a representative figure for the entire human race. Likewise, the garden represents more than simply one patch of ground, but rather symbolizes the whole created world. And the world God has given the man is full of beauty and abundance. (“pleasing to the eye and good for food”) The tree of life is an obvious symbol for the fact that the creator God is the ultimate source of life. Likewise, the tree of the knowledge of good and evil is a clear symbol for the fact all wisdom comes from God. As the creator, he alone knows how the world is designed to operate. He alone knows which behaviors will lead to joy, abundance and life.
The narrative goes on to say, “The LORD God took the man and put him in the Garden of Eden to work it and take care of it. And the LORD God commanded the man, ‘You are free to eat from any tree in the garden; but you must not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, for when you eat of it you will surely die.'” When God places the man in the garden, we should see here a profound claim regarding the fundamental purpose of humanity. God has given humankind the exalted role and responsibility to care for the world, to make it a place of goodness, beauty, and delight. But humanity can only achieve this goal by living according to God’s wisdom. If human beings reject the wisdom of God and instead pursue their own notion of right and wrong, they will have put themselves on the path to misery and ultimately death. Thus, God’s stern warning: “you must not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, for when you eat of it you will surely die.”
God’s good intentions go badly wrong in Genesis chapter 3. The serpent deceives the woman. It deludes her into thinking that rejecting God’s wisdom – and replacing it with her own – will bring flourishing and life rather than misery and death. The serpent declares, “You will not surely die!” Instead, the serpent convinces her that she can become like God, exercising her own wisdom, her own vision of right and wrong. So the woman eats the fruit and her husband as well. Because of their disobedience, they tragically bring upon themselves the curses. The result of their disobedience is pain, alienation, shame, fear, futility and ultimately death: “For dust you are and to dust you will return.”
Here’s the main point I’m trying to reinforce by examining this passage: if human beings are going to fulfill their fundamental purpose of exercising God’s reign over the creation, they must live according to God’s wisdom. In a word, they must obey. And obedience involves action, not simply belief.
We shall next turn our attention to the covenant God made with the children of Israel. At this point it will be crucial to understand the purpose of the covenant. God made the covenant with Israel to reverse the disastrous effects of human sin. At the beginning, God delegated his authority to human beings so that they would implement his reign over the creation. God’s plan for the flourishing of the world requires image-bearing humans who will offer him proper worship and obedience. Yet because of humanity’s rebellion, the creation has been subject to anguish, sorrow, hardship and death. In order to remedy this situation, God calls Israel to fulfill the role marked out for humanity at the beginning. And we shall see that the terms of the covenant involve the same two key ingredients: proper worship and obedience.
Here are Moses’ words to the people of Israel just before they cross the Jordan River to enter the promised land: “Hear now, O Israel, the decrees and laws I am about to teach you. Follow them so that you may live and may go in and take possession of the land that the LORD, the God of your fathers, is giving you. Do not add to what I command you and do not subtract from it, but keep the commands of the LORD your God that I give you.” (Deut. 4:1-2) Over and over again throughout the book of Deuteronomy, Moses reminds the people that they must obey God’s commands in order to receive his blessings. And the chief of all blessings is life itself, as this passage indicates: “Follow them so that you may live.” God wishes to bestow upon Israel joyful, prosperous, abundant life.
These same principles are repeated later in the same chapter, “Acknowledge and take to heart this day that the LORD is God in heaven above and on the earth below. There is no other. Keep his decrees and commands, which I am giving you today, so that it may go well with you and your children after you and that you may live long in the land the LORD your God gives you for all time.” (Deut. 4:39-40) Again, obedience will lead to joyful life in the promised land.
Moses then proceeds to review the covenant law which the Israelites originally received at Mount Horeb. The core of the law is of course the ten commandments. The ten commandments embody the same two key elements we noted above: proper worship and obedience. The first four commandments focus on proper worship. Commandment number one: “You shall have no other gods before me.” Commandment number two: “You shall not make for yourself an idol in the form of anything in heaven above or on the earth below. You shall not bow down to them or worship them.” The third and fourth commandments require Israel to show proper reverence for the LORD by honoring his name and observing his Sabbath day.
The importance of proper worship can be seen throughout the Old Testament. Worship is the most central human activity. If Israel will devote herself wholeheartedly to the worship of the one true God, then she will be able to reflect his image. Idolatry is the precise opposite of true worship. This is why throughout the scriptures, idolatry is the most central of all sin. For when humans worship that which is not God, their image-bearing humanity is diminished, defaced, and eventually destroyed. Failure to worship the one true God is the fatal flaw that ruins us. Idolatry results in the corruption of every part of our humanity; our minds, our hearts and our actions. This is why idolatry is condemned so vehemently throughout the prophets, starting with Moses himself: “Therefore watch yourselves very carefully, so that you do not become corrupt and make for yourselves an idol“. (Deut. 4:15-16)
Commandments five through ten mainly emphasize obedience. Honor your father and mother, do not murder, do not commit adultery, do not steal, do not bear false witness, do not covet. Much of the book of Deuteronomy includes various additional laws and commands: “You are to love those who are aliens, for you yourselves were aliens in Egypt.” (10:19) “Give generously to [the poor] and do so without a grudging heart.” (15:10) “Do not move your neighbor’s boundary stone.” (19:14) “A woman must not wear man’s clothing, nor a man wear women’s clothing, for the LORD your God detests anyone who does this.” (22:5) “Do not take advantage of a hired man who is poor and needy… Pay him his wages each day before sunset, because he is poor and is counting on it.” (24:14-15) “You must have accurate and honest weights and measures, so that you may live long in the land the LORD your God is giving you. For the LORD your God detests anyone who does these things, anyone who deals dishonestly.” (25:15-16) Now all of these additional laws in the book of Deuteronomy can be traced back to the ten commandments. For instance, having honest weights and measures falls under the prohibitions against stealing and lying.
As I’ve written above, however, proper worship and obedience are inextricably intertwined. This is perhaps best illustrated by examining the most famous passage in the book of Deuteronomy: the Shema. The Shema is far and away the most important Jewish prayer. Devout Jews have offered this prayer both morning and evening each day for thousands of years. The word “Shema” is the Hebrew word for “hear”, which is the first word of the prayer: “Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God, the LORD is one. Love the LORD you God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength.” (Deut. 6:4-5) The prayer declares that the God of Israel is the one true God, and calls the people of Israel to love him with all their being. But the prayer immediately goes on to say, “These commandments that I give you today are to be upon your hearts. Impress them on your children. Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up. Tie them as symbols on your hands and bind them on your foreheads. Write them on the door frames of your houses and on your gates.”
The main point is this: the love and worship of God finds its ultimate expression in obedience. Love goes far beyond how we think or feel about God; love is a call to action. Centuries later, Jesus says precisely this: “If you love me, you will obey what I command.” (John 14:15)
