Grace, or obedience?
I think we’d all agree that we need both, but it’s the ratio that is constantly debated. As humans, we can easily fall into the pendulum effect of going too far in one direction or the other.
The all grace side results in churches made up of people who look just like the world. “You don’t have to give up your sex outside of marriage or homosexual relationship. You don’t have to stop getting drunk at parties or smoking pot. No need to clean up your language. We’re all sinners here and God has us covered.” But how can we tell the world we’re different if we commit the same sins and live the same lives?
On the other hand, the all works side results in people feeling constantly defeated, never resting in God. It also results in people hiding their sins because they’re terrified of what might happen if someone finds out they aren’t perfect. But how can we tell the world we’re different if we, like every other man-made religion, demand near perfection and cast shame on anybody who can’t perfectly keep it together?
So how do we strike a balance? It all hinges on one word: “Therefore” – Romans 12:1
Any good Bible student will tell you that “Therefore” is always an important word, because it links the preceding context to what follows. What comes after the therefore is the result of what came before it.
In the case of Romans 12:1 (and similar cases in Ephesians 4:1 and Colossians 3:1), “Therefore” signifies a transition from doctrine to practice. In Romans 1-11, Paul detailed the problem of sin for both Jews and Gentiles, our justification through faith in Jesus and not our works of merit, the Spirit helping us so that nothing will separate us from Christ, and God’s over-arching plan for the Jews and the Gentiles. In short, he established many of the core components of Christian doctrine.
However, he spent little time on specific commandments for our lives (a pattern shared once again by Ephesians 1-3 and Colossians 1-2). It was doctrine, doctrine, doctrine – the truth about faith, grace, salvation, God’s love, and more.
The all grace people stop right there. There is no “Therefore” for them to transition into the obedience that must naturally follow doctrinal truth. God has our “messy” lives covered, so we can keep on being us, the thinking goes. But it’s by those “mercies of God” that we are called to give ourselves up as living sacrifices. Obviously, sacrifice means putting ourselves to death.
On the other hand, those who over-emphasize works and obedience often cut out the “Therefore,” too. Their focus is largely placed on the commands and good deeds demanded from Romans 12:1 and on. Without the “Therefore” and everything that preceded it, though, it’s hollow. Works of obedience commanded in the last quarter of the book are lacking without the deep understanding of works’ inability to save that Paul gave in Romans 3:19-chapter 4.
Works-based people can never rest because they still think their works will save them. Grace only people never grow into the works God has for them (Eph. 2:10) because they don’t follow the “Therefore” and see that grace demands us becoming living and holy sacrifices.
If you’re constantly feeling like you’re not good enough and are unsure of your salvation, spend some serious time studying what comes before the “Therefore” in Romans 12:1, Ephesians 4:1, and Colossians 3:1.
If, on the other hand, your Christianity isn’t driving you to transformative obedience, I’d still recommend starting before the “Therefore.” Get a deep understanding of what God has done for you, then realize that the sacrifice and obedience isn’t just what’s demanded but what naturally results from God’s love. Then you can go on to focus on the commands given after the “Therefore.”
Obedience without a foundation of grace lacks motivation. Grace without the motivation to obey lacks understanding. But if we get that “Therefore” right, it all falls into place. Grace, love, and faith first. Then radical, self-sacrificial obedience naturally follows.
