A fundamental statement of John the Baptist can be found in John 3:36 to the effect that he who believes Jesus Christ will inherit eternal life, but that God’s wrath rests upon a person who does not “obey” Christ (compare the correct rendering in the Revised Standard Version).
John had refused to baptize those who came to him without having shown fruits of repentance, challenging them with the question as to who had warned them to flee from the wrath to come (Matthew 3:7-12; Luke 3:7-17). In Matthew 23:33, Christ reiterated John’s warning, ultimately equating the wrath of God with the condemnation of hell fire. That is, if someone refuses to repent and obey God, ending up in committing the unpardonable sin, he will be destroyed in the lake of fire.
Colossians 3:6 tells us that the wrath of God will come upon the children of “disobedience.” 2 Thessalonians 1:6-9 adds that Christ will take vengeance on them that “do not obey” the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ.
It is important to realize that we are going to face God’s wrath if we refuse to obey Him. The book of Revelation announces in vivid terms what will happen to mankind when God pours out His wrath on rebellious and disobedient people (Revelation 6:15-17; 11:18; 14:9-10, 19; 15:1, 7; 16:1, 19; 19:15).
On the other hand, 1 Thessalonians 1:9-10 states that Jesus Christ delivered us from the wrath to come since we turned from idols to serve the living God. 1 Thessalonians 5:9 reconfirms that God has not appointed us to wrath, but to obtain salvation through Jesus Christ.
And so, the Bible emphasizes repeatedly that we must be obedient to God, in order to escape His wrath and inherit eternal life. In Acts 4:19; 5:29, 32, we read that we must “obey” God rather than man (if there is a conflict), and that God gives His Holy Spirit only to those who “obey” Him (which includes continuing obedience even after we have become converted, so that God can provide us with a steady supply of the Holy Spirit on a daily basis, rather than taking the Holy Spirit away from us).
We read in Acts 6:7 that when the number of disciples multiplied in Jerusalem, many priests became also “obedient to the faith.” Romans 1:5; 16:26 speaks as well of “obedience to” or “of the faith”; and Romans 15:18 says that Christ, using Paul as an instrument, is making the Gentiles “obedient,” while Romans 16:19 explains that their “obedience” has become known to all.
2 Corinthians 10:5-6 even states that we must bring our thoughts into captivity to the “obedience of Christ,” and once our obedience has been fulfilled or perfected, we will be able to rule with and under Christ, to deal with and revenge all the disobedience of rebellious men.
Peter admonishes us to be “obedient children” (1 Peter 1:14) who have purified our souls in “obeying the truth” through God’s Spirit (verse 22).
John explains that we know God when we keep His commandments; that we are liars when we say we know Him and don’t keep them; and that the love of God is being perfected in us to the degree that we do keep them (1 John 2:3-5). He even states that we know that we love God’s children, when we love God and keep His commandments (1 John 5:2-3).
Paul has much to say about obedience and disobedience in his letter to the Hebrews. He explained that the Israelites who had left Egypt could not enter the Promised Land because of sin, unbelief and “disobedience” (Hebrews 3:17-19; note that in verse 18, the correct rendering is “disobedience,” not “that believed not,” as the Authorized Version renders it. The New King James Bible and the Luther Bible translate it correctly.). Again, in Hebrews 4:6, 11, Paul states that they were unable to enter the Promised Land because of “disobedience” (as it should be in both verses, compare the New King James Bible and Luther; the Authorized Version renders incorrectly “unbelief” in both passages).
In Hebrews 5:9, we are told that Christ became the author of eternal salvation for all those who “obey Him”; and Hebrews 8:10-12 quotes a prophecy from the Old Testament to the effect that God will write His Law in the hearts and minds of the people, so that they will know Him and obey the Law and not sin anymore (compare also Hebrews 10:15-17).
In the very last book of the Bible, the Book of Revelation, the need for obedience of God’s Law is stressed again. In Revelation 12:17, we are told that Satan will persecute members of the Church of God who keep the commandments of God. In Revelation 14:12, we read about those who, in the face of persecution, have the patience of the saints and the faith of Jesus, and who keep the commandments of God. Finally, God warns those who refuse to obey God’s commandments and who instead live in and practice sin, that they will not enter the heavenly Jerusalem (Revelation 21:27; 22:15).
At the same time, He tells us that we are blessed when we keep His commandments, so that we may enter the holy city (Revelation 22:14); and when we overcome sin, self, society and Satan, we will inherit all things and won’t have to die the second death in the lake of fire (Revelation 21:7-8).
We are left with the strong encouragement that we are to continue living in righteousness and holiness if we want to enter the Family of God (Revelation 22:11), knowing that Christ will return soon to give us our reward in accordance with our works (Revelation 22:12). We cannot afford beginning to slip and fall and turn away from the Holy Word of God, by giving heed to human fables and fairy tales and demonic philosophies which will try to convince us that we don’t need to be obedient to God’s Law, because we are now under grace. Paul says that the condemnation of those is just who teach such heresy.
Lead Writer: Norbert Link
