Obedience Means Living Like Who We Are In Christ

                A lot of Christ followers who eventually find our ministry have burned out on their legalistic version of Christianity.  When we explain to them the Gospel of grace and they understand that God accepts them regardless of what they do, it’s usually a huge relief.  They begin to experience such peace that many describe their new way of living as being “born again, again”!

It’s not uncommon for some to swing from legalism way over to license since they are unfamiliar with grace–based obedience.  At GLI, we do not subscribe to or approve of this, but we understand how it can happen.  I personally remember when God showed me His unconditional acceptance, I, too, struggled to understand the place of obedience.  Like many, I had obeyed God in my own strength for all of the wrong reasons.  Obedience is still something our Father desires for us to experience in our new normal life.  The question is “How do we obey from a place of grace?”

When you read Ephesians 4:22-24, you begin to see that obedience is actually our Father telling us to live like who we are as His children.  In other words, grace based obedience is living like who we are in Christ.  22 You were taught, with regard to your former way of life, to put off your old self, which is being corrupted by its deceitful desires; 23 to be made new in the attitude of your minds; 24 and to put on the new self, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness.

To put on the new self and to put off the old self means that we are to get rid of the behavior unsaved people exhibit and to put on the behavior that fits who we are in Christ.   God is saying here that we need a new wardrobe.   What if you weighed 2000 pounds (907 kilograms) before you were saved?  You’d have to wear clothes which fit you at that weight.  But, what if you immediately went down to the weight you are right now the moment you were saved?  Could you wear those old 2000 pound clothes?  You could, but they wouldn’t fit you very well and you’d be tripping and falling down all of the time.  You would need brand new clothes which fit you, wouldn’t you?

That is what obedience is all about.  It’s putting on the clothes, i.e., behavior which fits you now.  It’s living like who you are in Christ.  We are completely righteous in Christ, so to live a righteous life is God’s new normal for us now.  To obey God is to live like who we are in Christ.

That is why later in Ephesians 4, we are told to tell the truth.  Why?…because we are truth tellers in Christ, not liars.  We are told to be angry and sin not.  Why?…because we are kind people in Christ, not angry ones.  We are told to forgive.  Why?…because we are forgivers in Christ, not bitter, resentful people in Christ.  You get the idea, right?

This is grace-based obedience and our Father wants us to obey Him from our relationship with Him. He accepts us unconditionally, but it pleases Him for us to live like who we are in Christ.  Obey your Father this week, relying on the Holy Spirit in you, as He delights in empowering you with the resurrection life of Jesus.