Recently, our life group has been looking at God’s promise of a New Covenant in Jeremiah 31:31-34. This promise comes as a bright ray of hope in the midst of one of the darkest seasons in Judah’s history. It is a promise that things won’t remain the way that they are, that God will establish a New Covenant with His people that will draw them into a deeper relationship with Himself. That relationship will include God’s laws being written on their hearts and the total forgiveness of their sins. In our class, we looked at how Jesus establishes the New Covenant in light of Luke 22:20 and Hebrews 8-10.

During this discussion, I made a comment about obedience not being a necessary component of the New Covenant. I quickly retracted my words because my theologian-conscience-sirens started going off. But I wasn’t sure what to say in place of them. So I told our group that I would research, pray, and think about the role obedience plays in the Old and New Covenants. This blog is the product of my inquiry.

Here’s my thesis: Obedience was required of God’s people under the Old Covenant, but it is produced in God’s people under the New Covenant. Let me flesh that out.

Continue reading “Is Obedience Required in the New Covenant? The Role of Obedience in the Old and New Covenants” →