Is Obedience Still Required? Understanding Righteousness, Grace, and the Call to Obedience

Deuteronomy 6:25

This year, in our daily Bible reading, my family and I are reading through the New Living Translation. I enjoy reading a different translation each year, because each year different words stand out to me. For example, the verse I want us to look at today: Deuteronomy 6:25, in the NLT, says, “For we will be counted as righteous when we obey all the commands the Lord our God has given us.”

That’s a powerful statement, isn’t it? It raises an important question, too. Are we still counted as righteous when we obey all the commands God has given us? Is obedience to God’s commands still required for us to be “counted as righteous”? Some would say no. After all, we are under grace now, not under law. We are saved by grace through faith, not works, right? If that is true, does this mean that the commands in the Old Testament do not apply to us today? Or do only some of them? How do we know which commands don’t matter and which ones do? These are important questions to consider. Today, we will be looking closer at what the Bible says about obedience, not just in this verse in Deuteronomy, but in the full context of Scripture.

The heart of this verse is similar to another one that stuck out to me in the NLT: Deuteronomy 13:18, which says, “The Lord your God will be merciful only if you listen to his voice and keep all his commands that I am giving you today, doing what pleases him.”

In the NASB it reads, “if you will listen to the voice of the Lord your God, keeping all His commandments which I am commanding you today, and doing what is right in the sight of the Lord your God.” Why are those two translations so different from one another? We have to read verses 17&18 together to understand. It says, in the NASB, “Nothing at all from what is designated for destruction is to cling to your hand, in order that the Lord may turn from His burning anger and show mercy to you, and have compassion on you and make you increase, just as He has sworn to your fathers, if you will listen to the voice of the Lord your God, keeping all His commandments which I am commanding you today, and doing what is right in the sight of the Lord your God.”

The NLT, according to Tyndale Publishing house, has tried to translate, “entire thoughts (rather than just words) into natural, everyday English. The result is a translation that…accurately communicates the meaning of the original text.” Considering this verse, I think they’ve done a pretty good job, for it wasn’t until I read it in the NLT that it jumped out at me. This verse is saying that if the Israelites disobeyed God, they would face His judgement. God’s mercy toward them would be dependent upon them listening to Him and obeying His commands.

Again, this is something we should consider. Today, is God’s mercy toward us dependent on us listening to Him and obeying His commands? Do our actions determine whether God will show mercy to us and have compassion on us? Is Deuteronomy canceled out by the Cross?

In the Old Testament, we see that obedience to God’s law is how people pleased God or not. 1 Samuel 15:22 (NLT) makes it very clear. It says, “But Samuel replied, ‘What is more pleasing to the Lord: your burnt offerings and sacrifices or your obedience to his voice? Listen! Obedience is better than sacrifice, and submission is better than offering the fat of rams.’”

As just two more examples, Leviticus 18:9 (NLT) says, “If you obey my decrees and my regulations, you will find life through them. I am the Lord.” And Exodus 19:5 (NLT) says, “Now if you will obey me and keep my covenant, you will be my own special treasure from among all the peoples on earth; for all the earth belongs to me.”

Both of those verses clearly state that if people wanted to please God, they must obey Him. We also see example after example in the Old Testament of people who obeyed God and He was pleased, contrasted with people who disobeyed Him and experienced punishment or judgement for their disobedience. As just one example, look at Moses. The one time Moses disobeyed God, and he struck a rock instead of speaking to it in order for water to come out of it, Moses was punished for his disobedience, and because of that disobedience he did not get to enter the Promised Land.

Many people, though, seem to think we do not need to obey the commands in the Old Testament. They think the commands are “nailed to the cross” or canceled by the New Testament. But the Bible does not teach us that obedience to God’s commands is optional after Christ. Instead, obedience remains a requirement and an expression of our righteousness, just like Deuteronomy tells us it does.

Jesus, Himself, clearly tells us this in Matthew 5:17 (NLT), when He says, “Don’t misunderstand why I have come. I did not come to abolish the law of Moses or the writings of the prophets. No, I came to accomplish their purpose.”

We should look at the next few verses Jesus speaks after this to fully understand what He was saying. Matthew 5:18-20 says, “I tell you the truth, until heaven and earth disappear, not even the smallest detail of God’s law will disappear until its purpose is achieved. So, if you ignore the least commandment and teach others to do the same, you will be called the least in the Kingdom of Heaven. But anyone who obeys God’s laws and teaches them will be called great in the Kingdom of Heaven. But I warn you—unless your righteousness is better than the righteousness of the teachers of religious law and the Pharisees, you will never enter the Kingdom of Heaven!”

More proof that we cannot ignore God’s commands is seen when Jesus also says, in John 14:15, “If you love me, keep my commandments.”

Alexander MacLaren, in his commentary on this verse, says this: Now, brethren, here is a plain test and a double-barreled one, which tries both our love and our obedience with a sharp touchstone. ‘If ye love Me, ye will keep My commandments.’ That implies, first, that there is no love worth calling so which does not keep the commandment. All the emotional and the mystic, and the so-called higher parts of Christian experience, have to be content to submit to this plain test-do they help us to live as Christ would have us, and that because He would have us? Love to Him that does not keep His commandments is either spurious or dangerously feeble. The true sign of its presence in the heart… is not to be found in high-pitched expressions of fervid emotion, nor even in the sacred joys of solitary communion, but in its making us, while in the rough struggle of daily life, and surrounded by trivial tasks, live near Him, and by Him, and for Him, and like Him. If I live so, I love Him; if not, not…Test your Christian love by your practical obedience.”

MacLaren is saying that love for Jesus isn’t measured by emotion but by obedience. If I truly love Him, I’ll live like Him. If not, I don’t. In all areas of our lives, our love for Christ should be making us more and more like Him each day. This is the test of whether we love Jesus or not.

But what about grace, you may ask? Yes, what about grace?

Ephesians 2:8–10 (NASB) says, “For by grace you have been saved through faith; and this is not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; not a result of works, so that no one may boast. For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand so that we would walk in them.”

This means that it is God’s kindness and graciousness toward us, that if we have faith in Jesus, He gives us the gift of salvation. God did not send Jesus to die on the cross because we deserved salvation. We did not earn or merit salvation because of our good works. God sent Jesus because He loved us and wanted to make a better way for us to be saved. That is grace.

And because of grace, God has prepared good works for us to do—not as a means to earn salvation, but as the fruit and evidence of genuine faith. Through God’s grace, if we love God, we will obey Him, keep His commandments, and produce good fruit.

This is really no different than it was in the Old Testament. It was because of God’s grace that He called people to follow Him and established a covenant relationship with them. The people who wanted to be in that covenant relationship with God needed to obey His Law. When they failed to do so, God provided a way for them to be forgiven.

In the Old Covenant, obedience wasn’t a way to earn salvation, but it was the expected response of a people in covenant with a holy God. The Law was established to show people the correct way to live as people of God.

You could say that in the Old Testament, people were also saved by grace through faith. This is clearly seen in the life of Abraham: “Abraham believed God, and God counted him as righteous because of his faith,” as Romans 4:3 says. The same is true for many others, as Hebrews 11:2 (NASB) says, “For by it the people of old gained approval.” It was the people’s faith that gained God’s approval.

The Law merely revealed everyone’s problem: sin. The Law showed that everyone needed God’s grace, because nobody could keep the Law perfectly. As Hebrews 10:1 (NLT) explains, “The old system under the law of Moses was only a shadow, a dim preview of the good things to come, not the good things themselves.” That’s why the sacrificial system existed, for it was a shadow of what Christ would do for us on the cross. Unlike the animal sacrifices that had to be performed over and over again, Hebrews 10:10 explains, Jesus died on the cross for us, “for God’s will was for us to be made holy by the sacrifice of the body of Jesus Christ, once for all time.” Christ was the perfect sacrifice that only needed to be made once.

That’s why Jesus said in that verse in Matthew, “Unless your righteousness is better than the righteousness of the teachers of religious law and the Pharisees, you will never enter the Kingdom of Heaven!” Our good works could never be good enough. That’s why, even in the Old Testament, blood had to be shed for the forgiveness of sins. Good works were never sufficient.

The sacrifices that were repeated again and again could never fully cleanse people from their sin. They were a foreshadowing of what Christ would accomplish on the cross, for “Just think how much more the blood of Christ will purify our consciences from sinful deeds so that we can worship the living God,” as Hebrews 9:14 says.

God expected His people to obey Him, but when they failed to do so, if they repented, they could be forgiven through the sacrificial system He established for them. That system was pointing us to Christ, who would become the better sacrifice. Then and now, obedience wasn’t a way to earn salvation, but it was evidence of a right relationship with God.

Today, we still need to obey God, even the commands from the Old Testament, but we don’t have to obey the laws that Jesus fulfilled. For example, we don’t need to sacrifice animals when we sin or obey temple regulations or follow the food laws. Paul explains this in Colossians 2:16–17, which says, “So don’t let anyone condemn you for what you eat or drink, or for not celebrating certain holy days or new moon ceremonies or Sabbaths. For these rules are only shadows of the reality yet to come. And Christ himself is that reality.”

And in Romans 7:6, he says, “But now we have been released from the law, for we died to it and are no longer captive to its power. Now we can serve God, not in the old way of obeying the letter of the law, but in the new way of living in the Spirit.”

Even though we no longer have to obey the ceremonial laws, the moral commands are still valid. True obedience to God’s laws actually goes deeper than mere religious observance, though. We still need to obey God. Obedience is not outdated or “Old covenant only.”

As I mentioned, Jesus wasn’t setting aside the idea of righteousness from the Law, He was fulfilling it. That means that He was bringing it to its intended depth. Obedience is not about rule-keeping. It’s about relationship and transformation. That means it’s not enough to not murder someone, we must avoid murdering someone in our hearts by hating. In the same way, we shouldn’t just avoid committing adultery, we should also avoid committing adultery in our hearts through lust. Jesus looks into our heart and sees everything, including our intentions. We can’t trick God with empty confessions. He sees our hearts.

So, while we can rejoice that He is faithful to forgive us when we fail, we shouldn’t think that because He died on the cross for us that means we don’t need to obey Him. Scripture is clear that if we say we have faith but walk in disobedience, we are deceiving ourselves. True faith always produces good works; good works are the proof of living faith. So, we shouldn’t think that we can trick Him into forgiving us when we willfully sin. We can’t take grace for granted or use it as an excuse to sin. Look at all these verses which explain this:

Romans 6:1–2 says, “Well then, should we keep on sinning so that God can show us more and more of his wonderful grace? Of course not! Since we have died to sin, how can we continue to live in it?”

Galatians 5:13 says, “For you have been called to live in freedom, my brothers and sisters. But don’t use your freedom to satisfy your sinful nature. Instead, use your freedom to serve one another in love.”

Hebrews 10:26–27 warns us, “Dear friends, if we deliberately continue sinning after we have received knowledge of the truth, there is no longer any sacrifice that will cover these sins. There is only the terrible expectation of God’s judgment and the raging fire that will consume his enemies.”

No matter what popular preachers may tell you, God’s grace does not allow us to live in disobedience to His Word. That is not my opinion. I am simply echoing what Jude 4 says. He says, “I say this because some ungodly people have wormed their way into your churches, saying that God’s marvelous grace allows us to live immoral lives. The condemnation of such people was recorded long ago, for they have denied our only Master and Lord, Jesus Christ.” We cannot continue to disobey God and think that His grace will cover us. Cheap grace is not the Gospel. Real grace transforms our hearts and minds, resulting in a changed life.

So, when we read Ephesians 2, we should not think we are saved by grace alone in a way that excludes faith and obedience. We are saved by grace through our faith, but faith is genuine only if it is proven by our actions.

This aligns with what Deuteronomy 6:25, which says, “For we will be counted as righteous when we obey all the commands the Lord our God has given us.” And what Deuteronomy 13:17–18 teaches about obeying God’s commands, and what Jesus says about proving our love for Him by our actions.

We are saved by God’s grace, through faith—not by works. But faith is never alone; it produces obedience. The New Testament didn’t cancel out Old Testament obedience; it fulfilled and deepened it. We are still counted as righteous when we obey God’s commands, because our obedience is the outworking of true, living faith. Obededience to the Law could never bring us salvation or righteousness. But obedience as a result of our faith in Jesus proves that our faith is real. We don’t obey to earn salvation, but if we love the Lord, we will seek to obey Him.

So, the commands in Deuteronomy to obey the Lord still apply to us today as believers in Christ, but God’s commands are not burdens—they are a path of blessing and righteousness. Just as the Israelites were blessed when they followed God’s commands, so too, are we blessed when we live according to God’s Laws.

Like Deuteronomy teaches, righteousness is obedience, and we are called to live that out daily. If you still don’t believe me, look at what Philippians 2:12 says, “Dear friends, you always followed my instructions when I was with you. And now that I am away, it is even more important. Work hard to show the results of your salvation, obeying God with deep reverence and fear.”

Grace is not permission to live however we want. As Jesus says in Matthew 28:20, “Teach these new disciples to obey all the commands I have given you. And be sure of this: I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” We are to obey all the commands He has given us. Let us ask ourselves each day: am I walking in obedience to God’s Word?

Pray: Heavenly Father, we confess that we have not always obeyed Your Word. Thank You for Your grace and mercy which promises to forgive us when we repent. Please forgive us and help us to live submitted to Your commands. We want to obey You. We want to live out the faith we have in You and follow all Your ways. Please help us, by the power of the Holy Spirit, to walk in Your ways each day, becoming more and more like Jesus. Please mold us and shape us into better reflections of Your love and grace. We ask this in Jesus’ name. Amen.