New Obedience¹

Ashbel Green

The term new obedience, used not only here but in another answer of the Catechism, seems to demand some special attention. Why, it may be asked, is the obedience called a new obedience, which the true penitent endeavours after? In what respects is it new?

I answer, 1. It is new in regard to its extent. Impenitent men may render a partial outward obedience to the commands of God, but they never go further. But the true penitent says with the Psalmist: “Then shall I not be ashamed, when I have respect unto all Thy commandments”. He does not take one duty and leave another; he has no satisfaction in obeying the second table of the law while he disregards the first; he does not separate the duties which we owe to God, our neighbour and ourselves; he does not sever the feelings and affections of his heart from outward visible actions. In a word, new obedience is impartial and universal in regard to its objects, though it is imperfect in degree. The true penitent says with David: “I esteem all Thy precepts concerning all things to be right; and I hate every false way”.

1. This obedience may be called new because it proceeds from new principles and motives. Men in their natural state are often influenced to perform what they call duty; as to the external act; they do so because of the dictates of natural conscience, from a regard to their own interest or reputation, from a mercenary hope of heaven, or from a slavish fear of hell. But evangelical obedience – the obedience of every true penitent – springs from a character

¹Taken with editing from Green’s Lectures on the Shorter Catechism, vol 2. Green (1762-1848) was a Presbyterian minister who became President of the College of New Jersey. This extract comes from a lecture on the question, “What is repentance unto life?”

entirely different. Its origin is the imparted grace of God, and it flows forth as the expression of faith and love.

“The grace of God that bringeth salvation hath appeared to all men, teaching us that, denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly, in this present world.” “Show me thy faith by thy works.” “Whatsoever is not of faith is sin”. “This is the victory that overcometh the world, even our faith” – “faith that worketh by love”. “Love is the fulfilling of the law.” “If ye love Me, keep My commandments.” “The love of Christ constraineth us; because we thus judge, that if one died for all, then were all dead; and that He died for all, that they which live should not henceforth live unto themselves, but unto Him that died for them, and rose again.”

A slave obeys his master through fear, a dutiful child obeys a kind parent from love. Here is the grand difference between every legalist and every child of God. All the obedience rendered by the legalist to what God requires is through servile fear; that of the child of God is from filial love. The legalist, moreover, obeys so that he may merit a reward. He whose repentance is unto life thinks of no merit as worthy of reward, but the infinite merit of Christ, and considers his own imperfect obedience as making no other return to his Saviour than an expression of gratitude, a very inadequate expression for Christ’s unmerited, infinite favour. When therefore an individual ceases to obey from fear and begins to obey from love, he ceases to think of earning a reward and thinks only of expressing humble gratitude, his obedience may be called, with emphatic propriety, a new obedience.

1. The obedience is new because he who renders it relies no longer on his own strength to effect his purpose, but on the strength of another. Once he made resolutions and attempted duties with a feeling of entire self-sufficiency. Now he feelingly believes the words of Christ: “Without Me ye can do nothing”; and he speaks and acts as Paul did when he said, “Not that we are sufficient of ourselves to think any thing as of ourselves, but our sufficiency is of God;” yet “I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me”.

2. This obedience may be called new because, in yielding it, the aim is new. Unsanctified men have always some selfish end in view; in all they do; they regard, supremely and solely, their own advantage or happiness. It is otherwise with him who is renewed in the spirit of his mind. He does not indeed disregard his own happiness; but he has learned that the glory of God, as the highest and best of all objects, should be supremely regarded in all he does; and that if he thus regards it, God will take better care of his happiness than any care which he can take of it himself. He therefore heartily approves of, and constantly endeavours to obey, the command, “Whether ye eat or drink, or whatsoever ye do, do all to the glory of God”.

For all these reasons then, the obedience of him whose repentance is unto life may, with emphasis, be described as new obedience.