What we want is what I call evangelical obedience, that is obedience that is

obedience that is free, willing, glad from a transformed heart that sees the beauty

and rightness and goodness of the commands and doesn't do them begrudgingly or under constraint or under threat.

What produces obedience that comes willingly from a glad heart.

In this episode of Light and Truth,

John Piper opens Ephesians 4, 22 to 28,

to show how Christian obedience flows from the Gospel of Grace.

This sermon was originally preached at Bethlehem Baptist Church on October 5, 1986. We will focus this morning on verse 28 concerning the matter of stealing and working. One of the points that I made to the hundred people who were in my living room and dining room on Friday night for missions and demands.

We had a great time together was this. You can't fulfill the Great Commission unless you know

biblical doctrine. And I gave two reasons, but one of the reasons I gave was this.

The Great Commission says, go therefore and make disciples of all nations baptizing them in the name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit,

teaching them to observe all that I commanded you.

So the great commission involves teaching people to be obedient to Jesus, to do everything he said should be done.

But not all obedience is satisfactory. What we want is what I call evangelical obedience, that is obedience that is free, willing, glad from a transformed

heart that sees the beauty and rightness and goodness of the commands

and doesn't do them begrudgingly or under constraint or under threat.

So that's the evangelical obedience that we must have in order to fulfill the great

commission.

And my argument was you cannot have evangelical obedience without evangelical doctrine.

So for example, how do you get people not to steal.

Or you might say to them, don't steal.

And they'll say, why not?

...