commands of the New Testament

What Does it Mean to Keep His Commandments?

December 8, 2022 // 12 Comments

Here’s a verse that can really trip you up: For this is the love of God, that we keep his commandments. (1 John 5:3a) What commandments is John talking about? If you have not learned to read scripture through a new covenant lens, you might think he’s talking about the Ten Commandments or the Law of Moses. If [...]

How to Read the Commands of the New Testament?

December 4, 2014 // 73 Comments

How should we read the commands of the New Testament? A legalist will insist we read them as commands that must be obeyed. After all, didn’t Jesus say, “If you love me, you will obey my commands?” He did, but he wasn’t preaching law-based obedience. He was saying obedience is a fruit of a [...]

The commands of John

April 4, 2013 // 57 Comments

A year ago I made a bunch of people mad by saying John never mentions the word “repent” in his gospel. To this day I still get messages from angry folks who say things like, “Well even if John didn’t preach it, you should! We need more preaching on repentance.” Actually I think we need more preaching on [...]