By: Sherene Khouri, PhD | July 18, 2022
While the two terms are distinct, they are not separable. The two terms are related to the work of Christ (not the person of Christ doctrine) and accompany each other at every point in Jesus’s life. This article will answer three main questions: what is the active and the passive obedience of Christ? Is this doctrine biblical? Why this doctrine is important?
The active obedience of Christ is related to the doctrine of the work of Christ. It means that Jesus lived all his life in subjection to the law. Jesus fulfilled all the precepts of the law; therefore, he is without blemish or sin (Heb 4:15, NIV). Systematic theologian Wayne Grudem writes, “Christ’s obedience for us in which he obeyed the requirements of the law in our place and was perfectly obedient to the will of God the Father as our representative.”[1] Christ had to live a life of perfect obedience to God in order to earn righteousness for us. He had to obey the law perfectly for his whole life on our behalf so that the positive merits of his perfect obedience would be counted for us. As Paul writes, “For just as through the disobedience of the one man the many were made sinners, so also through the obedience of the one man the many will be made righteous” (Rom 5:19).
Jesus’s passive obedience, on the other hand, means his voluntary work, suffering, and death on the cross were done on our behalf. Grudem states, “Christ sufferings for us, in which he took the penalty due for our sins and as a result died for our sins.”[2] Christ took on himself the sufferings necessary to pay the penalty for our sins. It is important to notice that both categories emphasize Christ’s work of redemption that is not on us but on God the Father. Jesus obeyed the Father on our behalf and perfectly met the demands of the law. He suffered in our place, receiving the penalty that God the Father would have placed upon us.
It is not clear to me why theologians chose the term “passive obedience,” especially since Jesus’s mind and will were active in both concepts. Usually, passive obedience portrays the picture of Jesus allowing something to happen to him or that he was not himself active in his obedience, and this is not true or biblical. In reference to his life, Jesus said, “No one takes it from me, but I lay it down of my own accord. I have authority to lay it down and authority to take it up again. This command I received from my Father” (John 10:18). This means that Jesus willingly came to die for us on the cross. The Father gives this command and Jesus willingly obeys. Therefore, I would like the reader to note that this connotation of the term is not what we mean. The biblical belief is that Jesus is righteous, and he willingly (not passively or forcibly) receives the curse of God. Active obedience refers to his whole life obeying the law whereby he qualifies to be the savior, the lamb without blemish. Passive obedience refers to him paying the penalty for our sins and on our behalf.
Is This Doctrine Biblical?
This doctrine is biblically supported by several verses. In the Old Testament, the sacrifice had certain provisions. The most important one was supposed to be without any blemish or defect to be acceptable (Lev 22:21). Since the OT sacrifices point to the ultimate sacrifice of Jesus Christ (1Pet 1:19; 1 Cor 5:7), Jesus had to be without any sin. Paul explains to the church of Corinth, “God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God” (2 Cor 5:21). Jesus who had no sin, suffered for us and imputed righteousness to us (Rom 3:22; 1 Cor 1:30). In John 10, Jesus declares several times that he lays down his life for those who believed in him (his sheep) (John 10: 11, 15, 18).
Why This Doctrine Is Important?
Jesus was sent to fulfill all righteousness, which meant to the Jews to obey every detail of the law. Jesus is not acting for himself, but for his people. If the Jews are required to submit and obey the law, then Jesus also must submit and obey. His life of perfect obedience is as necessary as his perfect atonement on the cross. Because of double imputation—our sins were imputed to him, and his righteousness was imputed to us—Jesus is our righteousness. Paul writes to the church of Rome saying,
Moses writes this about the righteousness that is by the law: “The person who does these things will live by them.” But the righteousness that is by faith says: “Do not say in your heart, ‘Who will ascend into heaven?’” (that is, to bring Christ down) “or ‘Who will descend into the deep?’” (that is, to bring Christ up from the dead). But what does it say? “The word is near you; it is in your mouth and in your heart,” that is, the message concerning faith that we proclaim: If you declare with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved (Rom. 10:5-13).
How are we saved? How are we justified? Through faith alone. The law demands that we keep its commandments, so Jesus kept it. If we break it there is a penalty, Jesus willingly gave himself for the penalty, not of his own, but ours. If we believe in Christ’s work on the cross, we will be saved. As Alan D. Strange reminds us, “Not because I please God by the worthiness of my faith. It is because only Christ’s satisfaction, righteousness, and holiness make me righteous before God, and because I can accept this righteousness and make it mine in no other way than through faith.”[3]
Conclusion
In conclusion, while all people have sinned (Rom 3:23), and could not fulfill what the law demanded, Jesus satisfied the demands of the law and took the penalty that we deserve. Since he fulfilled all the righteousness of the law on our behalf, believers can rest assured that they will never be righteous by their goodness, but only through the righteousness of Christ that is counted to their account.
Blessings,
Dr. Sherene Khouri.
About the Author
Sherene Khouri was born into a religiously diverse family in Damascus, Syria. She became a believer when she was 11 years old. Sherene and her husband were missionaries in Saudi Arabia. Their house was open for meetings, and they were involved with the locals until the government knew about their ministry and gave them three days’ notice to leave the country. In 2006, they went back to Syria and started serving the Lord with RZIM International ministry. They traveled around the Middle Eastern region—Turkey, Jordan, Egypt, Lebanon, Syria, and United Arab Emirates. Sherene was also involved in her local church among the youth, young adults, and women’s ministry. In 2013, the civil war broke out in Syria. Sherene and her husband’s car was vandalized 3 times and they had to immigrate to the United States of America. In 2019, Sherene became an American citizen.
Sherene is an assistant professor at Liberty University. She teaches Arabic, Religion, and Research classes. She holds Ph.D. in Theology and Apologetics, M.A. in Christian Apologetics from Liberty University, and B.S. in Biblical Studies from Moody Bible Institute. She is also working on a Master of Theology in Global Studies at Liberty University and a M.A in Arabic and Linguistics from PennWest University.
Notes
[1] Wayne A. Grudem, Systematic Theology: An Introduction to Biblical Doctrine, Second ed., (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan Academic, 2020), 707.
[2] Ibid., 709.
[3] Alan D. Strange, Imputation of the Active Obedience of Christ in the Westminster Standards, (MI: Reformation Heritage, 2019), 26.
If you enjoyed this article, consider reading other works by this author at Bellator Christi such as “The Knowledge of Jesus” at https://bellatorchristi.com/2022/05/06/the-knowledge-of-jesus/
Copyright, 2022. Bellator Christi.
