Characteristics of True Conversion --- Romans 6:16-18

Characteristics of True Conversion --- Romans 6:16-18 September 9, 2018

Do you not know that when you present yourselves to someone as slaves for obedience, you are slaves of the one whom you obey, either of sin resulting in death, or of obedience resulting in righteousness? 17But thanks be to God that though you were slaves of sin, you became obedient from the heart to that form of teaching to which you were committed, 18and having been freed from sin, you became slaves of righteousness.

Introduction One of the reasons that I love the Word of God is because He presents people as they really are. There are very few of God's people in the Bible who do not have glaring faults or failures. They are not perfect people. God is a realist; He deals with what is. For example, one of the greatest examples of faith in the Bible is Abraham. But Abraham was not always stellar in his trust of God. There are multiple instances of Abraham not trusting God. Like the time when God had promised Abraham that He would make him a great nation and that it would begin with a son from his wife Sarah, who was old. Abraham became disillusioned with God’s program and decided to help Him out by having a child with his wife’s servant, Hagar. That was not exactly a great act of faith. That faithless act had devastating consequences; some that continue to this day. On another occasion while traveling down to Egypt, Abraham feared for his life because Sarah was a beautiful woman, and he thought that the men in the surrounding area would kill him in order to take her. So he asked Sarah to say that she was his sister; again, not exactly what you would call a knight in shining armor. His trust in the Lord wavered. He thought his deception would be the better route. There were other acts of faithlessness, but alongside those acts of weak faith, there were other acts of trust and faith in God. His leaving the land of Ur because God had promised to give him a land that he had never seen was a tremendous display of faith. Abraham believed that God would fulfill the promises He made in the Abrahamic covenant. By the end of his life, Abraham had learned that God is trustworthy, no matter

what. Abraham showed a unique level of faith when he was old. God told him to take his only son Isaac, the son of promise—Isaac, whom this old man dearly loved—to Mount Moriah and offer him as a sacrifice. God knew it was a test; Abraham did not. Abraham was 100 percent ready to slay his son in obedience to God leaving God to pick up the pieces wherever they would fall. Abraham believed that God is all powerful and could raise Isaac from the dead if need be. That was faith at work. That was obedience to God. Abraham’s faith was proven by his actions. Faith in God obeys God come what may. If God says it, then faith obeys. Abraham is an example of being made righteous before God by faith. He is also an example that saving faith manifests itself in an obedient life. Obedient faith is active in both salvation and sanctification. My friend, if you are saved this morning, God has given you grace not just to save your eternal soul from the fires of hell and to give you eternal life in heaven with Him, but He has also given you grace to live a transformed, obedient life here and now. He has saved you to change you so that you may walk in a manner worthy of God Himself, to encourage others in the church, and to make disciples. This morning, our text focuses on characteristics of true conversion. One characteristic of true conversion is obedience to God.

Review Last week we studied the first section of Romans 6, verses 1-13: Sanctification in terms of being Immersed into Christ. We also began to look at the second section, verses 14-23: Sanctification in terms of being Enslaved to God. We saw that the underlying truth of this next section is this, “There is no such thing as absolute freedom for anyone.” Again, “There is no such thing as absolute freedom for anyone.” Unregenerate man is a slave to sin, yet he believes he is free. Believers are slaves to God and righteousness. I told you that this fundamental truth is hard for mankind in general to accept because we think of ourselves as independent and in control of our lives. But in reality, no one is free to do everything he or she may desire to do. God alone is the only being in existence Who is truly and totally free. So in light of this fundamental truth, Paul essentially raises the question, “Who or what is your

master, sin or Christ?” If you were not here last week, I would encourage you to go back and listen to that sermon. The truth covered in this section of Scripture is life changing. In the middle of Paul's explanation concerning believers as slaves to God, he made one of the most important statements in the Bible on what it means to be a Christian. We learned last week that all of mankind is enslaved to one of two masters: either to sin resulting in death or to Christ resulting in righteousness and eternal life. It is impossible to be slaves to both of these masters at the same time. Every person shows by his lifestyle which master he serves. Both of these masters insist on a certain type of conduct. So if you look at a person's habitual lifestyle and what characterizes his behavior, then you can determine who his master is. 16Do you not know that when you present yourselves to someone as slaves for obedience, you are slaves of the one whom you obey?

Characteristics of True Conversion Paul went on in verse 17 to apply this principle to the believers at Rome and, in doing so, to all believers. The first sign that a person is a Christian, and that which actually makes him a Christian, is obedience to the Gospel. 17But thanks be to God that though you were slaves of sin, you became obedient from the heart to that form of teaching to which you were committed. In this verse, Paul informed us what true Christians are. He stated that believers obey the truth of the Gospel from the heart. As a result, they are no longer slaves of sin but have a new master: namely, righteousness. I want to take a closer look at what Paul wrote concerning what Christians are. We can glean three characteristics of conversion from his statement in verse 17: 1) Conversion Involves Change, 2) Conversion Involves Biblical Doctrine, and 3) Conversion Involves Obedience. I was meeting with a member of our church this past week, and we were discussing 1 John 2. 1 John 2:1 My little children, I am writing these things to you so that you may not sin. And if anyone sins, we have an Advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the

righteous. John makes clear the heart of God. He wants people whose lives are more characterized as being set apart for Him than characterized by sin. 1 John 2:4-6 The one who says, “I have come to know Him,” and does not keep His commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him; 5but whoever keeps His word, in him the love of God has truly been perfected. By this we know that we are in Him: 6the one who says he abides in Him ought himself to walk in the same manner as He walked. If you want to know if you have been born again, a couple of questions to ask yourself, according to John, are, “Do I love God and strive to keep His Word?” And “Do I abide in Christ and strive to walk in the same manner as He walked?” Someone who is born again by grace through faith will manifest change in his life. Answering these questions brings us to our first point— Conversion Involves Change: A Christian Has a Change of the Whole Person, and A Christian Has a Change of Masters.

Conversion Involves Change: A Christian Has a Change of the Whole Person But thanks be to God that though you were slaves of sin,

you became obedient from the heart . . . and having been freed from sin, you became slaves of righteousness.

Romans 6:17,18

As a believer, you have gone through significant change. What was once true of you is no longer the case. You are now in a different position. We have seen in our study that all of mankind is born totally depraved. Whether a person is a complete pagan, or whether he strives to be moral, or whether he has the law of God like the Jews and tries to keep it, there is no one who is righteous before God. There is no one who seeks after God. There is no one who understands truth and rightly reacts to the truth on his own. All have sinned and fallen short of God's glory. We saw at the end of chapter 5 that we are all born in Adam and we have inherited his nature and participated in his rebellion. Romans 5:12 Therefore, just as through one man sin entered into the world, and death through sin, and so death spread to all men, because all sinned— By nature we are rebels and join with Adam in his rebellion against God. The process of becoming a Christian necessarily involves undergoing a change. All of the New Testament terminology referring to salvation speaks in terms of change; for instance, “born gain,” “resurrected to a new life,” “old things are

gone, new things have come,” and so on. The picture is not merely of some improvement along the way. Jesus told Nicodemus, “You must be born again.” Paul wrote, “If anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation.” A Christian is a person who has undergone conversion that can only be described by such terminology. Something has happened and you are now entirely different. “You were . . . and now you have become . . .” Paul clearly spelled out what is involved in this transformation. This change involves our total person; namely, our will to obey, our emotions, and our minds. Verse 17 You became obedient from the heart to that form of teaching to which you were committed. This change involves your will— “You became obedient.” You now have a desire to obey. This change involves your emotions, “You became obedient from the heart.” This change involves your mind. “You became obedient . . . to that form of teaching,” which refers to doctrine that you embrace with your mind. So the transformation a person undergoes in becoming a Christian is a change that affects his whole person: his will to obey God, his emotions, and his mind. I want to take a moment to talk about the dangerous tendency to focus on only one aspect of our person and not the whole person. For example, consider your mind. In the church there can be an overemphasis on knowledge and academia. But knowledge alone never expresses itself in love for others. Paul warned us: knowledge puffs up, but love edifies others. Some want to put on display how much they know, but they never get around to helping others or to practical demonstrations of love. Focusing only on knowledge may never affect our obedience or our emotions. Then there are other movements in the church that target just the emotions. We can be moved to tears and be caught up in a euphoric experience, but those emotional response are only temporary. There are churches today that focus on entertainment and music that stir the emotions but have no lasting value when it comes to changing our minds to think in a different way or to changing our wills so that we live new lives and grow in sanctification. The Gospel does not solely impact our emotions. In reference to conversion, it is not enough to say, “I do not understand, and I

cannot give you any reason or explanation for my salvation. All I know is that I have felt something.” When someone has been moved only in the area of emotion, without any understanding of what we have studied in the first five chapters of Romans—meaning sin, God's justice, Christ's atonement for sin, being credited with Christ's righteousness by trusting in the Gospel—then that is not Christian conversion. Don't get me wrong. I believe there is no greater emotion than that which is in response to Christ Himself and the salvation of your eternal soul. Godly emotion is that which is a response to the truth of the Word of God and the person of Christ, not just emotion for what you may get out of it. Emotion does not drive true conversion, and yet it is not absent. So some movements in the church target only the mind and some target only the emotions. Then there are those which target only the will. Some sects of Christianity are interested only in behavior and conduct. The goal is to change behavior with little emphasis on the truth and motives that fuel change in conduct. Legalism focuses on outward conformity to rules. Many times the emphasis is on a man-made standard. Knowledge of Scripture and love for Christ as the driving forces behind holy living are not emphasized. “Just do what our church or our denomination tells you.” Paul's focus in verse 17 is on the transformation that conversion brings as the Gospel impacts the whole person: the mind, the emotions, and the will, not just one or two of these areas. “You became obedient [will] from the heart [emotions] to that form of teaching [doctrine involves the mind] to which you were committed.” You cannot be converted in your mind only, in your emotions only, in your will or volition only. Your whole person is changed. So conversion brings about change. A believer thinks with a new mind. He is moved by new emotions. He wills to live a new life to the glory of Jesus Christ. Next, concerning change, becoming a believer involves a change of ownership.

Conversion Involves Change: A Christian Has a Change of Masters

But thanks be to God that though you were slaves of sin, you became obedient from the heart . . . and having been freed from sin,

you became slaves of righteousness. Romans 6:17,18

We saw this last week in our study of verse 16. I told you that man is a slave to sin by nature. The Bible makes it clear in a number of passages:

Colossians 1:13 He rescued us from the domain of darkness, and transferred us to the kingdom of His beloved Son. Ephesians 2:1-3 You were dead in your trespasses and sins, 2in which you formerly walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, of the spirit that is now working in the sons of disobedience. 3Among them we too all formerly lived in the lusts of our flesh, indulging the desires of the flesh and of the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, even as the rest. The Bible contradicts the idea of the freedom of man to choose to do what is right or to be good toward God. In reality, man is absolutely enslaved to sin. “But thanks be to God that though you were slaves of sin . . . .” We saw that most people find the doctrine of slavery to sin or, in other words, total depravity, hard to believe. They say, “But I know a number of very good people who, although they are not Christians, are, nonetheless, moral people. How can you say that they are slaves of sin?” The problem here is that we associate only “big” outward sins with slavery to sin, such as drunkenness, murder, adultery, or a life of stealing. Those who commit these offenses among others are slaves to sin. But that is not the only form that slavery to sin takes. The same slavery can be seen in many nice and polite people who are never guilty of “big” outward sins. For example, people can be enslaved to the pursuit of wealth. The goal to become wealthy is very acceptable in our American culture (By the way, materialism is not just for wealthy people. A person can be poor and still be enslaved to materialism.) Many human beings spend their entire lives attempting to amass wealth. Furthermore, there are the secret sins that enslave. Lust, enslavement to pornography affecting both men and women, boys and girls is at epidemic levels. Then there are the “respectable sins,” as Jerry Bridges in his book by the same name, labels them. These are sins that are acceptable: gossip, selfishness, jealousy, envy, discontentment, pride, and anger. People can look good on the outside, but their souls are truly and wholly enslaved. Paul has spent much of his time in Romans arguing that man's main problem is his enslavement to sin. That has been his main thrust in chapter 6.

Romans 6:6-7 Knowing this, that our old self was crucified with Him, in order that our body of sin might be done away with, so that we would no longer be

slaves to sin; 7for he who has died is freed from sin.

Romans 6:14 For sin shall not be master over you. Romans 6:17-18 But thanks be to God that though you were slaves of sin, you became obedient . . . . 18and having been freed from sin, you became slaves of righteousness. Romans 6:19-20 For just as you presented your members as slaves to impurity and to lawlessness. . . . 20For when you were slaves of sin, you were free in regard to righteousness. Romans 6:22 But now having been freed from sin and enslaved to God, you derive your benefit, resulting in sanctification, and the outcome, eternal life. So no doubt, man begins enslaved to sin. But at the point of conversion, the believer has a new master, and we learned that last week. I told you that the same work that has delivered Christians from enslavement to sin has also made them slaves of God, as it says in verse 18, “Having been freed from sin, you became slaves of righteousness.” We saw that this gets to the crux of why the believer cannot continue in sin. By Christ's act of redemption on the cross, He has purchased men and women for Himself to serve Him. We read in 1 Corinthians 6:19-20, “Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and that you are not your own? For you have been bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body.” I told you that Paul used terminology which is all synonymous concerning our new masters. We are slaves to righteousness, slaves to God, and slaves to Christ. In speaking to slaves in Ephesians 6:5-6, Paul wrote, “Slaves, be obedient to those who are your masters according to the flesh, with fear and trembling, in the sincerity of your heart, as to Christ; 6not by way of eye-service, as men-pleasers, but as slaves of Christ, doing the will of God from the heart.” All believers are slaves to Christ, slaves to God, slaves to righteousness. Our wills and our minds and our emotions have been transformed so that we strive to do the will of God from the heart. So the first characteristic of true conversion is that becoming a Christian brings change. The believer is transformed in his thinking, his emotions, and his will. Furthermore, he has a change of masters. The believer obeys Christ rather

than sin. A second characteristic of true conversion is that it involves Biblical doctrine.

Conversion Involves Biblical Doctrine

But thanks be to God that though you were slaves of sin, you became obedient from the heart

to that form of teaching to which you were committed [you were entrusted]. Romans 6:17 “You obeyed that form of doctrine (teaching, instruction).” This clearly indicates the type of evangelism in which Paul was engaged. What was the form of teaching that Paul referred to here? What was the Gospel according to Paul? What would Paul say at an evangelistic crusade? It is the same form of teaching that he has written about over the first five chapters in Romans. Paul began with a healthy explanation of sin and judgment that reached all the way back to Genesis and the creation. Romans 1:18-20 For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men who suppress the truth in unrighteousness, 19because that which is known about God is evident within them; for God made it evident to them. 20For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes, His eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly seen, being understood through what has been made, so that they are without excuse. Today the church tends to boil down the Gospel so that it can fit on the front and back of a note card. The danger in this approach is that we communicate a shallow Gospel which in turn leads to shallow conversions. For example, much of evangelism today begins with “God loves you.” The response of prideful, self-centered, unregenerate man is, “Well, of course He loves me. What is there not to love?” But even a cursory look at the evangelistic sermons in the book of Acts shows a far different starting point of Gospel proclamation. Peter preached in Acts 2:22-23, “Men of Israel, listen to these words: Jesus the Nazarene, a man attested to you by God with miracles and wonders and signs which God performed through Him in your midst, just as you yourselves know— 23this Man, delivered over by the predetermined plan and foreknowledge of God, you nailed to a cross by the hands of godless men and put Him to death.” Peter's sermon was not seeker-sensitive.

Again, Peter ended that evangelistic sermon in Acts 2:36-37 by saying, “Therefore let all the house of Israel know for certain that God has made Him

both Lord and Christ--this Jesus whom you crucified.” [Listen to the response to this kind of evangelism.] 37Now when they heard this, they were pierced to the heart, and said to Peter and the rest of the apostles, “Brethren, what shall we do?” Peter said, “Repent, and each of you be baptized.” Acts 3:13-15 records another Gospel presentation. “The God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, the God of our fathers, has glorified His servant Jesus, the one whom you delivered and disowned in the presence of Pilate, when he had decided to release Him. 14But you disowned the Holy and Righteous One and asked for a murderer to be granted to you, 15but put to death the Prince of life, the one whom God raised from the dead, a fact to which we are witnesses.” In all of these Gospel presentations, there is first an exposure of sin. But the church today seems to think that this approach will not work in our modern culture. This approach is not popular. The truth is that this approach has never been popular. I believe the church as a whole has grown somewhat ashamed of the Gospel which is presented in Scripture. Paul began this letter to the Romans by explaining in detail the Gospel that he preached. He said in Romans 1:16, “For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek.” How did Paul begin his presentation of this Gospel of which he says, “I am not ashamed”? Let’s read Romans 1:18, “For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men who suppress the truth in unrighteousness.” The message of the Gospel is a message that starts with man in sin and under the wrath of a holy God. That is an essential part of the message. You don't skip around the message of sin and judgment. The doctrine of sin is a vital part of the “form of teaching” to which Paul referred. A Christian understands that he was under condemnation, bound for hell, hopeless and helpless in sin, and under the wrath of God. A Christian understands the terrible nature of the soul apart from God. Every human being starts out enslaved to sin and a child of the devil. All of this is part of the message. Paul further clarified in the first chapters of Romans that morality cannot save. Trying to keep the Ten Commandments cannot save. You cannot save yourself. It does not matter how good and moral and religious you may be. This too is all part of the message. This is the doctrine of the Gospel that one must begin to understand before he or she can become a believer. It was only after laying the foundation of man's plight that Paul then proclaimed

the indescribable grace gift of Christ Jesus. Romans 3:21-25 But now apart from the Law [apart from being good] the righteousness of God has been manifested, being witnessed by the Law and the Prophets, 22even the righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ for all those who believe; for there is no distinction; 23for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, 24being justified as a gift by His grace through the redemption which is in Christ Jesus; 25whom God displayed publicly as a propitiation in His blood through faith. This is the message, this is the “form of teaching” that was given to the Romans which they obeyed. This is what produces change. Again, I believe we are seeing a shallow Christianity because there has been shallow evangelism. Biblical doctrine found in the Gospel is ignored or at best simply given a nod. But solid conversion happens when we preach the Gospel whether it is popular or not. Paul exhorted Timothy in 2 Timothy 4:1-3, “I solemnly charge you in the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who is to judge the living and the dead, and by His appearing and His kingdom: 2preach the word; be ready in season and out of season; reprove, rebuke, exhort, with great patience and instruction. 3For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but wanting to have their ears tickled, they will accumulate for themselves teachers in accordance to their own desires.” Yes, characteristic of true conversion, becoming a Christian involves change of the whole person. Furthermore, conversion involves a response to solid biblical doctrine contained in the Gospel of Jesus Christ. “You became obedient . . . to that form of teaching to which you were committed.” Lastly, Conversion Involves Obedience.

Conversion Involves Obedience

But thanks be to God that though you were slaves of sin, you became obedient.

Romans 6:17 What is a clear, unmistakable characteristic of true conversion? Obedience. What can make you assured of your salvation? Obedience. What is a necessary result of salvation? Obedience. Note that Paul did not say, “Though you were slaves to sin, you believed from the heart that form of teaching.” He said, “You became obedient from the heart

to that form of teaching.” There are people in hell who mentally assented to the facts of the Gospel. You say, “How do you know that, John?” Matthew 7:21-23 Not everyone who says to Me, “Lord, Lord,” will enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father who is in heaven will enter. 22Many will say to Me on that day, “Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in Your name, and in Your name cast out demons, and in Your name perform many miracles?” 23And then I will declare to them, “I never knew you; DEPART FROM ME, YOU WHO PRACTICE LAWLESSNESS.”

Three brief observations on Christ's words. First, these people knew enough doctrine to call Jesus master and God. “Lord, Lord.” They gave mental assent to who Jesus is. Second, they did not do the will of the Father. They did not obey the form of teaching given to them concerning the Gospel. Jesus said, “Only those who do the will of My Father.” Third, there was no change in their lives. They just continued to “practice lawlessness,” which is another way to say sin. There are those in hell who heard and knew the Gospel but did not act upon it. They did not do the Father's will. They were attached to the church, but they were never born again. There are people who are still slaves to sin, but enjoy reading the Bible and discussing theology. The religious leaders of Jesus' day are prime examples. They searched the Scriptures, memorized Scripture, and talked about Scripture, but they missed the central Person of Scripture, Jesus the Messiah. Again, the whole person is involved in conversion: the will to obey, the emotions, and the mind. Mental assent alone is not saving faith. It has been a sad practice of the Christian church to create a separation between salvation and sanctification, between being born again and the living of a new life. Paul's whole point in chapter 6 has been that you cannot separate salvation from sanctification. There is no value in a supposed faith that does not lead inevitably to a changed life. James agreed with Paul at this point in writing, “Faith, if it has no works, is dead.” Faith that does not demonstrate itself in a new life is not saving faith; it is only intellectual assent. Here is a vital biblical statement that is missed today concerning the necessary obedience and sanctification in the life of the believer. The statement is this: “The primary objective of God in establishing salvation for us in Christ is not simply that we might be forgiven and be saved from hell and have eternal life. God intends that salvation also transform us here and now.” I want to give you a number of verses supporting this. Titus 2:14-15 [Jesus] gave Himself for us to redeem us from every lawless deed,

and to purify for Himself a people for His own possession, zealous for good deeds. 15These things speak and exhort and reprove with all authority. Let no one disregard you. You cannot stop at forgiveness. Everything in the Gospel leads to salvation from hell, eternal life in heaven, AND to good works, good deeds, a changed life. Ephesians 2:8-10 For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; 9not as a result of works, so that no one may boast. 10For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand so that we would walk in them. Titus 2:11-12 For the grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation to all men, 12instructing us to deny ungodliness and worldly desires and to live sensibly, righteously and godly in the present age. Martyn Lloyd-Jones wrote, “What does this ‘form of doctrine’ tell us? It tells us about the terrible character of sin, about our appalling position as slaves of sin, and under the wrath of God. That immediately produces a hatred of sin, and alarm about the results of sin and a desire to get away from sin. . . . The essence of sin is disobedience towards God, His Word and His way; and therefore the essence of the opposite, which is faith, is obedience to God. The Christian man is the man who obeys God.”

Conclusion Paul provided three characteristics of true conversion: 1) Conversion Involves Change; 2) Conversion Involves Biblical Doctrine; and 3) Conversion Involves Obedience. Wayne Grudem rightly addresses the role of commitment and obedience in saving faith, writing, “When Jesus invites sinners, ‘Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest,’ he immediately adds, ‘Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me’ (Matt. 11:28-29). To come to him includes taking his yoke upon us, being subject to his direction and guidance, learning from him, and being obedient to him. If you are unwilling to make such a commitment, then you have not truly placed your trust in Him.” Think again about the life of Abraham. There in the beginning, God commanded him to leave his home, his country, his people and go to a land that he had never seen before. Hebrews 11:8 tells us, “By faith Abraham, when he was

called, obeyed by going out to a place which he was to receive for an inheritance; and he went out, not knowing where he was going.” Then think about the end of Abraham’s life where he manifested a tremendous faith in God. He was willing to sacrifice the son that he dearly loved, the son of promise. If Abraham had killed Isaac, he would have put an end to the possibility of fulfillment of that promise. Hebrews 11:17-19 By faith Abraham, when he was tested, offered up Isaac, and he who had received the promises was offering up his only begotten son; 18it was he to whom it was said, “IN ISAAC YOUR DESCENDANTS SHALL BE CALLED.” 19He considered that God is able to raise people even from the dead, from which he also received him back as a type. If you only had the beginning and the end of Abraham's life, you would think that this man was a great man of faith who never struggled with obeying God. But that is not the case. As we saw before, there were times in which he did not trust God. But when we ask, “What characterized Abraham's life?” we would have to say, “By faith, Abraham obeyed God.” 9/9/18