The Third Indispensable Thing

Obedience must come from love, faith, a pure heart, and a good conscience, not from bad motives, such as favor of people or to establish one’s own supposed righteousness

The third indispensable thing necessary to validate the existence of true saving faith is that the course of the believer’s growing obedience must come from the right sources, namely through faith in Christ, [a pure heart, and a good conscience]. “The aim of our charge is love that issues from a pure heart and a good conscience and a sincere faith” (1 Timothy 1:5 ESV). In this verse, the Apostle teaches these seven Doctrines:

1. The obedience of the Law must flow from love, and at that, love from a pure heart. A pure heart results from a good conscience, and a good conscience results from sincere faith.⁶⁸ He declares that this is the only valid source of good works. “The aim of our charge is love,” and so on.

2. The purpose of the Law is not that people may be justified by their obedience to it, as the Jewish rabbis falsely taught. That is because it is impossible for sinners to be justified by the Law. Rather, sinners are damned by the Law for their every transgression. The purpose of the Law is not such as the Jewish Doctors taught, “For Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to everyone who believes” (Romans 10:4 ESV), and “The aim of our charge is love that issues from a pure heart and a good conscience and a sincere faith” (1 Timothy 1:5 ESV).

3. The true purpose of the Law (preached to the people) is that the Law will show them their deserved condemnation. Thus, they should flee to Christ unfeignedly and be justified by faith in Him. So says the text, which teaches that “Love … issues from … sincere faith” (1 Timothy 1:5 ESV).

4. Nobody can set himself in love to obey the Law, except in so far as his conscience is quieted by faith or is seeking to be quieted in Christ, for “The aim of our charge is love that issues from a pure heart and a good conscience and a sincere faith” (1 Timothy 1:5 ESV).

5. Feigned faith goes to Christ without reckoning with the Law. So without serious consciousness of sin, there is no felt need for Christ’s atonement. But unfeigned faith reckons with the Law, and thus, as often as it finds itself guilty for breaking of the Law, is forced to flee for refuge to Christ for righteousness since Christ is the end of the Law. “For Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to everyone who believes” (Romans 10:4 ESV).

6. That the fruits of love may come forth in outward works, it is necessary that the heart be brought to the hatred of all sin and uncleanness and to a steadfast purpose to follow all holiness in all of its parts without any exception. “The aim of our charge is love that issues from a pure heart.”

7. Unfeigned faith is able to make the conscience good, the heart pure, and the person lovingly obedient to the Law. This is because when Christ’s blood is seen by faith to satisfy God’s justice, then the conscience becomes quiet also and will not allow the heart to entertain the love of sin. Unfeigned faith also sets one to working to fear God for His mercy and to obey all His commandments out of love to God on account of His free gift of justification by grace bestowed on him. For this is indeed the purpose of the Law: by unfeigned faith, the Law obtains more obedience from a person than from any other way.

68 The passage actually connects the three source virtues with and: “The aim of our charge is love that issues from a pure heart and a good conscience and a sincere faith” (1 Timothy 1:5 ESV, underlining added). That is different from this Sum’s causal sequence: love flowing from a pure heart, a pure heart flowing from a good conscience, and a good conscience flowing from sincere faith. Yet, the causal sequence is not entirely wrong; a sincere faith gives trust in Christ’s atonement and forgiveness, clearing the conscience. Also sincere faith is something commanded, so a pure heart is impossible without it.