Our obligation to Christ emerges from the profound forgiveness He extends to us, as illustrated in the Parable of the Two Debtors. We are all debtors before our just Creditor, burdened by sin with no means to discharge our debt on our own. Yet, Christ, in His mercy, takes our debt upon Himself, blotting it out with His own blood, granting us remission of our sins. Once freed from the oppressive weight of sin, we must express our gratitude by living in holiness and loving service to others, glorifying Him through a life of righteousness. Like the woman who, in her repentance and faith, showed lavish love for Him, we too are called to respond with abundant appreciation for His forgiveness. Her faith, not her tears or ointment, brought her forgiveness, and Christ's command to go in peace reflects the full realization of the peace that surpasses understanding, a peace we are to embrace and embody in our lives.

We live in a time when the sense of obligation is often weak, with many feeling entitled rather than indebted. True obligation is a deep conviction that we owe someone something, a quality we must learn as it does not come naturally. As Christians, we come under obligation to Christ because of the immense service He rendered through His sacrifice, creating a profound indebtedness we cannot repay on our own. Because God our Father is holy, we are under obligation to be holy in all our conduct. This sense of obligation drives us to obedient behavior, as seen in the example of the fallen woman who, recognizing the greatness of Jesus, expressed her gratitude through humble, loving acts. Her response sprang from an awareness of her unworthiness contrasted with His greatness, compelling her to act in a way that demonstrated her deep obligation to Him. We stand before God in penniless insolvency, unable to pay the debt of our sins. No amount of tears, self-discipline, or change of life can lessen this debt; forgiveness comes solely by His grace through the blood of Jesus Christ. Recognizing our inability to pay places us under obligation to Him who freely forgives. Jesus teaches that those who are forgiven much will love much, feeling a stronger obligation to live as He directs. The apostle Paul exemplifies this attitude, living and working for God out of a deep sense of grateful obligation for the forgiveness he received. Despite his past as a zealous Pharisee, he remained aware of the enormity of what Christ had done for him, responding with great energy and enthusiasm. Paul instructs that, in light of God's mercies, we are obligated to serve and sacrifice with generosity of spirit, extending love as the framework within which all duties are performed. Christ's death stands as the supreme example of unselfish, sacrificial love, freely given by the Father and Son for our well-being. Remembering His sacrifice during Passover helps us retain a right sense of obligation, filling us with awe that He would pay so much for us. This remembrance motivates us to love, to do what we failed to do which placed us in debt. Our fellowship during Passover is primarily with Christ, a communion that places Him at the center, reminding us of the incredible sacrifice to which we are obligated.

We come under obligation when we are rendered a service, producing indebtedness to the One who performed it. Because God, our spiritual Father whom we represent, is holy, we are under obligation to be holy ourselves. We owe our lives to Christ because He redeemed us, placing us under a profound obligation to Him. We have nothing with which to pay this debt, standing before Him in penniless insolvency, and if He will forgive, we must let Him forgive it all on His terms, which binds us to Him in gratitude. We are obligated to love Him, and if the recognition of our forgiven sins is strong, we are virtually driven to do so due to grasping the enormity of what we have been saved from in contrast to the tremendous value of what we are now free to pursue. The person who knows he has been forgiven for many egregious sins feels more strongly obliged to the One who paid his debt than one who thinks his indebtedness and forgiveness are of little consequence. The one forgiven of much feels obligated to live the way his Redeemer tells him he should. Those most conscious of forgiveness will be the most fruitful of love, and the depth, fervor, and growth of our Christianity depend largely on the clarity of our consciousness of this contrast. We are admonished to remember the whole package of Christ's sacrifice—His connection to the Old Testament Passover, His life of sacrificial service, His violent death for the remission of sins, and who He was, our sinless Creator. This act becomes the foundation of all loving relationships possible to us with God and His Family, motivating us to love as we failed to do before, which put us into debt in the first place. During the Passover service, Jesus is not only the host and giver of the feast but symbolically the feast itself, and we are obligated to commune with Him in the closest possible relationship. What a Savior, what a sacrifice, what an example, and what a purchase price we are obligated to! Life revolves around our Father in heaven, His Messiah, our Creator and Savior, and Their purpose, and we must strive for a better understanding of what we are and what Christ did to be filled with an awesome sense of our indebtedness and obligation.

Accepting Christ's blood and entering the New Covenant places one under an obligation to live up to the terms of the covenant. This obligation arises from the reality of redemption through Christ's sacrifice. Redeem means to buy back from captivity or loss. God the Father paid the ransom price by sacrificing His Son. The Son willingly volunteered to be the payment in full. This act delivers from bondage to Satan and debt to death. A deep sense of obligation to Christ produces loyalty or faithfulness. It leads to considering His demands in every area of life at all times and under every circumstance. One is bought at a price and therefore belongs to the One who redeemed. The body becomes the temple of the Holy Spirit. One must glorify God in body and in spirit. Because Christ paid the indebtedness to sin and death one must now give life to Him in obedience to righteousness. One becomes a slave of righteousness. Christ elevates the relationship to intimate friendship. One is chosen and appointed to bear fruit that remains. Gratitude for what Christ has done stirs a sense of obligation to strive to glorify Him and not let Him down.

God's children accept the shed blood of Christ and thereby possess a sober recognition of their all-encompassing obligation to Him. This recognition motivates them to live lives worthy of the priceless gift they have received, lives filled with good works. Using the Holy Spirit, they testify of Christ by growing continually in His image and taking on His character. Their conduct reveals what they esteem, and when they esteem God highly their unclouded sense of obligation leads them to do everything possible to keep His laws. Belief that Jesus is the Son of God must produce corresponding action, including repentance, baptism, reception of the Holy Spirit, and daily obedience to God's instructions. When this belief is genuine it aligns the entire life with everything God requires and desires. Such alignment means following in the footsteps of Christ, who has gone before as Forerunner and made the way possible. The water, the blood, and the Spirit together bear witness to this ongoing process of growth and development into the Family of God.

Humanity stands utterly guilty before God, with none righteous and every person falling far short of His glory, unable to save or justify themselves by any means—not through wealth, effort, law-keeping, or even the sacrifice of another flawed human. Since redemption from sin requires an unblemished substitute of greater value than the sin itself, and neither animals nor angels could suffice, only a Higher Being could pay this price. The Word, who was equal with God, voluntarily emptied Himself, took on human flesh, lived sinlessly under constant temptation and satanic dominion, and gave His life as the atoning sacrifice for humanity. This act, pictured in the two goats of Leviticus 16—one slain to pay sin's penalty, the other bearing sins away—was fulfilled completely by Christ, who both shed His blood and carried away human iniquity, as confirmed in Isaiah 53 and the Gospels. His cry of abandonment on the cross marked the moment the sins of all humanity were placed upon Him, causing the Father to forsake Him, since sin separates from God. This supreme sacrifice creates a profound and inescapable obligation for those who accept it. Because Christ purchased believers "down to the very penny," their lives are no longer their own but wholly His; they are obligated to serve Him forever with all their being. Accepting Christ is not the end of the story but merely its beginning—far more is required than simply receiving Him as Savior. Humbled by the recognition of what was done for them, believers must respond by afflicting their souls, ceasing from their own works on the Day of Atonement, and recognizing how frequently they fail Him despite His never failing them. This day exists specifically to confront believers with the awesome price paid for their justification, deepening their sense of debt and responsibility. The obligation flowing from Christ's atonement is active, not passive: believers become "slaves of righteousness," called to labor alongside Christ toward spiritual maturity, perfection, and conformity to His mind and will. Since sin once kept humanity cut off from God like sheep going astray, Christ's sacrifice restores them to His shepherding and oversight, enabling them to live righteously rather than remain crushed under sin's weight. As Great High Priest and Shepherd, Christ continues His mediatorial work, appearing before the Father on behalf of the called, and will ultimately ensure their entry into God's Kingdom—provided they remain faithful to Him in return for all He has already sacrificed and given.