God gave to Moses and the Israelites more than 600 commandments under the designation of “The Law”. This became then, God’s comprehensive body of requirements for humanity to please Him, re-obtain eternal life, and enter into a correct and wholesome relationship with Him. However, God was well aware that it was a human impossibility for us to successfully obey His precepts. God’s holy perfections and His flawless character demand an obedience that our frail, infirm, and sinful human frame, in word, heart, and deed, cannot render to Him.
Rom5:12 Wherefore, as by one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned:
. Romans
7:14 For we know that the law is
spiritual: but I am
carnal, sold under sin.
Romans
7:18 For I know that in me (that is, in my flesh,) dwelleth no
good thing:
for to will is present with me; but how to perform that which is good I find
not.
Gen 3:15 And I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed; it shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise his heel.
Revelation
13:8 And all that dwell upon the earth
shall worship him, whose names are not written in the book of life of the Lamb slain from the foundation
of the world.
Watchman
Nee has the best definition that I have ever observed concerning “The
Law.” He delineates the law as man’s attempts to
please or work for God and His righteous requirements outside of the power and
leading of the Holy Spirit. The world
system without Jesus Christ, its religions, and cults all operate upon these
premises. We shall see why this system
of life is not only futile, but its results and what it breeds, are always
disastrous.
James 2:10 For whosoever shall keep the whole law, and yet offend in one point, he is guilty of all.
Deuteronomy
27:26 Cursed be he that confirmeth not all the words of this
law to do them.
And all the people shall say, Amen.
The aforementioned two scripture advise us that if
we choose to please God, and enter into a right relationship with Him employing
the system of these 600 laws, then it becomes our responsibility to keep every
single one of them perfectly and without flaw.
Because of God’s sinless perfections, humanity would be obligated to
obey every one of these commandments with the utmost perfection, if indeed this
was to be the manner of gratifying God.
What a horrible and impossible system of bondage! God says that even if we were to perfectly
comply with every law and blow only one, we would stand guilty and cursed
before Him. What kind of a God would
that be? Why would we be cursed? Why would a loving God give us system of
obedience that is doomed to fail and would further more curse us? The answer lies in that we were never
supposed to obey the law! Its purpose
was to expose to us our sinfulness, and direct us to Christ!
Galatians
3:11 But that no man is justified by the law in
the sight of God, it is evident: for, The just shall live by faith.
The
Speeding Ticket
Let us assume that you are
speeding down an expressway through a country that you have never visited
before. In your apprehension to obey
its particular laws on speeding, you habitually look at the sides of the
highway nervously trying to spot the speed signs. To your dismay however, nothing appears that will give you any
indication. Suddenly from your rear
emerge the ominous flashing red and blue lights of a police vehicle summoning
you to pull over for speeding. You
calmly protest to the officer that there were absolutely no speed signs visible
as to inform you otherwise. The police
officer sees your point, kindly admonishes you with the needed information, and
lets you go without a citation. With
the absence of these signs, you had no concept of what the speed limit was, and
were consequently not held responsible to its regulation, even though you had
just finished breaking the law!
If God had not given us the
embodiment of the law, we would had never known sin, or
been responsible for our sinful actions.
This is the purpose of the law!!
Romans
3:20 Therefore by the deeds of the law
there shall no flesh be justified in his sight: for by the law is the knowledge of sin.
Romans 7:7 What shall we say then? Is the law sin? God forbid. Nay, I had not known sin, but by the law: for I had not known lust, except the law had said, Thou shalt not covet
Romans 7:8
But sin, taking occasion by the commandment, wrought in me all manner of
concupiscence. For without
the law sin was
dead. The law then was prearranged for us by God,
to make obvious to ourselves the nature, the degree, and the core of our
sinfulness. God endeavored to show us
through the law how impossible it is for us to obey Him, how frail and infirm
we are, how much we need to depend upon Him, and how much we require a Savior
in our lives! The law is the tutor that
leads us to Christ.
Galatians 3:24 Wherefore the law was our schoolmaster to bring us unto Christ, that we might be justified by faith.
Today
we would have been living in a careless and wild state of sinfulness without
boundaries, guilt, or responsibilities before God and man
Romans
4:15 Because the law worketh wrath: for where no law is, there is no transgression.
The Curse
of the Law
So as of now, we have observed two
things about the law, inclusive of the Ten Commandments. One factor deals with the utter
impossibility of our keeping them by our own efforts; more so they were not
intended for our keeping to begin with!
The intention of the law once again is to give us a painstaking
knowledge of our sinfulness so that the whole world can stand guilty before our
God, and in desperate need of a Savior.
Romans 3:19 Now we know that what things soever the law saith, it saith to them who are under the law: that every mouth may be stopped, and all the world may become guilty before God.
There
is a third and vital factor that pertains to our botched attempts in keeping the
law. It will always curse us. This is to
rationally say that if the law is the moral road signs to identify to ourselves
our utter sinfulness, our attempts to keep it will only point out towards more
and more sin.
Romans
7:9 For I was alive without the law
once: but when the
commandment came, sin
revived, and I died.(We died spiritually at the
moment that we were condemned as sinners by the knowledge of the law.)
I must vehemently emphasize that law of God is absolutely perfect, good, and holy. If we had the ability to carry the law out perfectly, we would not need Jesus. The law would bring us into a correct relationship with God and give us open access through the pearly gates of heaven.
Romans7:12 Wherefore the law is holy, and
the commandment holy, and just, and good. The issue then is
one of sin. As corrupt sinners, heirs
of a sinful nature, and sold into the slavery of the flesh and Satan, we are
incapable of producing anything but a bountiful offspring of sin. The more we attempt to overcome, the more
that we end up sinning. Only through
our reception of Jesus Christ into our lives does God smash once and for all
the core of our sinful nature, disengaging us from Satan and the flesh, and
gradually making us infertile to bear an offspring of sin.
Rom6:6
Knowing this, that our old man is crucified with him, that the body of sin might be destroyed, that henceforth we
should not serve sin.
The curse of the law lies then, that in that
in every occasion we try to obey its precepts without the strength and leading
of the Holy Spirit, it will take us into further and further degrading
sinfulness.
Rom
7:13 Was then that which is good made
death unto me? God forbid. But
sin, that it might appear sin, working death in me by that which is good; that sin by the commandment might become exceeding sinful.
Grace
I must refer back to Watchman Nee, because he once again
hits upon scriptural terminology with great accuracy as pertaining to grace. Whereas, the law
defines our fleshly strivings to satisfy God, grace is the total opposite. Through grace, God reveals and manifests His
ability and power in us in proportion to what it required of us to fully obey
Him in and carry out His commands for any particular situation.
2 Corinthians 12:9 And he said unto me, My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness. Most gladly therefore will I rather glory in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me.
We now don’t need
to strive, or put forth any more anemic efforts to obtain the victory or to
acquire our deliverance, which is what the law through our infirm flesh offers
us. God’s will and orders come to us
clothed in power, joy, and peace, thus giving us a continual victory. This is grace!! Notice how powerfully the grace of God operated in Paul’s life
through his obedience to God.
1 Corinthians 15:10 But by the grace of God I am what I am: and his grace which was bestowed upon me was not in vain; but I laboured more abundantly than they all: yet not I, but the grace of God which was with me.
Galatians 2:8 (For he that wrought effectually (put forth power, and energy to operate effectively) in Peter to the apostleship of the circumcision, the same was mighty in me toward the Gentiles:)
Romans 11:6 And if by grace, then is it no more of works: otherwise grace is no more grace. But if it be of works, then is it no more grace: otherwise work is no more work.
Let us now look at a few
other spiritual conditions to help understand our responsibilities before our
God. We have just learned that grace is
God’s empowerment and energy given freely to us by Christ Jesus, to allow us to
fully carry out the commandments of God, as prompted to us by the Holy Spirit. Our implicit obedience through grace will
allow us to fulfill the law by God’s power and not our efforts.. How do we operate in this grace then? God’s grace comes to us through faith. Let us look at a few fundamentals of faith.
Hebrews
11:1 Now faith is the substance of things (the title deed) hoped for, the evidence(conviction) of things not seen. If you have ever been a home or an auto owner, you are well
aware that your claim to its ownership is not as much finalized as with an
uncontested possession of its title deed in hand. Once the uncontested title deed is in your pocket, whether the
auto is in your custody or not, or whether you have inhabited the premises of
the home, you are assured that these items will most definitely come to
you. So is with faith. Faith is the title deed in our hearts of
something that we have asked God for, and are assured of getting. Though the promise may take long in coming,
we are confident that with this spiritual title deed, our claims before God
must be, and will be honored by Him.
The great preacher Smith Wigglesworth held that God’s word to us, is as sure
as a nail in the wall.
Romans
10:17 So then faith cometh by hearing, and
hearing by the word of God.( by the rhema or living and personal word of God, given for
a particular circumstance.) If we would get a hold of this spiritual title deed so deep within
our hearts as to release the grace of God and make the promise of God come to
pass, it must strictly come from a living and personal word that God has placed
within our hearts. That word of God is
our title deed. “The knowing in our
hearts” is the evidence of this title deed.
Let us suppose that God has promised us a mate. Should we go out to look for one? I would think not. Really, this borders on our execution of the law, and attempting to fulfill God’s promise by our own efforts. Our fleshly travail will only produce more sinful desires within us. We shall only get more frustrated as we fail to find “Mr. or Miss. Right”. We become more desperate and lonely, and might even plunge down the dangerous abyss of falling into sin with the wrong person. God’s fulfillment of His promises, came through the rhema word of faith to Moses that he would deliver Israel, to Abraham that he would have a child, and to Joseph that he would rein over his brothers. These men were required to put no effort on their part, but simply to believe God at His word. It was not their endeavors; it was God’s visitation. In the fullness of time, God visited each of these men and fulfilled His promises to them. As a matter of fact, all efforts on their part to fulfill God’s promise in the flesh backfired on them. The law was activated through their fleshly attempts, bringing forth all sorts of sin into the picture, as these men of God became impatient by their waiting upon the Lord.
Our faith, in the rhema word of God activates the grace of God. God effectively works for us as we believe or put our faith in His rhema word.
Romans 4:16 Therefore it is of faith, that it might be by grace; to the end the promise might be sure to all the seed; not to that only which is of the law, but to that also which is of the faith of Abraham; who is the father of us all,
Romans 3:20 Therefore by the deeds of the law there shall no flesh be justified in his sight: for by the law is the knowledge of sin.
21
But now the
righteousness of God without
the law is
manifested, being witnessed by the law and the prophets;
Let me describe one more term for you, that of righteousness. Righteousness, is the visible manifestation of the deeds and works of God. It is simply God at work! God’s holiness is His inward character. God’s righteousness takes God’s holy nature and makes it into a reality for us through His righteous works and glorious acts.
Let us look at the cycle of our spiritual walk before God. The Lord confers within our hearts a rhema or living word, geared towards a specified circumstance. As we exercise our faith, the rhema become our spiritual title deed. .
This quantity and quality of faith activates the grace of God. This grace, releases the righteous workings of God into our lives. God performs all things for us. Our responsibility is to cooperate with Him by obeying His voice in our spirits.
Rom 3:22Even the righteousness of God which is by faith of Jesus
Christ unto all and upon all them that believe: for there is no difference:
Rom:4:4 Now to him that worketh is
the reward not reckoned of
grace, but of debt.
5 But to
him that worketh not, but believeth on
him that justifieth the ungodly, his faith is counted for righteousness.( Our faith enables God to
exercise His miraculous deeds for us.
Romans 4:6 Even as David also describeth the blessedness of the man, unto whom God imputeth righteousness without works,
Galatians 5:4 Christ is become of no effect unto you, whosoever of you are justified by the law; ye are fallen from grace.
Eph2:8 For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God:
Romans 4:16 Therefore it is of faith, that it might be by grace; to the end the promise might be sure to all the seed; not to that only which is of the law, but to that also which is of the faith of Abraham; who is the father of us all,
Gal
3:21 I do not frustrate the grace of God: for if righteousness come by the law, then Christ is dead in vain.
Gal3:2 This only would I learn of you, Received ye the Spirit by the works of the law, or by the hearing of faith?
Gal3:5 He therefore that ministereth to you the Spirit, and worketh miracles among you, doeth he it by the works of the law, or by the hearing of faith?
6
¶
Even as Abraham believed God,
and it was accounted to
him for righteousness.
Galatians
3:22 But the scripture hath concluded all under sin, that the promise by faith of Jesus
Christ might be given
to them that believe.
Romans 7:2 For the woman which hath an husband is bound by the law to her husband so long as he liveth; but if the husband be dead, she is loosed from the law of her husband.
Our
old “hubbie” the law, through the crucifixion, death, and
resurrection of Christ Jesus, died, and we have been freed from him. Many of us however still ignorant of this
fact, live in marriage to the very one that Christ destroyed, the law.
Romans
7:3 So then if, while her husband
liveth, she be married to another man, she shall be called an adulteress: but if her husband be dead, she is free from that law; so
that she is no adulteress, though she be married to another man.
Romans
7:4 Wherefore, my brethren, ye also are become dead to the
law by the body of
Christ; that ye should
be married to another, even
to him who is raised
from the dead, that
we should bring forth fruit unto God.
This is
what it means to serve God in the newness of spirit and not in the oldness of
the letter. We are now married to
another, even Christ Jesus who bears His fruit through us as we yield and obey
to His voice through the rhema word
Romans
7:6 But now we are delivered from the law, that being dead wherein we were held; that we should serve in newness of spirit,
and not in the oldness
of the letter.
Romans
7:4 Wherefore, my brethren, ye also are become dead to the
law by the body of
Christ; that ye should
be married to another, even
to him who is raised
from the dead, that
we should bring forth fruit unto God.
In conclusion then, how did our marvelous God accomplish all of this?
Romans
10:4 For Christ is the end of the law for
righteousness to every one
that believeth. To recount what we stated earlier on, the
law is not bad; it is perfectly good.
It embodies all of God’s righteous requirements. Christ Jesus, who pleased the Father
perfectly, fulfills all of the requirements of the law within us
as He changes us from within to make us pleasing to God. God’s righteous requirements become
perfectly satisfied in us through our implicit yielding to Jesus.
Rom 8:2
For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus hath made me free from
the law of sin and death.
3 For what the law could not do, in that it was weak through the flesh, God sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful
flesh, and for sin, condemned sin in the flesh:
4
That the righteousness of the law might
be fulfilled in us, who walk not
after the flesh, but after the Spirit.
Hallelujah and Amen, see you next time!!
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