By Grace Alone: Effects of the Law

I am going to break from blogging about the Psalms for a little bit, although I'll still be studying them on my own. I've just finished an incredible book called "By Grace Alone" and I really want to share some thoughts from the book. I think it contains extremely important concepts for Christians and some misbeliefs that nonbelievers may hold. Please join me on this journey and share with your friends. If there is anything you want to look more in depth about, please consider purchasing the book. "By Grace Alone" by Derek Prince is available at most bookstores and on Amazon.

We've looked at why the Law was created, and it was not to achieve righteousness. So now we look at nine results the Law brings to us if we come under its influence.

1. The Law stirs up sin.

Romans 7:5 - "For when we were in the flesh, the motions of sins, which were by the law, did work in our members to bring forth fruit unto death."

Romans 7:9 - "For I was alive without the law once: but when the commandment came, sin revived, and I died."

There are a few ways to interpret these verses. If there had never been any commandment, Adam would never have sinned. When the commandment came, sin came to life, and we died. One thing to think about is the story of the Israelites worshiping the golden calf. They broke the first commandment basically as soon as it was put into place. The commandment stirred up sin. Sin had been dormant until the commandment came. The Law doesn't bring people near to God. It keeps them away from God. 

We are saved by grace and then we determine we are going to earn our way. Then what happens? We lose our joy, we lose our peace, and we become a slave again. If we continue, we become nasty, edgy, critical, religious people whom no one cares to be around.

Prince suggests that coming back under the Law is the great danger that threatens every believer. We are saved by grace and then after a little while we think, "Now I'm living a really clean life, I've learned a lot of very valuable principles, I know the Scripture, and I have my quiet time every morning. I can walk in victory by my own efforts." Clearly, the end of this kind of thinking is a disaster. Endeavoring to live the Christian life by your own efforts is the greatest single hindrance to walking in the Spirit.

Romans 8 is a great passage about the Spirit-filled life. But if you are to live that kind of life, you cannot expect instant results. 

2. The Law strengthens sin.

1 Corinthians 15:56 - "The sting of death is sin; and the strength of sin is the law."

Romans 6:14 - "For sin shall not have dominion over you: for ye are not under the law, but under grace."

If you are under the law, sin will have dominion over you, because it is the law that strengthens the dominion of sin over you.  

3. The Law produces transgression and wrath.

Romans 4:15 - "Because the law worketh wrath: for where no law is, there is no transgression."

You are not a transgressor without the Law. And transgression produces wrath on the part of the one against whom we transgress.

Think of this like a situation with a child. A child may jump off your coffee table. You can't get mad at them the first time, because they didn't know not to do it. So you explain to them that that is wrong and dangerous and not to do it again. Five minutes later, they are doing it again. So guess what? There's a little wrath involved the second time! Once there is a line set (the Law) and then it is crossed (transgressed), there is a consequence (wrath).

4. The Law causes condemnation.

Romans 8:1, 3 - "There is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit. 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."

The Law can never set you free from condemnation; it can only bring you under condemnation. As long as you live under condemnation, you cannot live in liberty. And condemnation can only be abolished by dealing with the problem of the Law.

5. The Law keeps us under Satan's dominion.

Colossians 2:14-16 - "Blotting out the handwriting of ordinances that was against us, which was contrary to us, and took it out of the way, nailing it to his cross; And having spoiled principalities and powers, he made a shew of them openly, triumphing over them in it. Let no man therefore judge you in meat, or in drink, or in respect of an holyday, or of the new moon, or of the sabbath days."

God annulled the Law through the death of Jesus, and having done that, these verses confirm that He disarmed the principalities and powers. Jesus stripped them of their ability to dominate us. How? He revoked the Law. A radical transformation must take place inside us before we will abandon our faith in the Law.

6. The Law brings a curse.

Galatians 3:10 - "Blotting out the handwriting of ordinances that was against us, which was contrary to us, and took it out of the way, nailing it to his cross; And having spoiled principalities and powers, he made a shew of them openly, triumphing over them in it.
Let no man therefore judge you in meat, or in drink, or in respect of an holyday, or of the new moon, or of the sabbath days."

If you are under the Law, you must do the whole Law, all the time. If you don't, you are under a curse.

Jeremiah 17:5 - "Thus saith the Lord; Cursed be the man that trusteth in man, and maketh flesh his arm, and whose heart departeth from the Lord."

Legalism is the attempt to achieve righteousness with God by keeping a set of rules; it is adding to what God has required for righteousness. This is the person who has tasted the grace of God, but we go back to trusting in our own ability and our own rules. In so doing, our hearts depart from the Lord.

Almost every significant movement in the Church began in the power of the Holy Spirit. Today, however, many are relying on the flesh; they are relying on their own efforts, programs, promotions and rules.

Legalism is a person who has begun in faith and in the power of the Holy Spirit, but now they are seeking to become perfect in the flesh. Do not try to keep the Law, because you certainly will not succeed!

7. The Law brings a double enmity.

Ephesians 2:14-16 - "For he is our peace, who hath made both one, and hath broken down the middle wall of partition between us;  Having abolished in his flesh the enmity, even the law of commandments contained in ordinances; for to make in himself of twain one new man, so making peace; And that he might reconcile both unto God in one body by the cross, having slain the enmity thereby."

There is not only enmity between God and man (because we become transgressors if we don't keep the Law), but there is enmity between those under the Law and those not under the Law (particularly with Jewish people). 
    
8. The Law produces bondage.

In Galatians 4:21-25, Paul uses an allegory of Abraham's two sons. One of his son's mothers was a slave, and produced a slave. Paul is warning the Galatians that if they come under the Law, they will come under bondage. 

Romans 8:14-15 - "For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God. For ye have not received the spirit of bondage again to fear; but ye have received the Spirit of adoption, whereby we cry, Abba, Father."

The Law uses fear to motivate us. We have become so used to that kind of motivation that we believe religion is supposed to be a fearful existence. The New Testament message, however, is not a message of fear.

9. The Law produces persecutors.

Galatians 4:29 - "But as then he that was born after the flesh persecuted him that was born after the Spirit, even so it is now."

Grace always frightens and offends legalism, and the religious legalist will always react with some form of persecution. Who persecuted Jesus and the apostles? The religious legalists.

The root: self-dependence.

The hardest tendency to curtail in our own lives is depending upon ourselves. The inner motivation of sin, in its essence, is the desire to be independent of God. The essence of Adam and Eve's sin was the desire not to depend on God any longer. The one person who perfectly sets forth the opposite of the desire to be independent is Jesus. The picture of Jesus is total, continuing dependence on His Father. 

John 5:19 - "The Son can do nothing of himself, but what he seeth the Father do: for what things soever he doeth, these also doeth the Son likewise."

John 6:57 - "I live by the Father."

Jeremiah 17:5 - "Cursed be the man that trusteth in man, and maketh flesh his arm, and whose heart departeth from the Lord."

The one who trusts in himself makes his flesh his strength, and in so doing, his heart departs from the Lord. If we rely on our own efforts all we ever propagate is more flesh.

Habakkuk 2:4 - "Behold, his soul which is lifted up is not upright in him: but the just shall live by his faith." (Also quoted in Romans 1:17, Galatians 3:11 and Hebrews 10:38)

You can humble yourself and in faith depend on the Lord, or you can trust in yourself and your soul will be lifted up in arrogant religious pride.

If I am always doing the right thing in my own strength, I can boast. But if I am simply trusting in the grace of God and depending upon Him, I have nothing to boast of. Faith excludes boasting.

Here is a list of five things we commonly trust in rather than depending on the grace of God.

1 - Wealth

2- Nobility or social position

3- Education or knowledge

4 - Power

5 - Religion

God gave the Law to bare open the root of self-dependence, and the Gospel of grace puts the ax to it.

By Grace Alone: Why the Law?

I am going to break from blogging about the Psalms for a little bit, although I'll still be studying them on my own. I've just finished an incredible book called "By Grace Alone" and I really want to share some thoughts from the book. I think it contains extremely important concepts for Christians and some misbeliefs that nonbelievers may hold. Please join me on this journey and share with your friends. If there is anything you want to look more in depth about, please consider purchasing the book. "By Grace Alone" by Derek Prince is available at most bookstores and on Amazon.

So the question now is, if the Law doesn't really apply to us today and it was impossible for us to keep from the beginning, why did God even give the Law in the first place? Here are six reasons:

1. Not as a means to righteousness.
First, we have to realize that God did not give the Law as a way to achieve righteousness.


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."

Other than Jesus, no other human being will ever achieve righteousness by keeping the Law.

Galatians 2:16 - "Knowing that a man is not justified by the works of the law..."

Galatians 3:11 - "But that no man is justified by the law in the sight of God..."

2. To reveal sin.
The Law makes us aware 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."

The only thing that revealed sin to Paul was the Law. Until we really see the nature of sin we are not going to see fully our need of salvation. God gave the Law so that we would see this force of sin in all its horrible working and with all its deadly effects.

3. To reveal man's carnal nature.
Our problems are the result of two forces at work within us. The first force is sin. The second force is human nature that comes under the influence of sin and turns away from righteousness.

This nature is easily affected by sin. The Bible refers to it as "the old man", "the flesh", "the body", "the body of sin", and "the body of the sins of the flesh". Not referring to the physical body, but rather to the nature we inherited with our physical body.

Romans 7:14-15 - "For we know that the law is spiritual: but I am carnal, sold under sin. For that which I do I allow not: for what I would, that do I not; but what I hate, that do I."

I'm sure a lot of us have felt like that before. The Law brings out into light the two root problems in my life.

4. To foreshadow Christ.
Although the Law diagnoses the problem, it foreshadows the solution. In Luke chapter 24, Jesus talks to the disciples, explaining the scriptures and showing how He has fulfilled the things in the Law and other Old Testament scriptures. He says all this scripture foreshadowed Him.


5. To bring us to Christ.

Galatians 3:24 - "Wherefore the law was our schoolmaster to bring us unto Christ, that we might be justified by faith."

The Law was to teach us the basic principles of righteousness, of obedience, of right and wrong, and then take us to the real teacher, who is Christ.

6. To keep Israel a separate people.

Numbers 23:9 - "For from the top of the rocks I see him, and from the hills I behold him: lo, the people shall dwell alone, and shall not be reckoned among the nations."

Even after Israel has been driven out of her own land, this prophecy has been fulfilled. The Jewish nation is still a separate indentifiable group of people after being dispersed from its own land for centuries, scattered among at least one hundred countries.

So that is why the Law was given. So how does it affect me if I try to keep it? That's what we'll look at next time.

     
     

By Grace Alone: 7 Facts About the Law

I am going to break from blogging about the Psalms for a little bit, although I'll still be studying them on my own. I've just finished an incredible book called "By Grace Alone" and I really want to share some thoughts from the book. I think it contains extremely important concepts for Christians and some misbeliefs that nonbelievers may hold. Please join me on this journey and share with your friends. If there is anything you want to look more in depth about, please consider purchasing the book. "By Grace Alone" by Derek Prince is available at most bookstores and on Amazon.

7 Facts About the Law of Moses

Fact #1: The Law was given through Moses.

John 1:17 - "For the law was given by Moses, but grace and truth came by Jesus Christ." 

Romans 5:13-14 - "For until the law sin was in the world: but sin is not imputed when there is no law. Nevertheless death reigned from Adam to Moses, even over them that had not sinned after the similitude of Adam's transgression, who is the figure of him that was to come."

The time period from Adam to Moses was the period until the law. Man was ruled by conscience. When Moses came, the Law was given through him.

Fact #2: The Law is a closed system.

The Law of Moses is a complete, perfect system to which nothing can be added and from which nothing must be taken away.

Deuteronomy 4:2 - "Ye shall not add unto the word which I command you, neither shall ye diminish ought from it, that ye may keep the commandments of the Lord your God which I command you."

Deuteronomy 12:32 - "What thing soever I command you, observe to do it: thou shalt not add thereto, nor diminish from it."

According to God's command, the Law is completely unchangeable.

Matthew 5:17-18 - "Think not that I am come to destroy the law, or the prophets: I am not come to destroy, but to fulfil. For verily I say unto you, Till heaven and earth pass, one jot or one tittle shall in no wise pass from the law, till all be fulfilled."
     
A "jot" is the smallest letter in the Hebrew alphabet, about the size of a comma. A "tittle" is a little mark on the top of some letters that distinguishes them from other letters, and it's smaller than a comma.

Romans 7:12 - "Wherefore the law is holy, and the commandment holy, and just, and good."

Fact #3: The Law means all or nothing.

If we wish to achieve righteousness by keeping the Law, it must be all or nothing. There is no in-between.

Galatians 3:10 - "For as many as are of the works of the law are under the curse: for it is written, Cursed is every one that continueth not in all things which are written in the book of the law to do them."

Anyone who is seeking to be made righteous by the works of the Law is under a curse. Once you come under the Law, you have no more options. You must continue at all times to do all the commands written there. If at any point you fail, you are under a curse. Not even one omission or exception is tolerated.

James 2:10-11 - "For whosoever shall keep the whole law, and yet offend in one point, he is guilty of all. For he that said, Do not commit adultery, said also, Do not kill. Now if thou commit no adultery, yet if thou kill, thou art become a transgressor of the law."

Even if you keep 99.9% of the law but fail in 0.1%, you are a lawbreaker. It is all or nothing.

Fact #4: Christ fulfilled the Law.

Matthew 5:17 - "Think not that I am come to destroy the law, or the prophets: I am not come to destroy, but to fulfil."

Jesus Christ came to fulfill the Law. He did this in three ways.

First, Jesus kept the Law perfectly. In John 8:46, Jesus asks the religions leaders of His day if any of them could convict Him of sin. If He had violated the law we can be sure they would have known about it, but He never violated it at all.

Second, Jesus fulfilled the Law by fulfilling all of its prophecies.

Luke 24:26-27 - "Ought not Christ to have suffered these things, and to enter into his glory?
And beginning at Moses and all the prophets, he expounded unto them in all the scriptures the things concerning himself."

After Jesus was resurrected from the cross, He talked to the disciples and detailed all the prophecies He had fulfilled throughout His life, death and resurrection.

Third, Jesus fulfilled the Law by paying its final penalty on our behalf.

Romans 6:7 - "For he that is dead is freed from sin."

The original Greek there actually means he that is dead is justified from sin. The last thing the law can do is put you to death. If you have committed 15 offenses, the law can only put you to death one time. But Jesus Christ suffered the death penalty on our behalf.

Romans 7:4 - "Wherefore, my brethren, ye also are become dead to the law by the body of Christ."

Christ died to the Law and I died to the Law through His death. Because I am in Christ, the Law has nothing to say to me. I am outside its territory and jurisdiction, finally and forever.

Galatians 2:19-20 - "For I through the law am dead to the law, that I might live unto God.
I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me."

Fact #5 - Christ broke down the wall of separation.

Look back at Romans 10:4. If you believe, then Christ is the end of the Law for you - whether you are a Jew or a Gentile. Ephesians 2:11-22 also discusses the difference between a Jew and a Gentile. In these verses Paul talks about a wall of separation. There was actually a wall in Jerusalem that a Gentile was not allowed to pass through. But Jesus has broke down that wall of division because He abolished the Law. Therefore Jesus has put an end to the Law and to the enmity between Jew and Gentile. 

Honestly, though, there is still enmity between Jew and Gentile. It exists because the Law has separated Israel from all other people. When you are under a religious law, it puts you at enmity with those who are not under the same law. That's why some Baptists are at enmity with some Episcopalians. And some Catholics are at enmity with some Protestants. (Of course that cannot be a blanket statement.)

The trouble with the church is that we as Christians have re-erected the middle wall of partition. Now, however, it's not just between Jews and Gentiles. We use other labels, like Baptist, Catholic, charismatic, or Holiness. Every time we establish religious law we reap enmity.

There is nothing new about a Gentile or a Jew. But what is new is that we are all in Christ as one new man. When Christ put an end to the Law, He removed not only the enmity between believers, but also the enmity between us and God.

Colossians 2:14-16 - "Blotting out the handwriting of ordinances that was against us, which was contrary to us, and took it out of the way, nailing it to his cross; And having spoiled principalities and powers, he made a shew of them openly, triumphing over them in it. Let no man therefore judge you in meat, or in drink, or in respect of an holyday, or of the new moon, or of the sabbath days:"

In hymns, we often sing that Jesus nailed our sins to the cross. But really, He nailed the Law to the cross. Paul uses the word "handwriting" in that verse in Colossians. In Exodus, it tells us that God wrote the Ten Commandments with His own finger. He is the only one who can wipe out what He has written.

So, the ordinances have been wiped out. If we believed we were still under those commandments and ordinances, we would all be Seventh Day Adventists so we could worship on Saturday in order to keep the Sabbath. But the truth is, we're not under the old commands anymore.

Fact #6 - Christians are not under the Law.

Romans 6:14 - "For sin shall not have dominion over you: for ye are not under the law, but under grace."

Romans 7:4 - "Wherefore, my brethren, ye also are become dead to the law by the body of Christ;"

Israel was married to the Law, and as long as the Law lived, if Israel were to turn to anyone else, she would rightly be labeled adulterous. But what Israel had to learn is that the first husband has died, and she is now free to be married to Christ, the resurrected Messiah, without being adulterous. 

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."

Galatians 5:18 - "But if ye be led of the Spirit, ye are not under the law." 

When you are a child of God, you are led by the Spirit. When you go back under the Law, you're not living as a child of God anymore.

Fact #7: Christians are warned against going back.

Galatians 3:1-4 - "O foolish Galatians, who hath bewitched you, that ye should not obey the truth, before whose eyes Jesus Christ hath been evidently set forth, crucified among you? This only would I learn of you, Received ye the Spirit by the works of the law, or by the hearing of faith?
Are ye so foolish? having begun in the Spirit, are ye now made perfect by the flesh? Have ye suffered so many things in vain? if it be yet in vain."  
If you go back under the Law, it's all in vain. Paul talks later in Galatians 5:1 about a yoke of bondage, which is referring to the Law. We talk about bondage to drugs and alcohol now, but the bondage of the Law can be just as concerning. Once you have decided to abide fully by the Law, Jesus is of no use to you. The word bondage is actually a word that means "slavery". When you go back under the Law, you come under the spirit of slavery to fear. The Law says, "Do this! And if you don't do it, you are a transgressor! Do that! And if you don't do it, you will die!"

Next time, I'll look a little more at the Law. If we can't achieve righteousness by the Law, then why was it given?  What was it's purpose?

 

By Grace Alone: Two Ways to Righteousness

I think I am going to break from blogging about the Psalms for a little bit, although I'll still be studying them on my own. I've just finished an incredible book called "By Grace Alone" and I really want to share some thoughts from the book. I think it contains extremely important concepts for Christians and some misbeliefs that nonbelievers may hold. Please join me on this journey and share with your friends. If there is anything you want to look more in depth about, please consider purchasing the book. "By Grace Alone" by Derek Prince is available at most bookstores and on Amazon.

Two Ways to Righteousness:

In this study, the word law refers to religious law. In other words, we will be studying law viewed as a means of achieving righteousness with God.

Romans 10:4 - "For Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to every one that believeth." 

In that verse, Paul is telling us that the moment a person believes in Jesus Christ, that is the end of law for that person as a means of righteousness.The law will endure as part of God's word forever. The law will be part of Israel's history forever. But this is the end of the law as a means to achieve righteousness with God.

The Law refers to the Law of Moses.

Ephesians 2:15 - "Having abolished in his flesh the enmity, even the law of commandments contained in ordinances; for to make in himself of twain one new man, so making peace..."

The commandments are the direct requirements of prohibitions (Thou shalt not steal, Thou shalt not commit adultery etc.). The ordinances are the way of living that works out the commandments, certain deeds you had to do and certain procedures you had to follow, such as restoring lost property or bringing an appropriate offering to the house of God.

Romans 2:14-15 - "For when the Gentiles, which have not the law, do by nature the things contained in the law, these, having not the law, are a law unto themselves: Which shew the work of the law written in their hearts, their conscience also bearing witness, and their thoughts the mean while accusing or else excusing one another..."

It is not the Law that is written in the hearts of the Gentiles. It is the work of the Law. The Law for a Jew presses the issue of personal responsibility and personal guilt. Inside a Gentile is something like a law court. In this court the thoughts of the Gentiles are either accusing them or excusing them, and their consciences are as judges. Therefore, the work of the Law will do for a Gentile what the Law of Moses was designed to do for a Jew.

So what is grace?

A good definition of grace is "that which is freely given by God and received by faith, without being earned or deserved."

We cannot earn it. We can never deserve it. Anything that we can earn or deserve is not grace.

Ephesians 2:8-9 - "For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: Not of works, lest any man should boast."

Grace is normally received by faith, as seen in the above scripture. Grace has nothing to boast about.

Therefore, there are two ways to righteousness. One is by following the Law. One is by receiving grace. If something is of law, then it is not of grace. And if something is of grace, then it is not of law.

John 1:17 - "For the law was given by Moses, but grace and truth came by Jesus Christ."

Grace and law are absolutely distinct.

Romans 6:14 - "For sin shall not have dominion over you: for ye are not under the law, but under grace."

If you are under grace, you are not under law. You cannot be in both conditions.

Romans 10:5-6 - " For Moses describeth the righteousness which is of the law, That the man which doeth those things shall live by them. But the righteousness which is of faith speaketh on this wise, Say not in thine heart, Who shall ascend into heaven? (that is, to bring Christ down from above:)"

The Law is clear. If you want to be made righteous by the Law, then you must do everything the Law says all the time. If you can accomplish that feat, then you do not need grace. But, if you cannot be justified by the Law, then you must accept grace or not be justified at all.

The Law says, "This is what you have to do and to keep doing it all the time." Grace says, "Someone else has done it for you."

What this means is there are two kinds of religion in the world. One is a religion of law and works, the other is a religion of faith and grace. One is the religion of Cain (law and works) and one is the religion of Abel (faith and grace). (If you don't know the story of Cain and Abel I urge you to read Genesis 4:1-15 right now.)

Abel offered his sacrifice by faith. Cain brought an offering because it was something he decided to do. Abel received God's word and Cain refused God's word. If we seek through our own works to establish our own righteousness, we are refusing to submit to the righteousness of God, which is by faith. Abel offered a sacrifice that acknowledged the need for propitiation for his sin. (Propitiation is a sacrifice that cancels sin and satisfies the wrath due from God toward sin.)

Through faith in His blood, we acknowledge that Jesus Christ is the propitiation for sins we have committed. Abel offered a propitiation and, in so doing, he acknowledged that there was a gift that needed to be propitiated. Cain did not offer a propitiation. There was no sacrifice, no death and no shed blood. He brought the works of his own hands - the fruit of the earth. In Genesis 3:17 God cursed the ground of the earth when He cursed Adam and Eve. Therefore, Cain offered God the fruit of something which was cursed. Abel's sacrifice was accepted by God and Cain's was not. Your relationship to God is either one of acceptance or rejection.

Abel's religion produced a martyr. Cain's religion produced a murderer.

Scripture indicates that in all of Christendom there will be two groups. Not Catholic or Protestant or Methodist or Baptist. One is the Bride and one is the Harlot. Everybody who survives to the end of the age will be in one or the other. Abel's religion produces the Bride. Cain's religion produces the Harlot. In Revelation 17 and 18 you can read about the Harlot, an elaborate false religious system.