NOT UNDER THE LAW

NOT UNDER THE LAW

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12-7-2009

DENNY SMITH

The law of God, as expressed by the 10 commandments and all the other rules, ordinances, etc. listed in the Bible from Exodus chapter 20 are the greatest set of laws that have ever been written. Many people call it the “law of Moses.” Those laws are right, and they are good, but unfortunately there has never been one human being who has been successful at obeying them every one. The Bible is accurate when it says; “there is none that doeth good, no, not one” (Romans 3:12).

There is only one kind of person. We are all the same; “all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God” (Romans 3:23). It doesn’t make any difference what kind of sinner you are. God doesn’t have a scale of 1 to 10 when it comes to sin. The serial killer, child molester and rapist are no worse in God’s sight than the little old ladies sitting in church with their heads together, gossiping. Sin is sin. Sin is very serious. Humans have degrees of crimes, but to God every sin is a 10 and brings on the death penalty: “The wages of sin is death” (Romans 6:23).

Every person dies eventually. Why? Because every person sins. It’s universal. It is sad to watch people trying as hard as they can to behave themselves, and perform to the high standard God expects from mankind, yet they all know there is at least one area of their life that trips them up and defeats them from being perfect. The only one that has ever, or will ever live a perfect life is Jesus Christ, who was both the Son of God, as well as being the son of Joseph and Mary. Jesus did not come to do away with all the rules of the law, He came to fulfill them (see Matthew 5:17). Jesus satisfied the just demands of a holy God and set us free from the bondage of trying to live a perfect life. Romans 6:15 says: “ye are not under the law, but under grace.”

God used the law as the standard of what is right and wrong, but it should be a relief to you to hear that “you are not under the law.” Jesus set us free from the impossible task of performing perfectly: “having abolished in His flesh the enmity, even the law of commandments contained in ordinances” according to Ephesians 2:15.

Does that mean that it’s O.K. for you to do wrong? Romans 6:15 asks: “Shall we sin, because we are not under the law, but under grace? God forbid.” The answer is “No.” Galatians 5:13 says we shouldn’t use these facts as “an occasion to the flesh” to go ahead and do wrong, because we are not under the law, because it leads up to Galatians 6:7- you will reap what you sow. Do your best, but realize the only reason anyone is considered righteous is because Christ died and paid for your sins.