DYING TO LIVE
Matthew 5:17
“Don’t misunderstand why I have come. I did not come to abolish the law of Moses or the writings of the prophets. No, I came to accomplish their purpose."
The law existed before time.
It existed before Adam and Eve, and it existed before Jesus was born on earth.
The law is perfect and it leads to life...
Even non-believers can look at the law and say that it is good...
Do not murder, steal, or lie... even non-believers naturally strive to keep the law.
What does Paul mean then, when in Romans 7:10 he says, "I found that the very commandment that was intended to bring life actually brought death."?
Since Jesus said, "I came to fulfill the purpose of the law"...before Jesus came, the law was not accomplishing its purpose.
It was incomplete.
Galatians 3:21 confirms this when it says, "Truly, if there was a law that we could keep which would give us new life, then our salvation would have come by law-keeping."
Deuteronomy 30:16 says, "For I command you this day to love the LORD your God and to keep his commands, decrees, and regulations by walking in his ways. If you do this, you will live. "
So then, why does Paul say that the law brought death?
Paul is describing the law apart from Jesus.
He is describing an unfilled law.
Misunderstanding this fact led me to hate the law.
I strove to "keep His commands and walk in His ways," and I failed.
I read verses like Psalm 119:97, "Oh, how I love your law!" with disdain.
Really? You LOVE the law???
I mean, I knew the law was good, I wanted to keep the law... but there was no way that I could, with an honest heart, write the words "I love your law"
I felt justified in my hatred by verses like Galatians 3:10: "For all who rely on the works of the law are under a curse."
Like someone throwing the baby out with the bathwater, I had equated the curse that comes from seeking justification through the law...with the law itself.
Out of ignorance, I went about just trying to forget the law.
I had decided that I couldn't keep the law, therefore, it had no purpose in my life.
I figured that my sanctification would come from a process outside of myself... That The Holy Spirit would just change me by His own volition, apart from any effort on my end...
All hatred and anger (which is what I had toward the law) stem from fear.
Satan had used fear to rob me!
Fear of not measuring up.
God has recently spoken wisdom into my life, and I can now, with an honest heart, say, "Oh, how I love your law!"
The Purpose Of The Law
John 14:15-17
“If you love me, obey my commandments. And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Advocate, who will never leave you. He is the Holy Spirit, who leads into all truth. The world cannot receive him, because it isn’t looking for him and doesn’t recognize him. But you know him, because he lives with you now and later will be in you."
This is the formula!
This is the FULLFILLED law!
"If you love me, obey my commandments."
This is the first part of the law...
This is the part of the law that Paul had...
He tried his best to keep it, and he said, "I found that the very commandment that was intended to bring life actually brought death."
Then comes Jesus, who said in John 10:10, "I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full."
THIS is how it works!
If we love God, which is only possible if we are given, by His grace, a new heart, then we should keep His commandments.
When we attempt to do that... we will probably fail.
But when we attempt to do that, The Holy Spirit, The Advocate, who never leaves us, leads us to all truth.
We, in partnership with The Holy Spirit, experience the purpose of the fulfilled law.
It goes like this:
1.) We sin
2.) The law points out our shortcomings
3.) We look to The Holy Spirit
4.) The Holy Spirit leads us to the truth.
What is the truth?
Jesus tells us in John 14:16! "I am the way, the truth, and the life."
The Holy Spirit points us to Jesus
So, we come to Jesus...
He cleanses us, taking our shame and forgiving us.
He teaches us, showing us how to overcome.
He carries our burden and walks with us through the suffering.
When we walk this path, we are experiencing Romans 8:29: "For those God foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son."
We are living 2 Corinthians 3:18 "But we all, with unveiled face, beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, just as by the Spirit of the Lord."
Jesus did not come to get rid of the law!
The law is not your enemy!
The law is those John 6:68 "words that give eternal life."
The law is those Proverbs 16:24 words that are "like honey— sweet to the soul and healthy for the body."
You only have to understand the formula...
Let the law drive you to Jesus and be transformed!
Pray like this:
"God, you promised to give wisdom to anyone who asks. Give me wisdom concerning your law. Reveal to me how sweet it is! Give me a teachable heart. Give me a love for your law and reveal to me its purpose so that you can accomplish your will for my life! I want to be conformed to the image of Jesus. Thank you for the way you created. Help me to understand it."