Jesus Made The Law User Friendly
by Lani W. Finley
Many
sincere and dedicated Christians have found themselves frustrated
and wearied by their attempts to live up to the standard of God's
laws of love. Some Christians have become so exhausted and burnt-out
trying to please God by their efforts, that they have given-up and
walked away in a state of hopelessness. They simply did not fully
understand how God’s commandments apply to them as New Testament Christians.
Many of God’s
people lead lives of quiet desperation, simply because they struggle
to live by the letter of the law and never experience the spiritual
joy that Christ’s sacrifice promised. Are you tired of giving it all
you have got, and still feel like you are missing the peace and joy
that the scriptures promised? Do you feel like you cannot live up
to God’s expectations, and therefore believe that you can never be
as close to Him as you desire to be? Well, there is hope. Jesus has
made it possible for the New Testament believer to walk in harmony
with the law, without being overwhelmed by it.
The apostle Paul
was inspired to write, “the law is holy, just and good" and it
is "spiritual" (Rom. 7:12,14). Anything that is spiritual
is also eternal and has neither beginning nor end. Therefore, we know
that the commandments are active in today's world. The laws of God
are simply the royal conduct by which God
and Jesus conduct themselves. They are a collection of principles
that teach us how to love God and our fellow man. The apostle Paul
confirms this in Rom 13:10. "Love worketh no ill to his neighbour:
therefore love is the fulfilling of the law".
The problem is
not God's laws of love, but man's inability to live up to their standards.
This loving code of conduct is above the capability of carnal man
to achieve by himself. We are born with a fleshly nature that is very
contrary to the obedience of these principles. Paul relates this truth
to the church at Rome, "because the mind set on the flesh is
hostile toward God; for it does not subject itself to the law of God,
for it is not even able {to do so}" (Rom 8:7 NAS). Failure to
live by God's laws of love exacts the severe penalty of eternal death.
Paul addressed this issue in 1 Cor 15: 56, “the sting of death is
sin; and the strength of sin is the law". The natural heart of
man is not able to observe these principles without the Spirit of
Jesus Christ. Therefore, the law, apart from Jesus Christ and His
grace, is not the friend of mankind.
So, how does
a human being get out of this horrible predicament? Who can tame the
law, and bring it into the reach of mankind? Who can neutralize its
death sentence over human beings? How was it made user friendly
for the repentant believer?
Thankfully, it
has been accomplished by the sacrificial death of our Savior and Redeemer,
Jesus Christ. He kept the law perfectly for all mankind, because He
knew it was an impossible goal for us to achieve. It was no surprise
to God and Christ that we would fail. Remember that Jesus “was slain
before the foundation of the world” (Rev. 13:8). God knew that we
could not rise to His level of conduct. Only God in the
flesh could do that for us. Therefore, it is only our
acceptance of Christ's grace, His righteousness
and obedience to the law that can give us
peace with God and makes the law our friend.
We must come
to understand, that the law can never be kept by us apart from Christ.
Remember the words of our Lord, “Without me you can do nothing” (John
15:5). That is why we are miserable and frustrated when we try to
keep the laws on our own strength and efforts. Jesus (the Messiah
of the Old Testament) longed for the days when He could write His
Father’s laws within our hearts (Jer. 31:33). This is why it is futile
to tell a person to change the conditions of their life without explaining
how to achieve it. It cannot be done by human effort, or by the human
will alone. It is not a conscious decision one can make outside
of Jesus Christ. The attempt to serve God apart from
a heart of faith can only produce the kind of self-discipline
that God rejects. A spiritual renewing has to occur within the heart
of the person. A new mind has to be imparted to the human heart.
We need to understand
how God is now dealing with the New Testament Christian. The process
by which God is changing the very innermost being of His future children.
This procedure works something like this:
God,
who loves us and gave His only begotten Son, has given us a covering
umbrella of grace through the sacrificial offering of Jesus. This
covering of grace shields the Christian while the Holy Spirit sows
the laws and divine nature of God within the believer. This new seed,
that is now planted within the heart of the believer, will start to
grow and produce the very thoughts, motives, words, deeds and principles
that are the very expression of our heavenly Father’s character.
God’s grace allows us to make mistakes – be forgiven – and still
have access to our heavenly Father and eternal life. Our new
divine nature produces the desire for righteousness, and a yearning
to live according to God’s way of love, which is outlined by the law.
It creates a deep desire to walk with God and our fellowman in a spirit
of love and forgiveness. Our newfound love begins to fulfill the requirements
of the law (Rom. 13:8). It starts redirecting our thoughts, and consequently,
changing our actions. Our new spirit works in opposition to our human
nature, and begins to override the thoughts and actions of the flesh.
This is all accomplished through our faith in the sacrifice, righteousness,
obedience and works of Jesus Christ. This process starts at our
baptism and continues to grow throughout our lifetime. This is our
free gift from God.
In order for
us to grow in grace – we must abide in Him
who is “full of grace and truth” (John 1: 14). We must remember
what Paul wrote in Romans 8: 2 “For the law of the Spirit of life
in Christ Jesus has made me free from the law of sin and death”. It
is only
Jesus that saves
us and makes us righteous in the eyes of our Heavenly Father. We can
do nothing by ourselves. Christ not only took away our sins, but He
added something to us - His righteousness
(11 Cor. 5:21). Us in Christ - Christ in us.
This does not
mean that we should adopt a cavalier or casual attitude regarding
the physical law. We should be as diligent as we can in its observance.
Nevertheless, we should understand that the joy and serenity God wanted
His children to experience could only come from receiving a new heart
in Jesus Christ. We should strive for truth and learn all we can about
the law, but never lose sight of the greater picture of our salvation.
So many of our brethren are toiling to make sure they are keeping
all of the physical and mechanical requirements of the law, that they
seem to forget “the simplicity that is in Christ”.
The law is no
longer a death sentence for those who are covered by the blood and
grace of God. Jesus has taken the bite,
or sting out of the law.
O
death, where is thy sting? O grave, where is thy victory? 56
The sting of death is sin; and the strength of sin is the law.
57 But thanks be to God, which
giveth us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. 58 Therefore, my beloved brethren, be ye stedfast, unmoveable,
always abounding in the work of the Lord, forasmuch as ye know that
your labour is not in vain in the Lord (1 Cor 15:55-58).
For true Christians,
the law has now become a guiding light that
points us to a way of love, which will bring us the blessings we all
seek. In Romans 8:4 the apostle Paul summed-up this whole subject
about as beautifully as one could put into words; “That the righteousness
of the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not after the flesh,
but after the Spirit”.
My friends, we
are not called to any organization – we are called to a “Person”.
That person is Jesus Christ. Let us learn to “rest and relax” in Jesus
Christ and enjoy the grace of God. It is only then that we can call
the Laws of God our friend. Let us totally submit ourselves to God
and let our Lord write these laws upon our hearts. Jesus did make
them user friendly for the sincere and
obedient Believer.
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