 Law vs. Grace  |
| by
David A. DePra |
|
| For sin
shall not have dominion over you, for you are not |
| under the
law but under grace. (Romans 6:14) |
| |
|
Law vs. grace is one of the most important contrasts a |
| Christian must
grasp. The Bible lays a tremendous emphasis |
| upon it. For
example, the gospels are full of the conflict |
| between the
Pharisees and our Lord -- showing the conflict |
| between the law
and God's grace. Paul devotes at least three |
| of his epistles
to the subject alone: Romans, Galatians, and |
| Colossians. Plus
we find it cropping up in one form or another |
| in every other
book of the New Testament. Make no question, |
| this is a topic I
can ill afford to neglect. To do so is to neglect |
| the foundation of
Christianity: The grace of God in Jesus |
| Christ. |
|
To get to the Truth of law vs. grace, we must ask two |
| important
questions. First: Are we "under law" or "under |
| grace?"
Actually, the answer to that question is easy: We are |
| "under
grace." Romans 6:14, quoted above, says so. |
|
But the second question, well, that's not so easy: What do the |
| terms,
"under law," and "under grace," really mean? It is |
| confusion as to
what these terms really mean which has |
| caused much
bondage and deception among God's people. |
|
Let's begin by examining how the Bible uses the term |
| "under the
law." |
|
|
Now we know that whatever the law says, it says it to |
| those who
are under the law, that every mouth may be |
| stopped,
and the whole world may become guilty before |
| God.
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. But now the righteousness of God |
| without the
law is manifested, being witnessed by the law |
| and the
prophets, even the righteousness of God which is |
| by the
faith of Jesus Christ unto all and upon all them |
| that
believe, for there is no difference. (Romans 3:19-22) |
|
|
Let's stop right here for a moment and glean some |
| important facts
from this passage in Romans. Note especially |
| the first
sentence. It reads, "Whatever the law says, it is saying |
| it to -- WHO?
"To those who are UNDER THE LAW." |
| Note that:
Whatever the law is saying -- it is saying it to |
| those "under
the law." This tells us what the term "under the |
| law" means:
If I am "under the law," the law is speaking to |
| ME. Or to put it
in reverse: If the law is speaking to me, I |
| am "under
the law." I am listening to it and allowing it to |
| govern my living. |
|
Ok. But what is the law saying to those who are "under |
| the law?" It
is defining good and evil. It is commanding that |
| we DO the good
and refuse the evil. Then it is judging our |
| works to see
whether we have perfectly obeyed it. If we |
| haven't -- and we
can't -- the law tells us we are |
| condemned to
death. |
|
That is what the law says to those who are "under the law." |
| It also sounds
quite a lot like the life of many Christians. Many |
| Christians look
to the law to tell them what to do and not do. |
| They believe that
if they do not obey the law they will be |
| judged -- even
condemned. For some, the law is the only |
| voice they hear. |
|
What is wrong with that? Isn't the law holy, just, and good? |
| Sure it is. But
that is precisely why if you live under the law it |
| will condemn you.
There is no escape from the holy judgment |
| of God's law! But
God has something better for us. He has |
| put us under His
grace He has put us where the condemning |
| voice of the law
cannot speak: In Christ. |
|
Notice how clear this Truth becomes once we put our two |
| scriptures
together: |
| |
| Paul said:
"Whatever the law says, it says it to those under the law." |
| |
| He also said:
"But you are not under law, but under grace," |
| |
|
If the law is speaking to those "under the law," and God |
| tells us we are
NOT "under the law" -- but "under grace" -- |
| then the law
cannot be speaking to US. There is simply no |
| other conclusion
possible. |
|
This is further verified if we read on in our passage from |
| Romans 3. Paul
says, "Therefore we conclude that a man is |
| justified by
faith WITHOUT the deeds of the law." (Rom. 3:28) |
|
Now ask: If those "under grace" are justified WITHOUT the |
| deeds of the law,
then how can the law be speaking to them? |
| It can't be
speaking to them. The law has absolutely nothing |
| to do with their
justification. It is not judging their deeds or |
| passing sentence
upon them. They are justified solely by |
| grace through
faith in Jesus Christ. |
|
Now we can better see what the terms "under the law," and |
| "under
grace" really mean. Being "under the law" means that |
| my works -- as
directed and judged by the law -- |
| determine my
justification and standing before God. Being |
| "under
grace," however, means that I am justified before God |
| completely apart
from my works. In effect, to be "under the |
| law" means
that my works determine EVERYTHING. But to be |
| "under
grace" means that my works determine NOTHING. By |
| faith I stand
"under" the finished work of my Saviour. |
|
"Now wait a minute. If the law doesn't speak to those |
| under grace, then
they can sin all they want. There will be no |
| restraint; no
holy standards to follow." |
|
Once we grasp the Truth of God's grace, we will know that |
| it does not do
away with obedience to God. Indeed, rather |
| than do away with
obedience, the grace of God is the only real |
| means of
obedience there is. Why? Because through God's |
| grace I don't
merely DO righteous deeds, I BECOME a |
| righteous person
-- through the Living Christ in me. In |
| Christ, obedience
to God becomes natural and voluntary -- |
| simply because I
love Him. |