The Law & Sin

What then shall we say? That the law is sin? By no means! Yet if it had not been for the law, I would not have known sin.

Romans 7

Having dealt with humanity’s slavery to sin and the law not being able to save anyone, Paul, now, moves to the Christian’s being released from the law, not that he/she can continue to sin but, but to live by faith that our Savior and Lord Jesus came into our world and lived a sinless life so that we could receive His righteousness instead of our having to do what is impossible for any other human to do, live a sinless life. Christians are not only saved through the forgiveness of their sin but, they are righteous with the righteousness of Jesus of Nazareth who did live a sinless life. Remember Adam, as the federal head of humanity brought sin into humanity through his sin, therefore, Christ, as the Second Adam, also a Federal Head for the saved, brought a sinless mantel for Christians to wear when entering the presence of Holy God. But, humanity still inhabits a sinful flesh which hates the Holy Spirit’s presence in our soul and Paul moves to cover the law and sin. Paul writes that the law is NOT sin but, that, without the law, sin would not be known. But, from the beginning, God had law even in the Garden of Eden, when He told Adam not to eat of certain trees/fruit. Adam knew the law yet, he disobeyed that law when tempted by the snake. And so, as the population increased, God wrote the law in the hearts of all men until God gave the Law tablets to Moses on Mt. Sinai. Paul emphatically states the law is NOT sin but, the law exposed sin for what it is, disobedience against Holy God. The law, written and in the hearts of all humans, highlighted that sin would mean spiritual death to every human even when they obeyed the law with all their might. The problem with the law was it could not save one’s soul, even one who might obey the law, for obedience had to be more than outward obedience. Obedience had to be in thought, in word, and in deeds. Humanity’s corrupted nature meant that no human could obey God’s law. Enter the Second Adam, Jesus of Nazareth, who lived that totally sinless life because, in Him, there was NO sin, and He refused to commit any outward sin in all the temptations Satan threw at Him. Jesus earned the Righteousness God demanded in His law. Then, Jesus propitiated for our sins, past, present and, future, by His sacrificial death on the Roman cross. By these acts (deeds, works), God now could meet His requirements of sinlessness and debt payment by any human, who believed in Christ, by accounting Christ’s Righteousness to the human while Christ’s blood covered the sins of the human, thereby making the human able to enter God’s presence without God destroying him/her. There is no longer the need for any human to live a perfect life he/she could never live nor eternally pay his sin debt in hell for, in Christ, God has brought salvation to humanity through the Second Adam, Jesus of Nazareth! Why would God choose to save any human because our sin is cause for every human to go to the eternal fires of hell? Because, in His great love, grace and, mercy God loved His children before His children could ever love Him. Call upon the name of Jesus today and be saved!

Source: S C Ball August 28, 2023