The Inseparable Law and Grace of God

Introduction: Very often, we see the flawed interpretation of the relationship between law and grace. At times, repentance, law, faith, and obedience are partially or even completely discarded, and only grace is emphasised. This mistaken or faulty interpretation leads to the doctrine of what is known as “hyper grace” or “cheap grace”. Such a misinterpretation can easily misguide us into wide of the mark doctrines. Be aware that selective or “pick and preach” teachings are dangerous and result in cults and sects. Can we discard any part of the Bible and stick to what makes us feel good? No! Every portion of the Bible is divinely inspired. It is food for the soul. It is the Word of God and its words are sacred. Can we discard the Old Testament? No! Without the Old Testament, we would never know what is sin and why we need a Savior. We will never know the meaning of the blood of Jesus. We will never know that Jesus is the promised Messiah.

The Greatest Commandments

An expert in the interpretation of Scripture and the Laws of Moses asked Jesus which is the greatest commandment.

Matthew 22:37-40 Jesus replied: "Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: Love your neighbour as yourself. All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments."

Love for God and love towards one another cannot be separated. The first one relates to our vertical relationship with God. The second relates to our horizontal relationship with other people.

The Division of the Decalogue

The Decalogue (The Ten Commandments) is broadly divided into two parts. The first four commandments relate to our relationship with God. The next six commandments are for our relationship with one another. So, when Jesus said we must love God and also love our neighbours as ourselves, he was simply giving a simplified summary of the entire Decalogue. Jesus would not have done this if the Law were no longer relevant.

A. Our vertical relationship with God:

1) You shall have no other gods before me.

2) You shall not make for yourself an idol.

3) You shall not misuse the name of the LORD your God.

4) Remember the Sabbath day by keeping it holy.

B. Our horizontal relationship with man:

5) Honour your father and your mother.

6) You shall not murder.

7) You shall not commit adultery.

8) You shall not steal.

9) You shall not give false testimony against your neighbor.

10) You shall not covet.

The Law will not Disappear

Matthew 5:17-19 Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them. I tell you the truth, until heaven and earth disappear, not the smallest letter, not the least stroke of a pen will by any means disappear from the Law until everything is accomplished.  Anyone who breaks one of the least of these commandments and teaches others to do the same will be called least in the kingdom of heaven, but whoever practices and teaches these commands will be called great in the kingdom of heaven.

"I tell you the truth" in Matthew 5:18 signals that the statement to follow is of the utmost importance. The "jot" (KJV) refers to "the smallest letter" (NIV) of the Hebrew alphabet. "The least stroke of a pen" refers to the small stroke that distinguishes several pairs of Hebrew letters. Jesus here upholds the authority of the Old Testament scriptures right down to its individual letters. This view of Jesus is the highest possible view of the Old Testament.

Jesus defended the Law-- the Old Testament scriptures, not just the books, not just some chapters, not just some verses, not just some words, but everything right down to the individual letters of the alphabet in the Old Testament scriptures. Matthew 24:35 “Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will never pass away”.

The Law was Never Nullified

Romans 3:31 Do we, then, nullify the law by this faith? Not at all! Rather, we uphold the law.

Galatians 3:21 Is the law, therefore, opposed to the promises of God? Absolutely not! For if a law had been given that could impart life, then righteousness would certainly have come by the law.

The Law Defines Sin

Romans 5:12 Therefore, just as sin entered the world through one man, and death through sin, and in this way death came to all men, because all sinned--

1 John 3:4 Everyone who sins breaks the law; in fact, sin is lawlessness.

James 4:17 Anyone, then, who knows the good he ought to do and doesn't do it, sins.

We are all sinners through Adam, the first man, who brought death to the whole human race. Contravening the law, disobedience to God’s commands, and turning away from God are sins. All iniquities, lawlessness, unrighteousness, and wrongdoings are sins.

The Law Increases Our Sins in Order to Increase Grace

Romans 3:20 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.

Romans 5:20-21 The law was added so that the trespass might increase. But where sin increased, grace increased all the more, so that, just as sin reigned in death, so also grace might reign through righteousness to bring eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.

The law conveys the knowledge of sin. The Law tells us about God's commandments, what things God prohibits, and what sin is. The law makes us aware of our spiritual bankruptcy. This, in turn, leads a person to turn to God in humility and seek His mercy and saving grace.

Redemption through Jesus Christ

Mark 2:17 On hearing this, Jesus said to them, "It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick. I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners."

Romans 3:23 & 24 For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus.

Romans 6:23 For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.

A doctor ministers not to healthy persons but to those who are sick. So Jesus came not to call the "righteous" but "sinners" (i.e., those who are alienated from God in their lives). Jesus' call is to salvation, and to share in it, there must be recognition of need. A self-righteous person is incapable of recognising that need, but a sinner can.

The reason all must come to God through faith in Christ is that "all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God." God not only acquits believers, but he also declares them to be righteous in his sight.

Paul puts God and his mastery over against sin, gift over against wages, and eternal life over against death-- crowning it all with the acknowledgment that the mediation of Christ Jesus our Lord accounts for the shift from one camp to the other.

We are Saved by Grace through Faith in Christ

1 Corinthians 15:56 & 57 The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law. But thanks be to God! He gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.

If it were not for sin, death would have no sting. It is the law of God with its stringent moral demands that strengthens the power of sin by showing us how sinful we are, and thus condemns us. But death does not have the final victory! Hear the glorious closing exclamation: "Thanks be to God! He gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ." Yes, victory, even over death and the grave, has been won through our Lord, who died and rose and is coming again.

Ephesians 2:8-10 For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith--and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God-- not by works, so that no one can boast. For we are God's workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.

It is Finished

On the cross, when Jesus said, "It is finished" (John 19:20), he did not mean his strength or his life was finished. He did not mean that henceforth the Law would no longer be relevant. These words are words of victory. Jesus Christ had finished what the Father had sent him into the world to do.

It is finished-- priesthood and rituals, the shedding of blood by animal sacrifice was finished forever. Christ was offered as the atoning sacrifice for our sins once and for all.

John 3:16 & 17 "For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him.”

Law and Grace are Indispensable

Galatians 3:11 But that no man is justified by the law in the sight of God, it is evident: for, the just shall live by faith.

We must remember that the Bible is unified in its message. Sometimes it may present us with a paradox, but it never gives us contradiction. By comparing scripture with scripture we can put an intriguing image in the right perspective. God’s law is not bad or useless. The law serves many good purposes. It restrains sin, shows us the way of holiness, and reveals to us our own sinfulness. But the law by itself can never change hearts or save you. Only by God's grace, through faith in Christ, can you be saved.

Selie Visa