The Law and Grace

Today, after an intensive bible study session where God took me through Genesis 2 and Corinthians about the creation because I wanted to know what it meant to be created in God’s image and likeness (blog for another day ?). I began to wonder or should I say my study made me to start pondering on the law and grace. I had a conversation with a friend where we discussed the law and how it is interpreted this day against faith. I began to wonder that if I did not keep some of the laws does that mean I am not blessed or cursed of God? This came as a result of a conversation we had on tithing.

So, the Holy Spirit in his ever awesome way took me to the book of Galatians 3. The chapter was on Paul’s frustration with the Galatians on them reverting to obeying laws as a way of making them right with God (exactly what I was pondering – won’t you say the Holy Spirit is super awesome, even though he did not answer one of my prayers the way I wanted ?).

Paul was literally beside himself admonishing the Galatians that they had received the gift of salvation by the grace of God. He explained that salvation comes from believing in Jesus through faith as a result of the Holy Spirit convicting us of sin and giving us new life. And not by following the demands of the law Galatians 3:1-4. He emphatically told them in verse 5 that, “ I ask you again, does God give you the Holy Spirit and work miracles among you because you obey the law? Of course not! It is because you believe the message you heard about Christ”.

This means that it is not because of our works or us obeying the commandments that we are made right with God. Also, the way of faith is very different from the way of the law. The way of the law says that “it is by obeying the all the laws that a person has life Galatians 3:12. The bible makes us understand that if we are to base our salvation on obeying the commandments or the law, then at the end of the day we would be left feeling frustrated. Why you might ask, because we on our own are incapable of keeping all the laws which is the requirement of the law for salvation. Really? yes really, according to verse 10 those who depend on the law to make them right with God are under his curse, for the Scriptures say, “Cursed is everyone who does not observe and obey all the commands that are written in God’s Book of the Law.” This literally means that our being made right with God is not as a result of us keeping the law since we are unable to keep all the laws which is the requirement.

Then what is the purpose of the law you might ask? Good question, verse 23 explains that before Jesus came, the law was used as a sort of safe guard for us to help Moses mediate between the chosen people, the Israelites and God. Moses was a mediator between God and the Israelites hence the law was necessary verse 20. The law was given alongside the promise to show people their sins, but the law was designed to last only until the coming of Jesus as it is unable to give new life. Before salvation, we were placed under guard by the law until the way of Christ was revealed verse 23. We get new life, salvation only through Jesus Christ verse 15-19. Yes, we now have a better and more effective mediator, Jesus and no longer need the law to make us right with God as we can now depend on him instead (verses 19-21).

Also, Moses is not our faith father, but he was used to free the Israelites and to safeguard them by using the law. God likens us receiving salvation through faith by referencing Abraham verses 19-21. Abraham is the father of God’s chosen people given to him by grace through his faith in God. The Israelites are the children of promise that God gave Abraham as a result of his faith and trust in God. Abraham is the faith ancestor, the one whom God gave the promise of a new beginning to and God established his covenant with him by faith in God and not through the law.

So what qualifies us as part of this new beginning or new life promised to us is faith just like Abraham had, that made the bible call him righteous? It is when we believe in God and have faith in him, then we are made righteous or called righteous by God too. We are saved because God gives us the Holy Spirit when we are reconciled with him by believing the message of Christ verse 5. Simply put by his grace through his love for us, not because of our works. We therefore should not strive to put ourselves back under the law and its curse by trying to please God by trying to keep the laws because we simply cannot (verse 5 and verse 10).

My dear brothers and sisters who have come to know the Lord, don’t let anyone make you feel like you have to revert to keeping the law to ensure your salvation. That is the lie of the enemy. God loves you and called you through his love not through your works. It is his power in you that will help you to do good works that he has preordained for you. His power in you will help you do good works that he has preordained for you. Keeping God’s commandments is good because the Holy Spirit helps us to keep them, but that is not the basis for our salvation, Christ is.

If you do have the privilege of knowing Christ, please do not linger because the bible says that God loves you so much that he sent his son Jesus to die for you John 3:16. If you receive him, you have salvation that is eternal life and you will be reconciled back to God. But if you reject him then nothing but eternal damnation awaits you which is not God’s plan for you. Why you may think do I need God, because the bible says that God created man for himself (Genesis 1:27, Ephesians 2:10, Revelations 4:11). We are made in God’s image not to live our lives for ourselves, if we are honest doing things our own way has often resulted in an emptiness that we unable to fill. That emptiness is made for God to fill, for us to live our lives for him the way he planned it for therein lies the true path to fulfilment. But we all like to do things our own way, we go along the path that we believe is best for us (Romans 3:23).

If you would like to know God, you can say this simple prayer, “dear God, forgive me of my sins, I admit that I have rebelled against you by being the Lord of my life. Please come into my heart and help me know you”.

That’s all, if you say this prayer, you are automatically grafted into the family of believers. Let me say welcome to the family where your life will never be the same again (courtesy of the Holy Spirit). I encourage you to get into a bible based church the Spirit will lead you to and enjoy your new birth. God bless you. I love you.