Will Obeying the Law Give Me Victory Over Sin?
07.05.09
Will Obeying The Law Give Me Victory Over Sin?
Rom 6:14 For sin shall not have dominion over you, for you are not under law but under grace (NKJV).
The Law controlled us and kept us under its power until the time came when we would have faith. In fact, the Law was supposed to be our teacher until we put our faith in Jesus. But now that we have put our faith in Jesus, we don’t need this teacher (the law) anymore. Gal 3: 23 But before faith came, we were kept under guard by the law, kept for the faith which would afterward be revealed. 24 Therefore the law was our tutor to bring us to Christ, that we might be justified by faith. 25 But after faith has come, we are no longer under a tutor (NKJV).
The law demands that we live a perfectly holy life 100% of the time. Failure to comply will result in punishment & death. THIS WILL NEVER CHANGE. The law is what it is, and grace can not change the law’s mind. The only way to come out from under the law is to die to the law. Rom 7:4 Therefore, my brethren, you also have become dead to the law through the body of Christ, that you may be married to another—to Him who was raised from the dead, that we should bear fruit to God. And also Gal 2:19 For I through the law died to the law that I might live to God (NKJV).
Trying to obey the law will only end up in breaking the law, because nobody on the face of the earth can obey the law 100% of the time. Nobody ever could, except Jesus. Grace also does not enable us to keep the law. Rather grace enables us to live and feed off the life of God of which He has made us partakers, filling us with His mighty Holy Spirit. Any good works that flow from us as a result of this is then in any case only a fruit of the Spirit inside us, so we really have nothing to boast about.
The Bible says the strength of sin is the law, because it is through the law that we know what sin is. It is the law that brought sin to life!
Rom 7:9-10 I was alive once without the law, but when the commandment came, sin revived and I died. 10 And the commandment, which was to bring life, I found to bring death.
Rom 5:20 Moreover the law entered that the offence might abound.
1 Cor 15:56 The sting of death is sin, and the strength of sin is the law.
Rom 3:20 Therefore by the deeds of the law no flesh will be justified in His sight, for by the law is the knowledge of sin (all verses from NKJV).
But how then are we supposed to obey God? How are we supposed to overcome this world? I am glad you asked that question. By simply believing in Jesus and the victory He has obtained for us. 1 John 5:4 For whatever is born of God overcomes the world. And this is the victory that has overcome the world—our faith (NKJV).
But you may also ask “What are we then supposed to do? Doesn’t God expect us to DO something?”
John 6:28 Then they said to Him, “What shall we do, that we may work the works of God?” 29 Jesus answered and said to them, “This is the work of God, that you believe in Him whom He sent” (NKJV).
Our faith is stirred when we spend time in the presence of God & have supernatural encounters with Him, when we receive revelation that renews our minds, when we worship Him and when we experience the fulfilment of seeing heaven kiss earth. When we experience these things, a natural result will be victory over sin, good works and a holy lifestyle motivated by love for God. That’s why it’s called the “fruit” of the Spirit.
Jesus talked mostly about the law only to people who were heavily under the influence of the law. He was not encouraging them to try and obey the laws more; instead He was showing them that they were hypocrites for teaching others to keep all the laws whilst they themselves could not do it either.
In Luke 18 a rich young ruler asked Jesus what he should do to inherit eternal life. This was the man’s first mistake. He wanted to DO something to inherit eternal life, as if he could earn it. Jesus, realising that this man was relying heavily on obeying the law for his salvation, answered him: Luke 18:20 You know the commandments: ‘Do not commit adultery,’ ‘Do not murder,’ ‘Do not steal,’ ‘Do not bear false witness,’ ‘Honour your father and your mother.’’ 21 And he (the rich young ruler) said, “All these things I have kept from my youth.” 22 So when Jesus heard these things, He said to him, “You still lack one thing. Sell all that you have and distribute to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow Me.” 23 But when he heard this, he became very sorrowful, for he was very rich (NKJV).
Jesus simply showed the man that however well he thought he may have been keeping the laws, he would always fall short. The law will always tell you that you have not done enough, that you need to do more, to be more holy and to perform better. Trying to obey the law will never give you victory over sin – it will only show you how sinful you are (Rom 3:20, see above). But praise be to God, there was one man who did it ALL on our behalf: Jesus Christ!
Yours in Grace
Andre van der Merwe
www.NewCovenantGrace.com
