Christ and The Law

• Why God gave the Law.
• Early Quakers.
• God’s character revealed in the Law.
• Christ in the Law.
• We establish the Law.
• Law given to heal.
• Doctrines of demons.
• Social principles in the Law.

Our faith in Christ has nothing to do with law. Law cannot help us. This does not mean that we should not have law in our societies. It means that law cannot change our inner man. No matter what religious laws we maintain, none of them can change our inner nature. None of them deal with the real issue, i.e. what comes out of our heart.

But in vain do they worship Me, teaching for doctrines the commandments of men…Hear and understand: Not that which goes into a mouth that defiles a man; but that which comes out of the mouth, this defiles a man. (Matt 15:9-11).

Jesus spoke of the real issue, saying that it is what comes from within that defiles us. This means what comes out of our heart: fears, lusts, hate, self-centeredness, bad moods, anger and the like. It is our moods and self-centred behaviour that damage the lives of those around us. This is what Jesus came to change. No religion we keep will compensate for this.

We will only get genuine love where Jesus by the gospel changes our heart. Legalism is a substitute for real change. To avoid what is really going on inside us, we make rules to live by. We fall back into law by choice, because we do not want to face who we really are. Law becomes our “security blanket”. This type of religion is totally vain. The fruit of love, joy and peace come from Jesus within our heart.

The gospel of Jesus Christ has nothing to do with law. Law does not change our nature. We can keep 1,000 laws and none of them will change who we are inside. So God made a way for Jesus Christ to live in us, to change our nature and to live His life in and through us by grace. “I will give you a new heart” is God’s way (Ezek 36:26). God’s way is nature change.

The problem is not the devil, our flesh, or the things of this world outside of us, but sin within. Laws such as “touch not, handle not” therefore do not address our need, but they do the opposite and make religious monsters. The “purpose of the commandment is love, a pure conscience and un-pretended faith.” (1 Tim 1:5). Jesus’ nature gets to our core and sets us free from sin and from vain religion. We must preach this.