Memorise; And now abideth faith, hope, charity, these three; but the greatest
of these is charity. 1st Corinthians 13:13
The Bible
says Christ is the end of the law (Romans 10:4), and it is entirely correct in
every respect. Christ is the object of the law, the reason why the law was
given; He is the fulfilment of the law, the conclusion of the law, the finality
of the law, and the termination of the law. Christ is the end of the law for
righteousness. There is no righteousness of any kind (justifying righteousness
or sanctifying righteousness) to be attained by our personal obedience to the
law because it is written, “for if righteousness by the law, then Christ is
dead in vain. (Galatians 2:21). However, Christ is not the end of the law for everyone.
He did not fulfil the demands of the law for everyone. He is only the end of
the law for the elects of God and all those who shall trust in His saving
power. Christ is therefore the end of the law for righteousness to everyone
that believes in Him.
“Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to everyone that
believeth.” Romans 10:4
When
Apostle Paul declared the Christ is the end of the law, he was not telling us
that the law is evil. Writing by divine inspiration, the apostle meant that
those apostate religious leaders who try to mix law and grace, who try to put
believers under the yoke of bondage, desiring to be teachers of the law, do not
know what they are talking about, “understanding neither what they say, nor
whereof they affirm.” The law was never intended, in any sense, for those who
are righteous before God.
The law was
given for the unrighteous. The law is not evil. It is holy, just, and good. It
would be well if all men lived in conformity to the law’s commands, both in
outward practice and inward principle. Indeed, it is ordained of God and used
by all civil governments to protect society from those who would otherwise
disregard all respect for the rights, property, and lives of others.
This
passage should not be used to legalise immorality and corruption as many are
doing. Jesus did not come to invalidate the commandments of God in anyway. He
was a law abiding person while He lived here on earth. Jesus teaches liberty
and freedom from the binding effect of sin in that the letters of sin enslaves
in a very powerful way. Yet, man has a strange infatuation with the law. Like
the gnat that is drawn to the candle that will destroy it, man by nature is
drawn to the law for righteousness, when all the law can give is destruction.
The law can do nothing else but reveal sin and pronounce condemnation on the
sinner (Romans 3:19-20).
Still, we
cannot get men to flee from the law. They are so enamoured with their own
self-righteousness and their own self-worth that they will cling to the law
with a death-grip, though there is really nothing to cling to. They prefer
Sinai to Calvary , though Sinai offers them
nothing but death. Listen to the Word of God. If the opinions of men or your
own opinions contradict the Word of God, “Let God be true and every man a
liar.”
Prayer Point: Father, please give me the grace to live by Your
righteousness and not my works
Bible in one year: 2nd Kings 17:24-19:7, Proverbs 24:8-20
No comments:
Post a Comment