Grace and Law have been dancing on a tightrope for over 2,000 years now. Lean too far on the Law, and your service to God becomes heavy and meaningless. Overcorrect, and you find yourself falling into the error that Grace gives us permission to do whatever we want. Our salvation is through Grace alone, but what does that mean for how we live our lives?
Well then, should we keep on sinning so that God can show us more and more of his wonderful grace? Of course not! Since we have died to sin, how can we continue to live in it? Romans 6:1-2
Romans 5, just before these verses, said the Law was given so that we would understand how much we need Grace. Understanding the distance between God’s righteous requirements and my natural tendency helps me to appreciate the freedom He offers me. Believing that I can follow the Law enough to become righteous misses the whole point of the Law!
They crush people with unbearable religious demands and never lift a finger to ease the burden Matthew 23:4
This is what Jesus said about the teachers of the Law. When we use the Law’s demands to beat ourselves down or to abuse others, He’s talking about us, too. Being free from the Law means we are free from the Law’s condemnation as well as from sin’s grasp.
Each time he said, “My grace is all you need. My power works best in weakness.” So now I am glad to boast about my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ can work through me. 2 Cor. 12:9
Law commands us, but it doesn’t enable us. Grace provides us with what the law demands, enabling us to live a life that is consistent with the will of God.
Perhaps John Bunyan, the author of Pilgrim’s Progress, said it best in the following poem:
Run, John, run, the Law commands,
But gives me neither legs nor hands;
Far better news the Gospel brings,
It bids me fly and gives me wings.
When we decide that we’re going to be free from our sin, we often want just to change our ways. But if we substitute our new plan for our old plan, we’re still doing it our way. We need God’s way instead.
So just as sin ruled over all people and brought them to death, now God’s wonderful grace rules instead, giving us right standing with God and resulting in eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord. Romans 5:21
Submission to God will result in grace that lets us resist the devil and be completely free from the sin that enslaved us when we were under the Law.
Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. Draw near to God and He will draw near to you. James 4:7-8
It’s amazing news that we are free from the Law of Sin and Death, not so that we can sin with impunity, but so that we can live free forever with Christ. May we never forget the freedom we have through His Grace, nor the reason we have it–so we can live our lives fully back to Him.
All verses NLT unless stated otherwise.
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