Wednesday 13 February 2008

Grace vs. Law - Part 2

I have to say one thing here, I have listened to this message 8 or 9 times now, and each time it just gets better and more awesome, so I had to go back and write the rest(well almost all of it) out word for word, it's just too good to miss any of it. I still highly recommend listening to it with your own ears!!
So we left off
 with, Jesus never condemns you, never crushes you, and never points out your faults.......here.

It was not through the law that Abraham was declared righteous but through faith.
Faith has no value if you come under law and the promise is worthless.
If we live in faith we have the promises and faith has GREAT VALUE!
Jesus is NOT counting your sins against you! You are NOT meant to feel your transgressions!
-look at vs. 15, because law brings wrath, and where there is no law, there is NO transgression.
Folks if you feel wrath on your life, it's because of LAW, NOT GRACE, IT'S NOT GOD!!! Because, where there is no law, it says, THERE IS NO TRANSGRESSION! - DID YOU SEE THAT!!!!
If you're not under law you're not aware of transgression - Jesus is not counting you sins against you, when you come under the revelation, "I'm not under law!" You won't feel wrath, you won't feel any divine disapproval and You won't be aware that you're a transgressor.
You say "Rob, that's dangerous preaching!" You say, " As a Christian, I'm meant to feel my transgressions."
NO YOU ARE NOT! ONE DID FOR YOU - JESUS DID! YOU ARE NOT MEANT TO FEEL YOUR TRANSGRESSIONS!
(we are going to talk about how to overcome sin by Grace - but we've gotta lay this foundation now.)
When you're not under law, and you understand you are not under law - you actually won't feel like you're a transgressor from one day to the next. 
Now I know most Christians feel like..." I'm a transgressor, I'm a transgressor, I'm a transgressor."
What they're saying is, "I'm under law, I'm under law, I'm under law, and I thought I was under grace." -because someone told you years ago...."Yes, you're under grace....BUT.....", and it's that little -but- that undermines all the grace you've ever heard about!!!
 
ALL (includes everyone and excludes no one) WHO RELY ON OBSERVING THE LAW, ARE UNDER A CURSE! For it is written.....
If you want to be a little bit under the law, all that means is, if you're guilty of breaking on law, then you're guilty of breaking the WHOLE law.
You see this false gospel that's been preached, produces Christians that say things like this, "I know I'm a Christian now because I don't do the things I used to do."
Now if they just think a little bit philosophically and logically, they would realize what a condemning statement they've just made. Because on that basis, you have to wonder if you are a Christian, based on the things you still do that break the law.
You see Paul the apostle never once said, "I was saved from being a murderer- and he confessed he was a murderer before he was saved." 
Paul, right through the Scriptures, check me out on this, never spoke like the modern Gospel...I was saved from this sin, and that sin, I was an adulterer, a murderer, a drunkard.....I was this sin and that sin....and then I got saved..Oh, what wonderful salvation!
Paul the apostle, the champion of grace, never said that in his testimony - this is what he said, he said he was saved from, he said, "I was saved from the LAW."
The modern church says, I was saved from this behavior and that behavior - well then what about the other behavior(that you still have) - show me one person on the planet who isn't doing something that's wrong!
If you live for 120 years and you were changing every day, by the grace of God, you will still need to change in 120 years! So, if you're pointing to things that you don't do anymore as evidence that you are saved - then the devil will come at you with that same logical basis, because he's a legalist, the devil is a prosecutor, he's an accusor, and he will come and look at the things you are not doing, and say, on that basis you are not saved.
Doesn't it make you angry?! I'm angry as a pastor of 27 years, to see the devastation in the people of God because they don't understand these truths. If we can get the church free from law and get the church out of the modern gospel and into the Gospel of Scripture, we'd see people stand up like champions in GRACE!! AMEN!!
vs. 11-Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law- HE redeemed US! 
vs. 23- Now that faith has come we are no longer under the supervision of the law. 
What is a supervisor? -often an opinionated bigot - a supervisor is in charge and they're gonna tell you what to do, and what not to do - that's what the law does.
Why is Paul going to such extent to spell this out letter after letter in the NT - because the church is right back there already, going back under law. 
NO LONGER - it's length runs out - when you come to Christ, you come to the END of the law. (ROMANS 10:3- Christ is the end of the law)
IN Christ, we are not aware of our sins, you don't have the curse of poverty, sickness, defeat, death, you're not feeling condemned - this is the inheritance we should live in every day - That's why that body was ripped asunder on that cross. - He was cursed with the law so we don't have to be cursed - He got what we deserved - Now we're trying to put ourselves back under law - Everyday we are NOT meant to be conscious of our sin, we're not meant to feel cursed, we're not meant to feel unworthy, not meant to feel condemned - we're not meant to feel the Law is  opposing us, we're not meant to feel like we are not doing enough - Oh, I should do more - Oh, I am supposed to be a better Christian - Oh, I should have done more, I shouldn't have done that - Oh, that person's rejected me, I feel so bad!
We are meant to live every day like this -Oh, I'm not under law, Christ is the end of the Law, I'm not under the supervision of a bully that's trying to oppress me with a performance pressure.
Romans 7:1-3
This illustration that Paul uses here, is profound, it is so clear friends, that Paul is going to the extent to show comparisons in vivid illustrations, that I'm asking the Holy Spirit to bring to your heart today, that you will carry with you for the rest of your life. He's going to describe something here about the law - and when we catch this, it's gonna change our lives! (Reads the passage)
~ So, Paul is using a very clear analogy here of comparison that every person born into this world is in first Adam and that they are born married to the Law. In other words, from all the Scriptures we have just read, they are married to an authoritarian dominating husband, a husband that points out their  faults, a husband that say don't do this don't do that, he never lifts a finger to help, any time you try and argue with him and say that's not fair, you can't because he is always right. 
And Paul is saying here, that you can't say, I am tired of the Law, this husband, I am just going to go marry Jesus - because Paul says, "Hey, while this husband is still alive you would be in spiritual adultery to go marry Jesus while the law is still alive." And to make it really bleak and dark and discouraging in the Gospels, Jesus says the law will never pass away. -So you're married to a husband who's fault finding, oppressive, dominating, a bully, always pointing out your faults, never lifts a finger to help you, is always right and you can't argue with him and he'll never pass away, and you can't go marry anyone else. 
ISN'T THAT GREAT!!! (very sarcastic)
SO, What is the Good News?????
vs. 4- the law doesn't die, the law's out there thundering condemnation to every unsaved person to drive them to Jesus Christ. When you come to faith in Jesus Christ - what happened to Christ, happened to you, you died to the law
Galatians 2: 
-you died to that which once bound you, you were released from the law, so that you may belong to another - Jesus Christ.
Now this other is a husband that does not point out your faults, is extremely gracious, extremely loving, extremely gentle, helpful, breathes life into you, stands by you, does not point out your faults, believes you, holds no sin against you- that's who you're married to, in Christ.

There was about 20 more minutes worth of the message left I did not transcribe. Maybe at some point I will go back and write it out, but for now I just  wanted to get this out to be read!!!
Enjoy!

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