The Law and the Gospel

Romans 1.16, 17

For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek. For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith for faith, as it is written, “The righteous shall live by faith.”

There’s nothing to ashamed of here!

Paul declared that he was not ashamed of the Gospel – not any part of it. Not the incarnation, not the blood of Christ, not the resurrection or the ascension, and not the demand for repentance from dead works and faith in Jesus Christ alone for salvation. Which also means that Paul was not ashamed of the Law of God. I get the feeling sometimes that contemporary Christians are ashamed of the Law. They don’t like all that “do’s and don’ts” talk, the “thou shalt nots” of the Ten Commandments. They seem so negative. So works oriented. What they want is a God Who offers everything and demands only what we’re willing to give. And the Law of God doesn’t fall within that latter category. If we’re ashamed of the Law, we’re ashamed of the Gospel, because we cannot proclaim the Good News of Jesus apart from the holy and righteous and good reality of the Law of God.

Pray

Lord, I’m not ashamed of the Gospel At least, I don’t want to be ashamed of it. Help me to learn to love Your Law and to see it as the way of liberation for me, and the standard of judgment for the lost. And help me see Jesus more clearly, as the One Who makes the glory of the Law come alive for me.

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“In the Gates” is a devotional series on the Law of God by Rev. T.M. Moore

T. M. Moore is editor of the Worldview Church. He serves as dean of the Centurions Program of the Wilberforce Forum and principal of The Fellowship of Ailbe, a spiritual fellowship in the Celtic Christian tradition. He is the author or editor of twenty books, and has contributed chapters to four others. His essays, reviews, articles, papers, and poetry have appeared in dozens of national and international journals, and on a wide range of websites. His most recent books are The Ailbe Psalter and The Ground for Christian Ethics (Waxed Tablet).

Scripture quotations in this article are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version, (c) copyright 2001,2007 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Editor’s note: The use of a translation other than the Authorised Version in an article does not constitute an endorsement in whole or in part by The Christian Observer.

The Law and the Gospel

Romans 1.16, 17

For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek. For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith for faith, as it is written, “The righteous shall live by faith.”

The Law of God is our life.

Jesus said that He had come to bring full and abundant life to everyone who believed in Him. By His perfect life He achieved the righteousness we need to be able to dwell with God forever. By His death and resurrection He bore the wrath of God against our sins and opened the way to new life in Him. But of what does that life consist? The barest summary of it is, loving God and loving our neighbors as ourselves. When we love God, we know the fullness of His joy and gain the benefits of His promises. When we love our neighbors God actually lives His love through us, using us to enrich and edify others by the grace He has extended to us. The Law of God encodes, in outline form, the behaviors which, as we walk in them, lead to full and abundant life (cf. Lev. 18.1-5). All the Law of God, as we learn to live in it, teaches and leads us in how to love God and our neighbors. If we really want to live, to realize all the righteousness, peace, and joy in the Spirit that our new life in Christ affords, then we will take up the Law of God for our daily meditation and obedience (Ps. 1). So again, we cannot proclaim the Gospel without also pointing to the Law as the framework of the way of holiness, the life to which all are called who would follow Jesus.

What place does the Law of God have in your walk with the Lord? Would you say that you are experiencing full and abundant life according to God’s Law?

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“In the Gates” is a devotional series on the Law of God by Rev. T.M. Moore

T. M. Moore is editor of the Worldview Church. He serves as dean of the Centurions Program of the Wilberforce Forum and principal of The Fellowship of Ailbe, a spiritual fellowship in the Celtic Christian tradition. He is the author or editor of twenty books, and has contributed chapters to four others. His essays, reviews, articles, papers, and poetry have appeared in dozens of national and international journals, and on a wide range of websites. His most recent books are The Ailbe Psalter and The Ground for Christian Ethics (Waxed Tablet).

Scripture quotations in this article are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version, (c) copyright 2001,2007 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Editor’s note: The use of a translation other than the Authorised Version in an article does not constitute an endorsement in whole or in part by The Christian Observer.

The Law and the Gospel

Romans 1.16, 17

For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek. For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith for faith, as it is written, “The righteous shall live by faith.”

But what about all my sins?

People have a sense that, if there is a God, and if He is holy (as they suspect He is), then He’s not going to be able simply to wink at their sins. Jesus may have fulfilled all righteousness for them, but what about all that bad stuff they’ve done in the past? How does that get cleaned up? Again, by the Law of God. The Law of God demands that all transgressions be punished, that no sin be left without judgment and justice. People experience the weight of the Law against sin in the form of the guilt and shame that haunt them for having done things they know were wrong and hurtful to others. How can God just overlook all that? He doesn’t. Jesus Christ not only fulfilled the righteous requirements of the Law, He also bore the full weight of wrath and judgment that the Law demands against sinners. Paul summarized this part of Christ’s work in relation to the Law when He said that He became sin for us, so that, through Him, we might gain the righteousness of Christ (2 Cor. 5.21). When we understand the enormity of the judgment God’s Law requires, we can better appreciate the depth of suffering Jesus endured – for us, and for our sins.

Have you thanked the Lord Jesus lately for suffering and dying for your sin?

—

“In the Gates” is a devotional series on the Law of God by Rev. T.M. Moore

T. M. Moore is editor of the Worldview Church. He serves as dean of the Centurions Program of the Wilberforce Forum and principal of The Fellowship of Ailbe, a spiritual fellowship in the Celtic Christian tradition. He is the author or editor of twenty books, and has contributed chapters to four others. His essays, reviews, articles, papers, and poetry have appeared in dozens of national and international journals, and on a wide range of websites. His most recent books are The Ailbe Psalter and The Ground for Christian Ethics (Waxed Tablet).

Scripture quotations in this article are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version, (c) copyright 2001,2007 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Editor’s note: The use of a translation other than the Authorised Version in an article does not constitute an endorsement in whole or in part by The Christian Observer.

—

“In the Gates” is a devotional series on the Law of God by Rev. T.M. Moore

T. M. Moore is editor of the Worldview Church. He serves as dean of the Centurions Program of the Wilberforce Forum and principal of The Fellowship of Ailbe, a spiritual fellowship in the Celtic Christian tradition. He is the author or editor of twenty books, and has contributed chapters to four others. His essays, reviews, articles, papers, and poetry have appeared in dozens of national and international journals, and on a wide range of websites. His most recent books are The Ailbe Psalter and The Ground for Christian Ethics (Waxed Tablet).

Scripture quotations in this article are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version, (c) copyright 2001,2007 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Editor’s note: The use of a translation other than the Authorised Version in an article does not constitute an endorsement in whole or in part by The Christian Observer.

The Law and the Gospel

Romans 1.16, 17

For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek. For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith for faith, as it is written, “The righteous shall live by faith.”

The Good News is that Jesus is good enough.

If fulfilling all the righteous requirements of God’s Law is the way to salvation, and if none of us is good enough to accomplish that feat, then are we just doomed? Of course not. The Good News is that God has been pleased to satisfy those requirements for us by sending His own Son in the form of a human being to fulfill all righteousness for those who would be saved. Theologians refer to this as an “alien righteousness” because it comes to us from afar, from outside ourselves, and yet really. Jesus kept the Law of God completely, perfectly, and at all times. He literally fulfilled all the righteousness God will ever require for anyone and everyone who would be saved. And God is prepared to receive men into His presence through the righteousness of His Son, so that we need not despair of falling short of the glory of God because Jesus has taken care of that; and invites us to come in Him and be fully accepted by God. He offers this wonderful gift freely, without any merit on our parts. We, however, must receive it by faith, believing in Jesus as He is revealed in God’s Word, and trusting in Him that His righteousness alone – which is the full and complete righteousness of the Law of God – will suffice for us, just as He has promised. Jesus makes no sense as a Savior apart from the Law of God, so when we proclaim Jesus to our neighbors, let it be in that context.

When you think of Jesus, do you think of Him in relation to the Law of God? Why is it important that you do?

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“In the Gates” is a devotional series on the Law of God by Rev. T.M. Moore

T. M. Moore is editor of the Worldview Church. He serves as dean of the Centurions Program of the Wilberforce Forum and principal of The Fellowship of Ailbe, a spiritual fellowship in the Celtic Christian tradition. He is the author or editor of twenty books, and has contributed chapters to four others. His essays, reviews, articles, papers, and poetry have appeared in dozens of national and international journals, and on a wide range of websites. His most recent books are The Ailbe Psalter and The Ground for Christian Ethics (Waxed Tablet).

Scripture quotations in this article are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version, (c) copyright 2001,2007 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Editor’s note: The use of a translation other than the Authorised Version in an article does not constitute an endorsement in whole or in part by The Christian Observer.

The Law and the Gospel

Romans 1.16, 17

For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek. For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith for faith, as it is written, “The righteous shall live by faith.”

We do not measure up to the righteous Law of God.

People today might have difficulty relating to the concept of sin. That’s not their fault; it’s ours. We’re the ones who, fearful of offending some “seeker”, have steered clear of any potentially offensive concepts, like sin, and have emphasized all the joy and peace and fellowship and good stuff that comes from hanging around with Jesus. But anyone who will be saved must first be persuaded that salvation is something he or she needs. And salvation is, in the first instance, rescue from sin and its consequences. Here’s where we need the Law in our proclamation of the Gospel. Left to themselves to define the terms of sin, people will always be able to discover some reason why they aren’t sinners, or at least, not as bad sinners as “those other guys.” But the Law of God doesn’t play favorites. It is the great leveler. It cuts down the mighty, the famous, the squalid, the average, and even the “decent” of this world by showing specific ways they have fallen short of the glory of God. If, in your presentation of the Gospel, anyone resists the idea that he’s a sinner, just walk him through the Ten Commandments. Sooner or later he’ll see that, on God’s terms, he simply doesn’t measure up, and therefore is in danger of the judgment promised for all those who violate the commandments and offend the holiness of God.

Have you ever used the Law of God in sharing the Good News of Jesus with a friend? Why not try asking some unsaved friends how they would define the word, “sin”? Then read the commandments to them, and see if they agree this is a workable standard.

—

“In the Gates” is a devotional series on the Law of God by Rev. T.M. Moore

T. M. Moore is editor of the Worldview Church. He serves as dean of the Centurions Program of the Wilberforce Forum and principal of The Fellowship of Ailbe, a spiritual fellowship in the Celtic Christian tradition. He is the author or editor of twenty books, and has contributed chapters to four others. His essays, reviews, articles, papers, and poetry have appeared in dozens of national and international journals, and on a wide range of websites. His most recent books are The Ailbe Psalter and The Ground for Christian Ethics (Waxed Tablet).

Scripture quotations in this article are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version, (c) copyright 2001,2007 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Editor’s note: The use of a translation other than the Authorised Version in an article does not constitute an endorsement in whole or in part by The Christian Observer.

The Law and the Gospel

Romans 1.16, 17

For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek. For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith for faith, as it is written, “The righteous shall live by faith.”

How do we know just how good God is?

Paul says that the righteousness of God is revealed in the Gospel. This is because the Law of God is part of the Gospel, from beginning to end, and the Law of God reveals the righteousness of God. We cannot effectively proclaim the Gospel without some reference to the Law of God. The Law comes from God and reveals His righteous requirements for those who would know His blessings. The Law thus encodes, in the barest of outlines, the righteousness of God, and shows us His holiness in terms we can understand. In the Gospel we need to know Who is speaking to us, what kind of God He is, and precisely what He requires if we would be saved. The Westminster Shorter Catechism defines sin as any want of conformity to or transgression of the Law of God. Following Paul we might add that anything in life that we do apart from faith and trust in the living God is sin as well (Rom. 14.23). For anyone to come to the place of wanting to be saved he must first be apprised of the reason why salvation is both necessary and has eluded him thus far: He’s a sinner. He has transgressed against the holy and righteous and good Law of God and has lived his life without proper gratitude toward and love for the God Who made him. Before the Good News of the Gospel will make sense, people need to find that they are trapped in the bad news of a life in rebellion against God. The Law must come into the Gospel at some point if the Good News of what God offers is to make any sense at all.

How might you use the Ten Commandments to help someone understand the nature of sin? The nature of God’s righteousness?

The Law and the Gospel

Romans 1.16, 17

For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek. For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith for faith, as it is written, “The righteous shall live by faith.”

The Gospel is all about being good enough.

The critical question anyone must face who is concerned about salvation is, “Am I good enough to be saved?” The view that salvation is a matter of being good enough is widespread. It is also true. For, in the end, only those who are good enough will gain the prize of eternal life. But good enough for what? As compared to what? In order to be saved we must have some standards by which to measure ourselves. Everyone can find at least one or two ways in which he is superior to everyone else he knows, but if that’s not the issue in salvation, it won’t do him much good. The Biblical view, of course, is that only those who are completely without sin and who have lived according to the righteous requirements of the all-holy God will be received into His presence, forgiven and glorified, forever. Thus the Good News about the Gospel is really not all that good – at least, not at first. For the Scriptures declare, and human experience confirms, that all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God; therefore, none of us is good enough to attain that status of everlasting bliss for which all men secretly long. Nevertheless, we still need to know what the standard of “good enough” is, and here is where the Law of God comes into the Gospel, as we shall see for the rest of this week.

What does it mean to “fall short of the glory of God”? What is the glory of God? What do they look like who “fall short” of that?

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“In the Gates” is a devotional series on the Law of God by Rev. T.M. Moore

T. M. Moore is editor of the Worldview Church. He serves as dean of the Centurions Program of the Wilberforce Forum and principal of The Fellowship of Ailbe, a spiritual fellowship in the Celtic Christian tradition. He is the author or editor of twenty books, and has contributed chapters to four others. His essays, reviews, articles, papers, and poetry have appeared in dozens of national and international journals, and on a wide range of websites. His most recent books are The Ailbe Psalter and The Ground for Christian Ethics (Waxed Tablet).

Scripture quotations in this article are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version, (c) copyright 2001,2007 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Editor’s note: The use of a translation other than the Authorised Version in an article does not constitute an endorsement in whole or in part by The Christian Observer.