The Uses of the Law in the Church (2) – The Law of God in the Life of the Church (12)

The Uses of the Law in the Church (2)

The Law of God in the Life of the Church (12)

Do we then overthrow the law by this faith? By no means! On the contrary, we uphold the law. Romans 3:31

The Law is useful in the life of the Church, in the first instance, because the Spirit of God uses it to teach and convict us concerning sin.

Second, Paul insists that the Law of God marks out the path of holiness, righteousness, and goodness for the believer, who has been redeemed by grace through faith unto a life of good works (Rom. 7:12; Eph. 2:8-10). Again, the Spirit within us works not only to convict us of sin, but also to convict us of righteousness (John 16:8-11), and the holy and righteous and good Law of God is His curriculum of choice (Ezek. 36:26, 27).

Finally, the Law of God puts in stark relief the law of sin that operates within us as result of the lingering effects of the fall (Rom. 7:21-23); thus the Spirit uses the Law to warn us of divine displeasure, should we choose to follow the law of sin instead of the Law of God, and of Fatherly discipline which will surely ensue (John 16:8-11; Heb. 12:10, 11). By appealing to the Law of God, the Spirit of God convicts the world, and us the people of God, of sin, righteousness, and judgment.

The Law of God is thus essential to such elemental aspects of the life of faith as spiritual growth, being equipped for ministry, exercising church discipline, stimulating one another to love and good works, raising our children unto the Lord, admonishing, correcting, and teaching one another, and understanding and learning from the trials and afflictions God brings our way from time to time.

Shall we abolish this holy and righteous and good Law? As Paul would say, “Heaven forbid!”

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