The Spiritual Nature of the Law

We have studied many things regarding the mystery of godliness. Our eternal destiny is directly affected by this sacred subject.

God gave to Martin Luther, one of the great heroes of faith, the work of reminding the entire Christian world of the doctrine of justification by faith. This important doctrine had been almost forgotten, and Christians needed to be brought back to an understanding of it.

Let’s say this very clearly: Justification by faith is the only way that we can be saved. It doesn’t matter what you do, how religious you are, that you go to church and pay tithe, how much you sing and pray, how much you read your Bible, or the amount of missionary work and good deeds you do, unless you are justified by faith you are lost.

“The danger has been presented to me again and again of entertaining, as a people, false ideas of justification by faith.” Faith and Works, 18. Mrs. White wrote this in 1888, at a time of great crisis in the Adventist church. Even today, we are in danger of accepting false ideas regarding justification by faith. Have we seen that in the Christian world, in Adventism, today? “I have been shown for years that Satan would work in a special manner to confuse the mind on this point.” Ibid. It is the devil’s direct purpose to muddy the spiritual waters as much as he possibly can. He takes special measures, especially on this point, to bring in confusion.

Even though some people will say that Mrs. White wrote more than a hundred years ago, thus these counsels were for her time, they are, in fact, just as true today as when she first wrote them. “The law of God has been largely dwelt upon and has been presented to congregations, almost as destitute of the knowledge of Jesus Christ and His relation to the law as was the offering of Cain.” Ibid. As bad as the offering of Cain? That is a strong rebuke. We must have a knowledge of Jesus Christ and His relationship to the ten commandments.

For over 40 years after the above statement was written, Adventist ministers preached the three angels’ messages, God’s last message of warning and mercy to the world. The Second Advent Movement was to reach out to a fallen world that was, and still is, rapidly heading toward destruction. The three angels’ messages offered to the people of the world a choice—listen and have life; don’t and be destroyed.

Seldom is there anything revealed that is more important than when God says to listen. We have a problem with listening. Adam and Eve didn’t listen. Cain didn’t listen. The people of the Antediluvian world didn’t listen. The people of Sodom didn’t listen. People today are listening, just not to God. Messages are being given by strange voices, but they are not messages from heaven. These voices are so attractive. They say that man will not die. They say that man can know everything that God knows. They say that man can be and do and have whatever he wants. They say that man can be like God. But these voices are lying, and they lead all who listen to them to destruction.

Ellen White was a prophet. God spoke to her and gave her visions regarding the things He needed for her to share with His people. “I have been shown that many have been kept from the faith because of the mixed, confused ideas of salvation, because the ministers have worked in a wrong manner to reach hearts.” Ibid. She is talking about Seventh-day Adventist ministers in this passage. Sadly, many people have been kept from accepting Jesus as their Saviour because of what these ministers have taught. What a terrible indictment against Adventist ministers!

How much is salvation worth to you? What would it mean if you could have a life with God that would never end—a life with no pain or sorrow, no death or funerals, no troubles or disappointments, no violence—instead there would be songs and praises, everlasting joy and gladness? Then it should be important to us to have a correct understanding of salvation.

At the conclusion of the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus, speaking of the last days, said that there will be many Christians who would think they were saved, but who, in fact, would be lost. They would come right up to the very end, believing that they were doing the work of God, only to find out it wasn’t true.

“Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father in heaven. Many will say to Me in that day, ‘Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in Your name, cast out demons in Your name, and done many wonders in Your name?’ ” Matthew 7:21, 22

They are absolutely sure that they are saved. They have prophesied, cast out demons, performed miracles and wonders, all in the name of Jesus. Their prophesies have come true, and when they admonished demons, they departed. They healed the sick and did many other miraculous things. But here is the problem:

“And then I declared to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness.’ ” Verse 23. In spite of all the things they have done, believing that the power was coming from Jesus, He says He did not know them at all. Why? Because they were still sinning. So where was the power to perform all these things coming from? The devil can give prophesies and then make them come true. He can make people sick and then heal them. A demon can certainly allow himself to be cast out so that it looks like the work of the Holy Spirit. These Christians had a power, but it wasn’t a power from God. They had claimed to have worshipped God for years, but Jesus will say that He doesn’t know them.

The Greek word anti plus the Greek word Christos is anti-Christos. From these two Greek words comes our word antichrist. Friend, there is an antichrist in the world. The Greek word anti in its primitive sense means “someone who stands in the place of someone or something else.”

The apostle John writes that there are many antichrists who have stood and are standing in the place of Christ (1 John 2:22). The chief antichrist is the devil. Revelation predicts that a time is coming when almost the whole world will think they are worshiping Christ, but they will be worshiping the antichrist.

How can you tell whether you are worshiping Christ or the antichrist? Matthew 7:23, last part, tells us. “ ‘Depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness!’ ” These people who claim to be Christians are breaking God’s law. The antichrist teaches people to break God’s law. Christ teaches people to keep God’s law. “Whoever abides in Him does not sin. Whoever sins has neither seen Him nor known Him.” 1 John 3:6. Those who transgress God’s law do not know Jesus and Jesus does not know them.

The Bible is clear that sin is the transgression of the law. “Whoever commits sin also commits lawlessness, and sin is lawlessness. And you know that He [Jesus] was manifested to take away our sins, and in Him there is no sin. Whoever abides in Him does not sin. Whoever sins has neither seen Him nor known Him. Little children, let no one deceive you. He who practices righteousness is righteous, just as He is righteous. He who sins is of the devil.” Verses 4–8, first part. If I am living in sin, I am serving the devil, not Christ. Everyone who is living in sin is a child of the devil. “… the devil has sinned from the beginning. For this purpose the Son of God was manifested, that He might destroy the works of the devil.” Verse 8, last part

Christ came to this world as a man to destroy sin. It was decided thousands of years ago that sin could not be tolerated and would have to be destroyed. He has allowed it to continue for so long so that the entire universe can see just how bad sin really is, how it destroys lives.

God hasn’t destroyed sin yet because there are people all around the world who have sin in them. If He destroyed sin now, then they would be destroyed, too. God doesn’t want to destroy anyone, but anyone who clings to sin will be destroyed when sin is destroyed. There is only one way to avoid the destruction that will come when sin is destroyed: if we allow Jesus to take the sin out of us. Understand, I can never take the sin out of myself. Neither can you take the sin out of yourself.

When I was a child, people didn’t understand this. They thought if they prayed enough and studied their Bibles enough, if they went to church every Sabbath and paid their tithe, if they told people about Jesus, that sin would be booted out of their lives. But there is no amount of praying, studying, church attending, tithe paying, or witnessing that will remove sin from my life. All of these things are needful, and are the outworking of a transformed life, but by themselves, they will not remove sin from my life. Only God can take the sin out of me and replace it with the righteousness of Jesus in my heart. That is why Jesus died on the cross. Without His death, it would have been impossible for God to take the sin out of me.

Romans 6:23 tells us, that ”the wages of sin is death.” Death is the natural consequence of sin, so when a person sins, they are guilty and cannot receive eternal life. Jesus died on the cross to bear my guilt for me and free me from the penalty of sin.

“The point that has been urged upon my mind for years is the imputed righteousness of Christ.” Faith and Works, 18. That is how God takes the sin out. There are several things that have to happen. What should happen when a person sins? They should die. Remember, “The wages of sin is death.” That is the natural consequence of sin—if you are guilty of sin you deserve death and you cannot be given eternal life. So, the first thing that has to happen if you are going to have eternal life is the guilt in your conscience has to be removed. Sin and the guilt we bear is so awful that the only way it could be removed was for Jesus Christ to die on the cross, bearing your guilt for you.

“I have wondered that this matter was not made the subject of discourses in our churches throughout the land, when the matter has been kept so constantly urged upon me, and I have made it the subject of nearly every discourse and talk that I have given to the people.” Ibid.

Let’s look at the following three points to help us better understand Jesus’ relationship to God’s law.

  1. We must understand the spiritual nature of the law. The main thrust of the Sermon on the Mount was the spirituality of the law (Romans 7:14).
  2. We want to understand Jesus Christ and His relationship to the law—the ten commandments (The Signs of the Times, November 15, 1899).
  3. If you don’t understand the first two points, here’s what will happen:
  4. You will have a wrong idea about justification by faith.
  5. If you have a wrong idea about justification by faith, you will have a wrong idea about sanctification.
  6. If you have a wrong idea about sanctification, you will not know what to do to be ready for Jesus to come.

The foundation of truth in all of these doctrines begins with a correct understanding of the knowledge of Jesus Christ and His relationship to the law. Before a sinner is justified, he must be convicted of sin and confess it.

The experience of Paul reveals that it is the moral law that brings conviction of sin. “I was alive once without the law.” Romans 7:9, first part. Paul had been taught by Gamaliel. He was a strict Pharisee. In the Jewish church, he was called a doctor of the law and a teacher of it. He could quote the law perfectly in three languages. He could explain all the tenants of the ten commandments. But in this text, Paul admits, without realizing it, that he did not understand the spiritual nature of the law. He knew the words, but he did not know the part the law played in the spiritual transformation of his heart.

Paul engaged in hunting down, persecuting, and killing Christians, breaking the sixth commandment in the name of God, until one day, as he journeyed along the Damascus Road, on his way to hunt down more Christians, God struck him down. A brilliant light shone all around him, brighter than the sun. He fell to the ground, and he “heard a voice saying to him, ‘Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting Me?’ And he said, ‘Who are you, Lord?’ Then the Lord said, ‘I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting. It is hard for you to kick against the goads.’ So he, trembling and astonished, said, ‘Lord, what do You want me to do?’ Then the Lord said to him, ‘Arise and go into the city, and you will be told what you must do.’ ” Acts 9:4–6

Before he truly understood the law, Paul believed that he was doing God’s work. He believed he was a good Jew, a good Pharisee, doing good work in hunting down those who allegedly spread blasphemy—those who, in Paul’s view, were sinners. Although most of the people of this world, because of their sins, are children of the devil, and yet, they still belong to God. The way we treat them, shows how we would treat Jesus. Thus unknowingly, Paul’s treatment of faithful Christians reveals how he might have treated Christ.

“ ‘Then He will also say to those on the left hand, “Depart from Me, you cursed, into the everlasting fire prepared for the devil and his angels: for I was hungry and you gave Me no food; I was thirsty and you gave Me no drink; I was a stranger and you did not take Me in, naked and you did not clothe Me, sick and in prison and you did not visit Me.” ‘Then they also will answer Him, saying, “Lord, when did we see You hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or sick or in prison, and did not minister to You?” Then He will answer them, saying, “Assuredly, I say to you, inasmuch as you did not do it to one of the least of these, you did not do it to Me.” And these will go away into everlasting punishment, but the righteous into eternal life.’ ” Matthew 25:41–46

Paul is saying in Romans 7:9 that, for the first time in his life, the law revealed to his conscience that he was a sinful man. Only then did he begin to understand the spiritual nature of the law. He never understood it before. He lived in the world without the law, but now he was able to see himself as he truly was—a sinner with a character filled with sin. He believed himself to be a righteous person, but the law showed him that he was exactly the opposite. What was his response to this revelation? “I was alive once without the law, but when the commandment came, sin revived and I died.” Recognizing that he is totally devoid of righteousness, devoid of all spiritual life, he says, “For I know that in me (that is, in my flesh) nothing good dwells.” Verse 18, first part

“The law revealed to Paul his defects of character; but he did not seek to abolish the law because he stood condemned before it. He said, ‘I was alive without the law once: but when the commandment came [home to his conscience], sin [in his character] revived, and I died. … Wherefore the law [that worked so sharply against the natural propensities] is holy, and the commandment holy, and just, and good.’ To his quickened conscience, sin became exceedingly sinful. This is the work of the law and the Holy Spirit, that convict of sin, of righteousness, and of judgment.” The Home Missionary, October 1, 1897

When the moral law comes home to the conscience and the spiritual nature of the law is discerned, the sinner will realize that he is condemned because of his natural, sinful propensities. Notice the law not only convicts of sin, it also convicts of the righteousness found only in Jesus.

“Even the moral law fails of its purpose, unless it is understood in its relation to the Saviour.” The Desire of Ages, 608

If we fail to recognize this relationship, we are in danger of embracing false ideas of justification by faith. Many today fail to recognize the relationship between Christ and the law, and therefore, they are not convicted that man is born a sinner. The definition of sin is limited to simply a choice. They deny that we have sin within—that we are sinners by nature—so they ascribe to the humanity of Christ the same sinful flesh [carnal nature] that we inherited from Adam.

Jude warns us against this danger—ascribing our sinful nature to Christ’s humanity—admonishing us to contend earnestly for the faith which was once delivered to the saints.

My dear friend, the plan of salvation provides for the removal of sin from your life. Jesus, more than anything else in the world wants to take the sin out of your life so that He can replace it with His righteousness, and give you eternal life.

Are you willing to let Him do it? Are you willing to do whatever it takes to allow Jesus to come into your heart and mind and change you? To save you requires a creative act of God. He speaks and our sinfulness is removed and He creates in us a new heart, a new mind, a new spirit, a new character.

“Behold! I stand at the door and knock.”

Pastor John J. Grosboll is Director of Steps to Life and pastors the Prairie Meadows Church in Wichita, Kansas. He may be contacted by email at: historic@stepstolife.org, or by telephone at: 316-788-5559.