There’s been a lot of discussion about Jesus coming to do away with the law, work’s righteousness, and the loving kindness of God being all that’s needed.
I know that Psalms was written before Jesus came to earth, but it wasn’t written before He came into existence ! He IS the Word and has no beginning or end. He was here when the earth was being formed.
Psalm 19:7-14 is where I find that my heart is best expressed about the law, since God has been in the process of transforming me.
“The law of the Lord is perfect, converting the soul. The testimony of the Lord is sure, making wise the simple. The statutes of the Lord are right, rejoicing the heart. The commandment of the Lord is pure, enlightening the eyes. The fear of the Lord is clean, enduring forever. The judgments of the Lord are true and righteous all together. More to be desired are they than gold, yes, than much fine gold. Sweeter also than honey and the honeycomb. Moreover by them Your servant is warned, and in keeping them there is great reward. Who can understand his errors? Cleanse me from secret faults. Keep back Your servant also from presumptuous sins. Let them not have dominion over me. Then I shall be blameless, and I shall be innocent of great transgression. Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable in Your sight, O Lord, my strength and my Redeemer.”
If I were to think that I am righteous because I have obeyed the law and followed it to the tee, and I am accepted by God because of all that I have done for Him, I will end up before His throne and He will say to me, “I don’t know you.”
If I think that God’s only a God of loving kindness and that’s all that matters because He did away with the law, I will end up before His throne and He will say to me, “I don’t know you.”
The only way to know Him and for Him to know me is through His loving kindness towards me that transforms my heart to loving kindness towards Him.
Matthew 7:21-23 “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, and done many wonders in Your name ?” And I will declare to them, “I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness.” Are we perfect ? No. Practicing lawlessness is when we recognize sin, and keep on walking in it, even though we have been given everything we need to overcome by the resurrection power of Jesus. When we die to sin, we then have the ability to practice walking in His righteousness, being led by Holy Spirit.
Repentance is not just a godly sorrow, but it is a turning away from sinfulness. He didn’t come to do away with the law, but to fulfill it. It is clearly evident that we could not do this. Matthew 5:17-18 “Do not think that I came to destroy the Law or the Prophets. I did not come to destroy but to fulfill. For assuredly, I say to you, till heaven and earth pass away, one jot or one tittle will by no means pass from the law until all is fulfilled.”
Romans 2:4 “Do you despise the riches of His goodness, forbearance, and long suffering, not knowing that the goodness of God leads you to repentance ?” Intimacy with Him is what He desires. I am in a passionate pursuit of Him as His divine influence pursues me.
When I understand His heart towards me, I don’t want to grieve or quench Him in any way at all. I’m enraptured by His love. I’m thankful that His patience with me is so endless ! I’m thankful that He is my righteous judge, and that He loves me enough to correct me as a loving Father does.
It’s not a condemning thing, because I know He loves me and knows what’s best for me. Therefore, when I look at “the laws” of God, I love them. I am a lover of the Truth.
If He has saved me from all sin, He will teach me how to not walk in sin. If I mess up, He’s right there to forgive me, but I get to choose all along the way. I need to be sorry and quick to repent; not say that I’m not under the law, so I am fine.
I don’t want to live my way anymore, according to my own wisdom, but I want to please Him.
Can I loose salvation once I have it? Loosing is an unintentional act. Leaving is something you do that’s intentional. What happens in a natural marriage if you don’t cultivate, nurture, respect, cherish, and guard your relationship? What happens if you aren’t faithful to that one spouse, and you share yourself with someone else? The love grows cold and dies.
Jesus is the Bridegroom and I am the Bride. I am married to Him, and He’s a jealous God. He won’t accept any other lovers coming between us.
He won’t “ditch His commands” and tell me that He didn’t mean them and that He doesn’t care if I stay faithful or not.
He even talks about those that once loved Him, and they “left their first love”. You don’t loose it, you leave it. They were married to Him at some point. You can’t say that they must have never been saved, if they left their first love. You can’t leave anything without having had it.
I will get to choose my undivided devotion to my Lover right up to the day I stand before Him in heaven.
He doesn’t want to make me love Him. He wants me to choose Him above anything else. If I walk away, He will let me go. He won’t let me go without a fight, but if I persist in rebellion, He will let me leave, to my own destruction.
Here’s the ingenious plan of God:
1. He would create human beings who are a little lower than the angels.
2. He would give us a choice to obey or disobey Him; love Him back or not.
3. He would come here in the flesh Himself and show us how to have victory over Satan who was an angel, but wanted to be God.
4. We could choose to love and serve Him eternally regardless of how weak we are as vessels of clay.
5. We could become His Son’s Bride, ruling and reigning with Him eternally.
To choose this ingenious plan of God, is the ultimate defeat of the enemy.
Prayer:
Thank You Jesus, for the incredible price You paid to defeat all the works of the enemy. Thank You that through You, we are more than conquerors. Thank You for all Your promises that are yes and amen, by us. I will endure to the end, through Your mighty powerful Spirit that works within me. I will overcome by Your blood and the word of my testimony. I choose You. Take this world, and everything in it, but give me Jesus. I love You, my righteous Judge, and all Your commands. They are always for my good. Amen.
Romans 6:14 “For sin shall not have dominion over you, for you are not under law but under grace.”
Romans 6:17-18 “But God be thanked that though you were slaves of sin, yet you obeyed from the heart that form of doctrine to which you were delivered. And having been set free from sin, you became slaves of righteousness.”
Romans 6:22 “But now having been set free from sin, and having become slaves of God, you have your fruit to holiness, and the end, everlasting life.” Romans 7:4 “Therefore, my brethren, you also have become dead to the law through the body of Christ, that you may be married to another; to Him who was raised from the dead, that we should bear fruit to God.” Romans 7:6 “But now we have been delivered from the law, having died to what we were held by, so that we should serve in the newness of the Spirit and not in the oldness of the letter.”