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Law vs. Grace

Law Thinking Drives Us Deeper Into Ourselves and Away From God

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Law thinking drives us deeper into ourselves, relying on fleshly resources rather than the kind and infinite resources of our Heavenly Father.

For example, it is commonly taught in the church that God requires a tithe — meaning a tenth of all. Then people get into all sorts of debates about what God requires: do we tithe off gross pay or net? What if I’m unemployed? What it I can’t pay my bills?

Meanwhile, statisticians tell us that less than 10% of church-going people actually do tithe. Some recent reports put it at well below 5%* …

Law Thinking Drives Us Deeper Into Ourselves and Away From GodRead More »

Law Thinking Drives Us Deeper Into Ourselves and Away From God Read More »

Hebrews Pt 26: Out with the Old, in with the New!

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In this study, we take up the second half of Hebrews 9, verses 16-28. We talk about:

  • Wills, testaments and covenants: what they are, what they have to do with Jesus and what they have to do with YOU.
  • The vast difference between the Old Covenant/Testament of law, which left us in sin, defeat, incompleteness, and condemnation and the NEW Covenant/Testament, leading us to the remission of sins, completeness, victory, closeness with God and God’s blessing.
  • We also look into what the shedding of Jesus’ blood accomplished for us, how Jesus was offered ONCE to bear the sins of many.

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The Biblical Reasons Why Christians Are NOT Under Law

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A visitor to our website responded to our article, Not Under Law: What the “Struggle Verses” of Romans 7 Really Mean by writing:

The problem with this article is that you don’t understand history, which gives you a false understanding on how to interpret scripture.

The God of Israel gave the instructions (the law, the first 5 books of the bible) to Israel at Sinai setting a precedent on how to know if a prophets is of God or not.
The law is the standard to the rest of the scripture.

So to have the understanding that Paul seeming says we are “not” under law but under grace, would mean that Paul is a false prophet and should be stoned according to the God of mt Sinai.

Paul is not above God, and he has no authority to change what God said at mt Sinai.

So question really isn’t law and grace.. but:

Is Paul a false prophet?
Or
Are “you” misinterpreting Paul?

Since others may be making the same mistakes that our visiting friend has, I thought I would share my response to his concerns in this article:

Many well-meaning Christians believe they are still under law, yet are ignorant of what the law really says. Galatians 4:21 (NKJV) says: “Tell me, you who desire to be under the law, do you not hear the law?”
…

The Biblical Reasons Why Christians Are NOT Under LawRead More »

The Biblical Reasons Why Christians Are NOT Under Law Read More »

Hebrews Pt 02: God Expressing All Through His Son – Chapter 1

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In this podcast, we study Hebrews chapter 1. We discover:

  • God Himself is the start of Hebrews, just like Genesis 1:1
  • God is a speaking God and now speaks through His Son, Jesus.
  • Jesus is the full and perfect expression of the Father
  • The “so much” better of the New Covenant described in Hebrews begins.
  • The greatness and excellence of the Son. Here in Hebrews 1 is some of the clearest teaching in all the Bible about divinity of Jesus Christ.
  • The point of all this is that Christ is all. Christianity is not about “how to be a Christian” it is about Christ and faith in Christ alone.

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Hebrews Pt 01: Intro

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This is the first installment in our Hebrews the Glory of the New Covenant series. In this introduction, we cover:

  • Hebrews has a lot to do with covenants. What is a covenant? Why would God make a covenant when He has perfect and infinite integrity?
  • The Old Covenant: the covenant of law. Based on man’s performance and proves man to be a sinner and a failure.
  • The New Covenant: the covenant of grace. Hebrews is chiefly about the New Covenant. It is based on the perfect person and finished work of Jesus Christ.
  • How the New Covenant offers “so much more” than the Old Covenant.
  • The importance of the context of Hebrews
  • The warnings of Hebrews
  • Therefore, consider Jesus.

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Not Under Law: What the “Struggle Verses” of Romans 7 Really Mean

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By Mark VanOuse

[Note: a podcast of this article is available by clicking here]

Bring up Romans chapter 7 and most Christians immediately think of the “struggling with sin” discussion of verses 14 through 24. They therefore conclude that the chief subject of Romans 7 is about struggling with sin. Worse, they buy into a false theology, based on an improper reading of this chapter, that Christians are stuck “struggling with sin till the day they die”.

Nothing could further from the truth. Romans 7 is one of the clearest statements in all the scripture that those in Christ are not under law. That thesis is found in the first 6 verses of Romans 7. It is a natural continuation of the thought developed in Romans 6 that those in Christ are united with Him in His death at Calvary and therefore dead to sin. Romans 7 picks the same theme up and makes the revolutionary point that we are also dead to the law. …

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Not Under Law: What the “Struggle Verses” of Romans 7 Really Mean Read More »

Podcast: Not Under Law: What the “Struggle Verses” of Romans 7 Really Mean

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When most Christians think of Romans 7, they think that this chapter deals chiefly with struggling with sin. Nothing could be further from the truth. In this podcast, we take a close look at the entire chapter, particularly the theological verses of 1 through 13. When we take a look at this chapter in its full context, the real meaning of the “struggle” verses of 14 through 24 becomes crystal clear.

The results will surprise you. You’ll see what the relationship is between law, sin and the sinner on one hand and grace, freedom and the saint is on the other.

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Does Blessing Precede Obedience?

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By Mark VanOuse

A friend of mine raised a very good question: Does blessing really precede obedience?

The question came up in the context of my saying that one of the greatest things I’ve learned in my Christian life is the vast difference between the Old Covenant and the New Covenant. How that, as Christians, we are not under the Old Covenant of Law, blessings or curses given based on our performance, but under the New Covenant of grace, granting us blessings from God based on Christ’s performance. “In other words”, I said, “under the New Covenant, the blessing precedes our obedience. We obey because we are blessed in Christ (Eph 1:3), not the other way around.”

That statement threw him off. He emailed me and said, “Why is this ‘God blesses us, and then we respond in obedience’ idea not more clear in Scripture? You would think God would want it to be clear. I would like to hear your answer to that.”

Here, then, is my response: …

Does Blessing Precede Obedience?Read More »

Does Blessing Precede Obedience? Read More »

I Don’t Need the Law, I Need The Lord!

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By Mark VanOuse

A truly righteous man says, “I don’t need the law, I need The Lord.”

[8] But we know that the law is good if one uses it lawfully,[9] knowing this: that the law is not made for a righteous person, but for the lawless and insubordinate, for the ungodly and for sinners, for the unholy and profane, for murderers of fathers and murderers of mothers, for manslayers . . .  (1 Timothy 1:8-9, NKJV)

Did you know that a truly righteous man will actually run from the law?  Why?  Because the law places the demand on his “righteousness” (which is no righteousness at all), not God’s righteousness. Philippians 3:9 makes the point quite clearly:

not having my own righteousness, which is from the law . . . …

I Don’t Need the Law, I Need The Lord!Read More »

I Don’t Need the Law, I Need The Lord! Read More »