Law and Grace: Is your grace filter working?

Grace Life Articles

written by Grace Life Minnesota

Is your Grace Filter working?

Distinguishing between Law and Grace!

Like most municipalities, the city I reside in uses some fairly toxic additives to kill bacteria in the city water system. Compounding matters, a fortune 500 company has been accused of contaminating the city wells in my neighborhood. While the short term affects of this exposure appears minimal, the long term affects may be quite harmful. Fortunately, shortly after moving into our home, I installed a reverse osmosis filtration system in my home to purify our drinking water. This multi-stage filtration system is very effective at removing impurities and making our drinking water safer to drink.

The Analogy:
An improper understanding and application of Scripture can be likened to consuming contaminated drinking water. We desperately need to depend upon Jesus Christ and allow the truths in God's Word to filter out error from our Christian thinking. If we begin with a faulty premise, the end result will be error!

Christians are benefactors of the new covenant ushered in at the death of Jesus Christ, but we often fail to properly distinguish between the old covenant of Law and the
new and better covenant of God's grace.

So how's your grace filter working?

Maybe you've never been taught to distinguish between Law and grace. I struggled in this area during the initial years of my Christian life ... sincerely trying, yet misapplying Scripture due to a lack of clear instruction in the area of law and grace.

For starters, we need to realize that the Old Testament is primarily a covenant established on the principle of human performance. In essence, God said to Israel, "Here are my laws. Now, go and keep them!" Over and over, the Biblical account reveals the miserable failure of God's people (Israel). In spite of this failure, God has been merciful ... and most gracious in providing a new and better way through the new covenant!

Dear friend, this new covenant went into effect when Jesus died on the cross (see Heb 9:15-26), establishing the new method of living under grace. This new system is not performance-based acceptance, but rather a Jesus-based acceptance that hinges upon His finished work at Calvary. We are meant to function in a secure, moment-by-moment dependency upon Jesus Christ who gave His life for us, to give His life to us, to live His life through us!

"Not that we are sufficient in ourselves to claim anything as coming from us, but our sufficiency is from God, who has made us competent to be ministers of a new covenant, not of the letter but of the Spirit. For the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life.

2Cor. 3:5-6 (ESV)

Here's some important facts to consider:

Jesus lived on this earth as a Jew, born under the law in order to fulfill that which we could never do (Gal.4:4).
While Jesus displayed grace in His earthly ministry, His teachings were according to the Mosaic Law (Matt.5:17).
The death of Jesus marks the beginning of the New Testament ... a new method of living by God's grace (Heb.9:15-26)!
Before the cross, forgiveness was conditional. After the cross, Believers have received a complete pardon (i.e. total forgiveness for past, present and future sins - Col.2:13).
The Pauline epistles provide clear instruction that Believer's are not under the law for justification or sanctification (Gal. 5:1). We are saved by grace, and we grow in grace.
Believers are led internally by the Holy Spirit, and this means we are not to focus on external rules and regulations (Gal.5:18).
We are not free to sin, rather we are free to walk in the Spirit, functioning in His love and grace (Gal.5:13, Rom.6:1-2,14-15).

This really is Good News!

Friend, if you've trusted Jesus as your Lord and Savior, then you are His beloved child. Because of the cross, you are forgiven, and through the new birth you have a new identity which is completely holy, righteous and totally acceptable to God. While you will struggle with sin until you're called home to glory, Jesus alone is your victory. As you depend upon Him (and the indwelling Holy Spirit), sin has no right to excercise its evil power over you. Victory over sin is meant to be your daily experience, and you are free to grow in His wonderful grace!

The books featured on this page are
excellent resources to help you gain a
better understanding of God's grace,
providing practical insights on how to
live in a dependent relationship with
Him. Why not consider purchasing
one or more of these books today?

Important Information