The Works of the Law

The Works of The Law
This brings me to another point. Many think that the works of the law are the same thing as the works of the flesh. They use the vers: “Therefore by the deeds of the law there shall no flesh be justified in his sight: for by the law is the knowledge of sin.”Romans 3:20 Paul here is saying that we cannot justify ourselves in the sight of God by trying to be good and obeying God outside of Christ. First of all, anyone that tries to obey God without a regenerated spirit will find his experiance as that of the man Paul refers to in chapter 7 of Romans. He will not have the strength to stay or obey. Second, even if he could, he still has the stain of sin from breaking God’s laws to begin with. This is why no flesh will be justified in God’s sight. For all of us have sinned. The law of God points this out to us, and shows us our guilt before God. But at no point does God ever belittle his commandments or say they don’t apply anymore.
1 Corinthians 7:19 “Circumcision is nothing and uncircumcision is nothing, but keeping the commandments of God is what matters.”
Matthew 19:17 “And he said unto him, Why callest thou me good? there is none good but one, that is, God: but if thou wilt enter into life, keep the commandments.” Here was Jesus chance to tell the rich young ruler to just say this little prayer and ask me into your heart. But what did He do? He showed him the commandments. Why? Because they still stand! Jesus said, “Think not that I am come to destroy the law, or the prophets: I am not come to destroy, but to fulfil.” Matt. 5:17 What did Jesus come to do? To fulfil the law! How? By making it a part of us. As Jeremiah 31:33 “But this shall be the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel; After those days, saith the LORD, I will put my law in their inward parts, and write it in their hearts; and will be their God, and they shall be my people.”
Hebrews 10:16 “This is the covenant that I will make with them after those days, saith the Lord, I will put my laws into their hearts and in their minds will I write them.”
Hebrews 8:10 “For this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, saith the Lord; I will put my laws into their mind, and write them in their hearts: and I will be to them a God, and they shall be to me a people.”
Romans 2:13-15 (For not the hearers of the law are just before God, but the doers of the law shall be justified. For when the Gentiles, which have not the law, do by nature the things contained in the law, these, having not the law, are a law unto themselves: Which shew the work of the law written in their hearts, their conscience also bearing witness, and their thoughts the mean while accusing or else excusing one another;)
The word tells us that God through faith in Christ has put the law in our hearts. This is what happens to the Christian, he becomes a living epistle read of all men.
2 Cor. 3:2 “Ye are our epistle written in our hearts, known and read of all men:”
The Word tells us that through faith in Christ we will keep the commandments of God.
“Let no debt remain outstanding, except the continuing debt to love one another, for he who loves his fellowman has fulfilled the law. The commandments, “Do not commit adultery,” “Do not murder,” “Do not steal,” “Do not covet,” and whatever other commandment there may be, are summed up in this one rule: “Love your neighbor as yourself.” Love does no harm to its neighbor. Therefore love is the fulfillment of the law” Romans 13:8-10
Many people are told that to walk in love, or in the Spirit is to be ligalistic. Paul tells us that if we walk in the Spirit we will not fulfill the lust of the flesh. “This I say then, Walk in the Spirit, and ye shall not fulfil the lust of the flesh.” Gal. 5:16
How can people be so blind to the truth? John told us how to tell if someone really knew the Lord. He told us that the man that knows the Lord will keep His commandments. He also said that the man who says he is a Christian or knows the Lord and does not keep them is a lier and the truth (Jesus) is not in him. “And hereby we do know that we know him, if we keep his commandments. He that saith, I know him, and keepeth not his commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him.” 1 John 2:3,4
Even though the Bible teaches that if we live to the flesh or walk in the flesh we will die. Todays false prophet teachers are telling people “you won’t surely die”. The same lie satan told Eve in the garden. The truth is that Jesus frees us from our sins, not in our sins. Yet many people are being taught that we will continue to practice sin until the day we die.
This is how many pastors in our pulpits are preaching today. One day they tell the people that Christ has set them free from sin. The next day the people are told they are still slaves to it. How confusing. The Word must flow in harmany, never contradicting it’s self.
Works of the Law mentioned in: Gal. 3:5, 2:16, 3:10, 3:2, Romans 3:20, 3:28, 9:32, are not the same as the works or deeds of the flesh, mentioned in: Gal. 5:19, Romans 8:13 The works of the law are in reference to those trying to please God through religious duties and deeds. The works or deeds of the flesh speak of the fallen sinful nature with all of it’s passions and lust. We are not saved by our good deeds anymore than a robber would be foregivin if while in the middle a robbery he stops to help a little old lady across the street. That was a nice deed, but he is still guilty of the robbery and once he is caught, the fact that he helped this little old lady will mean nothing in court. This is what most people don’t understand. Just because they tithe, sing in the choir, feed the hungry or cloth the naked, if they have not turned from their sins and taken and trusted Jesus for their Lord, King and savior they will parish on the day of wrath.
This is what Paul was speaking of in Romans 3:20 “Wherefore by the works of the law no flesh shall be justified before Him: for by the law is the knowledge of sin.” This vers is telling us that nothing good that we do will profit us at all without Christ. In fact the only thing that the law can do for someone outside of Christ is condem them. It shows them thier true colors before God. As the scriptures say “Wherefore the law was our schoolmaster to bring us unto Christ, that we might be justified by faith.” Gal. 3:24
If the heart is open and broken before God, as D.L. Moody says: “The law can only chase a man to Calvary, no further.” Once a man has truly given his life to Christ, the law goes from the stone, to the heart of the man. It is then, as Paul says in Romans 13:8-10, that the law is fulfilled in us.
“Owe no man any thing, but to love one another: for he that loveth another hath fulfilled the law. For this, Thou shalt not commit adultery, Thou shalt not kill, Thou shalt not steal, Thou shalt not bear false witness, Thou shalt not covet; and if there be any other commandment, it is briefly comprehended in this saying, namely, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. Love worketh no ill to his neighbour: therefore love is the fulfilling of the law.”
Jesus gives us the secret to keeping the 10 comandments. “And Jesus answered him, The first of all the commandments is, Hear, O Israel; The Lord our God is one Lord: And thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind, and with all thy strength: this is the first commandment. And the second is like, namely this, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. There is none other commandment greater than these.” Mark 12:29-31
Love according to the Word of God will keep all commandments at all times. When a man loves someone, does he envy him when good comes his way? No! He will rejoice with his fellow man and not be
jellous or envious. The Word says that God is love, so to be filled with God, is to be filled with love. Can a man that is filled with love comit adultery on his wife? No! That’s not love that would be lust and covetiousness. If a man is filled with love will he steal from his employer? No! He works hard to help his employer succeed. This is love, helping others.
Jesus died to free us from the power of sin so that we could obey the commandments of God. This is why Jesus said, “If you love me you will keep my commandments.” (John 14:15) So common sence says if we don’t love Christ, we won’t obey Him. Paul tells us that Jesus Christ becomes our salvation if we obey Him. (Heb. 5:9)
Jesus died to free us from the power of sin, and yet by listening to most of the people out their you would think he only died to take them to heaven. First thing we have to ask ourselves is this. Why were we going to hell? Was it just because we did not believe in Christ? Why did Christ come? The bible says that we were by nature children of wrath. Ephesians 2:3
So the problem stems from our nature. We were sinners. We were born with a sinners bloodline. Jesus came to earth to change us, not to change God! Many people have this perverted idea that Jesus came to earth to tone God down a bit and make Him a little more like us. Not so, Jesus makes us like Him! We become new creations in Christ. The sin nature dies, and God’s holy nature takes over.
Now refering to the Works, or deeds of the flesh Paul says:
“Now the works of the flesh are manifest, which are these; Adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lasciviousness, Idolatry, witchcraft, hatred, variance, emulations, wrath, strife, seditions, heresies, Envyings, murders, drunkenness, revellings, and such like: of the which I tell you before, as I have also told you in time past, that they which do such things shall not inherit the kingdom of God.” Gal. 19-21
Paul says in this passage that those that do or live like this will not inherit the kingdom of God. Notice he did not say unless you are a “christian fornicator”, or a “christian drunkered”. He says that they, meaning anyone that does them will not go to heaven. Revelation 21:8 warns: “But the fearful, and unbelieving, and the abominable, and murderers, and whoremongers, and sorcerers, and idolaters, and all liars, shall have their part in the lake which burneth with fire and brimstone: which is the second death.” Notice here it says that all liars, not sinful liars, not unsaved liars, but all liars will have their part in the lake of fire. The sinful works or deeds of the flesh will damn everything it controls. This is why through the spirit we must put it to death, and not let it rule us.
“For if ye live after the flesh, ye shall die: but if ye through the Spirit do mortify the deeds of the body, ye shall live.” Romans 8:13
“Mortify (or put to death) therefore your members which are upon the earth; fornication, uncleanness, inordinate affection, evil concupiscence, and covetousness, which is idolatry: For which things’ sake the wrath of God cometh on the children of disobedience: In the which ye also walked some time, when ye lived in them. But now ye also put off all these; anger, wrath, malice, blasphemy, filthy communication out of your mouth. Lie not one to another, seeing that ye have put off the old man with his deeds; Colossians 3:5-9
We are to put to death are members or fleshly deeds. We are to set our love and effections on things above, not on this earth. We are to resist the devil and he will flee. Paul is very clear in telling his readers that those that do these things will face God’s wrath. He tells us that we are to put away or to stop doing these things.
Satan has lied to so many people, and told them that they can never stop sinning and the only thing that will bring sin to a stop is their grave. This is like saying the grave is stronger than grace. Whome the Son sets free is free indeed.

“I say then: Walk in the Spirit, and you shall not fulfill the lust of the flesh. For the flesh lusts against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh; and these are contrary to one another, so that you do not do the things that you wish. But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under the law. Now the works of the flesh are evident, which are: adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lewdness, idolatry, sorcery, hatred, contentions, jealousies, outbursts of wrath, selfish ambitions, dissensions, heresies, envy, murders, drunkenness, revelries, and the like; of which I tell you beforehand, just as I also told you in time past, that those who practice such things will not inherit the kingdom of God.” Gal. 5:16-21 NKJ
Paul tells us that if we walk in the Spirit we will not fulfill or do the works of the flesh. Paul goes on to tell us that if we are doing any of the above, that we will not inherit the kingdom of God. Yet we have pastors and teachers telling others that if they sin, they are still ok. Because God has forgiven us all our sins, past, present and future. I will speak more on the once saved always saved doctrine latter.
The real question is if you still have sin controling you who do you belong to?
Slaves to whom ye obey
The Bible is very clear in that it states that to who we yeild to is our master. Wheather we yeild to sin unto death, or to righteousness unto life. The word says,
“Don’t you know that when you offer yourselves to someone to obey him as slaves, you are slaves to the one whom you obey - whether you are slaves to sin, which leads to death, or to obedience, which leads to righteousness?” Rom. 6:16 NIV.
Jesus also echoed these words in John 8:34 when he said, “...I tell you the truth, everyone who sins is a slave to sin.” Hebrews 5:9 also tells us that Jesus is our salvation if we obey him.
The word tells us in Romans that if we obey our sinful nature we will receive the wrath of God.
“But unto them that are contentious, and do not obey the truth, but obey unrighteousness, indignation and wrath,” Romans 2:8
The Darby translation says it this way,
“But to those that are contentious, and are disobedient to the truth, but obey unrighteousness, there shall be wrath and indignation,”
Paul tells us that those who do not believe the truth, but enjoy their sin will be damned.
“That they all might be damned who believed not the truth, but had pleasure in unrighteousness.” 2 Thessalonians 2:12
What is the truth? Is it just Jesus? Jesus, tells us that it is his words that are truth. “Sanctify them through thy truth: thy word is truth.” John 17:17 Now if we don’t obey his words, it is the same as if you said, “I don’t believe your warnings Lord.” I mean Jesus warns us to turn from sin and obey him, Matt. 4:17, 7:21-23, 11:21-24, Mark 16:16, Luke 13:3,5, John 8:11, 15:10, 14,
According to Romans we used to be slaves to our sinful passions and lust, but now through Jesus Christ we put to death the old man with his deeds and live a crusified life in Christ. Puting to death our sinful habits, passions and lust to serve the true and living God.
“Likewise reckon ye also yourselves to be dead indeed unto sin, but alive unto God through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Let not sin therefore reign in your mortal body, that ye should obey it in the lusts thereof. Neither yield ye your members as instruments of unrighteousness unto sin: but yield yourselves unto God, as those that are alive from the dead, and your members as instruments of righteousness unto God.” Romans 6:11-13
The word very clearly warns us who is of God and who is of satan.
“Whoever commits sin also commits lawlessness, and sin is lawlessness. And you know that He 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, for 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. Whoever has been born of God does not sin, for His seed remains in him; and he cannot sin, because he has been born of God. In this the children of God and the children of the devil are manifest: Whoever does not practice righteousness is not of God, nor is he who does not love his brother.”
1 John 3:4-10
The word tells us that if we are comiting sins, then we are still not right with God. The true christian is dead to sins. The false christian is dead as the sinner in his sins. You see their is no middle ground we are either dead in our sins or dead to our sins. It is ironic to think that most Americans believe they are free and yet they have hundreds if not thousands of laws to keep people safe, and yet if God has laws He is legalistic. We have laws against murder too, do you here the average American crying out ligalism!! No, because laws like that do not apply to the law abiding citizen. So too the law (commandments) do not apply to the born again Christian they are on his heart. He would not think of breaking God’s laws anymore than a law abiding citizen would willingly break his nations laws. People in the church as a whole for the most part are very ignorant about what true salvation really is.

It is more than just saying a little prayer and asking Jesus in your heart. It is being changed into the likeness of God through Christ.
Those that believe you can never lose your salvation clame that salvation consist of only believing in Christ and nothing more. They use John 3:36 “He that believeth on the son hath everlasting life...” and John 3:16
“For god so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.”
The only reason they can believe this way is to totaly ignor other scriptures that have conditons or warnings. The bible is to be read in its entiraty. We are not to pick and choose scripture, but take all of them in their proper contex. If your presupisition has a conflict or contradicts other scriptures then you are not interpreting the scriptures correctly. The scriptures do not contradict each other in the slitest way. They flow in perfect harmony. To say that we only have to believe in Jesus and nothing more, is to ignor Jesus other comand in luke 13:3 to “repent” or turn from our sins. James warns proffesors that even the devil believes in God and trembles. James 2:19 And goes on to say that a true believer will show proof of his new birth in Christ by works, or deeds. vs.20
Was James saying that we were saved by our works. No! He was saying the same thing that John said in 1John 2:3, that we would obey God, if we were truly His children. (1 John 3:4-10)
Even Peter warns those professors of faith that turn from serving Christ back to their sins risk being damed. (2 Peter 2:20-22)
Now this is where the once saved always saved (OSAS) will cry out. “But we don’t receive salvation by our works so we can’t keep it by your works! To this I can only say you are right, but you have a perverted understanding of the power of Grace. The only way I can really explain this is through a marriage analogy. A man when he stands at the alter to marry his wife does not say since you had boy friens before I met you and wanted to marry you, then you can have boy friens after I marry you. To marry you with conditions, like be faithful to me, love me, honer me and take care of me would seam ligalistic and restraining. The wife cries out “I did not know this relationship would be filled with a bunch of does and don’ts.” Is this how we picture the blessing of marrige?
Yet this is exactly how many professors act when it comes to becoming a Christian. They come with all their idals, sins and habits and say “here we are Lord, a packaged deal” or “If you don’t wan’t me to have these sins and habits, then you’ll just have to take them from me.”
I heard a pastor once say that next time you tell the Lord that you can’t give something up for Him, change your phrase to I won’t give it up for you. It is then you will relize that the problem actually stems from your love for your sins. The Apostle Paule tells us to: “...Cleanse ourselves from all filthiness of the flesh and spirit, perfecting holiness in the fear of God.” 2 Cor. 7:1
The OSAS stand on Titus 3:5 which states, “Not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to his mercy he saved us...” The phras “works of righteousness” has nothing to do with the ten commandments, or God’s moral standerds. But Paul is speaking of trying to impress God through good deeds, like feeding the hungry, clothing the naked and helping the poor. It is also not through religous duties such as cercumcision, abserving holy days and obstaning from meats and all the other things that men try to do to feel religous.
“For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the figt of God: Not of works, lest any man shoud boast.” Eph.2:8,9
None of us deserve God’s mercy, yet he offers it to all of us. This mercy is not mercy for a licence to sin. But mercy in that;
1. We don’t deserve to be forgiven, and yet He pardens those that call on
him with a repentant heart through His Son.
2. He gives us space or time to repent or turn from our sins and let loose
of our habits.
God tells us in his word that if we confess our sins He is faithfull and just to forgive us. 1 John 1:9 Also see Ez. 18:21-23
The figt is something you walk in you don’t just say you believe in it. If I was to walk by your house and notice that it is on fore and yell to you and warn you , and you shout back from the second story window “I believe you” Then you turn back to the people inside that you are visiting with and begin to tell them ow you where just saved and yet you make no effort to get oy and your friends out of the house. You and them would end up burning in the flames. Why? Because faith without works or action is dead, it can’t save you. This is what James was talking about in the book of James when he said. “Yea, a man may say, thou hast faith, and I have works: show me thy faith without thy works, and I will show thee my faith by my works... Buty wilt thou know, o vain man, that faith without works is dead?” James 2:18-20
James was speaking of fruit in a believers life. If a man tells you he has an apple tree in his back yard and you go to pick fruit from it and fing that it’s not apples, but prears that are growing on it. You can be pretty certain that the man does not have an apple tree, but a pear tree. In the same way Jesus said we would know them by their fruit.
(Joh 15:1-5) Even John the Baptist warned about people showing proof of their repentance by their fruit.
“And now also the axe is laid unto the root of the trees: therfore every tree which bringeth not forth good fruit is hen down, and cast into the fire.” Matt. 3:10
He warned that every one that does not produce good fruit will be cut down and cast in the fire (Hell). Those that teach a man can never lose his salvation once he receives it because they say “it is a gift and not of works” are very ignorant of what works Paul speaks of. When the word speaks of “not of works lest any man should boast” it is not refering to the moral camandments of God, but the written “works of the law” or “works of the torah” or in the greek, ergon nomou. This is an actual text spoken of by Paul that was lost for about two thousand years and was found among the dead Sea Scrolls. Moses spoke of this book also,
“Take this book of the law, and put it in the side of the ark of the covenant of the LORD your God, that it may be there for a witness against thee.” Deut. 31:26
How do we know paul was speaking of the sacrificail or ceremonial law and not the 10 commandments?
Because in 1 Cor. 7:19 Paul says, “circumcision is nothing, and uncercumcision is nothing, but keeping of the commandments of God.”
Paul would be contradicting himself in Gal. 3:10 if he were speaking of the works of the law and the 10 commandments as the same thing. But Paul is actualy very clear in what law he is speaking about when he says, “For as many as are of the works of the law are under the curse: for it is written, cursed is every one that continueth not in all things which are written in the book of the law to do them.” Paul made it clear that he was refering to a book of laws and not the 10 commandments of God. This was conferemed by archeology by the document known as the “works of the torah” or the “works of the law.” This is a first century Jewish writing that was found in the Dead Sea Scrolls from the Qumran community. The Bible says that it is the saints or true christians that “keep the commandments of God, and have faith in Jesus.” Rev. 14:12
The word says that those who are blessed and that have a right to the tree of life are those that do the Lords commandments. Rev. 22:14
So how can there be so many false preachers that are saying you don’t have to obey God to have salvation when the scriptures are so clear? Heb.5:9 tells us that Jesus is our salvation if we obey him. Jesus ask why we call him lord and do not obey him in Luke 6:46. Jesus also said that those that were his brothers where those that obey him. Luke 8:19-21 Scripture says that Jesus is the first born among many brethren. If Christ is not your brother then your not saved. If we abide in the vine we are saved. If not, we are not part of the vine. How do we know if we are part of the vine? Fruit!
Today when any man or woman of God stand up and begin quoting scriptures, warning the ungodly and disobedient professors of faith that they need to repent, and turn from their sins to be saved, all of a sudden you hear false teachers stand up and yell legalism. “We are saved by grace not obedence or works” they yell. They will tell you that it’s to condeming to preach that way. The Bible says if they don’t know Christ they are condemed already.