Law and rules...they get preached at us a lot. Delivered with religious additives, it can be a confusing topic that might lead to you dismissing the whole notion and parking your curiosity altogether. We want to reframe biblical law for you. Removing those religious additives and walking through it more practically, we hope we help you see how laws applied to Earth's people, direct from God. Enjoy the listen and please reach out with feedback!
Longer, thought-provoking content lives at the Sinner's Pulpit.
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Law and rules...they get preached at us a lot. Delivered with religious additives, it can be a confusing topic that might lead to you dismissing the whole notion and parking your curiosity altogether. We want to reframe biblical law for you. Removing those religious additives and walking through it more practically, we hope we help you see how laws applied to Earth's people, direct from God. Enjoy the listen and please reach out with feedback!
Longer, thought-provoking content lives at the Sinner's Pulpit.
Instagram
My gracious, if there is any obstacle for people to come to Christ, it's a law. Law man. Dude, the entire Old Testament is about laws. And I think people today are like, you know what? I can't keep the law. So screw the whole thing. Why was the law given? The law was given not to make you better. It was given, it's a mirror. It's to show you who you are. It's to show us our sin. That's what the law was given for. That's the reason we see it. Um, all through scripture. Now, if someone says they don't need a savior, then I, then, then, you know, that's just a whole different discussion where, but I believe somewhere in each and every one of us, there's a void that, that knows good and, and evil. And so and so if, if they do, just to follow that, cause like, I, I can appreciate that. But I think it's good to level set on some of that. So the, this message and, and really any of them, you're at least, you're either willing to seek, you're curious, maybe a little bit confused by all of it. But for this conversation, you kind of know there's good and evil out there, right? And so you're willing to accept that you need something bigger than you are. Greater than you, because you're not cutting it yes. And Cuz if you're not there, then you might like hit, hit stop, pick another podcast. Where, Where do we even get the laws of God? It's all in scripture. There's no law of God. When you look out at the amazing universe, there's no law. But the whole message of God in Christ is that he gives us these things to show us that we're unable to keep his perfect law. And and Christ has fulfilled all of them. Not just the moral, not the ceremony. He's fulfilled. All the feasts, all the prophets, everything that was given to the Jewish nation has been fulfilled. And the word fulfilled means to fill up completely. He's finished the law because the purpose of the law was to show us our sin. Okay? And by faith, now, by faith in his finished work, we now are not under the law. Number one, Gentiles, were never under the law. it's amazing. People don't see that scripture. So we need it. Like, that's actually a really important clarification. If, if you're interested in how Bible pieces together, we've talked about like following it in, in context and in order Jewish people had the law. Gentiles didn't even, so me, I'm not Jewish. So for me, what you're talking about is actually I was actually screwed. Period. Born into, is that right? Like pour into, uh, natural sin. All Of us are born after Adam. He sinned. And then I didn't even have laws that I could possibly keep or atone, you know, give sacrifice for like, as a gentile, I didn't actually have, so I should be looking for or open to Jesus. Cuz I didn't have another option. You didn't even didn't That's a good point. We didn't even have another option, you know? Um, that, that's a great point because at least the Jew could atone for the sin. But the problem was it only covered it. See? And and that's what the message mm-hmm. Of Christ is, is that he came to, to do away with, he came to finish. But never, never get it wrong that the law is good. It's God's perfect standing. Yeah. We couldn't keep it. Jesus even took it, uh, uh, to a higher level. If you even hate your brother, you've committed murder. If you even look at a woman, unlike, so he took it to a higher level showing us that we could not keep it. But you know, we hear religious institutions tell us there's 613 laws. Well, that you won't find them in scripture. Those are Jewish tradition. But what we do find in the elephant in the room is the 10 commandments, the moral law. They should have never been separated. They never were. James tells us if we break one, we're guilty of 'em all. So it moves us to need. But really, they're not separated. They're not separated When you, who, who's they separated them? Oh, religious. I mean God religious God wrote'em on tablets to be fair. Okay? If you look at second Corinthians chapter three, it talks about those laws that were written on stone. That's the 10 commandments, correct? Right. And it includes those in Paul's writings that say, we are no longer under them. They're good. The reason for the law is to show people their sin. But we are free from the law by faith in Christ. So the law is still good. We are just no longer under them. Christ is fulfilled, is finished, and everything points to him. So there, there's, there's like your first, um, there's your first lesson of, of the evening, right? That you gave us a little bit of history, a little bit of context. So practically then taking, like now, if, if someone uses what you've, they've, they've learned something. Are you saying that you think law is an obstacle? Because there's just so many of them and it's overwhelming. They people stop reading past the old test, right? Like law, law, law, old Testament, old Testament. Do they not make the connection of actually Jesus wiping all of that away? What actually makes it a I agree with you. I see exactly why you're like, man, law versus grace or law and grace. There's actually a huge obstacle here in the law. Even though law is good, law is given to us by God. It's the really, the definition of the perfection of what makes God be able to be God. So then dang, that's, uh, unfortunate that the same thing that defines his perfection would become an obstacle first. Why do you think, like, why do you, why do you think that is? Uh, Religion tries the, that's not A biblical question, right? That's like a, people like how does that end up, up, um, hindering us? Religion tries to mix law and grace. You can't do it because Christ has fulfilled the law and he's given us grace. And I think it's important that we talk a little bit about the definition of grace. We think grace is a Who's we? Uh, people who have it or people who talk about grace. Christians, Christian, Christian institutions talk about grace. What is it, what's a definition? It means unmerited favor. If we look up the, the original Greek word, and I love that because that's what they were using and that's what they tried to, um, project 2000 years ago. We like to say grace is a get outta hell free card. And it is, but if you look up the original word, it means divine favor, unmerited. But it's, here's the big kicker right here, man. It's also divine influence. So when you buy faith receive that, people say, well, you can just get your grace card and go out and sin. Well, you can, but what comes with that is the divine influence. When you accept Christ by faith, you get, you get him and he now changes your desires in your heart and you want to keep the laws. I mean, which one of the 10 commandments would you say is bad? Which one would I say is bad? I mean all, like, all of 'em are bad. What do you mean They're all bad Like if I broke them, sorry. Yeah, of course. Like, so they're, yeah, they're all good, right? That they're all good. So what happens is with grace, it's not like, okay, here's your card, now goes screw every woman you want to and go get drunk, right? Dude, what happens is with that comes divine influence. So in, when Christ moves in, he changes our hearts and minds. So it is a get outta jail free card. It absolutely is, but it is also, it's Christ living in us. And it's his constant influence to want us to keep his perf perfect law. Yeah. I I I like that you've brought that, uh, to the cast because I think that probably doesn't get said enough. And it is, there's a difference between us promoting to use that as this. Like really go try to run against it and use it as a, I don't know. Actually, you know what? That's what I love about what you said. It is like, make no mistake. It is a get outta jail for your guys. Get outta hell. You can go do. Absolutely. Yeah, yeah. You, you, you can go do all of that stuff. Be, and that is what I believe. Many. Let's try not to say we or them, or like many organizations organize what we think of as religion would tell you. No, no, no, no. It's not that. Yes it is. Yes it is. You can, you can do anything like you are free. Free is free, can be, but you're talk. But that will come with a consequence. And I don't mean hell, there will be earthly consequence. Like when you do something really stupid, uh, super promiscuous, right? Like sometimes that comes with, uh, sexually transmitted diseases of all sorts. That's the worldly part. It'll also come with guilt, though. If you've accepted that grace, you're not gonna go to hell, but you're not gonna feel good about it. You know? Here's bottom line, grace. If you accept Christ by faith, it's, you're not going to help. He promised I'll never period leave you. Period. Full stop. Now, like Farley says, you're gonna be miserable because Christ has moved in. You're gonna be miserable when you sin. So we have to understand grace, you know, we're real good at identifying what, who's we damnit you and your damn pronouns. We people, people, I don't know. Well, I don't want you to speak for anyone else but yourself. That's what I'm saying. No, I'm saying religion is very good at identifying law. This law is this, this and this and this. But grace, okay, man, grace, look, scripture tells us that when grace, when we sin, grace abounds more. So it's like, I I like to explain it like water hitting the hot stove. Man, when you sin, we have an advocate, we have an advocate that grabs that sin and says, no, father, look at me. Flicks it away. Look at me, look at, look at my blood. So, but, but I want people to understand that grace is, is give God some credit. It's, it's his influence in us. We don't just get the card, but we get this influence where our desires. Paul says everything is permissible, everything Paul, it's right in the Bible, it's permissible. Yep. But it might not be good for you. And I, and I'll, I'll use practical example for myself, know that I'm a Christian, know that I have grace. I absolutely have a get outta hell free card, full stop. There is no, but yes, There is a second statement, which is, I, I feel that influence that you just talked about, and that is right here. So too mu, too much, too much wine. There are absolutely times where I say, screw it, I'm dropping the hammer, I'm having the X glass wine that like absolutely makes me drunk. Absolutely is the thing I want to do that time. Worldly consequence. Like hangover. Okay. But like, I think what you're saying, and I I have, I've felt in this time, it's like I start to not want to, I don't, I don't feel good with the sin, not just the hangover. Like I could probably endure 10,000 more hangovers. Like they're not that bad. So I could live my life that way. Same as having a headache from not getting enough sleep from the, from the child. I start to not want to live with that sin. I think that's the influence you're talking about. Yeah. Because, And so you start like that's, you start making these choices. I could make any choice. I'm free to do it, and I can, I can, I can get away with it. Yes. I just, I don't like, I don't like living with it in me. So I start making choices. I'm just like, I actually am gonna prefer to make another choice. Not cuz it's the quote quote right. Thing to do or because God would've wanted me. No. Like I can do anything I want. I am a hundred percent free now I'm starting to go, like I don't, I don't wanna live with that baggage, like that feeling of sin. I don't have baggage as far as going to hell. I don't like the way it treats. Right? So now what is that? You've got some credit. That's God. He said, I'm gonna move into you and I love you so much that I don't want you to have to endure this ugly. So he changes. Well, you know, scripture tells us that we have a new heart and our minds are being renewed. And I've always said the greatest evidence for this message of Christ is someone who has accepted him and sees him moving and working in this truth, uh, um, being realized. So yeah, you're exactly right. And why is it an obstacle? Because people, number one, they just can't believe that that grace is that good. And what do people usually say when you talk about grace? I have a couple of people in our Bible study that, well, what does that mean? You can go out and do anything you want. And I say yes, and people hate that. You'll never hear the preacher say that you can, but you won't want to. Because once again, he says, when I move in, I'm going to change your heart. I'm gonna take that heart of Adam out and I'm gonna put my heart and I'm gonna, I'm gonna develop my mind in you. So, so that's what grace is. It's not just to get outta hell card, it's his influence in you as well. And it, it is beautiful, man. And, and you know, I'm, you know, we, like Farley said, we thank God for, uh, an i p a or two. If we go too far, the Holy Spirit moves in us and says, IA love you. And I don't want you to do this. I'm not gonna send you to hell. But for your good, you may not want to do this Right? That's the beauty of this message. But now, now I feel like people that I hope that we can reach to get them on their own journey and maybe help give, you know, fulfill some curiosity along the way. My flag would've gone up just now. Wait, wait a minute. So, oh, you'll really know how it is to live once you figure out that, like go without that wine and then until, so once you're like me and you're sober, you'll get it like, hang on, hang On. Yeah. But here's the beauty, here's the beauty. We don't try to quit. We allow him to live in us and move us where he wants us to go. It's, and that's the message of Christ. I'll take you wherever you are while you were yet a sinner. I died for you. He'll move us to either quit it or he'll move us to, uh, focus on him while we're in it. See, that's the whole message. That sins pulpit, man. He'll take anybody. And religion tells you, you gotta quit. You gotta do this. You gotta, I I actually gave a message one time and the pastor asked me to, to preach on, give it up, and they were talking about lint give up chocolate, give up whiskey, give up cigarette. That's Soon, right? Huh? No, That's happening pretty soon. No, no. I actually gave it. Oh, you mean lent? I know I'm saying lent. Yeah. And I actually said, no, no, it's not about that. It's about take everything and give it up to him. And the pastor was not happy. He wanted me to talk about lent and sacrifice and putting on an ugly face and scripture. No, you gotta actually give up. You actually need to give up sacrifices. Yes. Like, But give it up to him is what I Sure what I said. And he, he was not happy. So religion is not happy with the free pass outta hell. they're not happy with it. Man, you gotta do your part. That's a whole nother message. You gotta do your part. You know what your part is. Yeah. You accept him by faith boy, and I'm telling you, give him some credit. He will move you to where he wants you to be. Not where religion wants you to be, not where you want you To be, or maybe where I want to be. Yeah. Yeah. Or he'll move you where he wants you to be. Right. Wow, dude. Cut paste. I mean, that's his message, man. Yeah. And law and grace, where are we? I mean, they, they actually work beautifully together, right? Law of grace. They do, They continue. Law moves into grace. Paul says, law is the school master that brings us into grace. Look, we, we weren't even under the old covenant, but the old covenant with Christ, now there's a new covenant and that new covenant mm-hmm. is not the law that condemns but the spirit of life that gives life in him, in Romans we see it. Yeah. It's, it's like any, so if law is an obstacle for anyone or the number of laws or the confusion about them and just, right. I mean it's, it's like overwhelming. You wouldn't, you feel like a piece of trash or you're just like, man, this shit's for the birds. Like I can't, I can't even keep up all the more reason to run to Jesus. Right? Like if we, if we're about get 'em to Jesus, yes. We would be like, you're totally right. So do me a favor and just focus on everything that Jesus is said to be. Focus on what he really says and who he's talking to context. And you'll actually realize that fulfills every single one of those laws. And now you can take the laws and throw them in the trash and you can be free and blameless and perfect yourself. Like you'll never have to look back at those laws again unless you wanna reference 'em for, and, and that's where I need some of your, um, I don't know, instruction or guidance there. Like, do I ever look back at them because they are the school master? Should I look back at them again or Nope. Just run to Jesus. Well we have to Hide in him and, and never have to look back at the school master again. Once again, we have to understand that the law is good. The law was a purp for a purpose. It's, it's still good in that it shows sinners their sin. That's what the law was. We should never throw 'em in the trash because they're God's standard. They're god's, um, way to show us that we aren't perfect. And it leads us to grace. It leads us to why Christ had to come. You see, scripture tells us that the law was condemned in the flesh. The law had no power to change us. It just only had the power to show us how bad we were. But now Grace, grace teaches us to say no to sin we see in Timothy. So we should never throw the laws in the trash. I've, I've used on other recordings, like I've talked about putting Jesus on a shelf just cuz it's too much. Would it be fair to say, like, is that the laws don't throw'em in the trash, but once you understand that Jesus fulfills all of that for you forever, full stop. Like, you don't have to go back to the, maybe they can be set on a shelf. Like that's the, they're they're here, they're present. But like put 'em up, put 'em up there and just be able to look at 'em and go, Got it. Thank you, Jesus. Done. Because I couldn't keep 'em. Yeah, you got it. You know, everyone wants to go back to the Sermon on the Mount. It, it was a, it was a sermon where Jesus said, you can't keep these and I'm gonna do it for you. No greater love is is then what Christ did for us in fulfilling the law and in and in fulfilling the law. He had to pay the debt. And that's what him dying on the cross, I I can, I can follow it. I just, my normal, you can get why people might not, I mean, one part that trips me up is often since you, you're talking long grace, how could one man even God turn man? Like let's often, I, I urge people that are listening or at least curious, I'm like, stick, stick with me, be in my shoes for a second. Say like, okay, it's man, it's God as a man. How does he pay one time for me plus every other human? And then all we have to do is like, believe in our heart we not even out, we don't have to do something. We don't have to get ba we don't have to get dunked in water. I don't think he could ha come up with that sum of, sum of payment. So I probably need to do something. Right? Like, I'd be like, all right, we can start there, but then I probably need to do something because there's no way he could cover that for all those pe It just doesn't even make sense. If we look at the whole picture and we go back to the beginning, we know that life is in the blood. And since the beginning of time, uh, God has required a sacrifice, you know, he ask in Kain and able, you know, we see where he asks able to bring sacrifice, you know, from an animal. Blood, blood has always been required on the altar since sin. I got the blood part. How is, how is that, how is that enough blood for tens of billions of people, people Forever. Well, here's the thing. We have to understand who Jesus is, his blood. And, and let me, Hebrews 10 14 says, by one sacrifice, by one sacrifice, we have been set free. We gotta remember his blood. Wasn't the bull, the calf and the dove his blood. I know. Think about who he came from. Who was his father. It wasn't Joseph. It was the Almighty God. He was born of the Holy Spirit conceived there. So to answer your question, the fact of who he is, God in the flesh, no other man's blood would've been the same as a bull and a goat. Right? So that's the answer. And I even, I even get that. And I think that that's probably the answer that tipped me over the edge was like, man, that that comes full circle. Like that's pretty good it, I mean it's almost too perfect, right? Like just, it it to me it fits. Other people tell me it's hocus pocus, but like to me it fits because that's what you're saying is he paid this infinite debt he being got with his own son's blood, which is blood of him. Yes. So like, he pays his own debt with his own. I wrote a check to myself. It can be, it can be for literally a gazillion dollars. Cause I, I write it to myself and I pay myself. So like that, I'm trying to like make it logical for myself. Like why that kind of makes sense to me. Because even as you were talking, I'm like, yeah, I get it. But we're not left with a quantification of Jesus is a super important guy, son of God, like Joseph is not his father. I still don't see how that's like, I can't math out how that's worth tens of billions of souls, right? Infinite until this world ends. That's crazy to me because he died, but actually he died For the sin of the world because He, I I know, but that's just words. That's just words. How, how does he get to die for the sin of the world? I'm saying what clicked over for me is what he said, God, he's, he's got, so God's paying God, God can pay God. Infinite numbers. Yeah. God can pay God $1. God can pay God a gazillion like as soon as he, as soon as he says, you owe me money, he's saying to himself, pay, pay myself the money You know, he can, he can pay any amount throughout Scripture we see where it was always required. You know, the innocent, think about Adam and Eve, the innocent, an innocent, um, animal was, was killed to cover them, cover the sin, cover the sin. Jesus we see was here to take away the lamb of God. That takes away the sin of the world. But it's, it's amazing what you just said because the covenant, now this is amazing, the covenant. Now we find in Hebrews and we, it's Old Testament and talked about in Hebrews eight, nine, and 10, God made a covenant with himself in the Old Testament. That's another, that's another thing. I feel like I never heard, I never heard it in 50 Years. I never, this is why I think we're, we're, we're promoting so much like go do some of your own. Yes. Hopefully we've just made, like, I hope that sparked some people. If they, if they heard that. Because that's like, wait, what? That's not a covenant with us. God made a covenant with himself. He took us out of the deal. He did it on behalf of us, but he took us out of the deal. He's like, this is actually too hard for you all to get like, let, I'm gonna let me handle it. Let let me ask you a question. Who as a human could keep a perfect covenant with God? Yeah, I would be. So, you know what? Impossible, he made a covenant with himself. So he keeps it when we're unfaithful, he's faithful. So it, the whole message of this Jesus thing is that God became one of us to keep it all because he loved us and he wants us to be reconciled to him. And all we have to do is trust it and believe it. And I'll go so far as to say, I know in my own, my own life, we don't even get that faith and belief on our own. It's him that, that divine influence that we talked about, that's where that comes from. We're we're trying to run around and keep laws and, and, and fix things ourself where his divine influence even gives us that faith and belief. And I think it's because we want to be a part, uh, this is like human. We wanna be a part of the solution. I'd like to be a part, and I'm sorry, he's ki he's kind of said like, to take other than just like live It. Yeah. Because think about it once again, you've got some credit, you can now go live your life with him attached to you. Him saying, man, you might not want to do that. Well, he might let you do it. So you learn something, but you could, you're free to roam about the globe man. And you have a human spirit now. You have God's spirit, uh, infused in you. And no matter what you do, he's in it with you. And that's, that's the message man.