In spite of this being broadcasted on the wrong channel, I have to admit, the study itself went pretty good. Understanding the purpose of the law is important to understanding why it is that we're not under the Law anymore. When a sincere believer first hears this, often the first reaction is one of indignation--I should know--that was me. "Oh! Well, then! Since we're not under the law, I guess we can go sin up a storm, huh? After all, we don't have to obey the Ten Commandments anymore!" Oh man--I had enough pride to choke a horse.
See, the thing is, "not being under the law" isn't a license to sin. Quite frankly, when I was trying to keep the law, I sinned pretty good withOUT a license. What about you? "Being under the law" in no way kept me from sinning. Oh, I tried. I tried not to make God mad. I tried to make sure I was always a good little girl. Unfortunately, my motivation was often times either one of two things: Fear of punishment, or fear of being unloved. I didn't want either of those things.
When we come out from under the Law, where do we go? We go into Christ. Now, let's be serious. If Jesus honestly lives in us--is He going to lead us to steal? What about killing? Or Coveting anything? No, He wouldn't. Nor would He stop at "Thou shalt not covet". He takes it a step further. Not only do we not covet (Not because it's one of the Ten commandments, but because it's not an act of love). We go beyond "not" doing something, and rejoice when our neighbors DO have something. What does rejoicing look like? Perhaps walking over and commenting what a lovely__________they have? Waving as they pass by with their ____________? And mean it...no inward seething because they got something you deserved. Rejoicing when the coworker gets the promotion that should have been yours? What would rejoicing with him look like? Hmmmm?
Until next time!
