I was once alive apart from the law, but when the commandment came, sin came alive…The very commandment that promised life proved to be death to me. For sin, seizing an opportunity through the commandment, deceived me…So the law is holy, and the commandment is holy and righteous and good. – Romans 7:9-12 ESV
In the last blog, we discussed that the law of Moses and the law of God are one and the same. God is the originator of the law of Moses and the law of Moses is the law of God as commanded by God and delivered by Moses.
So, what came with the law? Did the law make people sinless? Did it make people right with God?
In today’s scripture, we see that the law brought with it the knowledge and consciousness of sin. The law reveals and exposes the true state of man’s sinful heart. We need to clarify, however, that the law is not the cause of sin. Sin has always been present in the world.
Just because the law brought the knowledge of sin, it does not mean that the law itself is bad or evil. God’s divine and righteous intention for giving the law was to help humanity, but sin switched or messed up the blessings of the law and turned it into a curse. “…Did the law, which is good, cause my death? Of course not! Sin used what was good to bring about my condemnation to death. So we can see how terrible sin really is. It uses God’s good commands for its own evil purposes.” Romans 7:13 (NLT)
The law reveals the holy nature and character of God, and it shows believers how God expects them to live. The law of God encompasses all of God’s divine revelation of Himself. The law gives man the perfect opportunity to gain a greater and deeper knowledge of God. “…the law itself is holy, and its commands are holy and right and good.” Romans 7:12 (NLT)
The Psalmist testified of this truth when he said: “The instructions of the Lord are perfect, reviving the soul. The decrees of the Lord are trustworthy, making wise the simple. The commandments of the Lord are right, bringing joy to the heart. The commands of the Lord are clear, giving insight for living. Reverence for the Lord is pure, lasting forever. The laws of the Lord are true; each one is fair. They are more desirable than gold, even the finest gold. They are sweeter than honey, even honey dripping from the comb.They are a warning to your servant, a great reward for those who obey them.” Psalms 19:7-11 (NLT)
The above Psalm clearly shows that the law of God is everything but evil. We can see that the law is perfect, reviving the soul. It is trustworthy, making wise the simple. It is right, bringing joy to the heart. It is clear, giving insight for living. It is pure, lasting forever. They are true; each one is fair.
So, if the law is good, right, and holy, why then did scripture say that the letter of the law kills? We will discuss this in the next blog.
Stay blessed,
LaraLex
Hills and Valleys 