Free The Gospel in Twenty Questions by Paul Ellis

you. As sin’s prisoner, you are simply not capable of freeing
yourself. The harder you run into that wall, the harder it’ll smack you. This
leads to the third purpose of the law.
     
    I found that the very commandment that was
intended to bring life actually brought death. For sin, seizing the opportunity
afforded by the commandment, deceived me, and through the commandment put me to
death. (Romans 7:10 – 11)
     
    God didn’t give us
the law to help us overcome sin. The law is meant to help sin overcome you. The law ministers death. It does this by demanding we
perform day in and day out, with no time off for good behavior. “Come on you
sinner! Try harder. Don’t you want to do your best for Jesus? Don’t you want to
be free?”
    Urged on by
the merciless law, we run into the stone wall again and again until we are
smashed and broken and our pathetic promises are exposed as futile. Eventually
we collapse, spent and hopeless. From our once-proud mouths we whisper words of
defeat. “I can’t do this. What a wretch I am. Who will rescue me from this
prison of death?”
    And this
leads us to the fourth and finest purpose of the law.
     

Why do we need the law?
     
    So the law was our guardian until Christ came that we might
be justified by faith. (Galatians 3:24)
     
    The ultimate purpose of the law
is to point you to Jesus so that you may be set free from sin and live in it no
longer (Romans 6:2). The law is not your teacher, your friend, or your
protector. But the law will take you to Someone who is. The law is a guide who
leads you to Jesus. [20]
     
    For Christ is the end of the Law [the limit at which
it ceases to be, for the Law leads up to him who is the fulfillment of its
types, and in him the purpose which it was designed to accomplish is fulfilled.
That is, the purpose of the Law is fulfilled in him] ... (Romans 10:4a, AMP)
     
    If you have met Jesus, the law
has fulfilled its purpose. You have no further need of its aid. You can dismiss
it as a good and faithful servant. Thank God for the law that leads us to
Christ.
     

How do I know if I’m living under law?
     
    The gospel of grace is
life-giving water to a thirsty soul. But mix in a little death-dealing law, and
the message becomes toxic. This is why grace preachers get upset whenever law
is preached to those under grace.
    Someone once
asked me, “Who’s preaching law? I don’t know anyone who is saying we have to
live by the Law of Moses.” That’s a fair observation. The problem is, Moses
wasn’t the only lawgiver. Many are trying to live by the commands of Jesus, the
New Testament, and their own church traditions. We can even become our own
lawgivers by telling ourselves that God’s favor and acceptance hinge on what we
do.
    There’s an
easy way to recognize law. You just look for the word if . For example, “ If you fully obey the Lord and follow his commands, you will be blessed. However, if you do not obey the Lord and follow his commands, you will be cursed” (see
Deuteronomy 28:1 – 3,15 – 16). That’s vintage law. It’s carrots and sticks for religious
donkeys.
    In the old
covenant, the law was often expressed like this: If you listen, if you seek, if you follow, if you obey. The commands may have
changed, but religious law today is expressed exactly the same way: If you fast and pray, God will act. If you avoid sin, he will receive you. If you read a chapter a day, you’ll keep the devil away. If you serve, if you give, if you go on a short-term mission trip, God will bless you. [21]
    There is
nothing wrong with serving or praying or any of these things. The problem is
the lie that says God’s blessings depend on you doing them. That’s the old way
of the law and it is completely opposed to the new way of grace. In this world
there may be seven steps to success or fifteen keys to favor, but in the kingdom
of God there is only one and it’s Jesus.
    The law-based
covenant was a temporary arrangement between God and Israel.