Jesus was pretty straightforward with what His intentions were regarding the law that was handed down by God to Moses some 430 years after God first established covenant with Abraham. (Gal. 3:17,19). He was not there to do away with or abolish it. He came to fulfill it. (Matt. 5:17)

In fact, you might say based on what we read there, He ‘doubled-down’ on it; or as I like to say repeatedly here – He ‘raised the bar’. You can clearly see this as you read on in Matt. 5:21-48 where He offers up some examples like: “You’ve heard it said you shall not murder...but I say unto you that you whoever is angry with his brother shall be in danger of the judgement”. (22). Why He even makes mention of calling someone a ‘fool’ will put you in a bad place.

Or how about this one: “You’ve heard it said you shall not commit adultery but I say to you that whoever looks at a woman to lust for her has already committed adultery in his heart.” (27-28). And if those two examples don’t have you squirming yet, fast -forward to vs. 48 where He lays out His expectations for us all: “You shall be perfect, just as your Father in heaven is perfect.”

Poetic or figurative language...or did He really mean this? And be careful here...seems I recall a serpent who reared his head early on back in the garden trying to throw some doubt and confusion on what God said back then as well. (Gen. 2:17; 3:1-4)

I can nearly guarantee you here that if you will take some time examining the scriptures I lay out for you, with the help, leading, and confirmation by the Holy Spirit, your understanding of what God is wanting to reveal to us could change your walk, your faith, and your entire life as well. It sure did for me.

The law that God handed down to Moses was never done away with. It is still in effect today. And we are not talking about the dietary restrictions and the animal blood sacrifices here either when we talk about the ‘law’. Those were... done away with. (Mark 7:20; Acts 10:9-16)

I should also point out, that while Paul acknowledges that the law is good and holy and to be ‘observed or done’ (Rom. 2:13; 7:12; 1 Tim.1:9; 1 Cor. 7:19), he is also quick to tell us that ‘keeping this law makes no one ‘righteous’. (Rom. 3:20). I know this might sound confusing to some of you given the years of teachings that have been engrained in us; but please hang with me here. If this is any help to you, let me toss out this ‘clue’ as to where we are going with all this talk of keeping the law. IF a person truly surrenders their whole heart to Jesus, and begins to follow Him like His children/sheep are supposed to do....(John 10:27; Rom. 8:14) then you will discover that you will actually be ‘walking as He walked’ (1 John 2:6) and in the process, you will be fulfilling the law as He did. (Rom. 8:14). But You have to follow His leading in order for this to happen. (Heb. 5:9). And...we will also see what has ‘hindered’ us from doing this. That will be our ‘second building block’ to study later.

Ok...take a deep breath here; it’s going to be OK. I promise. :- )

In the Book of Revelation, do you know how the true saints of God are identified? They are the ones who ‘keep the commandments of God’. (12:17; 14:12; 22:14)

Were you aware that John gave us some insight as to how we can ‘know’ we are ‘in Christ’? We will...”keep His commandments”. (1 John 2:3-6) In fact, he tells us there that if we are actually abiding in Him...we ought to be ‘walking just as He walked’. And what did Jesus say those who truly love Him will do? “Keep His commandment.” (John 14:15; 15:10)

Now...let me ask you this: Do you know what ‘sin’ is? I’m sure you have been told it is ‘missing the mark’ and for some reason, we think that gives us all a ‘pass’. But let’s see what John has to say regarding what ‘sin’ actually is: “It’s breaking the commandments of God!” (1 John 3:4). It is lawlessness. But if you are abiding in Jesus, you won’t do that anymore. (1 John 3:6)

All those folks we read about in Matt. 7:21-23...despite all the grand things they did in the ‘name of the Lord’, do you know why they are barred from entering in to the Father’s kingdom? They continued to practice ‘lawlessness’. Says so right there in vs. 23. Might look at Gal. 5:21 as well.

Now here is where we get squirrelly with all this talk of sin, and law, and grace- We’ve been nearly brainwashed into believing that we will always continue to break the law as if that is a given. And when I say ‘squirrelly’, imagine how you would be perceived by your local community and law enforcement agencies if you were constantly informing them that you were a ‘lawbreaker’. It was your desire to be a good neighbor and such...but let’s face it...a ‘lawbreaker is gonna break the law’. Nobody is perfect, you know.

Try passing a highway patrol officer going 25 MPH over the speed limit and when he pulls you over, will he be understanding and let you off because you confess to him that you are a ‘lawbreaker’?

And maybe you put a sign out in your front yard announcing to your neighbors that you are a ‘reformed lawbreaker’ and you don’t do those big crimes anymore like murder and robbing banks and raping; but...you still struggle with issues with petty theft and burglarizing homes. But hey...we all have our weaknesses, do we not?

So when Jesus told others to ‘go and sin no more’, He was not issuing some impossible command. He could have told them to ‘sin less’ and ‘try harder’, but He didn’t. He told them to ‘sin no more’ and ‘be perfect as your Father in heaven is perfect’. And what about that part where He warned that one man whom He healed about ‘sinning no more...or something worse might come upon you.’ (John 5:14) So what was He thinking here?

Now here is where this gets rather serious and has implications for us all.  Jesus said the law was not going to be abolished or done away with. Which means...the wrath and curse and condemnation and death which the law brings when it’s violated...is still in effect as well. Take a moment with that one. (Rom. 4:15; Gal. 3:10; 2 Cor. 3:7,9). And if you really want a sobering read, you might plow through Deut. 28:15-68. (Don't forget- the 'fear of the Lord' is the beginning of wisdom)

Breaking the law brings the wrath of God. - “Let No One deceive you with empty words...for because of these things the wrath of God comes upon the sons of disobedience.” (Eph. 5:6; Col. 3:6)

So when Jesus said: “everyone who does not believe in the Son, ...the wrath of God abides on him”, He pointed this out because “all have sinned”. (Rom. 3:23) And do you remember what Jesus came to ‘save’ us from? It was/is...the ‘wrath of God’. (Rom. 5:9).

HOW...does Jesus ‘save us from the wrath of God’? The way you hear most religious folks explain it, holding up some church membership card that declares you are a Christian and ‘washed in the blood’ exempts you from the wrath of God. Why, I hear repeatedly, very high-profile and visible preachers make statements similar to this; I bet you have heard it before as well...”When a Christian sins, they are no longer subject to the punishment of God because Jesus took that punishment for all past, present, and future sins’. I have heard these preachers state clearly...”God on longer punishes us when we sin.”

Yet, they might be quick to add there will be ‘consequences’ for our sins. Do what? Excuse me, but that sounds like ‘double-talk’ to me. What do you think the ‘wrath of God’ is?  - > Consequences for sinning....for breaking God’s law. Jesus heals that man in John 5...then tells him to ‘go and sin no more or what....? Something ‘worse’ might come upon you’? When you break civil or traffic laws...you get ‘punished’ or ‘penalized’, a.k.a. ‘consequences’. If you are out breaking man-made laws and getting off free because your dad is the judge,  then you are living in and benefitting from a corrupt system.

OH...and if you want to offer up Rom. 8:1 that says there is ‘now therefore no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus, who do not walk according to the flesh, but according to the Spirit’... did you notice the ‘qualifier’ there that says “to those who are in Christ Jesus...there is no condemnation”? (and some Bibles leave off that second part) And what did we learn from John about those who are truly “In...Christ Jesus”? They...”keep the commandments of God”. (1 John 2:3-6). In other words, they no longer break God’s laws...because they are ‘in Christ’ and are ‘abiding in Him’...which means...they no longer sin. (1 John 3:6, 9; 5:18)

Yeah...that one needs to simmer a bit as you meditate on this. It can take a bit of time for the truth of God’s word to cut through all the false layers and teachings that men have buried us in.

IF...you are starting to ‘see it’...then you may also be experiencing some of the same anguish that Paul expressed having when he saw, and agreed with the law...but also recognized that which was hindering him from keeping the law there in Rom. 7:15-25. It was his ‘body of death’ (24), ...’that is, his flesh’.(18). Why he even laments ‘who will deliver him from that body of death’ (that seems to prevent him from keeping God’s holy law). But this is where the good news comes in. There is a ‘remedy’. That is what chapter 8 is all about; and we’ll dive in to it tomorrow. ;-). (Lord willing, of course)