essayEnglish

THE POWER OF SIN

Boyce Mouton · 6 pages · 3,384 words

THE POWER OF SIN “The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law” (1 Cor 15:56)

No! This is not a mistake! “The power of sin is the law”!
The “sting of death is sin”. That is, sin hurts for the wages of sin is death (Rom. 6:23).
God, however, has conquered death so that death has lost it’s sting. So: “Where, O death is your victory? Where O death is your sting?” (1 Cor. 15:55).
Still, “The power of sin is the law”. The law actually empowers sin. God designed it that way. Jesus, however, solved this problem by abolishing in his flesh the law with its commandments and regulations (Eph. 2:15).
Paul said it like this to the Romans: “Through Jesus Christ the law of the Spirit of life set me free from the law of sin and death” (Rom. 8:2). Paul later wrote: “Christ is the end of the law, so that there may be righteousness for everyone who believes (Rom. 10:4).
Yes! “The law of the Lord is perfect, converting the soul” (Ps. 19:7), but people are not converted until they recognize that they are lost in sin. It is the purpose of the law to convince us that all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God.
Paul said: “What shall we say then? Is the law sin? Certainly not! Indeed I would not have know what sin was except through the law” (Rom. 7:7).
This is the point! God did not give us the law to save us, but to make us know what sin is: “Now we know that whatever the law says, it says to those who are under the law, so that every mouth may be silenced and the whole world held accountable to God. Therefore no one will be declared righteous in his sight by observing the law; rather, through the law we become conscious of sin” (Rom. 3:19-20).
“So the law was put in charge to lead us to Christ that we might be justified by faith” (Gal. 3:24).
David loved God’s law and meditated on it all day long. Meditating on the law made him wiser than his enemies and gave him more insight than his teachers (Ps. 119:97-104).
Peter quoted David about the resurrection of Jesus in the first gospel sermon (Acts 2:25-35).
With these truths in mind let us take a closer look at the law. God does not make mistakes. He knew exactly what He was doing when He gave the Law!

THE LAW WAS GIVEN TO THE JEWS

Let us begin with the obvious, but often overlooked fact, that God did not give His law to everyone. He gave His law to the Jews when they came out of Egypt.
Everyone is still a sinner, however, whether they have received the law or not. Note: “All who sin apart from the law will also perish apart from the law, and all who sin under the law will be judged by the law” (Rom. 2:12).
Obedience to the law is essential “For it is not those who hear the law who are righteous in God’s sight, but it is those who obey the law that will be declared righteous” (Rom. 2:13). No one but Jesus, however, actually obeyed the law.
“Indeed, when Gentiles, who do not have the law, do by nature things required by the law, they are a law for themselves, even though they do not have the law, since they show the requirements of the law are written on their hearts, their consciences also bearing witness, and their thoughts accusing, now even defending them” (Rom. 2:14-15). The point is that
God has given everyone a conscience. So when people without the law do not live up to their own laws their conscience accuses them and bears witness against them. So in the end “All have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God” (Rom. 3:23).
Everyone will be judged. “This will take place on the day when God will judge men’s secrets through Jesus Christ, as my gospel declares” (Rom. 2:16).
Human judges make decisions based upon what we “do”, but God also judges our “secrets”. David wrote: “You perceive my thoughts from afar . . . before a word is on my tongue you know it completely, O Lord” (Ps. 139:2-4).
Remember this warning from Jesus: “But I tell you that anyone who looks at a woman lustfully has already committed adultery with her in his heart” (Matt. 7:28). We cannot hide our “secrets” from God!
Death and Judgment are inevitable (Heb. 9:27).
“For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, that each one may receive what is due him for the things done while in the body, whether good or bad” (2 Cor. 5:10).
Truly those without law are foreigners to the covenants of the promise, without hope, and without God in the world (Eph. 2:12). Everyone needs Jesus in order to be saved!
People who have the law are lost too: “For whoever keeps the whole law and yet stumbles at just one point is guilty of breaking all of it” (Ja. 2:10).
We repeat, the law was given to bring us to Christ that we might be justified by faith (Gal. 3:24).

OUR SINFUL PASSIONS ARE AROUSED BY THE LAW

The Scriptures teach that the law arouses our sinful passions!
“For when we were controlled by the sinful nature, the sinful passions aroused by the law were at work in our bodies, so that we bore fruit for death” (Rom. 7:5). This is serious because “The wages of sin is death” (Rom. 6:23).
Paul continued: “Indeed I would not have known what sin was except through the law. For I would not have known what coveting was if the law had not said, ‘Do not covet.’ But sin, seizing the opportunity afforded by the commandment, produced in me every kind of covetous desire. For apart from the law sin is dead” (Rom. 7:7-8). Note that the law identifies what sin is and gives it life!
Further:“The law was added so that the trespass might increase” (Rom. 5:20). The more we study the law the more sins we discover.
This helps us to understand that “the power of sin is the law” (1 Cor. 15:56).
The commands: “Do not handle! Do not taste! Do not touch!” have an appearance of wisdom but are of no value in restraining sensual indulgence (Col. 2:20-23). In fact, such commandments can “arouse” our passions. Paul said he didn’t know what coveting was until he read in the law “Do not covet” (Rom. 7:7).
This is easy to understand. If you are trying to fast for 40 days like Jesus did, would it help to have 40 sermons against food? If someone commands you “Do not think about chocolate cake” the command is self defeating. You were not thinking about chocolate cake until you were told not to think about it.
We do not escape the corruption of the world through “commandments”, but through “promises” (2 Pet. 1:3-4).
REMEMBER! THE LAW WAS NOT GIVEN TO SAVE US, BUT TO MAKE US REALIZE THAT WE ARE SINNERS AND OUR ONLY HOPE IS IN JESUS CHRIST!

PREDICTIONS BASED ON LAW

As you know, while Moses was receiving the law on the mountain, the people down below were fornicating before a golden calf (Ex. 32:1-35).
3,000 died as a result of this sin (Ex. 32:28).
Even though Moses gave the law he realized that the law would not keep people from sinning. In fact, Moses predicted that they would be worse. He said: “Take this book of the Law and place it beside the ark of the covenant of the Lord your God. There it will remain as a witness against you. For I know how rebellious and stiff-necked you are. If you have been rebellious against the Lord while I am still alive and with you, how much more will you rebel after I die” (Deut. 31:26-27).
Instead of keeping the Israelites from rebelling, Moses predicted that after he died they would be even more rebellious. He was right!
Israel has a long history of rebellion as Moses predicted. Coming out of Egypt Israel was so rebellious that the whole generation died in the desert. Only Caleb and Joshua were permitted to lead a new generation into the promised land (Nu. 14:26-38).
Israel continued to rebel when they came into Canaan. God raised up a series of judges to bring about repentance, “But when the judge died, the people returned to ways even more corrupt than those of their fathers, following other gods and serving and worshiping them. They refused to give up their evil practices and stubborn ways” (Jud. 2:19).
Israel continued to rebel during the period of the kings. That’s why God raised up pagan nations to take them into captivity.
Jesus even described the rebels to whom He preached as an “unbelieving and perverse generation” (Mat. 17:17). : He said: “But do not think that I will accuse you before the Father. Your accuser is Moses on whom your hopes are set” (Jn. 5:45) The law does not save us, it condemns us!
Jesus recognized that the relationship between the law and sin by saying: “Woe to you teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You travel over land and sea to win a single convert, and when he becomes one, you make him twice as much a son of hell as you are” (Matt. 23:15).
Aaron was sinful, but he was not as bad as Annas and Caiaphas. Every generation seemed to get worse. Not once did 1,500 years did the law produce a generation of righteousness people!

THE NEW WAY

God, of course, was not surprised by their rebellion. The law did precisely what God intended it to do. Since the law failed to make people righteous, God designed a “new way” to be righteous that really works. Please consider these inspired words from Paul’s letter to Rome:

“Do you not know, brothers and sisters—for I am speaking to those who know the law— that the law has authority over someone only as long as that person lives? For example, by law a married woman is bound to her husband as long as he is alive, but if her husband dies, she is released from the law that binds her to him” (Rom. 7:1-2). This is obvious! If your husband dies you no longer have an obligation to do anything for him.
“So then, if she has sexual relations with another man while her husband is still alive, she is called an adulteress. But if her husband dies, she is released from that law and is not an adulteress if she marries another man” (Rom. 7:3). This verse needs no explanation!
“So, my brothers and sisters, you also died to the law through the body of Christ, that you might belong to another, to him who was raised from the dead, in order that we might bear fruit for God” (Rom. 7:4). In this illustration the law does not die, you die! You have been married to the law, but the law was a bad husband. Mr. Law was a cold, rigid, and inflexible husband who was without mercy. A husband like Mr. Law does not make for a happy wife. So you escaped from the marriage by becoming “dead to the law through the body of Christ” (Rom. 7:4). Fortunately, your death is not a problem for your new husband specializes in raising people from the dead! So when you are “born again” Jesus gives you new life and you are free to become the Bride of Christ!
For when we were in the realm of the flesh, the sinful passions aroused by the law were at work in us, so that we bore fruit for death. But now, by dying to what once bound us, we have been released from the law so that we serve in the new way of the Spirit, and not in the old way of the written code.” (Rom. 7:5-6).

THE NEW COVENANT

The “Old Covenant” was the “Ten Commandments”. “He declared unto you his covenant, the Ten Commandments, which he commanded you to follow and wrote them on two stone tablets” (Deut. 4:13). This is the law that gives power to sin.
The book of Hebrews explains the difference between the Old Covenant and the New Covenant: “For if there had been nothing wrong with that first covenant, no place would have been sought for another. But God found fault with the people and said: ‘The days are coming, declares the Lord, when I will make a new covenant with the people of Israel and with the people of Judah. It will not be like the covenant I made with their ancestors when I took them by the hand to lead them out of Egypt, because they did not remain faithful to my covenant, and I turned away from them, declares the Lord. This is the covenant I will establish with the people of Israel after that time, declares the Lord. I will put my laws in their minds and write them on their hearts. I will be their God, and they will be my people. No longer will they teach their neighbor, or say to one another, ‘Know the Lord,’ because they will all know me, from the least of them to the greatest. For I will forgive their wickedness and will remember their sins no more’ By calling this covenant ‘new’, he has made the first one obsolete; and what is obsolete and aging will soon disappear” (Heb. 8:7-13).
Here are a few thoughts about the difference between the Old and New Covenants.
The New Covenant was designed to be different from the Old Covenant.
God found faults in the people under the Old Covenant.
That is one reason for the New Covenant.
The New Covenant was not written in stone, but in the minds and hearts of believers.
The Old Covenant had to be taught to everyone, but the New Covenant is only received by people who are already taught.
No one participates in the New Covenant unless they know the Lord.
The “wickedness” and “sins” of those who know the Lord are forgiven and remembered no more.
The Old Covenant is obsolete and will soon disappear!

THE NEW BIRTH

On the third day of creation God created seed bearing plants and trees (Gen. 1:11-13).
Every seed reproduced according to its kind (Gen. 1:12).
Jesus used this fact to teach Nicodemus about the new birth (John 3:1-18).
Nicodemus had physical life because his earthly father planted a physical seed in the womb of his earthly mother. Physical life like this began with Adam and ultimately leads to death “For as in Adam all die” (1 Cor. 15:22).
If Nicodemus wanted spiritual life, it would have to come from a spiritual seed. Jesus reminded him of this by saying: “Flesh gives birth to flesh, but the Spirit gives birth to spirit” (Jn. 3:6). Every seed reproduces after it’s own kind (Gen. 1:12).
Physical life ultimately dies but spiritual life does not: Remember! “as in Adam all die, even so in Christ all will be made alive” (1 Cor. 15:22).
Christians are “born again, not of perishable seed, but of imperishable, through the living and enduring word of God” (1 Pet. 1:23). Christians therefore have eternal life!
Every child has the DNA of it’s father, so: “just as we have borne the “image” of the earthly man, so also we bear the “image” of the man from heaven” (1 Cor. 15:49).
The child of God has the DNA of God! The Greek word translated as “image” is “eikon” from which we get the word “icon”. The “icon of Adam” brings forth an earthly man, while the “icon of Jesus” brings forth a spiritual man.
No one who is born of God continues to sin because God’s seed remains in him. “No one who is born of God will continue to sin, because God’s seed remains in him; he cannot go on sinning, because he has been born of God” (1 Jn. 3:9).

THE NEW CREATION

The heart of an unconverted person is deceitful and desperately wicked (Jer. 17:9).
A wicked heart results in a wicked life. Jesus said: “Out of men’s hearts, come evil thoughts, sexual immorality, theft, murder. Adultery, greed, malice, deceit, lewdness, envy, slander, arrogance and folly. All these evil come from inside and make a man unclean” (Mk. 7:21- 23).
God solves this problem by giving those who believe a “new heart”. Note: “I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit in you; I will remove from you your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh. And I will put my Spirit in you and move you to follow my decrees and be careful to keep my laws” (Ez. 36:26-27).
In fact, God makes believers who receive Christ a “new creation”. Note: “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone and the new has come” (2 Cor. 5:17).
“For what the law was powerless to do in that it was weakened by the sinful nature, God did by sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful man to be a sin offering. And so he condemned sin in sinful man in order that the righteous requirements of the law might be
fully met in us, who do not life according to the sinful nature but according to the Spirit” (Rom. 8:2-4).
So “Now a righteousness from God apart from the law, has been made known, to which the Law and the Prophets testify. This righteousness from God comes through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe. There is no difference, for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Jesus Christ” (Rom. 3:21-24).

DON’T WORRY! JESUS IS A GOOD SHEPHERD

The Psalmist said: “Know that the Lord is God. It is he who made us, and we are his, we are his people, the sheep of his pasture” (Ps. 100:3).

The fact that the people of God are often referred to as sheep is instructive. Sheep are basically defenseless creatures who depend upon a shepherd to protect them. If Jesus is your Shepherd, however, you don’t have to worry! Jesus is the Good Shepherd Who lays down His life for the sheep (Jn. 10:11). No man can snatch you out away from Jesus (Jn. 10:28). No one can separate you from the love of Christ (Rom. 8:35-39). Jesus will never leave you or forsake you (Heb. 13:5). We can be confident that he who has begun a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus (Phil. 1:6).

So we conclude this brief study with one of the best known and most popular parts of the Bible:

“The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want. He maketh me to lie down in green pastures: he leadeth me beside the still waters. He restoreth my soul: he leadeth me in the paths of righteousness for his name's sake. Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me. Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of mine enemies: thou anointest my head with oil; my cup runneth over. Surely goodness and mercy shall fallow me all the days of my life: and I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever” (Ps. 23:1-6).