Reference: Romans 8:1-4, and Hebrews 7:18-19
If you will notice in the above scriptures of our text found in Romans 8:1-4 I have underlined three distinct laws that are different one from the other. These three laws are: (1) The law of the Spirit ; (2) The law of sin and death ; (3) The law . Now before we can understand God's plan of redeeming salvation and what these laws pertain to, then we must understand what these laws are and what part they play in the life of the Christian.
There are two of these mentioned laws that I want to deal with in this article so that we can better know and understand how God deals with us in his saving plan of redemption. These two laws are the law of the Spirit and the other one that is simply stated as being "the law." I want you to notice that the apostle Paul tells us that it is the "law of the Spirit" that sets us free from the law of sin and death. I want you to also notice that Paul tells us in verse three of the eighth chapter of Romans that what "the law" could not do in that is was weak through the flesh; it is this law that I want to stress more emphesis on than the law of the Spirit.
Now the law that Paul is referring to in this verse of scripture is the law of the Ten Commandments. Many places in the epistles that the apostle Paul wrote we find him constantly saying that by the deeds of the law there can be no flesh justified in the sight of God. This is exactly what Paul is telling us in the verse of scripture in our text of Romans 8:3. Paul tells us that the law being weak through flesh can not free us from the law of sin and death.
There are many Bible teachers and preachers in the world today who are actually teaching that law keeping must yet be observed in the day and age in which we live in, but these teachers are totally void of the truth as to what the law of the Spirit is that the apostle Paul says that sets us free from the law of sin and death. It is the law of the Spirit that sets us free from sin and death and not the law of God, which is the law of the Ten Commandments.
The Bible very clearly points out the fact that by the deeds of the law, which is the law referred to in Romans 8:3, this law cannot and will not set us free from the law of sin and death as Paul refers to in Romans 8:2. It is an established fact that the christian must be obedient to some form of the law, but this law is the law of the Spirit and not the law of the Ten Commandments. What today's Bible teachers are ignorant of is the fact as to what part the law of the commandments plays in the life of the born again christian. Anybody who can read the Bible with an open mind can plainly see that sin is the transgression of the law. To transgress the law simply means to do what the law says not to do. The christian must not break the laws of the ten commandments, but this fact does not prove nor mean that the christian obeys those laws by his or her observation of those laws. The law that the christian keeps is the law of the Spirit, which is the revealed truth contained in the gospel of Christ.
To obey the law of the Spirit is being led of the Spirit. To obey and be led of the Spirit is walking after the Spirit of which Paul tells us that they who walk after the Spirit obeys the things of the Spirit. The things of the Spirit that must be obeyed is the truth that he reveals to the believer. These truths that's revealed to the believer is exactly what Paul calls the law of the Spirit. There is a great difference between obeying the law of the commandments and obeying the law of the Spirit.
The law of the commandments will be established and fulfilled in us by our walking after the Spirit. Paul tells us in Romans 8:4 that the righteousness of the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit. To walk after the flesh means of course to obey the things of the flesh. To obey the things of the flesh is obeying things in a way that the flesh wants to obey.
The righteousness that the law is talking about can only be achieved in the life of the believer by walking after the Spirit. Perfect obedience to the Ten Commandments can only be brought about by being led of the Spirit. Being led of the Spirit has nothing to do with the observance of the law, but yet the law will be fulfilled in us. The christian is being led by the Spirit in a life of righteousness. This life of righteousness is the righteousness that the law cannot in itself bring about. This is what Hebrews 7:18-19 is talking about. These scriptures tells us that the law made nothing perfect, but the bringing in of a better hope did; by the which we draw nigh unto God. This better hope is the new covenant revealed in the New Testament scriptures. This new covenant is what Paul calls the law of the Spirit. Satan is deceiving many people today by causing preachers to teach the law of righteousness instead of what Paul calls God's righteousness.
Paul tells us that God's righteousness is revealed in the gospel from faith to faith. It is this righteousness that we absolutely must submit ourselves to as so stated in Romans 3:25-26. Satan is deceiving preachers today by causing them to fail to study God's word rightly dividing the word of truth. The average preacher today claims salvation one night and begins preaching the next. God certainly does not call this type of preacher and puts him in the ministry.
The word of God says that we must study to show ourselves approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth ( II Timothy 2:15) The average confessing preacher today goes off to some seminary to earn his degree to preach what he calls the gospel, but I'll guarantee that any man God calls to preach his word will go to the Bible and he will study it fully before he attempts to proclaim what he knows.
You'll not find very many people who will take their Bible and study it and wait on God to put them in the ministry. The office of the ministry today is looked upon as being a profession like any other profession or trade. It seems that most people thinks that a person has to go to a Bible school in order to learn what to preach and teach. I'll tell you one thing, it's a proven fact that you can't preach the true word of God in today's churches if you don't have a preachers license having been ordained in some denominational church....