For sin shall not have dominion over you: for ye are not under the law, but under grace. Romans 6:14
Christians should note this verse, since the mark of being under grace is living righteously – “sin shall not have dominion over you”. However, there is a great deal of confusion and false doctrine among Christians today, some of whom actually believe that the Ten Commandments were set aside, and others who believe that since they are under grace they can do as they please (Antinomianism).
When Paul says “for ye are not under the Law” what he is telling us is that the Old Covenant does not apply to Christians. That is because the Lord Jesus Christ established the New Covenant through His death, burial, and resurrection. But Christ also established the Ten Commandments within the New Covenant by declaring the existence of the two Greatest Commandments (Matthew 22:36-40). These two commandments not only summed up the Ten Commandments, but they summed up the entire Old Testament:
Then one of them, which was a lawyer, asked him a question, tempting him, and saying, Master, which is the great commandment in the law? Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind. This is the first and great commandment [summing up the first four commandments]. And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself [summing up the last six commandments]. On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets.
The apostles recognized this, so Paul called it the Law of Love (“love is the fulfilling of the Law") and James called it the Royal Law as well as the Law of Liberty. The apostle John, however, speaks of the commandments of Christ, the primary one being the commandment to love our brethren and also love others.
But when God promised the New Covenant, He also said that He would write His laws in our minds and in our hearts (Hebrews 8:6-13). Whether we call them the Ten Commandments, the Two Greatest Commandments, the Law of Love, the Royal Law, the Law of Liberty, or the commandments of Christ, it makes no difference. They all pertain to the moral and spiritual laws which are to be obeyed by the power of the Holy Spirit by all Christians. Only thus will sin not have dominion over you.
So what exactly did Paul mean (via Divine inspiration) when he said “ye are not under the Law”? Well the Law has 613 commandments, and the ones that do not apply to Christians pertain to the tabernacle (as well as the temple), the Levitical priesthood, the feasts, festivals, and holy days, the dietary laws, and some of the civil and criminal laws which applied strictly to Israel. But Paul’s epistle to Hebrews really focuses on the portion of the Old Covenant which was abolished through the death of Christ and the shedding of His blood for our redemption. In particular the constant animal sacrifices which were necessary to deal with sin. There were also various ceremonial observations which were necessary for Jews but are not necessary for the Church. However, there are still four commandments from the Law of Moses which apply to all Christians (Acts 15:28,29).
Now Paul says that sin shall not have dominion over you, which means that “the flesh” (the old Adamic sin nature) shall not control you. Why? Because we are supposed to be under the control or dominion of the Holy Spirit. We are not our own, we have been bought with a price. Therefore there must be some evidence that the Holy Spirit is in control: What? know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost which is in you, which ye have of God, and ye are not your own? (1 Cor 6:19).
But in spite of this reality, Christians can and do sin, and if we say we have no sin we make God a liar and the truth is not in us (1 John 1:10). In view of this the apostle John provides us with instructions on how to deal with sin in our lives (read the entire first epistle of John). The first epistle of John is not addressed to Gnostics (who are heretics) but to genuine children of God.
Christians should note this verse, since the mark of being under grace is living righteously – “sin shall not have dominion over you”. However, there is a great deal of confusion and false doctrine among Christians today, some of whom actually believe that the Ten Commandments were set aside, and others who believe that since they are under grace they can do as they please (Antinomianism).
When Paul says “for ye are not under the Law” what he is telling us is that the Old Covenant does not apply to Christians. That is because the Lord Jesus Christ established the New Covenant through His death, burial, and resurrection. But Christ also established the Ten Commandments within the New Covenant by declaring the existence of the two Greatest Commandments (Matthew 22:36-40). These two commandments not only summed up the Ten Commandments, but they summed up the entire Old Testament:
Then one of them, which was a lawyer, asked him a question, tempting him, and saying, Master, which is the great commandment in the law? Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind. This is the first and great commandment [summing up the first four commandments]. And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself [summing up the last six commandments]. On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets.
The apostles recognized this, so Paul called it the Law of Love (“love is the fulfilling of the Law") and James called it the Royal Law as well as the Law of Liberty. The apostle John, however, speaks of the commandments of Christ, the primary one being the commandment to love our brethren and also love others.
But when God promised the New Covenant, He also said that He would write His laws in our minds and in our hearts (Hebrews 8:6-13). Whether we call them the Ten Commandments, the Two Greatest Commandments, the Law of Love, the Royal Law, the Law of Liberty, or the commandments of Christ, it makes no difference. They all pertain to the moral and spiritual laws which are to be obeyed by the power of the Holy Spirit by all Christians. Only thus will sin not have dominion over you.
So what exactly did Paul mean (via Divine inspiration) when he said “ye are not under the Law”? Well the Law has 613 commandments, and the ones that do not apply to Christians pertain to the tabernacle (as well as the temple), the Levitical priesthood, the feasts, festivals, and holy days, the dietary laws, and some of the civil and criminal laws which applied strictly to Israel. But Paul’s epistle to Hebrews really focuses on the portion of the Old Covenant which was abolished through the death of Christ and the shedding of His blood for our redemption. In particular the constant animal sacrifices which were necessary to deal with sin. There were also various ceremonial observations which were necessary for Jews but are not necessary for the Church. However, there are still four commandments from the Law of Moses which apply to all Christians (Acts 15:28,29).
Now Paul says that sin shall not have dominion over you, which means that “the flesh” (the old Adamic sin nature) shall not control you. Why? Because we are supposed to be under the control or dominion of the Holy Spirit. We are not our own, we have been bought with a price. Therefore there must be some evidence that the Holy Spirit is in control: What? know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost which is in you, which ye have of God, and ye are not your own? (1 Cor 6:19).
But in spite of this reality, Christians can and do sin, and if we say we have no sin we make God a liar and the truth is not in us (1 John 1:10). In view of this the apostle John provides us with instructions on how to deal with sin in our lives (read the entire first epistle of John). The first epistle of John is not addressed to Gnostics (who are heretics) but to genuine children of God.
