Does Grace replace the law?

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I must say understanding Law and grace is vital, read the book of Galatians , Apostle Paul does such a fantastic work of explaining it . He even explains how the Promise of Abraham is not of the law , I learned some things reading Galatians and so will most if done prayerfully, and try not to get stuck on a few verses that support your views, but consider the whole picture Paul lays out so well ! God bless you !
While the way to inherit the promise is not as the result of our obedience to the Law of God, the content of what is promised is in regard to our obedience to the Law of God. God promised Abraham that through his children of all of the nations of the Earth shall be blessed and the Law of God is how the children of Abraham know how to live blessed lives (Psalm 119:1-3), so the that the children of Abraham are a blessing to the nations in accordance with inheriting the promise through faith is by turning the nations from their wickedness and by teaching them to obey it through spreading the Gospel of the Kingdom/Grace. This is in accordance with Jesus being sent as the promised seed to bless us by turning us from our wickedness (Acts 3:25-26).
 
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I’m still going through Romans. Basically the Law was given to show sin and used to condemn. It was literally the”letter” of the law. Jesus in us has become the “spirit” of the law. Even though this deals with salvation (no one could be saved by following the law) and only belief in Jesus could save, it takes Jesus’s spirit (the Holy Spirit) living through us to live out the internal law of what God is telling us to do and obey. Some of the laws are still applicable but we don’t worry about keeping them - dont murder, adultery etc. Even if you break some it doesn’t mean your unsaved. I’m not fully sure how grace works.
The character traits of God are the fruits of the Spirit, such as love, and the Law of God was given to teach us how to embody the character traits of God, such as with Jesus summarizing the Law of God as being about how to love God and our neighbor (Matthew 22:36-40), which is why the Spirit has the role of leading us to obey it. The difference between following the spirit or the letter of the law is that someone can go through the motions of obeying the Law of God while neglecting to be a doer of the character traits of God that it was given in order to teach us how to embody. For example, in Matthew 23:23, Jesus said that tithing was something that they ought to be doing while not neglecting weightier matters of the law of justice, mercy, and faithfulness.

We embody what we believe to be true about God through our works, such as with James 2:18 saying that he would show his faith through his works, or in other words, the way to believe in God is by embodying His character traits. For example, by being a doer of good works in obedience to the Law of God we are embodying His goodness, which is why our good works bring glory to Him (Matthew 5:16), and by embodying God's goodness we are also embodying the belief that God is good. Likewise, the way to believe that God is compassionate is by being compassionate (Luke 6:36), the way to believe that God is holy is by being a doer of His instructions for how to be holy as He is holy (1 Peter 1:16), and so forth. This is exactly the same as the way to believe in the Son, who is the radiance of God's glory and the exact likeness of His character (Hebrews 1:3), which he embodied through his works by setting a sinless example for us to follow of how to walk in obedience to the Law of God. This is also why the Bible frequently connects our belief in God with our obedience to Him, such as with Revelation 14:12 where those who kept faith in Jesus are the same as those who kept God's commandments.

We can't earn our salvation even as the result of having perfect obedience to the Law of God, but rather it is by this faith alone that we are being saved. In Psalm 119:29-30, he wanted to put false way far from him, for God to be gracious to him by teaching him to obey His law, and he chose the way of faith by setting it before him, so this has always been the one and only way of salvation by grace through faith alone.

The Law of God was not given to condemn but to lead us to repentance and to teach us how to not be condemned. Those who are in Christ are obligated to walk in the same way that he walked (1 John 2:6) and there is now therefore now condemnation for those who are in Christ (Romans 8:1).
 
I do keep the sabbath 24/7 by knowing and trusting that God is sanctifying me.
You appear to want to be counted as obeying the Law of God without actually obeying it and it doesn't work that way. God commanded to keep the 7th day holy and to work the other 6 days. Do you refrain from work 24/7? Do you refrain from creating fires 24/7? Do you refrain from buy and selling 24/7? Is there any day that you intentionally refrain from doing these things? God has given instructions through His law for how to know Him, how to trust in Him, and how to be sanctified by Him, and we can't know God, trust in God, and be sanctified by God instead of obeying those instructions.
 
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You appear to want to be counted as obeying the Law of God without actually obeying it and it doesn't work that way.

No, it doesn't work the way you think it works. Obeying the law of God is doing the righteousness required by it, not merely outwardly observing the letters of the law.

The righteousness required by the 4th commandment is to know that God is the one sanctifying his children. You can outwardly observe weekly sabbaths without doing the righteousness required by the 4th commandment, and you can also do the righteousness required by the 4th commandment at any moment in time through the spirit.

The righteousness required by the 4th commandment is to cease from works of the flesh and rest in Christ's finished work that sanctifies us. But you can't see that because your heart is not filled with faith and you are seeking to justify yourself through law.
 
No, it doesn't work the way you think it works. Obeying the law of God is doing the righteousness required by it, not merely outwardly observing the letters of the law.

The righteousness required by the 4th commandment is to know that God is the one sanctifying his children. You can outwardly observe weekly sabbaths without doing the righteousness required by the 4th commandment, and you can also do the righteousness required by the 4th commandment at any moment in time through the spirit.
It would be overwhelming to us for God to exhaustively teach how to embody His righteousness in every possible situation, so the point is to teach us how to do that by teaching us a limited set us instructions that all have that trait in common, which is the Law of God. The difference between following the spirit or the letter of the law is that someone can go through the motions of obeying the Law of God while neglecting to be a doer of the character traits of God that the Law of God was given to teach us how to embody. For example, in Matthew 23:23, Jesus said that thing was something that they ought to be doing while not neglecting weightier matters of the law of justice, mercy, and faithfulness.

The way to love God is by embodying His character traits, such as the way to love justice is by being a doer of justice, the way to love holiness is by being a doer of His instructions for how to be holy as He is holy, and so forth. In other words, the goal of everything in the Law of God is to teach us how to love different aspects of His character traits, which is why the Bible repeatedly states in both the OT and the NT that the way to love God is by obeying His commandments. In Exodus 20:6, God wanted His children to love Him and obey His commandments, and in Isaiah 29:13, God disdained it when His children honored Him with their lips while their hearts were far from Him, so the Law of God was never give as something to be merely outwardly obeyed apart from Christ.

God sanctifies His children through his commandments (Leviticus 20:6-7, John 17:17) and also teaches us how to know Him through His commandments (Exodus 33:13, Matthew 7:23).

We can't meet the righteous requirement of a law instead of obeying it, but only through obeying it correctly in a way that embodies God's character traits in accordance with walking in the Spirit.

The righteousness required by the 4th commandment is to cease from works of the flesh and rest in Christ's finished work that sanctifies us. But you can't see that because your heart is not filled with faith and you are seeking to justify yourself through law.
In Titus 2:14, Jesus gave himself to redeem us from all lawlessness and to purify for himself a people of his own possession who are zealous for doing good works, so the way to rest in his finished work that sanctifies us is by becoming zealous for doing good works in obedience to the Law of God (Acts 21:20). The Bible repeatedly connects our faith in God with our obedience to Him, such as with Revelation 14:12 where those who kept faith in Jesus are the same as those who kept God's commandments, so I am not the one whose heart is not filled with faith but rather I am promoting obedience to the Law of God because my heart is filled with faith.

I have said nothing in favor of trying to justify myself as the result of obeying the Law of God. We can't earn our justification even as the result of having a perfect obedience to the Law of God because it was never given as a way of justifying ourselves in the first place. While Paul denied in Romans 4:1-5 that we can earn our justification as the result of our obedience to the Law of God, he also affirmed in Romans 2:13 that only the doers of the law will be justified, so there is a reason why our justification requires us to choose to be doers of it other than in order to earn it as the result, namely faith insofar as the faith by which we are justified also upholds the Law of God (Romans 3:28-31). Do you uphold the Law of God through faith?

God is trustworthy, therefore His law is also trustworthy (Psalm 19:7), so the way to trust in God is by obediently trusting in His law and it is contradictory for someone to trust in God instead of obediently trusting in His instructions. If someone says that they trust in God but they refuse to obediently trust in His instructions, then their actions speak louder than their words.
 
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It would be overwhelming to us for God to exhaustively teach how to embody His righteousness in every possible situation, so the point is to teach us how to do that by teaching us a limited set us instructions that all have that trait in common, which is the Law of God

That's the old way. It's not overwhelming at all to be taught of the spirit. Pay attention to "rest for your souls", ie the fulfillment of the sabbaths

Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light. Matthew 11:28-30​

What did Jesus mean by "heavy laden"? He meant the unbearable yoke of the law:

Now therefore why tempt ye God, to put a yoke upon the neck of the disciples, which neither our fathers nor we were able to bear? But we believe that through the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ we shall be saved, even as they. Acts 15:10-11​
 
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That's the old way. It's not overwhelming at all to be taught of the spirit. Pay attention to "rest for your souls", ie the fulfillment of the sabbaths

Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light. Matthew 11:28-30​
In Hebrews 3:18-19, they did not enter into God's rest because of their unbelief/disobedience, and in Ezekiel 20:13, it specifically mentions that they greatly profaned God's Sabbaths, so someone should not think that they can enter into God's rest while having the same disobedience/unbelief that prevented the Israelites from entering into God's rest.

Jesus set a sinless example for us to follow of how to walk in obedience to the Law of God and in Matthew 11:28-30 he was inviting people to come to him for rest and to learn from him, not inviting people to come to him for rest instead of learning from his example. Moreover, by Jesus saying that we would find rest for our souls he referencing Jeremiah 6:16-19 where the Law of God is described as the good way where we will find rest for our souls, but they did not want to walk in it and they did not pay attention. Will you walk in it? Will you pay attention?

What did Jesus mean by "heavy laden"? He meant the unbearable yoke of the law:
It should not make sense to you think interpret God's Word made flesh as speaking against embodying God's Word. It is contradictory to come to God's Word made flesh for rest instead of following his example of embodying God's Word.

Now therefore why tempt ye God, to put a yoke upon the neck of the disciples, which neither our fathers nor we were able to bear? But we believe that through the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ we shall be saved, even as they. Acts 15:10-11​
Acts 15:11 makes it clear that the unbearable yoke is not the Law of God, but a means of salvation that is an alternative to salvation by grace, namely salvation by circumcision, which was proposed by the men from Judea in Acts 15:1. Christ spent his ministry teaching his followers to obey the Law of God by word and by example and the topic that they were debating in Acts 15 was not whether followers of Christ should follow Christ but whether salvation is by circumcision or by grace.

In Romans 10:5-8, Paul referred to Deuteronomy 30 as the word of faith that we proclaim in regard to the righteousness that is by faith proclaiming that the Law of God is not too difficult for us to obey and that obedience to it brings life and a blessing while disobedience brings death and a curse, so choose life! So if Acts 15:10 has been referring to the Law of God as unbearable yoke, then Peter would have been denying the word of faith that we proclaim, he would have been in direct disagreement with God's Word, and he would have been ruling that Gentiles should choose death and a curse instead of life and a blessing. In 1 John 5:3, to love God is to obey His commandments, which are not burdensome, so if Acts 15:10 has been referring to the Law of God, then he would have been denying that God's commandments are not burden some and denying that Gentiles should love God. Moreover, the Psalms express an extremely positive view of obeying the Law of God, such as with David repeatedly saying that he loved it and delighted in obeying it, so if Acts 15:10 has been referring to the Law of God, then he would have been expressing a view of obeying the Law of God that is incompatible with the truth of what he considered to be Scripture.
 
Acts 15:11 makes it clear that the unbearable yoke is not the Law of God, but a means of salvation that is an alternative to salvation by grace, namely salvation by circumcision, which was proposed by the men from Judea in Acts 15:1.

Quite false on two counts

But there rose up certain of the sect of the Pharisees which believed, saying, That it was needful to circumcise them, and to command them to keep the law of Moses. Acts 15:5​
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Behold, I Paul say unto you, that if ye be circumcised, Christ shall profit you nothing. For I testify again to every man that is circumcised, that he is a debtor to do the whole law. Christ is become of no effect unto you, whosoever of you are justified by the law; ye are fallen from grace. Galatians 5:2-4​
 
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It would be overwhelming to us for God to exhaustively teach how to embody His righteousness in every possible situation, so the point is to teach us how to do that by teaching us a limited set us instructions that all have that trait in common, which is the Law of God. The difference between following the spirit or the letter of the law is that someone can go through the motions of obeying the Law of God while neglecting to be a doer of the character traits of God that the Law of God was given to teach us how to embody. For example, in Matthew 23:23, Jesus said that thing was something that they ought to be doing while not neglecting weightier matters of the law of justice, mercy, and faithfulness.

The way to love God is by embodying His character traits, such as the way to love justice is by being a doer of justice, the way to love holiness is by being a doer of His instructions for how to be holy as He is holy, and so forth. In other words, the goal of everything in the Law of God is to teach us how to love different aspects of His character traits, which is why the Bible repeatedly states in both the OT and the NT that the way to love God is by obeying His commandments. In Exodus 20:6, God wanted His children to love Him and obey His commandments, and in Isaiah 29:13, God disdained it when His children honored Him with their lips while their hearts were far from Him, so the Law of God was never give as something to be merely outwardly obeyed apart from Christ.

God sanctifies His children through his commandments (Leviticus 20:6-7, John 17:17) and also teaches us how to know Him through His commandments (Exodus 33:13, Matthew 7:23).

We can't meet the righteous requirement of a law instead of obeying it, but only through obeying it correctly in a way that embodies God's character traits in accordance with walking in the Spirit.


In Titus 2:14, Jesus gave himself to redeem us from all lawlessness and to purify for himself a people of his own possession who are zealous for doing good works, so the way to rest in his finished work that sanctifies us is by becoming zealous for doing good works in obedience to the Law of God (Acts 21:20). The Bible repeatedly connects our faith in God with our obedience to Him, such as with Revelation 14:12 where those who kept faith in Jesus are the same as those who kept God's commandments, so I am not the one whose heart is not filled with faith but rather I am promoting obedience to the Law of God because my heart is filled with faith.

I have said nothing in favor of trying to justify myself as the result of obeying the Law of God. We can't earn our justification even as the result of having a perfect obedience to the Law of God because it was never given as a way of justifying ourselves in the first place. While Paul denied in Romans 4:1-5 that we can earn our justification as the result of our obedience to the Law of God, he also affirmed in Romans 2:13 that only the doers of the law will be justified, so there is a reason why our justification requires us to choose to be doers of it other than in order to earn it as the result, namely faith insofar as the faith by which we are justified also upholds the Law of God (Romans 3:28-31). Do you uphold the Law of God through faith?

God is trustworthy, therefore His law is also trustworthy (Psalm 19:7), so the way to trust in God is by obediently trusting in His law and it is contradictory for someone to trust in God instead of obediently trusting in His instructions. If someone says that they trust in God but they refuse to obediently trust in His instructions, then their actions speak louder than their words.
Keeping the law by the power of flesh cannot save anyone, but it will bring less condemnation. Paul said the law is not for the righteous, but sinners and unholy etc . Being led by the Spirit of God is also being righteous. Of which the flesh cannot attain to . Seems the problem some have is when being led by the Spirit of God do they need to obey the law or are they beyond the law? The spirit of liberty it’s called . Apostle Paul said not to use this liberty to live after the lust of the flesh , that would be breaking the law again as I see it . So walking by the Spirit of God does not contradict the law or break it . But keeps it . How can some claim to be led by the Spirit of God and not fulfill the law ? That’s hypocrisy as I see it . The unbelievers would say I’m guilty of breaking the Sabbath, but you don’t keep it ? Come on people! Jesus kept the Sabbath and early Believers did too !
A few thoughts I have . I like much of what you say Soyeong ! There is a much deeper problem going on with the Christian religion these days and most would not understand it , because they don’t read the Bible for them selves and let God give them understanding. Men have distorted the scriptures for 2000 yrs . The only remedy is read them trusting the Lord for his truth . Like Jesus said few find the way his way . Even in Jesus time the majority of Israel rejected Jesus , that never changes much until Judgement time and then many will seek the truth . I think we are getting close to the judgements . Many will turn to God then . The great multitude that come out of the tribulation time it does not give a number but it’s massive! God bless you all for seeking the truth it will set you free !
 
Quite false on two counts

But there rose up certain of the sect of the Pharisees which believed, saying, That it was needful to circumcise them, and to command them to keep the law of Moses. Acts 15:5​
In Matthew 4:15-23, Jesus began his ministry with the Gospel message to repent for the Kingdom of God is at hand, which was a light to the Gentiles, and the Law of God was how his audience knew what sin is (Romans 3:20), so repenting from our disobedience to it is a central part of te Gospel message, which Peter argued in Acts 15:6-7 that Gentiles had head and believed, so he was taking the side of the Pharisees from among the believes in Acts 15:5 against the men from Judea in Acts 15:1. In Ezekiel 36:26-27, God will take away our hearts of stone, give us hearts of flesh, and send His Spirit to lead us in obedience to His law, which is in accordance with what Peter argued in Acts 15:8-9 that Gentiles had received the Spirit and had their hearts cleansed, so again he was siding with the Pharisees. In Psalm 119:29-30, he wanted to put false ways far from him, for God to be gracious to him by teaching him to obey His law, and he chose the way of faith by setting it before him, so this has always been the one and only way of salvation by grace through faith, which is in accordance with what Peter argued in Acts 15:10-11 that Gentiles are saved by grace just as we are, so he came down firmly on the side of the Pharisees and against the men from Judea who were promoting salvation as the result circumcision.

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Behold, I Paul say unto you, that if ye be circumcised, Christ shall profit you nothing. For I testify again to every man that is circumcised, that he is a debtor to do the whole law. Christ is become of no effect unto you, whosoever of you are justified by the law; ye are fallen from grace. Galatians 5:2-4​
If Paul had been speaking against circumcision for any reason and not just against incorrect reasons, then Galatians 5:2 would mean that he caused Christ to be of no value to Timothy when he had him circumcised right after the Jerusalem Council and Christ is of no value to roughly 70% of the men in the US. In Acts 15:1, men from Judea were wanting to require Gentiles to become circumcised in order to become saved, however, that was never the reason for why God required circumcision, so the Jerusalem Council upheld the Law of God by correctly ruling against requiring circumcision for an incorrect reason. In Exodus 12:48, Gentiles who want to eat of the Passover lamb are required to become circumcised, so the Jerusalem Council should not be interpreted as ruling against Gentiles correctly obeying what God has commanded as if they had the authority to countermand God. Again, the topic that they were discussing was not whether followers of Christ should follow his example but whether salvation is the result of circumcision or by grace.
 
Keeping the law by the power of flesh cannot save anyone, but it will bring less condemnation. Paul said the law is not for the righteous, but sinners and unholy etc . Being led by the Spirit of God is also being righteous. Of which the flesh cannot attain to . Seems the problem some have is when being led by the Spirit of God do they need to obey the law or are they beyond the law? The spirit of liberty it’s called . Apostle Paul said not to use this liberty to live after the lust of the flesh , that would be breaking the law again as I see it . So walking by the Spirit of God does not contradict the law or break it . But keeps it . How can some claim to be led by the Spirit of God and not fulfill the law ? That’s hypocrisy as I see it . The unbelievers would say I’m guilty of breaking the Sabbath, but you don’t keep it ? Come on people! Jesus kept the Sabbath and early Believers did too !
The Law of God was never given as something to be kept by the power of the flesh or as a way of becoming saved even as the result of perfect obedience. Rather, Jesus saves us from our sin (Matthew 1:21) and sin is the transgression of the Law of God (1 John 3:4), so Jesus graciously teaching us to experience being a doer of it is intrinsically the way that he is giving us his gift of saving us from not being a doer of it. The only way to become righteous is through faith apart from being required to have first done enough righteous works in order to earn it as the result, but what it means to be righteous is to be a doer of righteous works in obedience to the Law of God (1 John 3:4, Isaiah 51:7), so it would be contradictory to become apart from becoming a doer of righteous works. The Law of God was never given as a way of becoming righteous even as the result of perfect obediece, so rather it was given in order to teach us how to be a doer of righteous works, so the content of the gift of righteousness is getting to experience being a doer of righteous works. Someone abuses 1 Timothy 1:8 into saying that Law of God is only for the unrighteous in order to try to justify their freedom to be a doer of unrighteous works thereby becomes someone that the Law of God is for.

A few thoughts I have . I like much of what you say Soyeong ! There is a much deeper problem going on with the Christian religion these days and most would not understand it , because they don’t read the Bible for them selves and let God give them understanding. Men have distorted the scriptures for 2000 yrs . The only remedy is read them trusting the Lord for his truth . Like Jesus said few find the way his way . Even in Jesus time the majority of Israel rejected Jesus , that never changes much until Judgement time and then many will seek the truth . I think we are getting close to the judgements . Many will turn to God then . The great multitude that come out of the tribulation time it does not give a number but it’s massive! God bless you all for seeking the truth it will set you free !
Thank you. The Law of God is truth (Psalm 119:142).
 
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The Law of God was never given as something to be kept by the power of the flesh or as a way of becoming saved even as the result of perfect obedience. Rather, Jesus saves us from our sin (Matthew 1:21) and sin is the transgression of the Law of God (1 John 3:4), so Jesus graciously teaching us to experience being a doer of it is intrinsically the way that he is giving us his gift of saving us from not being a doer of it. The only way to become righteous is through faith apart from being required to have first done enough righteous works in order to earn it as the result, but what it means to be righteous is to be a doer of righteous works in obedience to the Law of God (1 John 3:4, Isaiah 51:7), so it would be contradictory to become apart from becoming a doer of righteous works. The Law of God was never given as a way of becoming righteous even as the result of perfect obediece, so rather it was given in order to teach us how to be a doer of righteous works, so the content of the gift of righteousness is getting to experience being a doer of righteous works. Someone abuses 1 Timothy 1:8 into saying that Law of God is only for the unrighteous in order to try to justify their freedom to be a doer of unrighteous works thereby becomes someone that the Law of God is for.


Thank you. The Law of God is truth (Psalm 119:142).
It can sound confusing to some , and unfortunately that’s the day we live in a confused religious world . Thank God for the Bible 2 Timothy 3:16 we have the fact checker . Apostle Paul says the law will reveal unsound doctrine . Can’t remember the verse .
 
The grace of God and the GIFT of salvation is often misunderstood.

People do not understand the circumstances around Paul's writings.

Paul's states that ... Rom 3:26-27
26 To declare, I say, at this time his righteousness: that he might be just, and the justifier of him which believeth in Jesus. 27 Where is boasting then? It is excluded. By what law? of works? Nay: but by the law of faith.

Not by works.... is clear

But wait.. what about James....Jas 2:21 Was not Abraham our father justified by works, when he had offered Isaac his son upon the altar?

It might seem like they controdict each other but they don't.

It shouldn’t be confusing or controversial though. It’s really quite simple: We are justified by faith. It is a free gift.

We know that the Holy Spirit inspired both writers, and that both of these passages are Holy Scripture. Is the Bible controdicting itself? No. We need to go one more verse in James to understand this perplexing passage: “Do you see that faith was working together with his works, and by works faith was made perfect?”

Working together with....

They are connected...

But works do not earn or pay for a Gift.

When used in the sentence, it means Abraham’s works by faith were made manifest, that is, they gave evidence to his faith. In other words, his works proved he was justified!


The problem stems from the fact that Paul and James are talking to two different groups of believers. It happens all the time: Some Christians need a different message than others to draw them close to God’s will.

When I am in a room full of legalists, I talk about grace. When I am in a room full of people who believe in righteousness by presumption (cheap grace), I talk about surrender and obedience. It’s not a contradiction, but complementary teachings that form complete picture of justification.
In the Bible, Paul was dealing with Jewish believers who were trying to force gentile converts to keep all of the law of Moses in order to be justified, (circumcision, plus 600 other laws). Paul responded to this by saying that people can’t earn salvation; rather, it comes as a free gift of God. However, James is dealing with new converts who have come into the church believing that since they’re justified by faith, obedience doesn’t really matter, (just believe, and continue to sin).

Works and faith in grace do not controdict each other. No

Is the Justified, forgiven person a different man from the person that was guilty? In one way, he certainly is. He came as a sinner to stand humbly before God, and now he goes home covered with Christ’s righteousness. But the bigger question is, will he behave or act differently now that he knows he’s been justified? I strongly believe that if you’re truly saved you will show a definite change in behavior. The fruit of the Spirit will be made manifest in you.

The change of heart will be seen in the life and actions.

Keeping the law is not legalism if you are born again and are obeying because you love Jesus.

The point I want people to see is that today we are being taught that cheap grace is enough. Living in sin is acceptable, all we need to do is believe and no change in life or actions is required. The teaching may not be that blunt but the message from James is very applicable for us today.
 
The grace of God and the GIFT of salvation is often misunderstood.
The content of a gift can be the experience of getting to do something, such as giving someone the opportunity to experience driving a Ferrari, where the gift intrinsically requires them to do the work of driving it in order to experience driving it, but where doing that work contributes nothing towards earning the opportunity to drive it. In Titus 2:11-13, the content of our gift of salvation is described as being trained by grace to do what is godly, righteous, and good, and to renounce doing what is ungodly, so we are not extrinsically required to have first done those works in order to earn our salvation as the result and we are not extrinsically required to do those works as the result of having first been saved, but rather we are intrinsically required to be a doer of those works because God graciously teaching us to experience being a doer of those works is part of the content of His gift of salvation.

People do not understand the circumstances around Paul's writings.

Paul's states that ... Rom 3:26-27
26 To declare, I say, at this time his righteousness: that he might be just, and the justifier of him which believeth in Jesus. 27 Where is boasting then? It is excluded. By what law? of works? Nay: but by the law of faith.

Not by works.... is clear

But wait.. what about James....Jas 2:21 Was not Abraham our father justified by works, when he had offered Isaac his son upon the altar?

It might seem like they controdict each other but they don't.

It shouldn’t be confusing or controversial though. It’s really quite simple: We are justified by faith. It is a free gift.

We know that the Holy Spirit inspired both writers, and that both of these passages are Holy Scripture. Is the Bible controdicting itself? No. We need to go one more verse in James to understand this perplexing passage: “Do you see that faith was working together with his works, and by works faith was made perfect?”

Working together with....

They are connected...

But works do not earn or pay for a Gift.

When used in the sentence, it means Abraham’s works by faith were made manifest, that is, they gave evidence to his faith. In other words, his works proved he was justified!


The problem stems from the fact that Paul and James are talking to two different groups of believers. It happens all the time: Some Christians need a different message than others to draw them close to God’s will.

When I am in a room full of legalists, I talk about grace. When I am in a room full of people who believe in righteousness by presumption (cheap grace), I talk about surrender and obedience. It’s not a contradiction, but complementary teachings that form complete picture of justification.
In the Bible, Paul was dealing with Jewish believers who were trying to force gentile converts to keep all of the law of Moses in order to be justified, (circumcision, plus 600 other laws). Paul responded to this by saying that people can’t earn salvation; rather, it comes as a free gift of God. However, James is dealing with new converts who have come into the church believing that since they’re justified by faith, obedience doesn’t really matter, (just believe, and continue to sin).

Works and faith in grace do not controdict each other. No

Is the Justified, forgiven person a different man from the person that was guilty? In one way, he certainly is. He came as a sinner to stand humbly before God, and now he goes home covered with Christ’s righteousness. But the bigger question is, will he behave or act differently now that he knows he’s been justified? I strongly believe that if you’re truly saved you will show a definite change in behavior. The fruit of the Spirit will be made manifest in you.

The change of heart will be seen in the life and actions.

Keeping the law is not legalism if you are born again and are obeying because you love Jesus.

The point I want people to see is that today we are being taught that cheap grace is enough. Living in sin is acceptable, all we need to do is believe and no change in life or actions is required. The teaching may not be that blunt but the message from James is very applicable for us today.
Righteousness is a gift and the content of that gift is getting to experience being a doer of righteous works in obedience to the Law of Moses. The fact that we can't earn our righteousness even as the result of having perfect obedience to the Law of Moses does not mean that our righteousness does not required us to be a doer of it. While Paul denied in Romans 4:1-5 that we can earn our righteousness as the result of works, he also affirmed in Romans 2:13 that only the doers of the Law of Moses will be declared righteous, so there is a reason why our righteousness requires us to choose to be a doer of it other than in order to earn it as a wage, namely faith insofar as the faith by which we are declared righteous apart from those works also upholds it (Romans 3:28-31). We become someone who has faith, someone who will be declared righteous, and someone who is a doer of the Law of Moses all at the same time and anyone who is not one of those is also not the others, but we do not earn our righteousness as the result of our works.

While it is true that Abraham was declared righteous because he believed God (Genesis 15:6), it is also true that he got to experience being a doer of righteous works because he believed God (Genesis 18:19), so the same faith by which he was declared righteous was also embodied through his works, but he did not earn his righteousness as the result of his works (Romans 4:1-5). In James 2:21-24, Abraham was declared by his works when he offered Isaac, his faith was active along with his works, and his faith completed his works, so he was declared righteous by his works insofar as they embodied his faith, but not insofar as they were earning it as the result.

Being a doer of righteous works is not about proving that we are righteous, but rather it is simply what it means to be righteous. Those who are not doers of righteous works in obedience to the Law of Moses are not born again (1 John 3:4-10).
 
The grace of God and the GIFT of salvation is often misunderstood.

People do not understand the circumstances around Paul's writings.

Paul's states that ... Rom 3:26-27
26 To declare, I say, at this time his righteousness: that he might be just, and the justifier of him which believeth in Jesus. 27 Where is boasting then? It is excluded. By what law? of works? Nay: but by the law of faith.

Not by works.... is clear

But wait.. what about James....Jas 2:21 Was not Abraham our father justified by works, when he had offered Isaac his son upon the altar?

It might seem like they controdict each other but they don't.

It shouldn’t be confusing or controversial though. It’s really quite simple: We are justified by faith. It is a free gift.

We know that the Holy Spirit inspired both writers, and that both of these passages are Holy Scripture. Is the Bible controdicting itself? No. We need to go one more verse in James to understand this perplexing passage: “Do you see that faith was working together with his works, and by works faith was made perfect?”

Working together with....

They are connected...

But works do not earn or pay for a Gift.

When used in the sentence, it means Abraham’s works by faith were made manifest, that is, they gave evidence to his faith. In other words, his works proved he was justified!


The problem stems from the fact that Paul and James are talking to two different groups of believers. It happens all the time: Some Christians need a different message than others to draw them close to God’s will.

When I am in a room full of legalists, I talk about grace. When I am in a room full of people who believe in righteousness by presumption (cheap grace), I talk about surrender and obedience. It’s not a contradiction, but complementary teachings that form complete picture of justification.
In the Bible, Paul was dealing with Jewish believers who were trying to force gentile converts to keep all of the law of Moses in order to be justified, (circumcision, plus 600 other laws). Paul responded to this by saying that people can’t earn salvation; rather, it comes as a free gift of God. However, James is dealing with new converts who have come into the church believing that since they’re justified by faith, obedience doesn’t really matter, (just believe, and continue to sin).

Works and faith in grace do not controdict each other. No

Is the Justified, forgiven person a different man from the person that was guilty? In one way, he certainly is. He came as a sinner to stand humbly before God, and now he goes home covered with Christ’s righteousness. But the bigger question is, will he behave or act differently now that he knows he’s been justified? I strongly believe that if you’re truly saved you will show a definite change in behavior. The fruit of the Spirit will be made manifest in you.

The change of heart will be seen in the life and actions.

Keeping the law is not legalism if you are born again and are obeying because you love Jesus.

The point I want people to see is that today we are being taught that cheap grace is enough. Living in sin is acceptable, all we need to do is believe and no change in life or actions is required. The teaching may not be that blunt but the message from James is very applicable for us today.
I appreciate what you have said , that’s not a gospel at all , cheap grace and going on in sin . It’s a deception. Remember the rich young ruler ? He kept the law , and Jesus loved him for it , but Jesus said sell what you have and you will have a treasure in heaven , and come follow me . The rich young ruler could not pay the cost of following Jesus . How sad . There are other examples given of the cost of following Jesus , it’s not an easy road , that’s why many take the wide and easy road to destruction. When James was speaking of showing his faith by works , it’s true faith has works . But that’s not the works of the law , that kind of works has little or nothing to do with faith . It’s works based on self righteousness or improvement. The works of faith are believing in Gods will , based on righteousness found in God . I went to churches years ago that were a loose form of grace . They made a difference between salvation and Lordship . Salvation was just believing God or taking him at his word they called it . No real Lordship or repentance, a faith that was up to the individual to keep in there own strength as I understood it , it didn’t work for me , but I kept pursuing God through Bible . I had to leave that church and a few others because as I learned the Bible better , they where in serious error that they would not own up to . Thank God for his word ! It’s the Standard 2 Timothy 3.16 . Also Jude said the faith was once given to the saints . Very important to understand this . The Apostles received it from Jesus before and after his resurrection, and the power of the Holy Spirit after Pentecost . No revisions needed ! Bye bye to all that make those claims . So we can find in the scriptures the complete faith . Many don’t know this and fall for false prophets . The word of God was completed in the Apostles time . God bless you if you read this far !
 
I can't help but question intention sometimes and I hate to do that. Nobody can take me out of the Lord's hand. He saved me by grace and mercy. He put me flat on my back and I found myself in a His word over 10 years ago (I'm 65).

Amen!
 
Question for all believing the Law was abolished and christians are no longer subject to Torah law.

1 Then spake Jesus to the multitude, and to his disciples,


2 Saying, The scribes and the Pharisees sit in Moses' seat:

3 ""All"" therefore whatsoever they bid you observe, [that] observe and do; but do not ye after their works: for they say, and do not.

the scribes and Pharisees ruled using the Torah, there is no debate, this is fact, they just did not obey themselves.

Christ defeated Satan using the Torah and He taught and quoted from the Torah and the prophets.

Here Christ is commanding His Disciples to " observe and do" " All " "everything" the pharisees tell them the Torah says to do.

How can you negate this one? If you use Paul, who do you follow, Paul or Jesus Christ?
 
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I came across a post on one of the forums which the poster had as 'We are saved by Grace through Faith' which I feel applies here especially in understanding the Law and have to share.

'We are not saved by works, but we are justified by them. Works shows who belongs to Jesus. Faith saves us, but works justifies us. Without works, faith is dead. Our good works proves our faith, loyalty, and commitment to Jesus Christ because we are devoted to him, and we want to glorify him in all that we do. We can't become part of the body of Christ if we choose not to serve him, to teach, to prophecy, to help others, to give to the poor, and etc.

(James 2:17) So you see, faith by itself isn't enough. Unless it produces good deeds, it is dead and useless.

It was God's grace who gave us the Holy Spirit. It was God's grace who forgaved us for our sins/transgressions. It was God's grace who saw us for our good works and good deeds. Because of God's grace, we as believers believed in him and have faith in him. If we obey the law, than his love is made perfect in us. Without faith, it is impossible to please God.

We do not work to be saved. We only work because we are saved. Do you understand?

Through observing the law, no one can be saved, but through obeying the law, our souls will be saved. The law was giving to show mankind that there is sin presented within each and every one of us. Apart from the law/Keeping the Law is like saying that we are not saved by the good deeds we do, or by not obeying the law, but by God's mercy and grace alone.(Romans 10:3) JESUS SAY'S: "For they are ignorant of the righteousness that comes from God while they try to establish their own, and they have not submitted to God's means to obtain righteousness."

READ THIS! Galatians 3:10-12 Those who depend on the law to make them right with God are under his curse, for the Scriptures say,Cursed is everyone who does not observe and obey all the commands that are written in Gods Book of the Law. So it is clear that no one can be made right with God by trying to keep the law. For the Scriptures say,It is through faith that a righteous person has life. This way of faith is very different from the way of law, which says,It is through obeying the law that a person has life.

In that verse, it states that "those who depend on the law to make them right with God are under his curse." It means that if you keep the law, and go apart from the law, than you are under his curse. Like for example. If you go to school so you can learn about the law, and you not using the law to obey the law, but to only remember the law, than that's being apart from the law. You're trying to keep the law rather then to obey the law, and that is an abomination to God. God wants us to Obey the law and not to use the law for teaching purposes. In reality, no one can't remember every single law in the bible, because not all people commit every sins in the law or commit the same exact sins in the law.
1 John 3:4 Everyone who sins breaks the law; in fact, sin is lawlessness.

The only way to know that you're committing a sin is if you're going against the law. God made every single one of us out of his image. He set the laws in our hearts so that when we do sin, we will know which sins we are committing because you will feel that conviction from the Holy Spirit whenever we are about to sin. If we ignore the feeling of conviction, than we will cause ourselves to sin. Every sin comes with consequenses. Every sinner who commits a sin will eventually struggle in their sin and every sinner who commits a sin will eventually struggle within their relationships/marriages/friend ships, etc. When someone sins against us/when someone trespass against us, we tend to feel doubt, disbelief, and distrust towards that person that we once had hopes for. Without loyalty, faithfulness, and respect for each other, there is no true foundation or true love there. That is why sinners who commit sin will be condemned.
JESUS SAYS: John 14:15 "If you love me, you will obey my commandments."

Ephesians 2:8-9) "For by GRACE you have been saved through FAITH; It is a gift of God; not as a result of WORKS, so that no one may BOAST." God is clearly telling us here that we cannot save ourselves and that no amount of works can save us, but by trusting God alone without having to earn God's trust first, we can be saved through accepting him as our Lord and Savior, and by receiving the gift of the Holy Spirit, we can be made right with God through regeneration/transformation. By renewing of your mind, you will be able to resist, discern, rebuke/reprove, and correct. Repentance and being baptized is the first step into receiving the Holy Spirit. By faith, we follow his commandments. By works, we build up the body of Christ when we help other's come to Christ.
(2 Corinthians 12:6) Even if we should choose to boast, we would not be a fool, because we would be speaking the truth. But we refrain, so that no one will think more of us than is warranted by what we do or say.

In conclusion: Titus 2:11-14 For the grace of God has been revealed, bringing salvation to all people. And we are instructed to turn from godless living and sinful pleasures. We should live in this evil world with wisdom, righteousness, and devotion to God, while we look forward with hope to that wonderful day when the glory of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ, will be revealed. He gave his life to free us from every kind of sin, to cleanse us, and to make us his very own people, totally committed to doing good deeds.
 
Yes, the HS replaces the law (Romans 8).
Rather, Paul contrasted those who walk in the Spirit with those who have minds set on the flesh who are enemies of God who refuse to submit to the Law of God (Romans 8:4-7).