The Message (Part 2) The Law

So then where do you start? What is it that man desperately needs? To a believer the answer is simple, its the saving grace of Christ. But to the unbeliever, they could care less about Christ. (1 Corinthians 1:18) How can a person understand the work on the cross, that is how can one understand that Christ died for their sins if they don't even realize that they are in sin? I'll give a few examples of this

Ray Comfort has put it one way and I am paraphrasing this into my own words:

"Say you go up to someone and tell them that someone paid for their $25,000 fine. That wouldn't be good news to them, but it would be offensive and they wouldn't be grateful for that act. Offensive because you just implied that he broke the law, and he doesn't think that he has. And how can he be grateful for something if he doesn't believe that he ever owed a fine.
Now say you told him what he did. For example, 'there was a blind children convention and there were streets signs set up to go 15mph, but you just blew through all of them at 50mph. Now you have a $25,000 fine.' That person is now going to start sweating and be afraid, but now you tell them that someone has paid that fine for them. He is going to be forever grateful for that gift from that person."

Or take an example of King David after he sent Bathsheba's husband to the frontline to die so that he could have sexual relations with her. The prophet Nathan came to David and spoke a parable to him about a rich man who killed a poor man's only lamb instead of one of his many own (2 Sam 12). David then said that that man will surely die, Nathan then exposed David as being that man. That he was the one who killed the poor man's lamb.

After David had felt his guilt against God, Nathan then offered David grace saying, ""The LORD also has put away your sin; you shall not die." (2 Samuel 12:13) Now what if Nathan had switched it around fearing rejection and said "God loves you and has a wonderful plan for your life. However, there is something which is keeping you from enjoying this wonderful plan; it is called 'sin.'" Imagine if he had glossed over the personal nature of David's sin, with a general reference to all men having sinned and fallen short of the glory of God. David may have reacted with, "What sin are you talking about?"

So it shows the importance of the law in creating a Godly sorrow, it takes makes the sin a personal thing instead of a general thing.

There is now a growing fear of God and a guilt that is building up. So now when you tell them about the salvation in Jesus, it will be something that they will be desperately wanting. Man is depraved, there are none who do good (Romans 3, Psalm 14) all have turned aside to the lust of the flesh and unrighteousness. You must approach someone with their sin and the depravity and their lostness, not saying "God loves you and has a wonderful plan for your life."

Take a hypothetical situation, and say you knew that a lost person was going to die tomorrow, their would be a much bigger urgency to confront that person with their sin, because obviously God does not have a wonderful plan for their life if they are to die tomorrow and spend eternity in hell.

The law has been ignored in the message today as being irrelevant. But Paul says himself, "Yet if it had not been for the law, I would not have known sin. I would not have known what it is to covet if the law had not said, "You shall not covet." (Romans 7:7)

The whole purpose of the law was to expose mans sin, "Now we know that whatever the law says it speaks to those who are under the law, so that every mouth may be stopped, and the whole world may be held accountable to God." (Romans 3:19) It was brought into the world for that purpose, to show man that they cannot live up to the standards that it would take to be accepted as just in the eyes of God, and God will be righteous in His justice. Christ is the fulfillment of that law for us, "Now the law came in to increase the trespass, but where sin increased, grace abounded all the more," (Romans 5:20) Galatians 2:16 Tells us that no one can be saved through the law, but through Christ who is the fulfillment, (Matthew 5:17) who lived a perfect life, (Hebrews 4:15) and we are seen by God as though we had lived His life. (2 Corinthians 5:21)

The law is very very important for both the believers and unbelievers. The law codemns man, and makes them very uncomfortable, and so it is easy to see how so many can leave it out of the message. But it must be presented to the person to create a fear, guilt, sorrow and hopefully eventually lead to their utter dependence on the grace of God.

Citation:
*http://www.livingwaters.com
*ESV Bible