Grace Evangelical Society

P.O. Box 1308, Denton, TX 76202
  • About
    • Home
    • Beliefs
    • Staff
    • Board of Directors
  • Resources
    • Grace in Focus Blog
    • Grace in Focus International Blogs
    • Grace in Focus Radio
    • Grace in Focus Magazine
    • Free eBooks
    • Journal of the GES
    • Book Reviews
    • Partners in Grace Newsletter
    • Audio Messages
    • Videos
    • Email Subscription
    • Bookstore
    • Online Tracts
  • Store
    • Main Page
    • On Sale
    • Return Policy
    • Your Cart
    • Your Account
  • Events
  • Connect
    • Contact Us
    • Free Grace Church and Bible Study Tracker
    • Free Grace Jobs
    • Ministry Links
  • Donate
    • One Time Donation
    • Monthly Donation
    • Your Account
  • Search
Home
→
Blog
→
Are Believers Under Law Today?

Are Believers Under Law Today?

July 7, 2017 by Bob Wilkin in Blog

I received an email question today. A person wrote, “Galatians 2:19 and Rom 7:14 seem to be saying that believers are no longer under the Law of Moses, or any law. When we become believers, we are set free from law. Have I missed the boat?”

I think the questioner has one leg in the boat and one leg in the water. Let’s see if we can get him fully back in the boat.

He is correct that believers are no longer under the Law of Moses (Rom 6:14; 7:4-6; 8:2; 10:4; Gal 2:19; etc.).

However, believers in the Church Age are under law. The Greek word is nomos. If we do a concordance study, we will find that the law which we are under is variously called “the law of liberty” (Jas 2:12), “the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus” (Rom 8:2), “the law of Christ” (Gal 6:2), and “the royal law” (Jas 2:8).

What is this law we are under? It is the commands of the NT. Nine of the Ten Commandments are part of both the Law of Moses and the Law of Christ. Only the fourth commandment, to remember the Sabbath (the seventh day, Saturday), is not part of the Law of Christ. The commands we find in the teachings of the Lord Jesus and His Apostles are our law today.

Of course, we are not born again by keeping the Law of Christ, or any law. But the Law of Christ is part of our sanctification.

Though the questioner did not ask, I think Romans 7 makes it clear that a fixation on the commandments, even the commandments for us today, will not result in godliness, but in defeat. Our focus must be on the Commander, not the commands. As we focus on Jesus, we fall more in love with Him and we long to please Him and we are transformed (2 Cor 3:18). Of course, we are to study the commands we are under and to pray for the Spirit of God to empower us to keep them. When we confess our sins (1 John 1:9), we are admitting that we broke one of the commands and that we desire to keep it.

It is going too far to say that believers today are not under law at all.

 

Subscribe by Email

  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Pinterest
  • LinkedIn
Bob_W

by Bob Wilkin

Bob Wilkin (ThM, PhD, Dallas Theological Seminary) is the Founder and Executive Director of Grace Evangelical Society and co-host of Grace in Focus Radio. He lives in Highland Village, TX with his wife, Sharon. His latest books are Faith Alone in One Hundred Verses and Turn and Live: The Power of Repentance.

If you wish to ask a question about a given blog, email us your question at ges@faithalone.org.

Cart

Recently Added

January 26, 2023

Will There Be Poor People in Heaven?

Welcome to Grace in Focus radio. Today, Ken Yates and Bob Wilkin answer an interesting question about our status in Heaven or the quality of...
January 26, 2023

Is Mental Assent Adequate to Save? 

I recently read a few statements by Samuel Harris, one of the leaders of what is called New Atheism. As the label indicates, he is...
January 25, 2023

If a Man is Saved by Faith Alone, What is Happening in Matthew 25 With the Sheep and the Goats?

Welcome to Grace in Focus radio. Today, Bob Wilkin and Ken Yates are answering a question about the judgment of the sheep and the goats...

Grace in Focus Radio

All Episodes

Listen to Stitcher

Listen on Spotify

Grace In Focus Magazine

Grace In Focus is sent to subscribers in the United States free of charge.

Subscribe for Free

The primary source of Grace Evangelical Society's funding is through charitable contributions. GES uses all contributions and proceeds from the sales of our resources to further the gospel of grace in the United States and abroad.

Donate

Bookstore Specials

  • Grudem Against Grace: A Defense of Free Grace Theology $15.00 $10.00
  • Here Walks My Enemy: The Story of Luis (Hardcover) $13.95 $5.00
  • The Journey of Faith $15.00 $9.00
  • Inerrancy for Dummies $7.95 $5.00
  • Here Walks My Enemy: The Story of Luis (Paperback) $6.95 $3.00
Grace Evangelical Society

(940) 270-8827 / ges@faithalone.org

4851 S I-35E Suite 203, Corinth, TX 76210
P.O. Box 1308, Denton, TX 76202

  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • YouTube