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Under Grace, Not Law

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The following is taken from Bob Hoekstra’s Day By Day By Grace devotional. Have you picked your reading plan or daily devotional for the year? Find out which are available at the BLB.

“For sin shall not have dominion over you, for you are not under law but under grace.”
(Romans 6:14)

Sin dominates all of our lives, unless we are learning of God’s solution. Grace is God’s sufficient remedy that sin will no longer dominate our lives.

Before we came to faith in Jesus Christ, we were under the dominionof sin. We were condemned before God because of our sin. Others may not have been aware of our truly sinful condition. Still, we were so controlled by sin that God called us “slaves of sin” (Romans 6:6).

The law brought us no hope of escape. In fact, the law condemned us.“Now we know that whatever the law says, it says to those who areunder the law, that every mouth may be stopped, and all the worldmay become guilty before God” (Romans 3:19). We could never have found freedom from sin’s condemnation by attempting to perform better under the law of God. “Knowing that a man is not justified by the works of the law but by faith in Jesus Christ…for by the works of the law no flesh shall be justified“ (Galatians 2:16).

On the other hand, the grace of God is our effective hope. There isforgiveness of sins by His grace: “The forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of His grace” (Ephesians 1:7). There is justificationthrough faith by the grace of God. “Even we have believed in Christ Jesus, that we might be justified by faith in Christ and not by the works of the law” (Galatians 2:16). There is growth in spiritual life by the grace of God. “But grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ” (2 Peter 3:18). None of these heavenly blessings become ours through our ability to live up to the holy standards of God’s law.

Our relationship with the Lord is based upon grace, not upon law. We began a walk with the Lord by His grace at work for us. Wecontinue walking with Him by His grace working in our lives.

O Lord, my God, I rejoice greatly that I am under Your grace and not under Your law. Your holy law rightly condemned me for my trespasses against You. I thank You for forgiving my sins by Your glorious grace. I praise You for justifying me, declaring me not guilty in Your sight, by Your rich grace. I magnify You for continuing to touch and shape my life by Your inexhaustible grace, in the name of Christ Jesus, my Lord, Amen.

Comments

  1. Thanks for writing this as it enhances my Bible reading for the day about Abram being the father of faith. Interesting that Abram was dead about 100 years old and yet believed that God would give him an heir from Sarah and himself. We too are dead according to the law but are alive because of faith in the death of Christ in our place to the life of Christ in the resurrection, in my place. Never grows old, does it!

  3. If were in the GRACE administration, which I believe that’s what the Word teaches as well.

    How many administrations are there?

    Start to finish, with Adam and Even to the 3rd Heaven and earth?

    This is an interesting study, there’s 7 total.

    God Bless

    • It depends on how you divide it. Israel’s prophecy dispensation begins in Genesis 12, is put on hold in Acts 7, and starts again after the rapture of the body of Christ. Today is the mystery, grace dispensation, where God is forming the church the body of Christ, to reconcile the heavenly places back to Himself. Ephesians 1:10 speaks of the dispensation of the fulness of times, which is when time is no more and God rules forever in both the heavens and the earth. Those are the main ones.

      But, then you can see different dispensations in Adam to Noah and Noah to Abraham. There is also the 1,000 year millennial reign, where things are also different.

      So, while I would argue for Israel’s dispensation, today’s dispensation, and the dispensation of the fulness of times as the main ones, I can also see where you counted 7 dispensations.

      • What is an administration?

        An administration is accurately the administering of an entire era as in one of our government administrations. The previous term of office was someone else’s administration. In rightly dividing the Word of Truth, we must understand that these Biblical administrations have to remain within the confines on which God has placed them with His Word.

        As far as I have been able to study the integrity of the Word of God, there are these major administrations in the Word.

        #1–the Original Paradise
        #2–the Patriarchal
        #3–the Law
        #4–the Christ Administration
        #5–the Church
        #6–the Appearing, and
        #7–the Final Paradise or Glory Administration

        Yes Eric, it depends how you break it all up, but these are the major ones. I don’t see any other major ones communicated according to the Word.

        #1–the first or original paradise administration terminated very abruptly. It is documented from the beginning of Genesis through its third chapter. In the 24th verse of Genesis 3, the original sharply ended. Genesis 3:24

        When God drove Adam and Eve out of Eden, the Original Administration where God dwelt with man came to a sudden end.

        #2–was the Patriarchal Administration of Abraham, Isaac and all the patriarchs until the laws of Moses. Things that were given to Moses before the law were unwritten laws. Things that were sins before the law was written became transgressions after the law was given.
        Romans 2:12
        There is another reference to the Patriarchal Administration in Acts 17:30

        “the ties of this ignorance” refers to the patriarchal period when the law was an unwritten law, so God winked at the time of this ignorance. That means that He just closed His eyes to it.

        #3–the Law Administration which was initiated under Moses terminated when Jesus Christ came.
        The difference between the Law and Christ Administrations is that Christ was personally on earth to deep and fulfill the law so that preparation might be made for the fifth administration, the church.

        proof again, Romans 10:4, this is great—

        Now this next gem is great as well,

        Matthew 27:51 tells us that when Jesus Christ died,”…behold, the veil of the temple was rent in twain from the top to the bottom. The veil of the temple, once it was ripped into two parts, no longer separated the priests from the people. The whole area was then open to all both literally and figuratively. The priests no longer had to make intercession for the lay people once Christ had fulfilled the law; the people’s intercessor became CHRIST HIMSELF.

        #5–the fifth administration, The Church of Grace, began at Pentecost with the mystery of the Church first being made known several years after Pentecost to the Apostle Paul. This is the administration under which we now are living.

        #6–is the Appearing Administration, which starts with the gathering together of those believers who were born again after Pentecost during the period before the return of Christ. The record of the gathering together of the believers is given in I Thess.4:17 and II thess. 2:1 and following. The Appearing Administration is also called the Revelation Administration from the book of Revelation. During this period Christ will appear, gather the Church, and com back to earth with His saints. The Appearing Administration ends when Satan is destroyed and the great white throne judgment takes place.

        #7–the final is the paradise or glory administration which complements the Original for that which was started in Gen.3:24 and takes up again in Revelation 21. Paradise will once more be on earthl There shall be a new heaven and a new earth wherein dwells righteousness, where there is no more sickness, no more sorrow, no more death.

        And finally, this has been a brief analysis of the administrations which are encompassed in the Word of God. We must understand that the rules of life change in the various time periods so that we must see each administration within its distinct context. When we look to see to whom a particular Scripture is addressed, we must also see which administration governs the rules.

        God Bless You All

        • How do you see the current grace administration starting at Pentecost? Salvation at Pentecost was by repenting and being water baptized (Acts 2:38), just the same as it was when Jesus was on earth (Mark 16:16). Yet, when we get to the apostle Paul, he says salvation is by grace through faith (Ephesians 2:8-9). It is by trusting in Jesus’ death, burial, and resurrection as atonement for sins (I Corinthians 15:3-4). He says that Christ sent him not to baptize, but to preach the gospel (I Corinthians 1:17). In other words, water baptism is not part of the gospel any more, because we have the dry baptism of being baptized into Christ’s death (Romans 6:3-4).

          • How do you know it’s talking about water baptism, are you assuming that?

            That’s a good question, could I teach you the deepth of that?

            If I say anything about the Word of God, I should be able to back it up right?

            After all it’s the Word of God were talking about here, The Will of God is the Word of God, isn’t it?

            It must be available to understand this verse and context dealing with this verse right? It should only mean on or the other right, surely it can’t mean both, so what was it? Water or by the holy spirit? mmmm

            Question? before I take the time to expound on this verse and show you, how can you say it’s water first? Or how it’s not holy spirit?

            This is the coolest thing I love to do, is teaching people how to read the Bible so they can understand it for themselves. This is great, thanks for the oppertunity.

            Jim

  4. Interesting thoughts on this subject. The law is done away in Christ, and where no law is there is no transgression. If we are really in Christ and the law is done away, then why is it that people think that they can never be free from sin…. that they will always sin (continuing in the same sin that they know is sin)?

    For example: A man is given understanding that adultery is sin… the work of Christ takes place, and that sin is out of his or her life. We surely are not to continue in sin that his grace may abound. As we continue in our journey in Christ, and God reveals anything in our lives that is sin…. the work of Christ takes place and that sin is gone FOREVER. So many say that they cannot be without sin (knowing something is sin and continuing in it), which I totally disagree with. Christ came to make me free from sin…. not to have me continue in something that I know is sin.

    I trust in God that if there is anything in my life that is sin in his sight, that he WILL reveal it and take it away FOREVER. Christ is not the minister of sin!

    • Maybe believers are thinking of their short-comings when they talk about that subject. The old man nature is still overcoming them and they are living in sin. Then when they ask for foregivness, the old habit is right back 5mins. later, so therefore convincing themselves contrary of the Word of God. I think your right, what does the Word say? Ask for foregiveness and believe God foregives and therefore you foregive yourself and then, THEN, renew your mind to the Word on whatever that temptation maybe and learn how to defeat that type sin.

      Most believers will only be taught how to ask for foregiveness and then deal with the sin. That’s not the Words way, or God’s way, or God’s heart, how to do it. So I think most believers can only go as far as they have been taught.

      So my personal ministry is to encourage believers to grow, seek God and understand what God really says in His Word, and then, yes your right, your set free from sin. But it our responsibility to teach what God says, not what our feelings want to do and settle on, it doesn’t matter, what does the Word say.

      If we don’t have the Word, we can’t be set free. And what your saying then is, they don’t have the full Word, TO BE SET FREE. If they did, they would be set free. So there’s a lot of people and believers that need the full subject, don’t they?

      Anyway,
      God Bless,

  5. Not under the Law, therefore sin is not counted against those who are in CHRIST! Most Christians will say this is true, but then when they sin they say they must ask forgivness to be cleansed of all unrighteousness. Those in CHRIST are forgiven and cleansed by what CHRIST did, not by what we do (works). Paul, in dealing with the Church, never tells them they need to ask for forgivness to be cleansed. Thank GOD we are under Grace, or else one unconfessed sin would send us straight to hell. I think Hebrews 10 helps some with understanding this. GOD bless you through HIS WORD! Love, in CHRIST.

    • First of all, where does it (the Word)(if your born again or from above) say when a Christian or believer will go to hell if he sins? Or an unconfessed sin, Chapter and Verse?

      Secondly, So after sinning being a Believer, what are you suppose to do, for the practical part? Not to challenge your understanding about GRACE, but I guess I am challenging your understanding about GRACE.