Scripture – “It was not through the law that Abraham and his offspring received the promise that he would be heir of the world, but through the righteousness that comes by faith. For if those who depend on the law are heirs, faith means nothing and the promise is worthless, because the law brings wrath. And where there is no law there is no transgression.”
Romans 4:13-15 NIV
Observation – The Bible says that Abraham received God’s promise, that he would be the father of many nations through faith, not through obedience to the law. It goes on to say that if a person can please God through obedience to the law then faith means nothing and God’s promise is worthless. Furthermore, the law brings wrath because everyone who believes that the way to please God is through obedience to God’s law stands condemned because they are guilty of breaking God’s law.
Application – It is common for a person to believe that their good deeds and kindness towards humanity puts them in good standing before God and secures for them a place in heaven. The problem with this line of thinking is that the person is only looking at one side of the ledger. They have placed a hand over their right eye so they can only see the left hand column which has a long list of wonderful things they have done over their lifetime, the grand total of their good deeds towards mankind is a large and impressive count. The problem comes when they remove their right hand from their right eye and see the other column, which lists their offenses against God and others. This list is much longer, it contains a record of every bad thought, every evil deed and every harsh word that has overflowed out our their heart and been leveled toward their fellow man. The good deeds on the left side don’t cancel out the evil deeds on the right side, they are just there with them, side by side. Even if they did, everyone who has ever lived would be in debt, their bad deeds would outweigh their good deeds. This is why the law brings wrath, because all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God. This is why Jesus had to die, God doesn’t look the other way when we sin and act has if it didn’t happen, he punishes sin because he is fully righteous. Because he loves us Jesus paid for our sins on the cross so we wouldn’t have to.
Prayer – Lord, I pray for everyone reading this that they would take an honest inventory of their lives and understand that the law brings wrath. I pray that this understanding brings them to you and they appreciate and trust that Jesus loves them and died for them. Amen.
What are you doing? Do it better 