Chapter 29: The Deliverance from the Law by Christ Set Out
And thus concludes the discussion of the rest that is found in Jesus Christ from the burden of the guilt of sin.
Chapter 29 The Deliverance from the Law by Christ Set Out: 1. Negatively in Five
Particulars. 2. Positively in Five More.
The next burden that weighed upon the laden sinners whom Christ calls to Himself was the burden of the Law. To you who are under the burden of the Law, Christ says, "Come to me, and I will give you rest." I have previously outlined in several particulars the ways in which the burden of the Law weighs upon sinners. Now, I will show how Christ delivers sinners from the burden of the Law, for certainly,
He does. We are redeemed from the Law by Christ. This is a significant point, and a proper understanding of it will help us greatly in grasping many truths in religion.
First, I shall explain how far Christ has not delivered us from the Law. Where the Law is not burdensome, Christ has not delivered us from it, but only from the Law insofar as it is a burden. You may ask, in what respect can the Law be said to be a burden? Certainly, in those respects, Christ cannot be said to give us rest, for the Law is good and not burdensome to the saints. The Law, as the Apostle says in Romans 7, is good. Even when his soul was deeply troubled by his own corruption and he cried out, "O wretched man that I am! Who shall deliver me from this body of death?"—as it says at the end of
the chapter—yet, in verse 12, he professes, "The Law is holy, and the commandment is holy, and just, and good."
Therefore, that which is holy, just, and good cannot be a burden to those who are also holy. Christ did not come to deliver us from something that is holy, just, and good. As long as it is holy, just, and good, it cannot be a burden to the saints.
First, we must understand that the Law (I speak of the moral Law, not the ceremonial Law) is the very mirror of God's holiness. It is a reflection of God's holiness, and in the moral Law, we can see the radiance and glory of God's holiness. Therefore, we are not to be delivered from the Law as the reflection of God's holiness, for in it, we behold the purity of God's nature. The Law of God reveals that He is a holy God, distinct from the heathen nations, whose gods do not have such a holy and righteous Law as ours.
Second, the Law is an extract of the very image in which God made man in the beginning. It is a copy of God's image. What was the image in which God made man at first? It was the impression of His
Law upon their hearts—the moral Law written in their hearts. This was the very image of God in the soul of man at creation, when he was in innocence. Therefore, we cannot be said to be delivered from the Law as it is a copy and extract of God's image in the heart of man.
Rather, Christ renews it in us rather than abolishing it.
Third, the Law is a mirror in which we are to see our own faces. It is in the Law that we are to see how far we have fallen from the image in which we were originally created. In this respect, Christ has not delivered us from the Law either. He still wants us to look into the Law as into a mirror, to see how far short we have fallen from what
God requires of us and what He originally enabled us to do.
Fourth, the Law is a revelation of the will of God. It reveals what is the holy and righteous will of God towards His creatures. In this respect, we are not delivered from it either. We are still to look into the Law to see what God's will is concerning us.
Lastly, following from this, the Law remains an authoritative rule for our conduct, guiding our way of life. Scripture is as clear on this point as on any truth in the Book of God. Indeed, this is such a fundamental point that, were it not for a peculiar kind of wantonness that has gripped the spirits of some, there would be no need to spend even a quarter of an hour discussing it. Consider James 2:8 and onwards: "If you fulfil the royal Law according to the Scripture,
'Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself,' ye do well."
That command—"Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself"—is the summary of the second table of the Ten Commandments. It is called the royal Law, the Law of the great King. But, James continues, "If you have respect to persons, you commit sin, and are convinced of the Law as transgressors." The Law convicts you as transgressors, for "whosoever shall keep the whole Law, and yet offend in one point, is guilty of all." For He who said, "Do not commit adultery," also said,
"Do not kill." Now, where are these commandments found but in the Ten Commandments? "Do not commit adultery. Do not kill." If you do not commit adultery but you kill, you are a transgressor of the Law—the Law of the Ten Commandments.
The Deliverance from the Law by Christ Set Out:
1. Negatively in Five Particulars.
2. Positively in Five More.
It is true, as we shall later hear, the Law now comes to us in a different way than it came to the Jews. However, despite the
revelations of grace in the Gospel—although every commandment may now come to us mixed with a great deal of grace, making it much sweeter and more comforting than it was before—this truth remains: those who transgress the Law and do not live according to its rules are still to be convicted of sin by that same Law.
What does St. John define sin as? He says, "Sin is the transgression of the Law." Therefore, in five respects, Christ has not delivered us from the Law:
1. The Law is the reflection of God's holiness.
2. It is the very copy and extract of the image of God in which He made man.
3. It is the mirror in which we are to see our deformity.
4. It is the revelation of God's will.
5. It remains the authoritative rule for our conduct.
In these five ways, Christ does not deliver us from the Law, but it remains in force. No believer, no godly soul, considers the Law a burden in these respects. Instead, they bless God for the Law, seeing it as their inheritance and the joy of their souls. They bless God for the knowledge of it, their hearts remain under its power, and they are willing to order their lives according to it.
Question: But then, what are we delivered from in the Law by Christ?
Answer:
First, we are delivered from the rigour of the Law. Christ frees us from the heavy burden of its rigour—that is, from the requirement of perfect obedience. In this regard, the Law is said to be rigorous because of our weakness, though we once had the power to fulfil it.
Now, the Lord removes the rigour in light of our weakness. The Law was also rigorous in its violent and forceful way of compelling obedience, from which we shall soon hear how Christ delivers us.
Secondly, believers are delivered from the bondage of the Law.
Question: How is the Law a bondage to those who are godly, since it is the Law of God?
Answer: The Law is not bondage in itself but in relation to our inability. Given our current condition, the Law requires from us what we are unable to do, and this constitutes a form of bondage. It is like the Israelites under their taskmasters, who demanded more than they could accomplish. Yet, God is righteous in this because it is not more than what He originally enabled us to do in our creation. But in our current fallen state, the Law's requirements—imposing what we cannot fulfil, and that under the penalty of eternal death—become bondage to us.
Thirdly, we are delivered from the binding-over power of the Law, which binds the soul to face the justice of God upon every breach of the Law. Believers in Christ are no longer bound over to answer
God's justice for their sins. It's as if a man bound over to appear at court for judgement later receives a release from his bond, giving him great relief. So too, Christ takes away the bond by which believers were bound to answer for their sins before God's justice.
Fourthly, believers are delivered from the condemning power of the Law. The Law no longer has the power to bring a believer, who sins out of frailty, into condemnation. Scripture is clear on this point, as I could show from various texts. The Apostle says, "You are not under the Law," and "There is no condemnation for those who are in Christ."