Is Obeying God’s Law Working for Salvation?
I have seen that there is a common misunderstanding among Christians as we struggle to reconcile God’s grace with obeying God’s commands. A few years back I read a book that stated that if you teach grace the way you should, it will almost sound like a license to sin. This conclusion can only be drawn if we neglect 95% of the scripture for the same passages that instruct us that we cannot merit salvation also instructs us to walk in obedience. We cannot walk in God’s grace while living a lifestyle that is at war with God. As the church has worked so hard to attract the unchurched they have shied away from passages that may drive away those who want grace without change. Over the years we have created a new breed of church member that has no concept of what it means to walk in the light of Jesus Christ through obedience.
So does grace nullify the commandments of God? Do the commandments of God nullify grace? Can someone rebel against the word of God and receive grace? Do we have to turn our backs on the commandments of God in order to cling to grace? Quite the opposite – you cannot cling to grace while rebelling against God’s instructions. In this study we will examine this in detail so that hopefully we can get a better understanding.
O Foolish Galatians
One thing I commonly hear is that if you try to keep the law (obeying God’s commandments), you are adding to salvation and falling into the same error the apostle Paul addressed in Galatians. Look at Galatians 3:1-3
O foolish Galatians! Who has bewitched you that you should not obey the truth, before whose eyes Jesus Christ was clearly portrayed among you as crucified? 2 This only I want to learn from you: Did you receive the Spirit by the works of the law, or by the hearing of faith? 3 Are you so foolish? Having begun in the Spirit, are you now being made perfect by the flesh?
Paul is condemning the Galatians because they have turned to the law of Moses for salvation under the influence of those who claim that salvation is by Christ and by circumcision. It is important to understand that the Bible does not condemn the Galatians for seeking to obey God’s commands, for the opposite is proclaimed in verse 1, “O foolish Galatians! Who has bewitched you that you should not obey the truth, before whose eyes Jesus Christ was clearly portrayed among you as crucified?” Keep in mind that the law of God is spiritual but the Galatians were seeking to be justified by the flesh. Obedience through understanding is by the Spirit but seeking to be justified by rules is an act of the flesh.
We can see that even though the Galatians were condemned for adding to the salvation message, it was not for obedience. Indeed they were condemned for NOT obeying the truth. The failure of the Galatians was that they were seeking salvation through the law of circumcision as stated in Galatians 5:2 and Galatians 6:12-13. Performing an animal sacrifice is condemned because these sacrifices cannot take away sins but instead pointed to the sacrifice that would be fulfilled by Jesus on the cross. After Christ fulfilled the law, sacrifices meant nothing and anyone who performed them was denying the sacrifice of Christ. In the same sense circumcision was done away with once the Holy Spirit was poured out in the hearts of the believer. Circumcision represented the removal of the flesh as the person entered into the covenant of God’s promise.
The true circumcision is the work of the Holy Spirit in our heart (See Jeremiah 4:4 and Romans 2:29). The Holy Spirit removes the flesh as we are joined to the New Covenant of Jesus Christ. The bondage of our sin in the heart according to the lust of the flesh has been removed by the Holy Spirit and we enter into the covenant of promise. When the Galatians gave into the pressure of being circumcised according to the law of the Old Covenant, they were rejecting the New Covenant and had therefore fallen from grace. We are NOT required to turn our backs on the commandments of God for the moral law of God has not changed. Only the covenant has changed and all the laws of the Old Covenant that foreshadowed the coming work of Christ were taken out of the way. They were not done away with, but fulfilled by Jesus. Obeying God must be fulfilled by each person’s life but keeping the law of the Old Covenant was fulfilled by Christ.
Returning to the laws that pointed ahead to the work of God in our lives was foolish because Jesus was clearly portrayed as crucified and therefore returning to the law pointing to the New Covenant was a denial of the sufficiency of Christ. Keep in mind that these laws were intended to be a tutor that brings us to Christ and once He was revealed to the world, the tutor is no longer needed. This is explained in Galatians 3:24-27
24 Therefore the law was our tutor to bring us to Christ, that we might be justified by faith. 25 But after faith has come, we are no longer under a tutor. 26 For you are all sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus. 27 For as many of you as were baptized into Christ have put on Christ.
The work of Salvation
We are saved by grace FOR GOOD WORKS, not BY good works. Many readily quote Ephesians 2:8-9 and completely overlook verse 10. Look at the whole context: Ephesians 2:8-10
8 For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, 9 not of works, lest anyone should boast. 10 For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them.
We are a new creation for good works. Good works are required by God for the scripture affirms this continuously; however, this is not earning salvation but is the by product of salvation. Salvation is by faith alone as we hear the Spirit’s call as God draws us to Christ for salvation. What effort to we apply to merit salvation? Nothing. We simply yield when God draws. Jesus compared receiving God’s kingdom this way:
Matthew 13: 44 " Again, the kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field, which a man found and hid; and for joy over it he goes and sells all that he has and buys that field.
What happens to the man who sees the treasure but values all that he has and is unwilling to sell? When God reveals the treasure of His gift of salvation, you cannot hold on to all that you have and take what God is giving you. We lay down our lives at the foot of the cross because we recognize that what we have is worthless compared to what God is giving. Is laying down our lives a work that merits salvation? Of course not. If someone was working on a broken down car trying to get going again and someone came along and said “Just leave your old worthless car behind and take this new car as a gift”, would we say that this was earned? They would have done nothing to earn that gift but they can’t drive both cars away. Receiving a gift is not works.
In the same sense, God begins to draw us by His Spirit and calls us to surrender our worthless life in the flesh for the new life He has created that is of the Spirit with all the eternal promises of God. Is it works to lay down your sinful life? Not in the least! We simply let go. You cannot let go if you are clinging to your old life and lusts. You cannot let go if you are working for salvation. Good deeds cannot merit salvation because the flesh profits nothing (John 6:63). The flesh cannot produce spiritual things and therefore cannot merit salvation. Opening our hands to let go of what is worthless is not meriting salvation, it is yielding ourselves to the call of God. We must recognize that what we once treasured is worthless and leave it all behind for the treasure of God’s grace and new life. Philippians 3:7-9 states it well:
7 But what things were gain to me, these I have counted loss for Christ. 8 Yet indeed I also count all things loss for the excellence of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and count them as rubbish, that I may gain Christ 9 and be found in Him, not having my own righteousness, which is from the law, but that which is through faith in Christ, the righteousness which is from God by faith.
There is a true grace and a false grace. The true grace is the unmerited favor of God that is offered to us in exchange for the rubbish of our old life in the flesh. The false grace that is taught in many modern church movements is the flawed teaching that we live in our old life while grasping the blessings of God. You cannot rebel against the work of God to create within you a new creation while expecting to receive God’s grace. The flesh cannot receive the promises of the Spirit for it is at war with the Spirit (Romans 8:6-8, Galatians 5:17); therefore, there must be a new man born of the Spirit before we can receive the promise.
The heart must be circumcised by faith. When we surrender by faith to the call of the cross, the Holy Spirit circumcises the heart by removing the old fleshly nature and entering us into the new covenant of promise as a new creation in Christ. Just as the one who refused to be circumcised in the Old Covent was cut off from God’s people and His promises (Genesis 17:14), those who refuse the circumcision of the heart are cut off from the New Covenant of grace. This is not works for it is not of you, but is the work of the Holy Spirit. You cannot circumcise your own heart; you can only allow the Holy Spirit to accomplish this work within you by faith or resist God and hold on to your life in the flesh.
We are not our own.
Man was created in the image of God and through sin, we have fallen short of God’s glory (Romans 3:23). God does not fix our corrupted nature but crucifies our old nature and gives us a new life in Christ. Romans 7:4-6 explains:
4 Therefore, my brethren, you also have become dead to the law through the body of Christ, that you may be married to another -- to Him who was raised from the dead, that we should bear fruit to God. 5 For when we were in the flesh, the sinful passions which were aroused by the law were at work in our members to bear fruit to death. 6 But now we have been delivered from the law, having died to what we were held by, so that we should serve in the newness of the Spirit and not in the oldness of the letter.
This is an important distinction to make for we are not patching together our old life nor are we divorcing the world and its dominion over our life. We are dying to our old life. When we lay down our lives when God visits us with salvation, we allow God to take our old sinful man and crucify him with Christ. God then makes us into a new creation born of the Spirit. This is explained in Romans 6:6-8
6 knowing this, that our old man was crucified with Him, that the body of sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves of sin. 7 For he who has died has been freed from sin. 8 Now if we died with Christ, we believe that we shall also live with Him,
You cannot crucify your old nature – only God can do this. You are crucified with Christ and then born anew by the Spirit. You are not the same person but a new creation. Look at 2 Corinthians 5:
17 Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new.
Until someone is born again by the Spirit, they remain in the flesh and cannot merit salvation. The flesh can only produce things of the flesh but the Spirit of God makes us into a new creation born into God’s kingdom. Look at the words of Jesus in John 3:5-8
5 Jesus answered, "Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God. 6 "That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. 7 "Do not marvel that I said to you, ’You must be born again.’ 8 "The wind blows where it wishes, and you hear the sound of it, but cannot tell where it comes from and where it goes. So is everyone who is born of the Spirit."
Once you lay down your life, you are surrendering yourself to God and you no longer belong to the world, the law of sin or even to yourself. Since your new spiritual nature is by the Spirit, you must put to death the deeds of the flesh as you set your mind on the life of faith in the Spirit. Consider 1 Corinthians 6:19-20
19 Or do you not know that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and you are not your own? 20 For you were bought at a price; therefore glorify God in your body and in your spirit, which are God’s.
Why are you not your own? Because you were bought with a price; God has purchased your redemption with His own blood (Acts 20:28). Your decision to live according to the flesh was made when God called you into salvation. You have the right to reject God’s call and hold on to your life in the flesh and forego salvation– and many do. Many give a pretense of surrender and become religious but still hold on to their life in the world. In reality, this is no different than rejecting the new life God offers us through the cross. When God calls, the Spirit of God draws and we either recognize the treasure and sell all or we hold on to our life in the flesh. You will hold to what you value the most.
Sin dwelling in our flesh
Since we are bought with a price, we do not have the right to live in sin. Consider Romans 6:1-6
What shall we say then? Shall we continue in sin that grace may abound? 2 Certainly not! How shall we who died to sin live any longer in it? 3 Or do you not know that as many of us as were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into His death? 4 Therefore we were buried with Him through baptism into death, that just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life. 5 For if we have been united together in the likeness of His death, certainly we also shall be in the likeness of His resurrection, 6 knowing this, that our old man was crucified with Him, that the body of sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves of sin.
I have heard many preachers falsely make the statement that we will never be held accountable for our sins even if we choose to live in it. This is far from the truth! The scripture says that we will all stand before the judgment seat of Christ and give an account of everything we have done in our body whether good or bad (2 Corinthians 5:10, Romans 14:10). The church is warned that we will stand in account before Christ. The unredeemed will stand before the Great White Throne judgment foretold in Revelation 20:11). We will be held in account and we all are required to live by faith and walk in obedience. In fact, you cannot live by faith without walking in obedience.
So if our old man was crucified with Christ, why do we still have temptations to sin? The answer can be better understood by looking at Romans 7:17-18, 22-25
17 But now, it is no longer I who do it, but sin that dwells in me. 18 For I know that in me (that is, in my flesh) nothing good dwells; for to will is present with me, but how to perform what is good I do not find.
22 For I delight in the law of God according to the inward man. 23 But I see another law in my members, warring against the law of my mind, and bringing me into captivity to the law of sin which is in my members. 24 O wretched man that I am! Who will deliver me from this body of death? 25 I thank God -- through Jesus Christ our Lord! So then, with the mind I myself serve the law of God, but with the flesh the law of sin.
There was a time when I taught what I had always been taught – that we have two natures. I do not believe the Bible teaches this. Our old man is dead if we belong to Jesus Christ for our old man was crucified with Christ. Our inward man is spiritual and subject to the law of God and we are commanded to renew our inward man daily. Our flesh, on the other hand, has not been redeemed but is still corrupt and subject to the law of sin. This is where the war is fought. Sin in our members wars against the law of God in our minds as it seeks to bring us back into subjection to sin. One day our body will be redeemed at the resurrection when we will be changed fully into His likeness (1 John 3:2). Until that time, all of creation groans as it is subject to the curse of sin and waiting for His redemption (Romans 8:18-25). This includes our mortal bodies. Until our hope becomes sight, we must battle to bring our bodies under subjection as we set our minds on holiness.
Benefit of Discipleship
The church has let discipleship slip and the result is perpetual spiritual immaturity. Over the years, the church as a whole has forgotten how to live in holiness and this directly affects individual lives. Almost all young Christians have a falling away period. When we first come to Christ, we are excited, motivated and are eager to leave our old lives behind. We hear songs about victory in Jesus and being happy all the time. As a new Christian, no one ever told me that the emotions would fade and that temptation would arise in my life again.
Young believers begin to be assaulted by the sin dwelling in the flesh warring against their minds and trying to bring them back under captivity. Since most are unprepared for this, they begin to doubt their salvation as they drift back into sin. Most people don’t consciously decide to return to sinful habits, they just don’t know how to live by faith and walk in the Spirit. As a result, most people go through years of struggles and failures before they finally begin to see how to live godly. Some never find their way out of the valley but live life as a rollercoaster ride. They make progress and then slip and fall; make progress and then slip and fall.
I lived this way for many, many years. I did not want to keep falling back; I just did not know how I was to live. I was never discipled and what I learned in church was either too shallow to make any impact on my life or was misconceptions taught by people who did not know anymore than I did. It was truly the blind leading the blind. If those teaching do not understand, how can they effectively teach you how to understand and walk in the Spirit?
As a church, we have not fulfilled the commission Jesus gave to us until we make disciples by teaching them to observe and obey all that God has instructed in the scriptures. How can a young Christian live in the Spirit if they don’t even know what they don’t know? How can they overcome the flesh if they do not understand that there is a difference between walking in the Spirit and walking according to the flesh? If they do not know that there is a war in progress and that our flesh is preparing for a counter attack, how can they be prepared for it? Defeat is eminent. We can only hope that our church members will one day regroup and rejoin the ranks. It should not be so in the church for we have the commission of Jesus Christ to teach one another how to understand and live according to the scriptures. We cannot prevent someone from rebelling, but most fall away out of ignorance. This is to our shame.
The enemy is coming.
We have all heard statements like, “The devil made me do it”. I have been around people who constantly say, “Get thee behind me Satan” every time they say or do something wrong. Search the scriptures and see if Satan is ever responsible for our actions. Notice that the sin dwells within our members in our flesh. Sin does not come from without, it comes from within. Satan does indeed tempt us but he does so by appealing to our desires in the flesh that are already present. We don’t need Satan in order to sin, we can do this on our own. Satan cannot give you sinful desires. Your personal behavior shapes your desires and lust is your desire to obtain a sinful pleasure. The lust is yours and the choice to pursue that lust is yours. You can try to command Satan all you want but the problem is your flesh and you can’t escape sin by uttering a little phrase.
Sin is in your flesh and according to scripture, it seeks to bring you back under bondage to the law of sin. When you commit sin you become a slave of sin. Look now at 2 Corinthians 10:4-5
4 For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal but mighty in God for pulling down strongholds, 5 casting down arguments and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God, bringing every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ,
You cannot win this battle through the flesh – it is only won by bringing the flesh under subjection. As sin wars against our minds, we have the God-given power to bring it into captivity and make it subject to the obedience of Christ. In other words, sin in our flesh desires to bring us back under captivity to rule over us, but we are to rule over it. This is the same message that God taught from the beginning. When Cain was angry at his brother and brooding, sin was taking over his mind and God gave him the following warning in Genesis 4:
7 "If you do well, will you not be accepted? And if you do not do well, sin lies at the door. And its desire is for you, but you should rule over it."
Sin seeks to rule over you, but you should rule over it. When you are walking in the flesh, sin rules over you by default. Before Christ, the flesh was all we knew and it was impossible for us to subdue sin in our lives. We were driven by our passions and since our passions were corrupt so was our minds and behavior. We lived solely for what made us feel good. Even good deeds were performed because it made us feel good, not because we were selfless (though sometimes this can have the outward appearance of selflessness). Now that we are a new creation made in the image of God, we also have the power to bring every thought under subjection to Christ. Through the mind we subject our bodies into obedience to Christ and through our minds we serve the law of God. Consider this passage from 1 Corinthians 9:
27 But I discipline my body and bring it into subjection, lest, when I have preached to others, I myself should become disqualified.
Sin in our flesh is our enemy, but it has no power over us unless we subject ourselves to it. When temptation reaches our minds we either entertain that thought and allow it to cultivate into sin, or we bring it under subjection according to the law of Christ? When our eyes see temptation, we will look and allow sin to launch its war against our mind, or we will turn our eyes immediately away and cast down its temptation in our mind as we set our minds to focus on the holiness of God.
Crucify the flesh.
When it comes to crucifying your sinful nature (or old man) you have no power. You can only protect it and cling to it, or you can let go of it and allow it to be crucified with Christ. However, when it comes to the deeds of the flesh, God has indeed put you into action. We have already seen that we are to discipline our bodies to bring it under subjection but we are also commanded to put to death the deeds of the flesh. Look at Romans 8:13-14
13 For if you live according to the flesh you will die; but if by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body, you will live. 14 For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, these are sons of God.
Notice that we put to death our sinful deeds through the Spirit, not by sheer human will. When we try to subject ourselves to the spiritual laws of God by human will, we are attempting to produce spiritual things by the flesh. The flesh profits nothing and there is no good thing that comes through our flesh. We must subdue the flesh to bring it under subjection as we submit ourselves to God and set our hearts and minds to walk in the Spirit. This passage says it best:
Galatians 5: 16 I say then: Walk in the Spirit, and you shall not fulfill the lust of the flesh.
This short passage packs such a powerful punch. I refer to this often because this principle is so plainly stated but so frequently overlooked. For years I tried to overcome my flesh by promising never to sin again only to fall again, and again, and again. Whenever temptation grows stronger than your human will, you are going to fall – unless you are in the Spirit. Sin in your mortal bodies seeks to draw you out of the Spirit and into the flesh by warring against your mind. Once your mind is set on worldly things, you are powerless to live by faith. As long as your mind is on earthly things of the flesh, you are living under sin and you cannot please God or walk according to the Spirit. Look at Romans 8:5-8
5 For those who live according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who live according to the Spirit, the things of the Spirit. 6 For to be carnally minded is death, but to be spiritually minded is life and peace. 7 Because the carnal mind is enmity against God; for it is not subject to the law of God, nor indeed can be. 8 So then, those who are in the flesh cannot please God.
It is the Spirit of God within us that gives us the power to overcome and the power to put to death the deeds of the flesh. If you are neglecting your spiritual life or doing religion your own way, you cannot overcome. Even those who have the outward appearance of holiness have no benefit, for only the Spirit working within us produces righteousness, holiness and the fruit of the Spirit. God gives us the power to live according to righteousness and it is the responsibility of each of us to willingly submit ourselves to the work of God in our lives and apply God’s word to our actions. Look now at Romans 6:11-16
11 Likewise you also, reckon yourselves to be dead indeed to sin, but alive to God in Christ Jesus our Lord. 12 Therefore do not let sin reign in your mortal body, that you should obey it in its lusts. 13 And do not present your members as instruments of unrighteousness to sin, but present yourselves to God as being alive from the dead, and your members as instruments of righteousness to God. 14 For sin shall not have dominion over you, for you are not under law but under grace. 15 What then? Shall we sin because we are not under law but under grace? Certainly not! 16 Do you not know that to whom you present yourselves slaves to obey, you are that one’s slaves whom you obey, whether of sin leading to death, or of obedience leading to righteousness?
It is for you to count yourself dead to sin and alive to God. He has given you the power and therefore calls us into obedience. When temptation arises, you have the power to overcome it and not allow it to reign in your flesh. You have the power to bring your thoughts under obedience, set your mind on the things of God and resist sin by drawing near to God as you turn away from temptation. God has given you the power to guard your eyes that they look only upon the things that please God (Job 31:1, Proverbs 3:21); your ears that they only listen to what is godly (Isaiah 55:3); your feet that they go where should go and not where they should not(Proverbs 4:27); your hands that they work only what is right (Psalm 18:20); your mouth that you only say what is edifying and not what causes harm(Proverbs 23:16); your heart that you guard it for out of it come the issues of life (Proverbs 4:23); your mind that you make it a guard over your heart and that you set it upon the things that are good in His sight (Jeremiah 17:10). By human effort this is impossible but by the Spirit, these things will be revealed through our lives if we walk in faith.
If you take heed to God’s word and apply it to your life as you put your faith in the Lord, you will discover what it truly means to overcome. Rather than serving the law of sin, you will serve the law of God. God’s law has not changed. Jesus has fulfilled the requirements of the law for our salvation, but we are still called to walk in obedience. We do not seek to be justified by the law, but rather we do the things in the law by faith and show that the commandments of God are written in our heart (Romans 2:15, 2 Corinthians 3:3). Rather than being restrained by the law from outward force, we submit to the law of God written in our hearts by the Spirit through the word. We no longer keep rules to justify ourselves, but instead we obey out of faith because we trust in the wisdom and goodness of the Lord as we hope in His promises.
In Conclusion
Not one time in the scripture do we see the Bible give us permission to live any way we choose. The Bible never even remotely implies that we have a license to sin. However, we are encouraged with the promise of forgiveness when we do falter in our struggle to overcome. Look at 1 John 1:6-9
6 If we say that we have fellowship with Him, and walk in darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth. 7 But if we walk in the light as He is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanses us from all sin. 8 If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. 9 If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.
This promise is only to those who walk in the light of fellowship with Christ – which is walking by the Spirit. Those who live according to the flesh have no such promise of forgiveness. There will be times in everyone’s life where the sin warring against their mind will cause them to fall into temptation. This is why we have this wonderful promise. If you do sin, you have the call to repent (or turn from your sin), confess your sin, return to your walk in the Spirit in the light of Christ and be forgiven. When you are forgiven, you are cleansed from all unrighteousness. We are only unrighteous when we give in to sin, but in Christ we are forgiven if we walk in the Spirit.
When we falter, God works in our lives to bring us back into the Spirit to restore our fellowship with Him. Many fight God’s call because they have the misconception that they can live in the flesh and have the power of God, but forgiveness and power are only in an abiding relationship with Christ. You cannot walk in rebellion and walk in grace. False grace is the erroneous belief that grace abounds while we sin, but true grace is God’s merciful call to welcome us into His fellowship even though we do not deserve it. God is holy and we cannot walk in fellowship while abiding in sin or the flesh.
True grace is God’s unmerited favor as He calls us into the Spirit and empowers us to live in obedience and fellowship with Him. God, in His mercy, works to deliver us from our life of flesh that is destine for destruction and gives us new life as we continuously conform to the image of Christ. As we conform to Christ, God works to accomplish His good works within us. We are saved for good works but the only good in us comes from the Spirit. In our flesh, no good dwells, but the Spirit produces good works as we walk in obedience. As our flesh is brought under subjection, the Spirit of God freely accomplishes His work through our lives. Only when we live in the Spirit can we be fulfilled and have true meaning in our lives as we look to Jesus, the Author and Finisher of our faith.
