Lawlessness and Legalism

Rom. 10:4 = For Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to every one that believeth.

Briefly this is what I preached and taught from the text:
THERE ARE TWO DECEPTIONS TO AVOID ABOUT THE LAW

1-The Deception of LAWLESSNESS
2-The Deception of LEGALISM

LAWLESSNESS

According to my knowledge, the Bible no where teaches lawlessness. The kind of God presented to us in the Bible, through the Jewish history is a law-oriented God. I look at the law not as standard moral codes merely but as universal operational and functional principles…in the ecosystem, human anatomy, etc. Everything about our world is governed by the law and that is how we can afford “Action, Response and Reaction”

Lawlessness (absence of the law) is not merely antinomianism (against the law). Lawlessness is both the ideology that there is no law and therefore being opposed to the law or any guiding rule. This is not a Biblical teaching…if in the pre-sin world the world was systematic (universal and implied codes of living) then we cannot afford lawlessness in a post-sin world. Lawlessness is a devil’s deception.

LEGALISM

Legalism is the idea and belief that one’s obedience to the law attracts any favor from God to man. Legalism is the belief that, the law has something to do or contribute to one’s salvation. Legalism is the belief that: the law has nothing to add on my salvation but after am saved, it is my obedience to the law that maintains my salvation. It is the belief that though am not saved by the law I will be judged by the law. Legalism is the habit of trademarking, sealing and identifying with the law or particular laws.

This too is a devil’s deadly deception…that we must avoid by all means as Christians….

THE TRUTH

Rom 10:4 says that Christ is the “end” of the law…the Greek word translated as “end” is TELOS. In the syntax of this sentence, “end” is a poor translation of Telos… the closest to the meaning of telos can be : “Goal” or “Fulfillment”….. Christ is the GOAL in which the ball (law) scores…in a sense once you (sinner) are brought (pedagogos Gal.3:24) to Jesus, the work of the law is done. You cannot score the ball twice before it is taken back to the center…as in you cannot have Jesus and look away from him to the law, neither can you look at Jesus and the law at the same time.

The law’s goal is in Jesus Christ because Jesus is the “fulfillment” of the law (Mat. 5:17)…the law is not and cannot be fulfilled by any man except the second Adam who is God incarnate (Jesus, Rom 5:18-21). Once you are in Jesus Christ…the school master (Gal. 3:24-25) hands over to the Holy Spirit who bears the fruit of love and its results and where the Spirit is in operation there is no need of the law (Gal.5:22-23). For we are saved by Grace through faith not by works lest any man boast… (Eph. 2:8-9)

ALWAYS REMEMBER TO AVOID THE TWO DEVILISH DECEPTIONS
Lawlessness and Legalism

I T WHITE
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