Philip Bliss, in his great Gospel
hymn “Once for All”, begins with this glorious declaration, “Free from the Law,
O happy condition!” Indeed, the
desperation of all who are trying to please God by keeping the Law has been
overcome by God’s gift of grace. They have been given a gift of grace through
Christ’s full obedience to the Law and then dying for all who break it. We are no longer condemned by the Law that we
cannot keep. We are pardoned through the shed blood of the One who kept
it. But does that mean that we are free
from obedience to the Law of God?
Paul asks, “Shall we sin (break the
Law) that Grace may abound? God forbid!”
Christ summarized the Law into two behavioral demands that illustrate
that we can keep the Law while walking in the glory of Grace. Jesus said, “Love the Lord your God with all
your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind and with all your strength;
and you shall love your neighbor as yourself.”
We might think of this as a Grace walk.
One foot walks in holiness to God and the other foot walks in love to
mankind. Both feet walk together in the
path of Christ as revealed in God’s inerrant holy word. The heart grows stronger in love toward God
and man the more walking is done. The
brain becomes more focused on the beauties seen in the walk as the walk
progresses more toward the image and glory of Christ.
The conflict does not come in
coupling Grace to obedience to the Law. The Holy Spirit, who is God and loves man and
indwells the believer, will strengthen us in this dual walk every day. The conflict is that attempt by man to
supplant God’s grace by our own obedience to the Law as being sufficient to
please God. That will never do. It will end in failure, fatigue and Phariseeism. But walking in graceful obedience to the law
of loving God and man will bless us, will bless God and will bless man. Jesus, led by the Holy Spirit, walked this
Grace walk. Let us sing with Washington
Gladden, “O Master, Let Me Walk with Thee”, and then purpose in our hearts to
walk the Grace walk with Him today and every day.
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