Before seeking to bring out what the Scripture teaches in answer to the question at the head of this article, let us ask each reader of these lines, Are you a Christian? But stay a moment; you may be born in a so-called Christian land; you may make a profession of Christianity, yet, after all, not be a Christian. The word Christian has come to have a very wide and vague meaning; and we fear that much that passes nominally as Christian, would be more correctly termed antiChristian. Let us then affectionately ask you again, Are you a Christian—a true one? A Christian is a child of God who has forgiveness of sins, and everlasting life, and the Holy Spirit. (1 John 2:12; John 6:47 Cor. 6:19.) Are these blessings yours? If not, the only way to possess them is to take the lost sinner's place, and to claim the lost sinner's Savior, to plead guilty in self judgment before God, and to believe on the Lord Jesus Christ—His Son.
Now the grievous and soul-destroying mistake that thousands around us are making, is to endeavor to rule their lives more or less according to their own ideas of the meaning of Scripture, without being born again (John 3:3-7). They read the Bible, and their minds are filled with a mixture of law and gospel; there is an indefinite effort to love God and their neighbor; a profession of keeping the ten commandments, or, as many may express it, they do the best they can. But, beloved reader, be warned ere it be too late, all this is utterly vain. There may be a good measure of sincerity in what you are doing; but the Word of God is unmistakably plain, "They that are in the flesh cannot please God." Rom. 8:8.
Some may reply, But did not God give the ten commandments as a rule of life? He did; but to whom, and when, and for how long? He gave it to Israel, when they were at the foot of Mount Sinai, and till the Seed—Christ—should come. (Exod. 19; 20 Gal. 3:19.) And Christ is the end of the law (Rom. 10:4). The law addresses man in the flesh, when God was looking for good in man. But though He lingered long over him, that good He could not find. The law demanded that which flesh could not produce; it demanded righteousness."The law is holy, and the commandment holy, and just, and good." Rom. 7:12. But the flesh is the opposite. It is unholy, unjust, and bad. Therefore we read, "If there had been a law given which could have given life, verily righteousness should have been by the law." Gal. 3:21. But that is just what the law could not give. It is not a ministration of life and righteousness, but of death and condemnation (2 Cor. 3). Israel was fully tried; but the teaching of the Holy Spirit through God's servant Paul is, "There is none righteous, no, not one"; "All have sinned," etc. (Rom. 3:10, 23).
Will you then, a poor sinner of the Gentiles, go back to that which only condemns all who attempt to stand by it before God? But "Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to every one that believeth." Rom. 10:4. And as another has said, You are nineteen hundred years too late. "If righteousness come by the law, then Christ is dead in vain" (Gal. 2:21).
Furthermore, if our readers will read carefully chapter 15 of the Acts of the Apostles, they will find that there was a conference held at Jerusalem about this very question, of whether the Gentiles which have not the law (Rom. 2:14), and who believed through grace on the Lord Jesus Christ, were to be put under the law; and we find that the Apostles, the elders, and the whole Church, and above all the Holy Spirit, were all against it, saying, "Forasmuch as we have heard, that certain which went out from us have troubled you with words, subverting your souls, saying, Ye must be circumcised, and keep the law; to whom we gave no such commandment." Acts 15:24. And Peter in verse 10 says, "Now therefore why tempt ye God, to put a yoke upon the neck of the disciples, which neither our fathers nor we were able to bear?"
"Well, but," some may still reply, "did not Christ say, 'Think not that I am come to destroy the law or the prophets: I am not come to destroy, but to fulfill. For verily I say unto you, Till heaven and earth pass, one jot or one tittle shall in no wise pass from the law, till all be fulfilled. Whosoever therefore shall break one of these least commandments, and shall teach men so, he shall be called the least in the kingdom of heaven: but whosoever shall do and teach them, the same shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven?' (Matt. 5:17-19). And if Christ said so, surely it must be right." A moment, friends, think over that passage again; turn to it in your Testament, and pay special heed as to whom the Lord is speaking. You will find that it is addressed to Jewish disciples (v. 1), and to them only. And, moreover, when addressed to them, man was still on his trial. As the passage shows, He was expecting righteousness from them. "Whosoever shall do," etc.; "Except your righteousness shall exceed," etc. (Matt. 5:19, 20). But it was not long after this He was refused as the King, cast out, and crucified; and His death is the end of the moral history of the race of the first Adam before God. In crucifying Christ, man showed out clearly that instead of keeping the law, by loving God with all his heart, and his neighbor as himself, he hated both. Christ was God manifest in the flesh, and man's true neighbor. (1 Tim. 3:16; Luke 10:30-37.) The cross was man's solemn award to that Blessed One, when He, the holy, perfect Man, kept the law which they professed to keep but broke. From that moment the flesh was set aside as utterly corrupt. From that moment God no longer sought righteousness from man. From that moment legal righteousness—that is, human righteousness—was pronounced utterly worthless. (Rom. 3:10-20.)
But Christ, as we have seen, came not to destroy the law, but to fulfill. And He fulfilled it; He magnified it, and made it honorable (Isa. 42:21). The law is holy, and the commandment holy, just, and good; and Christ was holy, just, and good. The law demanded righteousness from man. Every other had failed; but He was Jehovah's righteous Servant (Isa. 53:11). The Son of man was perfect in all His obedience, and the law's highest claims were more than met by Him. The Son of God became flesh, sin apart, and glorified God as the holy Man throughout His pathway (Heb. 1:2-6; 1 Tim. 3:16). And not only so, but He went to the cross, and glorified God as to sin. He, the sinless One, was made sin (2 Cor. 5:21); He died, His blood was shed, He was buried, and God raised Him again the third day, according to the Scriptures (Acts 2:32 Cor. 15:4). And where is He now? Seated at the right hand of the Majesty in the heavens—a Man in the glory of God (Heb. 1:3).
And now, dear reader, let us look at the blessed result. "By the deeds of the law," says the Apostle, "there shall no flesh be justified in His sight: for by the law is the knowledge of sin. But now the righteousness of God without the law is manifested, being witnessed by the law and the prophets; even the righteousness of God which is by faith of Jesus Christ unto all and upon all them that believe," etc. Rom. 3:20-22. What could be plainer? The righteousness of God (not of man or of the law) is upon all them that believe. Mark it well—righteousness of God without law. "By faith of Jesus Christ."
You must have a righteousness before God before you can walk by any rule so as to please Him. Of the rule that we are responsible to follow, we shall speak directly. But, first of all, have you apprehended that of which we speak? Is this righteousness upon you?
In Rom. 10 we have a most important scripture bearing upon it. Paul, speaking of his kinsmen, the people of Israel (but equally applicable to thousands today) says, "They, being ignorant of God's righteousness, and going about to establish their own righteousness, have not submitted themselves unto the righteousness of God. For Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to every one that believeth," etc. Rom. 10:3, 4. Now are you clear? Have you submitted yourself to the righteousness of God? If so, then you are one to whom the Apostle refers when he says, "Even... David also describeth the blessedness of the man, unto whom God imputeth righteousness without works." Rom. 4:6.
Being accounted righteous by God, on the principle of faith in the finished work of Christ, we are meet for His presence and glory. To such God gives the Holy Spirit, whereby we are sealed for the day of redemption (Eph. 4:30). But the saved are mostly left for a while on earth, and hence our need of a rule of life. But each must be reckoned righteous before God first, and that by faith, without the law, without works (Rom. 3:21, 4:6). It is of the utmost importance to be perfectly clear as to this, or our walk is sure to be legal, faulty, and of a low standard. The prodigal was pardoned, reconciled, clad with the best robe, before the shoes were put on his feet (Luke 15). And we must be pardoned, reconciled, clothed with Christ, before we can be fitted to walk before God so as to please Him.
And now we come to the point more immediately before us in this article—What is the Christian's rule of life? Many, again, who readily admit that we are not under the law for justification, still plead that we must take the ten commandments as the standard of our walk. But what saith the Scripture? We have already alluded in passing to 2 Cor. 3, which shows that they are a ministration of death and condemnation. How then can they be a rule of life? Have such persons never read in the Word, "Cursed is every one that continueth not in all things which are written in the book of the law to do them" (Gal. 3:10)? And "Whosoever shall keep the whole law, and yet offend in one point, he is guilty of all." Jas. 2:10. And where is there one who is not convicted on that ground? Where is there one that will have the effrontery to say he has kept all without fail? There is then nothing but death and condemnation for all who attempt to stand by the law. To go back to it after being justified by faith, is to return to bondage. It is another gospel, and yet not another, for it takes the gospel away (Gal. 1:6-9).
But God has given us a rule of life, and it is a far higher code than the law. Paul sums it up in one short sentence, full of meaning: "To me to live is Christ" (Phil. 1:21). This is abundantly confirmed elsewhere; "He that saith he abideth in Him ought Himself also so to walk, even as He walked." 1 John 2:6. "Every man that hath this hope in Him purifieth himself, even as He is pure." 1 John 3:3. "If any man serve Me, let him follow Me," etc. (John 12:26). "Even hereunto were ye called: because Christ also suffered for us, leaving us an example, that ye should follow His steps: who did no sin," etc. (1 Pet. 2:21, 22). "That the righteousness [or righteous requirement] of the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit." Rom. 8:4. "Be ye therefore followers of God, as dear children." Eph. 5:1. And last, "In Christ Jesus neither circumcision availeth anything, but a new creature [or creation]. And as many as walk according to this rule, peace be on them, and mercy," etc. Gal. 6:15, 16. And we might multiply passages, all showing the same truth, that Christ is now the believer's rule of life; that is to say, that the Christian is to follow Christ in the power of the Holy Spirit, who dwells in him (Rom. 8:14), taking Christ as his rule, standard, measure, example, in everything.
The whole teaching of the epistle to the Galatians is to show how evil a thing it is for Christians, who are the subjects of grace, to return to the law. "Stand fast therefore in the liberty wherewith Christ hath made us free, and be not entangled again with the yoke of bondage. Behold, I Paul say unto you, that if ye be circumcised, Christ shall profit you nothing. For I testify again to every man that is circumcised, that he is a debtor to do the whole law. Christ is become of no effect unto you, whosoever of you are justified by the law; ye are fallen from grace. For we through the Spirit wait for the hope of righteousness by faith. For in Jesus Christ neither circumcision availeth anything, nor uncircumcision; but faith which worketh by love." Gal. 5:1-6.
"Wherefore, my brethren," we read again, "ye also are become dead to the law by the body of Christ; that ye should be married to another, even to Him who is raised from the dead, that we should bring forth fruit unto God... that we should serve in newness of spirit, and not in the oldness of the letter" (Rom. 7:4-6). "Be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving your own selves." Jas. 1:22. "Whoso looketh into the perfect law of liberty, and continueth therein, he being not a forgetful hearer, but a doer of the word, this man shall be blessed in his deed." Jas. 1:25.
Is there any reason for license it all this? God forbid. No, there is none whatever, but the very opposite. "I through the law," says the Apostle, "am dead to the law, that I might live unto God." Gal. 2:19. We are redeemed, and we are also purchased. Redemption makes us Christ's freedmen, and purchase makes us His bondmen. "Ye are not your own. For ye are bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body" (1 Cor. 6:19, 20). "Walk in the Spirit, and ye shall not fulfill the lust of the flesh." Gal. 5:16. And "The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, long-suffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, temperance: against such there is no law." Gal. 5:22, 23.
To sum up, in closing, what we have written: The law is God's claim of obedience from man in the flesh, showing what he must be, and do, and not do, if he would please God. After full trial, he utterly failed. But Christ, the holy One, magnified the law. Then He bore its curse on behalf of the sinner on the cross, died, rose, and thereby wrought a complete deliverance for every one that believes.
The Gentiles are brought in on the ground of grace, and all alike are accounted righteous by faith without the deeds of the law, being accepted before God in Him, the Beloved. And Christ is the Object and hope, standard and example, for every believer. In short, Christ is our Savior, and our rule of life when we are saved, and not the law at all. And just in proportion as the Christian, walking in the power of the Spirit, keeps the Word, so in proportion is there conformity to God's standard. May we be ever mindful of the words of the Apostle—"To me to live is Christ."