All Doves:

Perhaps humanity's and certainly history's greatest misunderstanding about the Bible has resulted from the mixing or co-mingling "Law and Grace".   Like trying to mix oil and water, or sugar and gasoline, the consequence proves to be dangerously problematic.  There are many many dangers when folks attempt to co-mingle "Law" and "Grace"  This subject will be the basis of a series of posts that I will most likely cover in coming posts.  As such I will lay out my premises here at the beginning so that the reader can reflect on these thoughts.

Most people today, in the Church as well as outside, are living their lives with the mixing of "Law" and "Grace".  When you review the Bible teachings on:  the differences between the old covenant and the new covenant; the effects and shortcomings of the Law, explanations of the Ten Commandments; can the Law save you; the purpose of the Law; the differences between the various categories commonly understood as the "Law"; the fact is a fairly large segment of humanity are mixing "Law" and "Grace" without having really considering or even defining what it is they understand as the difference.

How do you know which side you are on?   Is it by the way you live?  Do you live to do the works or do you live to obey?  Do you have responsibilities or do you respond?  Do you have a relationship with God or do you have a religion?  To lay a little groundwork on this larger issue, the "Law" needs doing, legalism, responsibility, religion, rituals, traditions and works while Grace only needs obedience or responding to by faith.

++"Law" and "Grace" cannot mix.  They are mutually exclusive of one another.  They are like oil and water, they cannot mix like mixing Nestle's cocoa with milk or water.  Consider the words of Christ Jesus in Matthew 9:14-17, "Then came to him the disciples of John, saying, why do we and the Pharisees fast oft, but thy disciples fast not?  And Jesus said unto them, Can the children of the bridechamber mourn, as long as the bridegroom is with them?  but the days will come, when the bridegroom shall be taken from them, and then shall they fast.  No man putteth a piece of new cloth unto an old garment, for that which is put in to fill it up taketh from the garment, and the rent is made worse.  Neither do men put new wine into old bottles: else the bottles break, and the wine runneth out, and the bottles perish: but the put new wine into new bottles, and both are preserved."   Jesus was talking about the issue of "Law" and "Grace".  He was saying that you cannot have something new while you still hold to the old.  You cannot be under "Grace" while still under the "Law".   The point being, If you are mixing "Law" and "Grace", you are not under "Grace" but are now under the "Law"!

++If you are under the "Law", Jesus Christ is not with you!  Jesus of the Bible is a Jesus of "Grace" and not the "Law", and He is not with you as you struggle to obey the "Law", doing the works of the "Law".  He does not mix Himself up on this, and despite millions are attempting to "Do" precisely this are failing completely in their lives by attempting to mix "Law" with "Grace"!

++The "Laws" are for Jews, but "Grace" is for the Gentiles.  The "Laws" (both God's and Mosaic) are contained in the Old Testament and they were given to the Jews, except the Ten Commandments or (God's Laws) which were given to the whole world.  In giving out the Ten Commandments, God spoke in "seventy" different languages, a proof that the Ten Commandments were given to the whole world.  This is proved by the Jewish scribes and their early Scriptures.   The New Testament ("Grace") is specifically to the Gentiles and as you have read in difference between the Old Covenant and the New Covenant.  The New stipulates that we have our "Laws" written in our hearts and not on stone tablets.  Now that was achieved by the Holy Spirit and thus you do not need to read or study the "Laws" but when you were "Born Again", the Holy Spirit writes those "Laws" into your heart.  He leads, commands and guides you so that when you go astray, you hear His voice instructing you.

++You are not a Christian, the word Christian comes from the word "Christ-like".  You cannot be a Christian when you are not living like Jesus Christ.  Living like Christ is living under "Grace" and not by living neither under the "Law" nor mixing "Law" and "Grace".  I trust you are following my reasoning logic here where I am going.

++Condemnation awaits you when mixing the two "Law" and "Grace" is being under the "Law" and you are still in the Old Testament (the Dispensation of the Law) and condemnation awaits you.

++You deny salvation is only by "Grace" through "Faith".  Many people do not know which side they are on.  They claim to be Christian yet they go back to the "Law" and still claim doing the works (obeying the law) as part of salvation.  People under the "Law" or mixing the "Law" and "Grace" deny that salvation is by "Grace" through "Faith".  The claim that to be saved you need works, baptism, church membership, and a list of other prerequisites as long as your arm.

++You will never inherit the Kingdom of heaven being under the "Law" and mixing up the "Law" and "Grace".  That may strike you as heresy but Scripture makes that clear.

++People under the "Law" want to place those free under the "Law".  We all have these "wantabe" Christians close to us, around us, that judge us by the laws yet I have clearly stated that I am not under the "Law".  They push at us to put us under bondage and slavery but I am in "Grace" (freedom), and there is no turning back!  If you have these "wantabe's" Christians around you who judge you and try to put you under the "Law", stand firm to the Truth of the Bible.

++You do not obey the "Law".  There are many laws in the Bible, many you neither know nor have heard of.  So if you are struggling to fulfill only Ten Laws, what about all the other 613 "Laws"?  Remember, breaking even one "Law" is breaking all "Laws" so which "Laws" do you obey?  Definitely, there is no "Law" you obey.  Paul said, break one "Law" and you have broken them all.

This is no trick lesson to scramble your mind or confuse you by some errant logic.  Jesus was the end of the "Law".  Jesus abolished the "Law", even the Ten Commandments, and He is the absolute fulfillment of the "Law(s)".  If Jesus Christ dwells in you (find out how He dwells in you), you have fulfilled all "Laws" and you have no works to do but just praise and worship Him alone!

Jesus fulfilled all "Law" demands and finished all works, and He proved this when He said, "It is finished" -(John 19:30).  If you are co-mingling "Law" and "Grace" trying to mix the two, you need to wake up, recognize the dangers, see the light, and claim your salvation.  It is not about obeying the Ten Commandments", the Mosaic Law, but it is all about responding to Christ Jesus.  It is not about obeying the "Sabbath", not killing, not committing adultery, and all the laws, but it is about having Jesus Christ dwelling inside you and you will fulfill all laws since He fulfilled (and fulfills) every single law.  No one will inherit the kingdom of heaven by the "Law".  When you see the light you will come to "Grace" like a super-magnet drawing you to it.  Keep in mind that the "Law" was meant as a schoolmaster, "Wherefore the law was our schoolmaster to bring us unto to Christ, that we might be justified by faith/.  But after that faith is come, we are no longer under a schoolmaster".  -(Galatians 3:24-25).

My point in this post is to remind you that you can't be a Christian if, and that is a big "IF" you are attempting to "mix" or "co-mingle" "Law" and "Grace"!  I know this will create quite a stir among many who read Five Doves but I will not leave this or them hanging here without further extensive Biblical analysis of the message of "Grace".  In the points that I have noted, there is abundant Scripture to support the "Grace" message.  We have at a few months to unpack the Truth about God's "Grace"  But as a former United Methodist Church pastor I know well the confusion that exists within the church today of people that are under condemnation because they have not been properly educated to the Biblical message of the Gospel of Christ Jesus.  We have the Roman Catholic Institution to blame for all their deception, lies, and confusion that hangs over the Church like a threatening storm.  Don't count on them or her daughter-churches to clarify this heresy for you.  We are going to be "Rightly Dividing the Word of God!"

Maranatha, and blessings from the King of Grace,

Pastor Bob