from Gary Hamrick
... Senior Pastor of Cornerstone Chapel
for
The Goodness of God’s Law
... Do not approach God’s Word merely as a list of commands. Receive it as a gracious gift that reveals God’s holiness, exposes your need, and continually directs your heart to Jesus Christ.
Romans 7:12 NKJV (devotion translation)
Therefore the law is holy, and the commandment holy and just and good.
Devotion:
Today’s Scripture reminds us that God’s law was never meant to save us, but to reveal His holy character and our need for His grace.
Paul explains that believers are no longer under the law as a means of being justified before God. Through faith in Jesus Christ, we have been set free from the law’s condemnation. Yet this freedom does not diminish the value of God’s law. Instead, it helps us understand its true purpose.
God’s law exposes what sin is. While our conscience often recognizes obvious wrongdoing, there are sins that become clear only when God’s Word speaks directly to them. The Scriptures reveal attitudes and desires that may otherwise remain hidden. In doing so, they lovingly call us to repentance and greater obedience.
The law also uncovers the ongoing struggle within every believer. Even after coming to Christ, there remains a conflict between the desires of the flesh and the work of God’s Spirit. Paul speaks honestly about this battle, reminding us that spiritual maturity is not found in pretending the struggle does not exist, but in continually turning to Christ for strength and mercy.
Most importantly, the law points us to our Savior. Left to ourselves, we cannot overcome sin or earn God’s favor. The law reveals our inability, but the gospel proclaims God’s provision. Jesus bore the penalty for our sin and gives us His Spirit to help us walk in obedience. What the law could never accomplish through human effort, Christ accomplishes through His grace.
As you read God’s Word today, do not approach it merely as a list of commands. Receive it as a gracious gift that reveals God’s holiness, exposes your need, and continually directs your heart to Jesus Christ.
Prayer:
Father, thank You for Your holy Word that reveals both Your righteousness and my need for Your grace. Help me to submit to Your Spirit each day and to find my hope in Christ alone. Teach me to walk in faithful obedience because of all He has done for me. Amen.
Digging Deeper:
- Romans 3:20 ↗ - The law reveals the knowledge of sin but cannot justify us before God.
- Galatians 3:24-25 ↗ - The law serves as a tutor leading us to Christ, that we might be justified by faith.
- Romans 7:15-25 ↗ - Paul describes the believer’s ongoing struggle with sin and the need for Christ’s deliverance.
- Romans 8:1-4 ↗ - Christ frees believers from condemnation and accomplishes what the law could not through the Holy Spirit.
- Psalms 19:7-11 ↗ - God’s law is perfect, revealing His character and guiding those who trust Him.