If any true born-again Christian put themselves under the law, you have effectively turn yourself into food for the devil.
God gave the law for 3 purposes
- To make the world aware that all have sinned.
Only Adam and Eve who used live a sinless life (before their fall) knows the difference between sin and sinless. But everyone who comes after the fall, is born into sin and living in sin is a new norm. Nobody knows that they are living in sin. Therefore, God gave the law to make the world aware what is sin.
Romans 3:20 For by works of the law no human being will be justified in his sight, since through the law comes knowledge of sin.
- To let the world know the standard of God and nobody can meet God’s standard.
To meet or pass God’s standard, we need to keep all the 10 laws (10 Commandments). Even in thought (just by thinking) without committing the sin physically, he/she has already sinned.
James 2:10 For whosoever shall keep the whole law, and yet offend in one point, he is guilty of all.
Matthew 5:28 But I say unto you, that whosoever looketh on a woman to lust after her hath committed adultery with her already in his heart.
- Repentance can only happen through the knowledge of sin
Without the law (God’s standard), individual will set their own personal standard that they can meet. By doing so, everyone will think that they are good, sinless and should be accepted by God. There will be no repentance without knowing that we have failed.
Romans 3:20 Therefore by the deeds of the law there shall no flesh be justified in his sight: for by the law is the knowledge of sin.
The law is meant to show the fallen world on God’s perfect standard which nobody can meet. Only sinners who truly acknowledge that they have failed and can never meet God’s perfect standard can truly repent and turn to God for salvation.
True repentance that brings salvation and born-again in Christ happens only once in a lifetime. For eternal salvation can only be receive once.
What is true repentance? True repentance is to understand that a sinner cannot save himself because nobody can change their sinner status through good works or committing less sins (trying to earn salvation by obeying the law). By understanding that we cannot earn salvation, we turn our faith from our self-effort to Jesus Christ and his finished work by receiving salvation as a free gift.
What is worldly repentance? It is to try your best to keep the laws that you are conscious of. The more you try to keep the law the more you will fail.
1 Corinthians 15:56 The sting of death is sin; and the strength of sin is the law.
Whenever you fail, the devil will come as an accuser to devour you like a lion (1 peter 5:8 Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour) with lies, preying on your guilty conscious and convincing you to believe that you have lost your salvation (The truth is God’s salvation is eternal and cannot be lost), only for you to repent back into salvation. This worldly repentance is called REMORSE which lead to death and was demonstrated by Judas Iscariot who accused by the devil until he was overcame by guilt and paid for his sins with his own life. Judas Iscariot was never saved before he took his own life because Jesus has not yet died and rose from the grave. And by paying his sins with his life, he trusted himself more than Jesus.
Brothers and Sisters in-Christ, if you are truly born-again in Christ, all our sins have been removed once and for all by one single sacrifice of Jesus Christ. If all our sins have been removed, we should not feel or be conscious of something that no longer exist.
Hebrews 10:2 Otherwise, would they not have stopped being offered? For the worshipers would have been cleansed once for all, and would no longer have felt guilty for their sins.
Although we still sin after born-again (because we are still living in our old fallen body), we need to be reminded that our salvation, righteousness and holiness is a gift from God based on the sacrifice of Jesus Christ on the cross.
Ephesians 2:8-9 For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God—not by works, so that no one can boast.
For while we were sinners, through good works we cannot undo the sinner status given to us by Adam. How much more will it be impossible for us to undo the saint status given to us by Jesus Christ.
Romans 5:19 For just as through the disobedience of the one man the many were made sinners, so also through the obedience of the one man the many will be made righteous.
Battle the devil with the Grace of God
When we failed and the devil comes roaring like a lion to accuse us in the battlefield of the law by calling our sins to consciousness, we need bring the devil to the battlefield of grace by declaring the goodness of God to us despite our unworthiness with praises to God and Jesus Christ.
Roaring lion says: Do you remember you reported your classmate of cheating? And now you are doing the exact same thing that he did. You are a hypocrite.
Our respond through grace: Indeed, I am a hypocrite and no better. But praises to God because he still chose to save and continually love a hypocrite like me. I boast of his faithfulness and unchanging love for me despite my failings.
Jeremiah 9:23-24 Thus says the Lord: “Let not the wise man boast in his wisdom, let not the mighty man boast in his might, let not the rich man boast in his riches, but let him who boasts boast in this, that he understands and knows me
Every time the devil comes to accuse us of our failing, we should not find excuses or beat ourselves up. But rather we should boast in our weakness because weakness qualifies and humble me for God’s power.
2 Corinthians 12:9 But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me.
Every time the devil brings an accusation and condemnation, it is an opportunity to turn it into praises onto God.