For in grace, through faith, are you saved, and this is not out of you; it is Gods approach present, not of works, lest anyone should be boasting
Paul to the Ephesians 2: 8-9, Concordant New Testament
The people of Israel had a problem. They needed a way to righteousness. As the Lords chosen people, they desired to be righteous in the eyes of the Lord. But the issue they faced was their own sin condition. God could not be in the presence of sin. Therefore, God set forth a set of requirements by which His people could achieve His favor. This was the "law" instituted by the Lord God for Israel. The Israelites, for their part, perceived it a way to gain the favor of the Lord and, ultimately, righteousness. But here was their problem, the law God instituted was ultimately designed to fail. The law was based on the precept that the nation of Israel, and mankind in general, could achieve righteousness through their own efforts, and not through the grace and mercy of the Father. Therefore, the people of Israel were given a multitude of statutes which they were expected to adhere to if they were to gain the favor of the Lord. The law relied solely on human performance to make one righteous. But why would God institute His holy law knowing that it would fail in the end? Near as I can tell, the law, as given unto Israel, was indeed holy as created. However, I believe that Gods intention through the law was to demonstrate mans own inability to overcome sin through his own efforts. As we know, animal sacrifices and other traditions were ineffective in making the Israelites righteous. What the law DID do was act as a mirror to reveal sin rather than providing the means to overcome it. For this they would need the sacrificed blood of an innocent savior {Paul to the Corinthians (2) 5:21}. The Israelites, and mankind in general, have lacked the heart and the desire to obey the law of the Lord. Therefore, despite the provisions given in the law of the Lord, we have failed in every effort to overcome sin by our own abilities. Through our inability, however, God pointed the way unto a new covenant not only for Israel, but for all mankind.
The apostle Paul, for his part, illustrated the effect of man being able to relieve his own sin condition on his own {Paul to the Ephesians 2:8-9}. Can you imagine a church service on a Sunday morning where half of the congregation had achieved victory over sin of their own accord while others continued to struggle in their efforts? I can see the pride. I can see the arrogance. I can just see the condemnation placed on those who, not for lack of effort, had been unable to overcome their own sin. THIS is what the law has given us. But the new covenant, given by the Father through the death of Christ Jesus has accomplished what the requirements of the law never could {Marks Account 14:24}. It is Jesus who has spoken to this new covenant and the forgiveness of our sins {Mathews Account 26:28}. In spite of this new covenant instituted by the Father, there continues to be those who continue to put their faith in the old covenant, that through their adherence to rules and regulations, that their sins will be no more. This belief, of course, denies the shed blood of Christ as the act by which we have been delivered from sin. I have known friends who continue in their struggle against sin daily without realizing that they have been set free from its bondage forever {Paul to the Romans 6:10}. They scoff at the words spoken by Paul of how we who have died to sin should live in it no longer {Paul to the Romans 6:1-2}. They ask me in shocked amazement, 'So I can just go and do whatever I want to do without consequences?' Simply put, yes. Yet one first needs a heart change and the revelation of the Father that their life is not lived outside of God, but within Him {Johns Account 14:20}. Only then can they began to see the truth revealed unto them of the Fathers new covenant for them. The grace of the Father and the forgiveness we find through Christ Jesus.
For this is the blood of the new covenant, that is shed for many for the pardon of sins
Mathews Account 26: 28, Concordant New Testament
~Scott~
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