John 5:10-16 - Part 1
John 5:10-16
Part One
Legalism—Lets Understand It
Legalists measure spiritual growth against a yardstick notched incrementally by good works. These human standards may conveniently size people up, but in the end, they stunt growth instead of foster it. The Pharisees are the grandfathers of legalism; Jesus meets them in a head-to-head confrontation that turns the tide of official opinion against Him. When we lift the veil of legalism, we find hypocrisy instead of holiness.
A. What Is It?
1. A Code of Behavior for the Purpose of Exalting Self.
Legalists make a list of do’s and don’ts based not on Scripture but on tradition or personal preference—then they judge themselves and others on their performance. In a nutshell, its “checklist Christianity.”
B. How Does It Happen?
1. Legalism Slips Unnoticed Into the Church.
Legalists prey upon young, biblically naïve believers. Paul describes legalists in Galatians 2:4 as “false brethren who has sneaked in to spy out our liberty which we have in Christ Jesus, in order to bring us into bondage.”
C. Why Is It Wrong?
1. First and Foremost—Legalism is Unbiblical.
a) Grace and Freedom are the Hallmarks of the Christian Life.
1) John 8:32 “the truth shall make you free”
2) Romans 8:1-4 “For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has made me free from the law”
3) Galatians 5:1 “Stand fast therefore in the liberty by which Christ has made us free”
4) Ephesians 2:4-9 “saved by grace”
2. It Promotes the Flesh which cannot please God Romans 8:8
3. It is Based on Pride Luke 18:9-14
a) The error of self-righteousness and legalism.
1) It causes a person to stress that he is saved and acceptable to God because he does good. He works, behaves morally, keeps certain rules and regulations, does the things a Christian should do, and obeys the main laws of God.
2) But he neglects the basic law: the law of love and acceptance—that God loves him and accepts him not because he does good, but because he loves and trusts the righteousness of Christ (Matthew 5:6).
b) When Did It Start & the Error of It? Legalism is an ancient art, perfected by the Pharisees and implemented by subsequent generations of apprentices who have been narrow, rigid, and often intolerably religious. Legalists have refused to accept the doctrine of sheer grace.
D. Law and Grace—What Is It?
If a person is going to understand NT theology, they must understand the difference between Law and Grace.
1. Having A Balanced Perspective
a) Law and Grace are Opposite Living Standards.
1) Law and grace are opposite living standards. But this does not mean that there was no grace for those who lived under the law (Psalm 51; 103)
2) Nor does it mean that there are no laws for us, who live under grace (Romans 13:8-10; Gal.6:2; James 1:25; 2:8)
3) Grace never promotes a do-as-you-please philosophy or a loose life of selfishness, sinfulness, and licentiousness. Romans 6:12-18 confirms this fact (see also Galatians 5:13-14).
4) John 1:17 For the Law was given through Moses but grace and truth came through Jesus Christ
5) Romans 11:6 Law and Grace are mutually exclusive.
b) The Law Was Given to Israel not the Church.
1) The Ten Commandments
(a) Exodus 20:2 Is spoken to those God brought out of Egypt out of the house of bondage
(b) Ephesians 2:11-12
(c) Romans 9:3-5
(d) Deuteronomy 4:8, 44, 45 given to Israel
(e) Yet, Titus 2:11 grace appeared to all men
c) Righteousness Does Not Come by the Law.
1) Romans 8:3 Deliver sinners from its penalty (Acts 13:38, 39; Gal. 3:10) or make them righteous (Gal. 3:21). The law cannot make us holy, yet the problem is us since the law is holy and pure (Rom 7:7).
2) Romans 10:4-10 Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to everyone who believes
(a) Paul means that belief in Christ as Lord and Savior ends the sinner’s futile quest for righteousness through his imperfect attempts to save himself by efforts to obey the law (cf. 3:20–22; Is. 64:6; Col. 2:13, 14).
3) Romans 10:5 says if you live by them and break one and guilty (Jms) vs. divine empowerment in (Philippians 2:13 and Romans 8:3-4).
4) Hebrews 7:19 made nobody perfect even though it is perfect and holy (Rom 7:12)
(a) Hebrews 7:11 – the term refers to complete reconciliation with and access to God—salvation. The Levitical system and its priesthood could not save anyone from their sins.
(b) The law saved no one (cf. Rom. 3:19,20); rather it cursed everyone (cf. Gal. 3:10–13).
2. The Purpose of the Law.
a) Phillips trans: “It is the straight-edge of the law which shows us how crooked we are.”
1) Romans 3:20 it brings the knowledge of sin (Ex: Paul discovered that coveting was wrong when he read the law Rom.7:7)
2) Romans 4:15 The Law brings wrath because we violate it
3) Romans 5:20 It causes sin to abound. Although the Mosaic law is not flawed (7:12), its presence caused man’s sin to increase (cf. 7:8–11). Thus it made men more aware of their own sinfulness and inability to keep God’s perfect standard (7:7; Gal. 3:21, 22), and it served as a tutor to drive them to Christ (Gal. 3:24).
4) Romans 7:13 The Law shows how exceedingly sinful, sin is in God’s eyes
(a) Sin is the cause of spiritual death, not the good law. An awareness of the true nature of sin and its deadly character, which brings the sinner to see his need of salvation—the very purpose God intended the law to serve (Gal. 3:19–22).
5) Galatians 3:10-13 The law brings a curse upon us because we break it, yet Christ became cursed for us by paying the penalty of our breaking the law.
b) Gal 3:19-25 Reveals the Clear Purpose of the Law:
1) It was added because of transgression – stepping over the boundary (3:19 cf. John 15:22)
(a) The law reveals man’s utter sinfulness, inability to save himself, and desperate need of a Savior—it was never intended to be the way of salvation.
1. God was the Author and Giver of the covenant of law, and He was present with Moses on Mt. Sinai when it was given (Ex. 19:18–24) but in a way not fully explained, the law was given by God to Moses through angels (cf. Acts 7:53; Heb. 2:2).
2. The covenant of law is long past, but the moral demands of the law have not diminished. That is why preaching the moral, ethical standards of the law today is still imperative in driving men to Christ.
a. Unless men realize they are living in violation of God’s law and therefore stand under His divine judgment, they will see no reason to be saved.
b. Grace is meaningless to a person who feels no inadequacy or need of help. He sees no purpose in being saved if he does not realize he is lost.
c. He sees no need of forgiveness by God if he does not know he has offended God.
d. He sees no need to seek God’s mercy if he is unaware he is under God’s wrath. The law merely points to what only grace can produce.
2) It was given until the seed should come (vs. 19) which is Christ as seen in 3:16
(a) When Jesus Christ came, the law was to be set aside—it was temporary (John 1:17).
1. The law was meant to have only a temporary purpose and life span.
2. It was to extend only from Moses to Jesus Christ, for Jesus Christ is “the seed” to whom the promise of righteousness was given (Matthew 5:17-18).
3. God never intended the law to be the way of salvation. It was only for the temporary purpose of showing men their sin and its awfulness.
Law: the law referred to four different writings to the Jews.
1. It referred to the Ten Commandments.
2. It referred to the first five books of the Bible, that is the Pentateuch.
3. It referred to the law and the prophets, that is, all the Scripture of the Old Testament.
4. It referred to the oral or the Scribal Law.
God’s law, given in the Old Testament, was not enough for the Jews. They reasoned that if the law was really God’s Word, then it must include—have embodied within it—every rule and regulation for conduct. Therefore, they took the great principles of the law and reduced them to thousands upon thousands of rules and regulations. These rules and regulations became the oral or Scribal Law.
There were two groups who gave their lives to the teaching and keeping of the law.
1. The Scribes: they were the writers and teachers of the law (Luke 6:2).
2. The Pharisees: they were the strict followers of the law (Acts 23:8).
However, note: since Jesus Christ has come, He (His perfect life and righteousness) is to be the standard for men.
1. Jesus Christ fulfilled the law; that is, in Jesus Christ God gave man more than just mere words to describe how He wants man to live.
2. He gave man the Life, the Person who perfectly pictures and demonstrates the law before the world’s very eyes.
3. Jesus Christ is the Picture, the Living Example, the Pattern, the Demonstration of life as it is to be lived. He is the Perfect Picture of God’s will, the Ideal Man, the Representative Man, the Pattern for all men.
3) It was not given to produce life through obedience (3:21), it could not save.
(a) If it could have done so, it would have made the death of Christ tragically unnecessary (2:21).
4) It was given to keep us under guard until faith came (3:22-23)
(a) The Gr. verb translated “confined” means “to lock up securely,” “to enclose on all sides.” Paul portrays all mankind as hopelessly trapped in sin, like a school of fish caught in a net. That all people are sinners is the express teaching of Scripture.
(b) Kept under guard by the law – Paul personifies the law as a jail of guilty, condemned sinners, on death row awaiting God’s judgment (Rom. 6:23).
1. Every human being either continuously lives:
a. as a captive slave chained under the judgment of God’s immutable, universal law, the demands of which he must pay by eternal death and hell,
b. or he lives by faith as utterly free from judgment (Rom. 8:1) as a redeemed child of God under His sovereign and eternal grace.
5) It was to be our schoolmaster (paidagogos) to lead us to Christ (3:24)
(a) Schoolmaster or tutor: A slave who had charge of children from the ages of 7 to 18, took them to school, made sure they were dressed properly every day and had almost complete control and authority over the child.
1. Every day the guardian took the child to school and delivered him to the teacher. And then at the end of the day, he returned for the child and brought him safely back home. This was what the law was to do. The law was to lead man to Christ, the true Teacher.
2. Tutors were often strict disciplinarians, causing those under their care to yearn for the day when they would be free from their tutor’s custody. The law was our tutor which, by showing us our sins, was escorting us to Christ.
c) Gal 4:5 Christ Redeems us From the Curse of the Law.
1) Like every other man, Jesus was born under the Law, but unlike any other Jew, He satisfied the requirements of that law by living in perfect obedience to it. And because He lived in perfect obedience, He was able to redeem all other men who were under the Law (Romans 8:3-4).
d) The Slave Market of Paul’s Day
1) The master owned the slave. He was totally possessed by his master.
(a) Paul was purchased and possessed by Jesus Christ.
(b) Definition of Ransom “to obtain a release by the payment of a price
The Lord Jesus Christ came from heaven to die on a wooden cross for the sins of the world! “For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life a ransom for many." (Mark 10:45 cf. 1 Timothy 2:5; cf. Phil. 2:7, 8; Is. 53:12).
What did we need to be released from?
· From the bondage of the law that could not save but only condemn and from the slave market of sin (Galatians 3:13; 4:4-5).
· Slave market - The N.T. imagery of this is the buying and selling of slaves at the market place. An owner could go and buy a slave and if he wanted to he could release him or set him free from being a slave and that is what Jesus has done with us.
What was the result?
· We are set free, not to live a life of sin, but to serve the Lord (Romans 6:18).
· We are now accepted in the beloved (Ephesians 1:6).
What was the cost or the payment for us to be released?
· 1 Corinthians 6:20 – “You were bought at a price” 1 Peter 1:18-19 – “the blood of Christ”
· The slave existed only for the purpose of service for his master and he had no other reason for existence. Christian believers are said to be the slaves of Jesus Christ (Acts 2:18; 1 Cor. 7:22; Eph. 6:6; Col. 4:12; 2 Tim. 2:24)
READ JOSHUA 24:14-15 AND CHALLENGE THE TEENS TO
“WHOM THEY ARE GOING TO SERVE”
3. How the Believer Relates to the Law Today.
a) Man is Freed Not Only From the Curse of the Law (Gal 3:13) but From the Law Itself:
1) Romans 7:1-4 — The Gr. construction of this verb emphasizes two important points:
(a) this death happened at a point in time, with results that are complete and final;
(b) someone else—in this case God Himself—initiated this death (lit. “you were made to die”). In response to faith in His Son, God makes the believing sinner forever dead to the condemnation and penalty of the law (cf. 8:1 cf. Colossians 3:1-3).
2) Colossians 2:14
wiped out the handwriting – The Gr. work translated “handwriting” referred to the handwritten certificate of debt by which a debtor acknowledged his indebtedness.
(a) All people (Rom. 3:23) owe God an unpayable debt for violating His law (Gal. 3:10; James 2:10; cf. Matt. 18:23–27), and are thus under sentence of death (Rom. 6:23).
(b) Paul graphically compares God’s forgiveness of believers’ sins to wiping ink off a parchment. Through Christ’s sacrificial death on the cross, God has totally erased our certificate of indebtedness and made our forgiveness complete.
nailed it to the cross – This is another metaphor for forgiveness.
(c) The list of the crimes of a crucified criminal were nailed to the cross with that criminal to declare the violations he was being punished for (as in the case of Jesus, as noted in Matt. 27:37). Believers’ sins were all put to Christ’s account, nailed to His cross as He paid the penalty in their place for them all, thus satisfying the just wrath of God against crimes requiring punishment in full.
b) This Includes the Moral and Ceremonial Aspects as Seen in 2 Cor 3:7-11
1) The writing, which was “engraved in stone”, has passed away, which would have been a direct reference to the 10 commandments.
2) Not only in these three verses but also in the remainder of the chapter Paul provides a commentary on selected points of the narrative in Exodus 34:29-35.
(a) When Moses descended from Mount Sinai with the two tablets on which were written the Ten Commandments, his face shone so brightly that "the Israelites could not look steadily" at him. Well then, argues Paul, if such glory attended the giving of the law under the ministry or administration that brought death and condemns men, how much more glorious will be the ministry of the Spirit that brings righteousness!
c) The Scriptures Say We are not Under Law but Under Grace
1) Romans 6:14; 7:6; Galatians 4:30; 5:18
2) We are Exhorted to: Stand firm in our liberty and to not be entangled again to a yoke of bondage
d) This Freedom Does not Result in a Licensee to Sin but a New Relationship to Christ
1) We are now united to the Lord who has been raised so that we can bear fruit to God (Rom 7:4)
(a) Salvation Produces Transformation, therefore, the purpose of our being joined to Christ is that we might bear fruit for God (Ephesians 2:10; Galatians 2:19-20).
2) This new freedom results in love (Gal 5:13. 1 Peter 2:16)
3) The difference “Lie with the Recipients of the Commands and their Motivation to Obey”
(a) The Israelites receive the Mosaic Law and its more than six hundred commands.
1. They were motivated to obey by fear and empowered only by the flesh.
2. Today, believers in Jesus Christ receive grace. Although the New Testament also contains hundreds of commands, we are motivated by love and empowered by the Holy Spirit.
Pastor chuck Sabbath Outline
Charles Swindol p.70
Kent Huges
Biblical Library p.121 (v.10ff.)
MacArthur Hebrews p.99
Pastor Chuch CD Rom Mark 3:6
Pastor Bryan Sabbath Solid Ground
A.C.L.U American civil liberties union