Beyond the Letter: Finding Life in the Spirit with Christ
Matt. 5:17 Think not that I am come to destroy the law, or the prophets: I am not come to destroy, but to fulfil.
“God…hath made us able ministers of the new testament; not of the letter, but of the spirit: for the letter killeth, but the spirit giveth life.” (See 2 Cor. 3:5-6). Anyone with experience should know that an intimate relationship cannot be complete or fulfilling by letter alone. How many marriages are in existence today only on paper, but not in reality? Sad, isn’t it? And yet, to try and have a relationship with God only by letter is no different.
There is a difference between reading about God, and knowing Him personally and intimately. When a believer becomes accustomed to a regimen of religious do’s and don’ts, and only knows of the God of the Old Testament who gave the Ten Commandments at Mt. Sinai, he has at best a very limited understanding about God. The Old Testament was a school master, or an introductory course if you will, bringing us to Christ, who was and is the fulfillment of the law!
The question we need to ask ourselves is this, “Do we know about God’s law, or do we know Him personally?” You see, there is no life in the letter; only death. As already mentioned, the letter “killeth”. However, for the Bible and your Christianity to come alive, you must meet the One who embodies the righteousness of God in Himself, the Lord Jesus Christ! Jesus IS the Word made flesh. He is not the law; He is the law FULFILLED! He is the law SATISFIED! In other words, when we trust in Him, then and only then can we say that there is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus (see Rom. 8:1)!
Why? Because in Christ we are made righteous, because He fulfilled the law for us. Oh Glory to His blessed name! When I tried to do right, I could not. Every time I fell short, I was that much further from God, or so I thought. Then one day Jesus stepped into my life, introduced Himself to me through the person of the Holy Spirit, and saved me by His Grace. Only then was I able to make peace with God, because only then was I good enough for God to accept, when at last I was purchased and purged by His precious blood.
Do you know Jesus, or do you just read about Him? Trust Christ, and all will be well!
~ Pastor Gary Caudill
“God…hath made us able ministers of the new testament; not of the letter, but of the spirit: for the letter killeth, but the spirit giveth life.” (See 2 Cor. 3:5-6). Anyone with experience should know that an intimate relationship cannot be complete or fulfilling by letter alone. How many marriages are in existence today only on paper, but not in reality? Sad, isn’t it? And yet, to try and have a relationship with God only by letter is no different.
There is a difference between reading about God, and knowing Him personally and intimately. When a believer becomes accustomed to a regimen of religious do’s and don’ts, and only knows of the God of the Old Testament who gave the Ten Commandments at Mt. Sinai, he has at best a very limited understanding about God. The Old Testament was a school master, or an introductory course if you will, bringing us to Christ, who was and is the fulfillment of the law!
The question we need to ask ourselves is this, “Do we know about God’s law, or do we know Him personally?” You see, there is no life in the letter; only death. As already mentioned, the letter “killeth”. However, for the Bible and your Christianity to come alive, you must meet the One who embodies the righteousness of God in Himself, the Lord Jesus Christ! Jesus IS the Word made flesh. He is not the law; He is the law FULFILLED! He is the law SATISFIED! In other words, when we trust in Him, then and only then can we say that there is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus (see Rom. 8:1)!
Why? Because in Christ we are made righteous, because He fulfilled the law for us. Oh Glory to His blessed name! When I tried to do right, I could not. Every time I fell short, I was that much further from God, or so I thought. Then one day Jesus stepped into my life, introduced Himself to me through the person of the Holy Spirit, and saved me by His Grace. Only then was I able to make peace with God, because only then was I good enough for God to accept, when at last I was purchased and purged by His precious blood.
Do you know Jesus, or do you just read about Him? Trust Christ, and all will be well!
~ Pastor Gary Caudill