Do We Then Make Void the Law Through Faith?
Believers must obey God's commandments not because of the law, but because of their relationship with Jesus and their desire to please their heavenly Father.
C.H. Spurgeon emphasizes that believers, as adopted children of God, are called to obey their heavenly Father out of love rather than obligation. The relationship with the law changes upon adoption; believers are not slaves but beloved children who should delight in fulfilling God's will. Spurgeon encourages believers to pursue holiness and love for one another, not as a means of salvation but as a response to Christ's love and commands. He highlights that grace empowers obedience and that true holiness stems from a heart transformed by love for God. Ultimately, the sermon calls for a joyful and willing obedience to God's commandments as a reflection of one's relationship with Him.
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When the believer is adopted into the Lord's family, his relationship to old Adam and the law ceases at once; but then he is under a new rule, and a new covenant. Believer, you are God's child; it is your first duty to obey your heavenly Father. A servile spirit you have nothing to do with: you are not a slave, but a child; and now, inasmuch as you are a beloved child, you are bound to obey your Father's faintest wish, the least intimation of His will. Does He bid you fulfil a sacred ordinance?
It is at your peril that you neglect it, for you will be disobeying your Father. Does He command you to seek the image of Jesus? It is not your joy to do so? Does Jesus tell you, "Be ye perfect, even as your Father which is in heaven is perfect"? Then not because the law commands, but because your Saviour enjoins, you will labour to be perfect in holiness. Does He bid his saints love one another? Do it, not because the law says, "Love thy neighbour," but because Jesus says, "If ye love Me, keep My commandments;" and this is the commandment that He has given unto you, "that ye love one another."
Are you told to distribute to the poor? Do it, not because charity is a burden which you dare not shirk, but because Jesus teaches, "Give to him that asketh of thee." Does the Word say, "Love God with all your heart"? Look at the commandment and reply, "Ah! commandment, Christ hath fulfilled thee already--I have no need, therefore, to fulfill thee for my salvation, but I rejoice to yield obedience to thee because God is my Father now and He has a claim upon me, which I would not dispute."
May the Holy Ghost make your heart obedient to the constraining power of Christ's love, that your prayer may be, "Make me to go in the path of Thy commandments; for therein do I delight." Grace is the mother and nurse of holiness, and not the apologist of sin.
Sermon Outline
- I. Relationship to the Law
- A. Believers are no longer under the law
- B. They are under a new covenant
- II. Obedience to the Father
- A. Believers are children of God
- B. They must obey their heavenly Father's will
- III. The Source of Obedience
- A. Obedience is not to the law, but to Jesus
- B. Jesus' commandments are the basis for obedience
Key Quotes
“Grace is the mother and nurse of holiness, and not the apologist of sin.” — C.H. Spurgeon
“May the Holy Ghost make your heart obedient to the constraining power of Christ's love, that your prayer may be, 'Make me to go in the path of Thy commandments; for therein do I delight.'” — C.H. Spurgeon
Application Points
- As a child of God, you are called to obey your heavenly Father's will, not just because of the law, but because of your love for Jesus.
- Your obedience to God's commandments should be motivated by a desire to please Jesus, not just to avoid punishment.
- Holiness in your life comes from the Holy Spirit, who constrains you to obey Christ's love.