A Survey Of My Position On The Believer & "The Law

                     A Survey Of My Position On The Believer & "The Law
                                                     by Joel Sexton

My position as a former SDA on the whole law debate. First to define "the law" In the N.T. law (nomos) with the definite article mean the Torah. The entire law of Moses. This is how it is used most of the time as "the law."

Although exceptions are there, they don't break this established fact. Second. To the use of the law. Its use is a great big baseball bat to hit us over the head with, to break us, convict us as depraved sinner's. After all, Paul stated that "the law slew me.''[Rom 7:5 ] The law is used this way in[ Rom 3:19-26; Gal 3] but especially [Rom 3]

The Reformation set out "three uses of the law". First, curb the world of sin. Second, to convict the sinner for justification Third, for the believer under the New Covenant.

The third use of the law is where the debate really comes in. Although the First Reformation Churches of the magisterial Protestant Reformation accepted the third use of the law in their Confession's The Lutheran & Reformed churches. (One reason I rejected becoming a Confession Lutheran here in Canada)

What about the believer? Jew or not the believer has "died to the law'' [Rom 7:5; Gal 2:19]. In justification. But Paul so shows after being justified, adopted, United with Christ that one can deny the "law of Christ" [1 Cor 9:21-22; Gal 6:2], and the wonders of the Spirit wrought among them [Gal 3:1f] This is post-justification, post-conversion / regeneration, and adoption.

My position if I had to choose on this matter is called "New Covenant Theology" (NCT) which is the adopted position of most or all the scholar's who contributed to the great historical-exegetical-theological work, From Sabbath To Lord's Day" edited by top N.T. scholar D.A. Carson. Will I have problems with the position? Sure. But it is the closest Biblical position when actual exegetical work is at work.

In three Pauline passages, we see the war between the spirit which represents the New Covenant and the Law represents the Old Covenant & bondage, in exile from the presence of God. In [Rom 7:1-6; 2 Cor 3:6-11; Gal 4:21-31 we find this sharp contrast even having the Dialogue being mentioned or one of its commands. And yet all three passages tell us that "we have been delivered from the law" [Rom 7:6], and in [2 Cor 3:6-11] we have the spirit, New Covenant, the new heart and a better "glory."  In [Heb 4:21-31] we have the New Jerusalem. Zion restored. The marriage, & land promises all which come from a "heavenly Jerusalem" [Gal 4:22] which represents the New Covenant while Issac the people of the Covenant. On the other end of the spectrum, we have an earthly Jerusalem, represented by Hagar and Mt. Arabia, Ishmael the unbelieving Jews. The ten commandments are said to represent the earthly Jerusalem [Gal 4:24] and was to be cast out [Gal 4:28-31] as the "sons of the kingdom were to be also for the persecution of the Body of Christ.

Back to [2 Cor 3:6-11] for a moment. These two covenants also represent two glories" One covenant (with the Decalogue 2 Cor 3:7) HAD glory, The glory of the New Covenant, of the spirit Has glory. One had it. The other it "remains" (the spirit).