Law Or Grace

Scripture:

Matthew 15:1-9 (NIV)

Then some Pharisees and teachers of the law came to Jesus from Jerusalem and asked, “Why do your disciples break the tradition of the elders? They don’t wash their hands before they eat!”

Jesus replied, “And why do you break the command of God for the sake of your tradition? For God said, ‘Honor your father and mother’ and ‘Anyone who curses their father or mother is to be put to death.’ But you say that if anyone declares that what might have been used to help their father or mother is ‘devoted to God,’ they are not to ‘honor their father or mother’ with it. Thus you nullify the word of God for the sake of your tradition. You hypocrites! Isaiah was right when he prophesied about you:

“‘These people honor me with their lips,
but their hearts are far from me.
They worship me in vain;
their teachings are merely human rules.’”

Devotional:

Are you bound by the law?  Are you trapped by all of the laws that you must keep?  It seems that every year congress adds more laws for us to follow.  There really is no way to know all the laws that govern us.  In fact there are still places that have laws that are no longer applicable.  For example in Illinois it is illegal to give a lighted cigar to dogs, cats, and other domesticated animals kept as pets.  In Indiana it is illegal to bath in the winter months, glad I don’t live there in the winter.  In Louisiana it is just “simple assault” to bite someone with your real teeth.  However, it is “aggravated assault” if you use false teeth.  After googling old laws I received over two hundred million results.

In Jesus’ time the Pharisees had placed too much into keeping laws.  They were so wrapped up in laws that they could not accept Grace.  Because of Grace we are not bound by the laws.  What is sad is that there are still people who are “bound” by the law.  They place too much on the rules and regulations.  They have little room for Grace.  They are quick to condemn because of infractions that were made.  Jesus said it best when He said in John 8:7 (NIV) “When they kept on questioning him, he straightened up and said to them, ‘Let any one of you who is without sin be the first to throw a stone at her.’”  I for one would rather have Grace than be bound by law.  I have sinned and by law I am guilty.  My penalty is death.  It is by Grace alone that I have life.  Do not become trapped inside the laws condemning yourself and others.  Jesus didn’t come to remove the law but instead he fulfills the law.  Live by Grace.  Show Grace, for freely it is given to you. Freely you need to pass it on.