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The Moment of Truth |
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Under Law |
Lesson 31 |
Screen 1 |
| We invite you to join us as we ask the assistance of the Lord: |
| Our Father in heaven, In our previous three lessons, we have studied Your law, and we are now wondering what is the role of this law in the life of the Christian. Since we are saved by the precious blood of Jesus Christ, do we still have to keep Your law? Please open our minds and hearts, by Your Spirit, as we seek the answer to our questions in Your Holy Word. In Jesus Christ we pray. Amen. |
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The Moment of Truth |
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Under Law |
Lesson 31 |
Screen 2 |
Psalm 19:8 |
Comments |
| The law of the Lord is perfect. | In our previous three lessons (which we
invite you to review before going on), we have seen that from the Creation, God gave Adam
and Eve a perfect law. If they had obeyed this perfect law, they would have been happy forever. |
Romans 7:12 |
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| Therefore the law is holy, and the commandment holy and just and good. | |
Psalm 119:165 |
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| Great peace have those who love Your law, nothing causes them to stumble. |
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The Moment of Truth |
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Under Law |
Lesson 31 |
Screen 3 |
Genesis 2:17 |
Comments |
| [The Lord God said,] «But of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat of it you shall surely die.» |
Unfortunately, man transgressed the law of
God, and then became a sinner. He lost the right to eternal life, and became mortal, subject to death. |
1 John 3:4 |
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| Sin is lawlessness. | |
Romans 6:23 |
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| For the wages of sin is death. |
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The Moment of Truth |
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Lesson 31 |
Screen 4 |
Romans 5:12 |
Comments |
| Through one man sin entered the world, and death through sin, and thus death spread to all men, because all sinned. | Separated from God by his sins, the
condition of man was hopeless. Having transgressed the law, he was a sinner; and being a sinner, he was sentenced to death. |
Romans 3:23 |
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| For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God. |
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The Moment of Truth |
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Lesson 31 |
Screen 5 |
Romans 7:14-16 |
Comments |
| For we know that the law is
spiritual, but I am carnal, sold under sin. For what I am doing, I do not understand. For what I will to do, that I do not practice; but what I hate, that I do. If, then, I do what I will not to do, I agree with the law that it is good. |
Moreover, being separated from God, the sinner no longer had the power necessary to obey God's law... |
Romans 8:7 |
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| Because the carnal mind is enmity against God; for it is not subject to the law of God, nor indeed can be. |
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The Moment of Truth |
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Lesson 31 |
Screen 6 |
1 Corinthians 15:56 |
Comments |
| The strength of sin is the law. | Since the sinner cannot obey the law by
himself, his spiritual state declines day after day. The Ten Commandments show him the way to happiness, but he is unable to keep them on his own. His constant disobedience therefore puts him under the condemnation of the law. |
Romans 7:10 |
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| And the commandment, which was to bring life, I found to bring death. |
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The Moment of Truth |
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Lesson 31 |
Screen 7 |
Galatians 2:16 |
Comments |
| A man is not justified by the works of the law. | Since our sinful nature makes us unable of
perfectly keeping God's law, it is therefore completely impossible to be saved by our
obedience to the law. Then, what can we do to be saved? |
Romans 3:20 |
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| By the deeds of the law no flesh will be justified in [God's] sight. | |
Isaiah 64:6 |
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| All our righteousnesses are like filthy rags. |
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Lesson 31 |
Screen 8 |
Galatians 3:24 |
Comments |
| Therefore the law was our tutor to bring us to Christ, that we might be justified by faith. | By looking into the law of God, we soon discover our
sinful and desperate situation. The law reveals our spiritual misery, pointing out our many transgressions, and clearly showing us our need of a Savior. In this way, the law leads us to Jesus, the only One who can justify us and save us from our sins. |
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The Moment of Truth |
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Lesson 31 |
Screen 9 |
Ephesians 2:8,9 |
Comments |
| For by grace you have been saved
through faith, and that not of yourselves. It is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast. |
No one merits salvation: it is God's free gift to each one of us, through the sacrifice of Jesus Christ on the cross. |
Romans 3:23,24 |
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| For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, being justified freely by His grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus. |
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The Moment of Truth |
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Lesson 31 |
Screen 10 |
Romans 4:2,3 |
Comments |
| If Abraham was justified by
works, he has something of which to boast, but not before God. For what does the Scripture say? «Abraham believed God, and it was accounted to him for righteousness.» |
What happened to those who lived before the coming of
Christ? Were they saved by obeying God's law? No. Just like us, they had to believe that the grace of God would save them, not their own works. They put their confidence in the Messiah who was to come, as we put our confidence in the Messiah who has come, Jesus Christ. |
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Lesson 31 |
Screen 11 |
Matthew 5:17 |
Comments |
| [Jesus said,] «Do not think that I came to destroy the Law or the Prophets. I did not come to destroy but to fulfill.» |
Some people claim that Jesus has abolished
the law of God. However, Jesus' own words clearly state that God's law has not been
abolished. The death of Jesus has abolished the ceremonial law, but not the moral law, as we have seen in our previous lesson, «The Two Laws». |
Luke 16:17 |
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| [Jesus said,] «It is easier for heaven and earth to pass away than for one tittle of the law to fail.» |
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Lesson 31 |
Screen 12 |
Romans 6:14 |
Comments |
| You are not under law but under grace. | If the Ten Commandments have not been abolished, then
what does this declaration from the apostle Paul mean? What does he want to express by the words «not under law but under grace»? Does he mean that the Christian, being under grace, is not required to obey the law of God? |
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Lesson 31 |
Screen 13 |
Galatians 4:4,5 |
Comments |
| God sent forth His Son, born of a woman, born under the law, to redeem those who were under the law. | First, what does it mean to be «under the law»? According to these verses, to be under the law simply means to be under the condemnation of the law. |
Galatians 3:13 |
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| Christ has redeemed us from the curse of the law. | |
Romans 8:1 |
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| There is therefore now no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus. |
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The Moment of Truth |
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Lesson 31 |
Screen 14 |
Romans 6:14,15 |
Comments |
| You are not under law but under
grace. What then? Shall we sin because we are not under law but under grace? Certainly not! |
We often stop reading after the words «You are not under law but under grace.» Yet, the next verse clearly shows that the expression «not under law but under grace» does not allow the Christian to live as if the law was no longer in existence! Indeed, sin is the transgression of the law, and the apostle Paul declares that we should not sin, even if we are under grace... and especially since we are under grace! |
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The Moment of Truth |
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Lesson 31 |
Screen 15 |
Galatians 5:13 |
Comments |
| For you, brethren, have been called to liberty; only do not use liberty as an opportunity for the flesh. | If a policeman arrests you for speeding, warns you and
lets you go without a fine, you are then «under the grace» of this policeman. Does this grant you the right to transgress the highway code? Of course not! If you reoffend, the policeman will stop you again, and this time for good! Likewise, the grace of God forgives us, but that certainly doesn't give us permission to transgress His law. |
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The Moment of Truth |
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Lesson 31 |
Screen 16 |
Romans 3:31 |
Comments |
| Do we then make void the law
through faith? Certainly not! On the contrary, we establish the law. |
Let's take again the example of the policeman: what
would be the best way to show him your gratitude, when he let you go without giving you a
fine? It would be to do your best from now on to keep the highway code, wouldn't it? Likewise, if we are truly grateful toward God for His grace, we will seek to better keep His commandments, day after day, through His power working within us. |
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The Moment of Truth |
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Lesson 31 |
Screen 17 |
Hebrews 5:9 |
Comments |
| [Christ] became the author of eternal salvation to all who obey Him. | God expects us to obey Him. Through His power in our hearts, we will be able to keep His law, not to be saved, but rather to show the sincerity of our repentance and our conversion. We repeat this important point: we keep God's law, not to be saved, but because we are saved. |
Acts 5:32 |
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| We are [God's] witnesses to these things, and so also is the Holy Spirit whom God has given to those who obey Him. |
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The Moment of Truth |
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Under Law |
Lesson 31 |
Screen 18 |
| God asks us to do His will, which is expressed in His law: |
| «I delight to do Your will, O
my God, and Your law is within my heart.» (PSALM 40:8) «Not everyone who says to Me, "Lord, Lord," shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father in heaven.» (MATTHEW 7:21) «You have need of endurance, so that after you have done the will of God, you may receive the promise.» (HEBREWS 10:36) «He who does the will of God abides forever.» (1 JOHN 2:17) «Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter: Fear God and keep His commandments, for this is the whole duty of man.» (ECCLESIASTES 12:13) |
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The Moment of Truth |
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Lesson 31 |
Screen 19 |
| By keeping His commandments, we prove our love for God: |
| «If you love Me, keep My
commandments.» (JOHN 14:15) «For this is the love of God, that we keep His commandments. And His commandments are not burdensome.» (1 JOHN 5:3) «Now by this we know that we know Him, if we keep His commandments. He who says, "I know Him," and does not keep His commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him.» (1 JOHN 2:3,4) «Lord God of heaven, O great and awesome God, You who keep Your covenant and mercy with those who love You and observe Your commandments.» (NEHEMIAH 1:5) |
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Lesson 31 |
Screen 20 |
| God disapproves of those who forget His law, but not those who keep it: |
| «Whoever robs his father or his
mother, and says, "It is no transgression," the same is companion to a
destroyer.» (PROVERBS 28:24) «"And in vain they worship Me, teaching as doctrines the commandments of men." For laying aside the commandment of God, you hold the tradition of men.» (MARK 7:7,8) «The mercy of the Lord is from everlasting to everlasting (...) to those who remember His commandments to do them.» (PSALM 103:17,18) «Blessed is the man who fears the Lord, who delights greatly in His commandments.» (PSALM 112:1) |
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Lesson 31 |
Screen 21 |
| More explicit excerpts from Psalm 119, about God's commandments: |
| «Blessed are the undefiled in
the way, who walk in the law of the Lord.» (PSALM 119:1) «Give me understanding, and I shall keep Your law; indeed, I shall observe it with my whole heart.» (PSALM 119:34) «I will delight myself in Your commandments, which I love.» (PSALM 119:47) «Therefore I love Your commandments more than gold, yes, than fine gold!» (PSALM 119:127) «I hope for Your salvation, and I do Your commandments.» (PSALM 119:166) «I have gone astray like a lost sheep; seek Your servant, for I do not forget Your commandments.» (PSALM 119:176) |
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The Moment of Truth |
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Under Law |
Lesson 31 |
Screen 22 |
Galatians 2:20 |
Comments |
| I have been crucified with Christ; it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me. | We cannot keep God's commandments on our own. But by accepting Jesus as our personal Savior, we obtain not only the forgiveness of our past sins, but also the power to do, from that time onward, the will of God, by the presence of Christ living within us through the Holy Spirit. |
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The Moment of Truth |
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Under Law |
Lesson 31 |
Screen 23 |
John 15:5 |
Comments |
| He who abides in Me, and I in him, bears much fruit; for without Me you can do nothing. | If Jesus dwells within us, we will
spontaneously bear good fruit, as a tree bears fruit without effort. Let's note that the law is not against this fruit. |
Galatians 5:22,23 |
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| The fruit of the Spirit is love,
joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control. Against such there is no law. |
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The Moment of Truth |
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Under Law |
Lesson 31 |
Screen 24 |
Ezekiel 36:27 |
Comments |
| I will put My Spirit within you and cause you to walk in My statutes, and you will keep My judgments and do them. | God can accomplish these wonderful
promises within us, if we sincerely ask Him. Indeed, God greatly desires to give us His Holy Spirit, so that we may keep His commandments which show us the way to happiness! |
Hebrews 8:10 |
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| I will put My laws in their mind and write them on their hearts; and I will be their God, and they shall be My people. |
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The Moment of Truth |
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Under Law |
Lesson 31 |
Screen 25 |
Psalm 119:47 |
Comments |
| I will delight myself in Your commandments, which I love. | The man who is truly converted will not
try to lessen the importance of the commandments of God. On the contrary, he will take great delight in keeping them, knowing that God has given him the power he needs to do it. |
Romans 7:22 |
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| For I delight in the law of God according to the inward man. | |
1 Corinthians 7:19 |
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| Keeping the commandments of God is what matters. |
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The Moment of Truth |
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Under Law |
Lesson 31 |
Screen 26 |
| Dear friends, let's pray together: |
| Our Lord, What a great message You have given us today! Now we know that You expect us to do Your will, which is clearly expressed in Your Ten Commandments. But alone, we can do nothing: this is why we turn to You to ask, according to Your promise, that You grant us Your Holy Spirit, in order that we may learn to better keep Your law day after day. We thank You, in Jesus Christ. Amen. |
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The test of Lesson 31 is waiting for you!Source of the Pictures of this Lesson |
| Screen 1: In: «Photo Gallery 25,000» by Media Graphics International, CD #2, ROSES035.JPG. Screen 2: HARLAN, Russell. In: «The Bible Story, volume 1» (MAXWELL, Arthur S.), p.52. Used by permission. Copyright ©1953, 1981 by Review and Herald® Publishing Association, USA. All Rights Reserved. Screen 3: In: «The Children's Bible, volume 1», Golden Press, 1981, p.33. Screen 4: «Prix Galien 1999» Report, p.33. Screen 5: Photo by PhotoDisc. In: «Adventist Review» (June 1997), p.25. Screen 6: Sculpture by PEARSON, Jim; photo by Duane Tank/Ed Guthero. In: «Signs of the Times» magazine (May 1990), Pacific Press Publishing Association, p.15. Screen 7: In: «The Watchtower» magazine (March 1, 1993), Watch Tower Bible and Tract Society, p.16. Picture edited by Cyberspace Ministry. Screen 8: ANDERSON, Harry. In: «La Sentinelle» magazine (September 1980), p.11. Used by permission. Copyright ©1962, 1990 by Review and Herald® Publishing Association, USA. All Rights Reserved. Screen 9: RUIZ, Eduardo. In: «La Sentinelle» magazine (April 1995), Pacific Press Publishing Association, p.8. Screen 10: In: «Prophecy Seminars», Seminars Unlimited, 1989, Daniel lesson #30 («Sharing Daniel's Message with the World»), p.5. Screen 11: In: «Prophecy Seminars», Seminars Unlimited, 1989, Daniel lesson #10 («Can the Little Horn Change God's Law?»), p.8. Screen 12: In: «The Children's Bible, volume 12», Golden Press, 1981, p.735. Screen 13: STEEL, John. In: «The Triumph of God's Love, volume 2» (WHITE, Ellen G.), Pacific Press Publishing Association and Review and Herald Publishing Association, 1950, p.398. Screen 14: AYRES, Robert. In: «Perspective Digest», Adventist Theological Society, Volume 2, Numéro 2, p.18. Screen 15: In: «Réveillez-vous» magazine (February 22, 1992), New York, Watch Tower Bible and Tract Society, p.10. Screen 16: Photo by BLUE, Betty. In: «Signs of the Times» magazine (March 2000), Pacific Press Publishing Association, p.32. Screen 17: In: «Uncle Arthur's Bedtime Stories, volume 1» (MAXWELL, Arthur S.), p.43. Used by permission. Copyright ©1964, 1965, 1967, 1968, 1976 by Review and Herald® Publishing Association, USA. All Rights Reserved. Screen 18: RAPHAEL. Stanza di Eliodoro, Vatican. In: «Charlton Heston Presents the Bible», GT Publishing, New York, 1997, p.108. Screen 19: QUADE, Lester. In: «The Bible Story, volume 9» (MAXWELL, Arthur S.), p.67. Used by permission. Copyright ©1957, 1985 by Review and Herald® Publishing Association, USA. All Rights Reserved. Screen 20: WENSELL, Ulises. In: «Reader's Digest Bible for Children» (DELVAL, Marie-Hélène), Reader's Digest Young Families, 1995, p.71. Screen 21: CRUZ, Nery. In: «La Sentinelle» magazine (August 1984), Pacific Press Publishing Association, p.14. Screen 22: ANDERSON, Harry. In: «The Bible Story, volume 10» (MAXWELL, Arthur S.), p.140. Used by permission. Copyright ©1957, 1985 by Review and Herald® Publishing Association, USA. All Rights Reserved. Screen 23: Picture Collection «Corel Gallery Magic» by Corel, 1997, CD #8, Photo Library 4, 802084.PCD. Screen 24: In: «Adventist Review» (May 1996), p.15. Screen 25: In: «Egermeier's Bible Story Book» (EGERMEIER, Elsie E.), The Warner Press, 1963, p.98. Screen 26: In: «Photo Gallery 25,000» by Media Graphics International, CD #2, DG026.JPG. |
| Any copyrighted images not bearing a statement of permission, are used for the purpose of non-commercial scholarly commentary or criticism in accordance with section 107 of U.S. Copyright Law, and with article 29 of Canada Copyright Act (Chapter C-42), which by law can be without the consent or endorsement of the copyright holder. Images lacking attribution are either known or assumed to be in the public domain, or have an as yet undetermined status. Anyone having knowledge of proper attribution for an image is requested to contact us via email below so that it can be correctly noted. It is our intent to comply fully with applicable laws regarding intellectual property rights. |
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Under
Law or Under Grace?
