Lawlessness – Part 2
Categories: Bulletin Articles Tags: Lawlessness
In 1 John 3:4, the ASV reads, “Every one that doeth sin doeth also lawlessness; and sin is lawlessness.” That one verse tells us why we live in a lawless world today, because we live in a sinful world today. The world doesn’t have to have cattle rustlers, corrupt sheriffs, or saloon bosses to be lawless (though it often does). Sin, in and of itself, does the job. Truth be told, we probably don’t think of people’s sins as being lawlessness, but they are.
Sin is the rejecting of God’s law in our life and the acceptance of some other standard of behavior other than God’s standard. The reason sin is lawlessness is because no other standard of behavior other than God’s can constitute THE LAW. Paul acknowledged this very fact in 1 Corinthians 9:21. Paul wrote, “To them that are without law, as without law, (being not without law to God, but under the law to Christ,) that I might gain them that are without law.” Paul recognized that some live without acknowledging law in their life, but he also made clear that he was still under law to God and Christ even in his efforts to persuade those who didn’t acknowledge any law. That’s because God’s law is THE LAW!
Today, we live in a society that would just as soon cast off all law. The ACLU is constantly pushing the envelope the reinterpret the laws in our society so that they become no law at all except license to live lawlessly. What does this world need? It needs law that is THE LAW. It needs God’s law, the gospel.
God bless you, and I love you.
Kevin Cauley