He who says, “I know Him,” and does not keep His commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him. But whoever keeps His word, truly the love of God is perfected in him. By this we know that we are in Him. (1 John 2:4-5 NKJV)

Note: in speaking of the Law of God I am referring to the Ten Commandments, otherwise known as God’s moral standards for His people.

There are a number of people who believe that by keeping the Law of God they can save themselves. But unless your keeping the Law of God is an expression of your love for God, then you really aren’t keeping it for the right reason. In other words, you aren’t keeping the Law of God; rather, you are merely looking to it as a means to save yourself from His wrath. So how then can you look to the Law for salvation if you aren’t keeping it?

Nevertheless, let’s suppose that from this point forward you will keep the Law of God without failure, as in you won’t ever sin again. Even if you could do this, you would still come under the condemnation of the Law because you started off in a sinful state. Thus that one sin which you started off with would be enough to condemn you for all eternity. And you wouldn’t be able to do a thing about it because you can’t change the past.

You see, the Law can’t forgive you.  That’s not its purpose.  Its purpose is to expose sin (Romans 3:20), and to disclose what it means to live a pure and holy life. Therefore, if you are looking to the Law for salvation then you are not looking in the right place, because only Jesus Christ can free you from the condemnation of the Law; and it is through Him only that we receive Eternal Life (Jn. 14:6; 1Tim. 2:5).

Therefore, as through one man’s offense judgment came to all men, resulting in condemnation, even so through one Man’s righteous act the free gift came to all men, resulting in justification of life. (Romans 5:18 NKJV)

For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord. (Romans 6:23 NKJV)

There is therefore now no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus, who do not walk according to the flesh, but according to the Spirit.
(Romans 8:1 NKJV)

Of course, then there is another problem: since the Law of God commands us to look to God as the source of Life, to look to the Law for Salvation is to look away from God. You see, in trying to save yourself by keeping the Law you are breaking the Law by making an idol out of your ability to live in conformity to its requirements, and are therefore breaking the first commandment which says:

You shall have no other gods before Me. (Exodus 20:3 NKJV)

So no matter what way you look at it, the inevitable conclusion is that it is impossible to save yourself by keeping the Law of God!

Not Saved by the Law but Responsible to Obey It

Let’s keep something in mind here however: even though it is impossible to save yourself by keeping the Law of God, that doesn’t mean you are free to break it with impunity. For the Bible makes it very clear that we will be judged by our works (Rev. 20:12-13); and our works must agree with the commandments of God if they are to be approved by God.

For, it is written:

Here is the patience of the saints; here are those who keep the commandments of God and the faith of Jesus. (Revelation 14:12 NKJV)

Blessed are those who do His commandments, that they may have the right to the tree of life, and may enter through the gates into the city. (Revelation 22:14 NKJV)

The most striking thing to me about the manner in which John spoke of the saints in relation to the commandments of God is that he made it very clear that they ‘keep’ them, which means it is possible to “do His commandments”, just as John said. After all, there would have been no sense in saying that they ‘keep’ and “do His commandments” if they aren’t able to ‘keep’ and ‘do’ them.

Unfortunately, many professed Christians deny that it is possible to keep God’s commandments. Thus they inadvertently suggest that God does not have the power to enable them to live a pure and holy life. Yet, they have the audacity to say that they believe in Jesus Christ while basking in their habitual sins at every whim! What they are really saying is that they want God’s blessing, but they also want to place a limitation on the influence that He has over their lives to escape their guilt for living in sin.

Of course, they won’t agree with this conclusion because they are deceived and can’t see the error of their ways. But those of us who have eyes to discern that which is contrary to the Spirit can see clearly enough to notice the true source of their thoughts.

Not Just Talking about Faith but Really Living by It

Indeed, such people like to talk about faith; but what they fail to realize is that they aren’t exercising it, at least not to the full measure in which God would have them to! Moreover, they even go so far as to insult the intelligence of God by saying we can’t live in obedience to what He commands of us. For to say that we can’t do something that God commands of us is to reproach the authority and power of God and thereby treat Him as though He were unreasonable for expecting us to do something that He supposedly knows can’t be done.

Listen, if we are going to talk about faith, then we better make sure we live by it too! For, “faith without works is dead.” (James 2:20)

I hope that you can see that what I am sharing with you here has nothing to do with me inculcating the idea that salvation is attained by works. That is not what I am doing at all; rather, I am endeavoring to emphasize the point that we not only need to recognize our limitations when it comes to living in complete conformity to the Law of God; we also need to understand that God is able to fill the holes that exist within our lives to enable us to do what He commands of us.

But unless we are willing to allow Him to exercise complete authority over our thoughts we won’t experience the power of God as He would like us to. However, when we give Him full control of our lives we will find victory over what we may now be trying to excuse or pass off as impossible to overcome.

For,

No temptation has overtaken you except such as is common to man; but God is faithful, who will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but with the temptation will also make the way of escape, that you may be able to bear it. (1 Corinthians 10:13 NKJV)

I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me. (Philippians 4:13 NKJV)

Note: Paul didn’t say, ‘some temptation’ or ’some things’, but “no temptation” and “all things”. In other words, even though he opposed the idea of obtaining salvation by works, he never said that God couldn’t save or keep us from sinning against Him.

Those who have little confidence in the power of God are the ones who try to come up with all kinds of excuses to justify their sins, as the object of their focus is failure. But Paul didn’t allow the thought of failure to enter into his mind here; rather, He exalted the power and authority of Jesus Christ. And so we should do the same! After all, why should you make your sin appear to be bigger and mightier than God?  To do this is to make a god out of your sin! Can’t you see this?

Wolves in Sheep’s Clothing

Do not be deceived by wolves dressed in sheep’s clothing! Those who are unlearned in the Scriptures try to use Paul as a means to separate works from faith, assuming that God doesn’t expect us to be obedient to him in all things. Their gospel is accursed, because it does not represent the truth as it is in Jesus Christ, but is tainted with the lie of the enemy who wants God’s people to lessen the authority of God over their lives by denying His power.

Peter spoke of these when he had said,

as also in all his epistles, speaking in them of these things, in which are some things hard to understand, which untaught and unstable people twist to their own destruction, as they do also the rest of the Scriptures. (2 Peter 3:16 NKJV)

Do not fall into their snare!  They are not men of faith; rather, they are blind guides who are headed for a destructive end.  Do not follow in their steps!

For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war according to the flesh. For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal but mighty in God for pulling down strongholds, casting down arguments and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God, bringing every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ, (2 Corinthians 10:3-5 NKJV)

Meeting God’s Expectations

The conclusion of the matter here then is that even though God doesn’t expect us to save ourselves through our works, He certainly expects us to love Him, which means He expects us to keep His commandments. For by doing so we will demonstrate that He is our only Master.

Whoever believes that Jesus is the Christ is born of God, and everyone who loves Him who begot also loves him who is begotten of Him. By this we know that we love the children of God, when we love God and keep His commandments. For this is the love of God, that we keep His commandments. And His commandments are not burdensome. For whatever is born of God overcomes the world. And this is the victory that has overcome the world—our faith. (1 John 5:1-4 NKJV)

Therefore do not let sin reign in your mortal body, that you should obey it in its lusts. And do not present your members as instruments of unrighteousness to sin, but present yourselves to God as being alive from the dead, and your members as instruments of righteousness to God. (Romans 6:12-13 NKJV)

With that being said, will you let God’s thoughts take precedence over your own thoughts or will you make excuses to live in disobedience to His Law? Will you just talk about faith or will you live by it?  Will you think in terms of failure or will you exalt the power and authority of Jesus Christ over your life?

There is no doubt that God can keep you from falling into sin; but unless you put His power to the test and exercise faith in Him, sin will continue to overpower you and you won’t discover what it means to walk even as Jesus walked! (1Jn. 2:6)

Blessed is the man Who walks not in the counsel of the ungodly, Nor stands in the path of sinners, Nor sits in the seat of the scornful; But his delight is in the law of the LORD, And in His law he meditates day and night. He shall be like a tree Planted by the rivers of water, That brings forth its fruit in its season, Whose leaf also shall not wither; And whatever he does shall prosper.

The ungodly are not so, But are like the chaff which the wind drives away. Therefore the ungodly shall not stand in the judgment, Nor sinners in the congregation of the righteous. For the LORD knows the way of the righteous, But the way of the ungodly shall perish. (Psalms 1:1-6 NKJV)