Part Six: Law and Gospel Work Together—but How?
In last week’s blog article, we saw that there are four kinds of non-Christians, in terms of their beliefs (or disbelief) in God, as well as four views of salvation. Recognizing the differences helps us to determine our most effective evangelistic approach. When should we share the gospel, bring up law, or apply apologetics?
Christians know that gospel refers to the good news of salvation through Jesus Christ. Most Christians also know that apologetics is providing evidences that confirm and defend the Christian faith. But law, and how and when to apply it in evangelism, may be unfamiliar to many Christians.
Law Versus Gospel
The Old Testament refers to several varieties of law. For example, there were the ceremonial laws, which regulated Israel’s religious rituals, and civil laws, which maintained justice and order in Jewish society. There were also moral laws. These were the ethical standards and principles by which the Israelites were to live.
The kind of law that I’m concerned with here is moral law, the timeless ethical standards outlined in the Ten Commandments and later clarified and confirmed by Jesus and the apostles. God’s moral law applied not only to the ancient Israel, but also to all peoples of every nation and generation up to the present hour. Why? Because moral law is what God demands of all people in order to be saved. To put it another way, if it were possible for people to get into heaven on their own merits, law tells them what they would have to do. Gospel, on the other hand, tells us what God has done for us because we are unable to fulfill the Law. It’s the free gift of forgiveness and salvation through Jesus Christ.
The Bible teaches that God has placed within the hearts and conscience of all people an innate moral code, an intuitive understanding of right and wrong behavior (i.e. moral law—Rom. 2:14-15). God requires that all people live according to this law. In fact, He attached penalties for breaking the law (i.e. for sinning). The ultimate penalty is eternal separation from God (2 Thess. 1:9).
The problem is no one is capable of keeping the whole law all the time. The Bible clearly states this in Romans chapters 1-3 and in Galatians chapter 3. The Old Testament makes the same claim. King Solomon said in 1 Kings 8:46, “There is no one who does not sin” (i.e. break the law).
Fortunately for the human race, God knew that nobody could keep all the law all the time; that is, no one is capable of never sinning. In fact, according to the Bible, the primary purpose of the law is to define sin and to show that all people are sinners (see Romans 7:7) and guilty before a holy and righteous God. The “good news” (the gospel) assures us that Jesus Christ took the punishment we deserve for our failure to obey the law (Romans 5:8). Because Christ’s death on the cross atoned for our sins (Romans 6:23b), we have the opportunity to become reconciled to God and to receive the gift of eternal life. In short, the law condemns but the gospel saves. The law points us to the gospel of Christ as our only hope of salvation (see Rom. 8:1). This is how law and gospel work together in evangelism.
I realize I’m talking mostly to the converted here, but it’s important to know the difference between law and gospel and when to apply one or the other. Gospel is for people who recognize they are sinners in need of a Savior. Law is for those who disregard the righteousness offered by Jesus and attempt to establish their own righteousness through their own effort—“good works.”
Next week’s blog will get into the meat and potatoes of this series. How and when do we apply law, gospel, or apologetics according to the four groups of people we discussed in previous blog article (part five)? We’ll look at three biblical examples and three contemporary, non-biblical examples. Again, the idea is to choose the evangelistic approach that best fits the needs of an individual according to his position in these categories. ©