Have you heard someone say, “the devil made me do it”. I know comedians have used that saying to be funny, but let’s take a truth look at that statement.
The devil has no power over us, except through deception. He never brings the actual sin temptation to us, but he brings deception in the form of doubt concerning the truth. For instance, God speaks a word to you about going to visit someone. You know it’s God, so you prepare to do what He’s given you a word about. You go to get in your car and discover you have a flat tire. Immediately, you start to embrace the thought that it’s a sign from God that you shouldn’t go (the bible says that signs will follow you, not that they will be presented before you). Then you blame the devil for attacking you, when all along it really was the choice you made yesterday on your way home to drive through that street where construction was going on and you picked up a nail.
Now that’s a pretty simple example, but just think about Adam and Eve. The enemy did not tell them to sin. He simply questioned the word of God concerning the law of the knowledge of good and evil. He doesn’t change. It worked in the garden, and it still works with many people today.
The devil is not spending each and every day trying to cause you damage. He’s got lots of helpers in that area. He’s in the religious business. The devil never misses a church service. He doesn’t try and convince you to sin. He instead keeps you focused on the law, on works, on performance, on self righteousness. He doesn’t have to present sin to you, the law causes sin to occur in your lives because of your choices.
There is no power in sin. There is no sin without the law (Romans 4:15 and 5:13). It’s your focus on the law that makes you sin. Oh, you want proof. Okay, lets try this one.
Romans 3:20 – “For no one can ever be made right with God by doing what the law commands. The law simply shows us how sinful we are.”
You see. There’s that sin consciousness because of the law. Romans 7:7,8 – “Well then, am I suggesting that the law of God is sinful? Of course not! In fact, it was the law that showed me my sin. I would never have known that coveting is wrong if the law had not said, “You must not covet.” 8 But sin used this command to arouse all kinds of covetous desires within me! If there were no law, sin would not have that power.”
You see, it was the law that showed the sin. Also, the enemy knows that the law gives sin the opportunity to produce in you wrong desires. Just look at that verse 8. Finally, this one.
1 Corinthians 15:56 – “For sin is the sting that results in death, and the law gives sin its power.”
Basically, the law makes you sin conscious, so the devil continues to try and keep us focused on the law so that sin can rule our lives and keep us from Kingdom purpose. He knows that where there is no law, there is no transgression or sin. Paul writes that to us. The law simply makes you sin conscious and in bondage. Look at these verses.
Romans 7:14,15 in the ERV.
14 We know that the law is spiritual, but I am not. I am so human. Sin rules me as if I were its slave. 15 I don’t understand why I act the way I do. I don’t do the good I want to do, and I do the evil I hate.”
First of all lets put this in context. This is Paul speaking about the time in his life prior to his conversion. Prior to him dying to his old self and the law. He uses a story of marriage and being free to re-marry after the husband dies, but it is a picture of dying to the world, the law and being free to re-marry Jesus and the gospel of grace.
The point in verse 14 is that the law is spiritual, just like grace is spiritual. The law being a spiritual force works against us. When we live out of wrong believing and instead think according to the law, we put ourselves under the law of sin and death.
Remember again back to the garden of Eden. That’s where the law that is spiritual came into the world. The law, the knowledge of good and evil, will always produce sin consciousness. Sin consciousness will make you feel like you just don’t measure up. “I just fall short of the glory of God all the time, because I sin”. You need to quit focusing on your “falling shorts” and focus on the one who made you righteous.
The devil just keeps tempting me and provoking me to sin. No he doesn’t. It is your focus on the law that causes sin. It’s your focus on keeping man made rules and the traditions of men that causes the sin in your life. It’s your wrong choices because of wrong believing that causes sin in your life. The enemy uses the law to keep you deceived and focused on the wrong things. Now let me prove the things I’ve just said. These are in the NLT version.
The enemy uses the law, because it gives sin the opportunity to deceive you. Romans 7:11 – “Sin took advantage of those commands and deceived me; it used the commands to kill me.”
Churches across the world use both man-made laws and scriptural laws to keep people in bondage to religion and legalism. It’s the devil’s ploy, because it is the law that causes people to be sin conscious. The people believe if they don’t follow both the scriptural laws and the ones laid down by the leadership of their church, they will be in sin to authority.
Sin consciousness feeds negative emotions such as fear, shame, regret, inferiority, self-doubt, self-hate, anxiety and depression. Right where the enemy wants us to be. All through getting us to focus on the law. We think if we don’t follow the rules/law, we will be under a curse or at the very least, hindered from hearing from God. That’s not what scripture says. In fact it’s just the opposite. Look at these scriptures in Galatians.
Galatians 3:10,11 – “But those who depend on the law to make them right with God are under his curse, for the Scriptures say, “Cursed is everyone who does not observe and obey all the commands that are written in God’s Book of the Law.”
I don’t know of anyone who can keep all the commands written in God’s Book of the Law. The Good News is, as believers we don't have to, because Jesus fulfilled all the law for us. However, if you don’t follow after the Spirit where freedom resides, you are following your sinful nature. Just read the underlined portion of Galatians 3:10,11 above. It says it all. "Those who depend on the law are under his curse."
Romans 8:7 says “For the sinful nature is always hostile to God. It never did obey God’s laws, and it never will.” So, your doomed if you try to focus on the law, because you’ll never keep them all. Even if you were able to keep the ones that have been given, man has a way of coming up with new ones to present to the people “for their benefit”. Ya. Right.
11 So it is clear that no one can be made right with God by trying to keep the law. For the Scriptures say, “It is through faith that a righteous person has life.”
Is it any wonder the enemy tries to hide the truth of the law from the body of Christ? God has commissioned us to expose the lies of the enemy concerning our righteousness. He is very subtle in the way he tricks us into living in the sin consciousness mode. It’s all deception and guilt. If he can keep you focused on the law, then he can keep you in bondage to sin and death. But I’ve got good news for you. Sin has no strength in your life.
Remember, we are not under the law, but under grace. What has been presented so far is just an introduction to the truth that will set you free about the law and sin. Don't miss part 2. It just keep getting better. Grace and Peace.
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