4 In the same way, my brothers and sisters, you have died to the law through the body of Christ, so that you may belong to another, to him who was raised from the dead in order that we may bear fruit for God. 5 For while we were living in the flesh, our sinful passions, aroused by the law, were at work in our members to bear fruit for death. 6 But now we are discharged from the law, dead to that which held us captive, so that we are enslaved in the newness of the Spirit and not in the oldness of the written code.
When we read back through the Hebrew Bible, it is a collection of stories and the history of our faith. There are also a lot of rules in there. The rules speak to many different aspects of life. There are rules about crop planting. Rules about what you can touch and not touch. There are rules about what you can eat, when you can eat and who you can eat with. To keep up and follow all of the rules is an incredibly daunting task.
Paul spends a lot of time in Romans speaking about how that we have “died to the law.” As a Jew, much of Paul’s life before becoming a Christian was likely consumed with making sure that he was following the rules of his faith. In his writings, you can feel this incredible sense of liberation that comes through being discharged from the law as he felt that this collection of rules “held us captive.” Sometimes having too many rules can feel restrictive so much so that you are afraid to almost breath for fear of making a mistake.
The freedom that comes through Christ allows us all to take a deep breath. No longer is life about following this strict set of rules and laws, but rather about the redemption that comes through Christ. God acknowledges that we all make mistakes in trying to live in this world but that redemption and love comes through grace alone. We don’t have to be perfect. Our goal now is to love God, enjoy God, and love our neighbor as ourselves. It is an incredibly liberating feeling.
Prayer
God of grace, we thank you for the new life we have received in Christ. Rather than being consumed by the law and fearful of falling short, we know that we are loved completely through the gift of your son. In his precious name, Amen.