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Law and Gospel
by Dick Smith

The Bible is divided into two parts: the Old and New Testaments. The Old Testament was written before the birth of Christ. The New Testament was written after Christ’s birth. In fact, it was written after His death, resurrection, and ascension into heaven.

As important as this division is there is a division of Scripture that has to do with the total message of the Bible. It, too, is a division into two parts. Because it has to do with the very heart of the message God has for us, this division is most important. It is the distinction between Law and Gospel.

Law has to do with any command or requirement laid down for humans. The Ten Commandments are the obvious example that comes immediately to mind. The Law demands everything and gives nothing. In fact the Law can’t even bring about a fulfillment of the Law. Paul put it this way in Romans 8: "God has done what the Law weakened by the flesh COULD NOT DO….."

The Gospel quite the opposite from the Law, gives everything and commands nothing. The Gospel is the message of the Cross, where Christ died for the ungodly. The ungodly are sinners like you and me.

The Law was given in order to teach us the truth about our sinful condition. Without the Law, St. Paul wrote, I didn’t know what sin was (Rom. 7:7). The Law’s function is to make us acutely aware of our sinfulness so that we might be driven to the Cross to see there our only hope of release from the bondage to sin. The LAW is God’s alien work to bring us to His proper work for us which is Christ and the Cross (that is, the GOSPEL).

This sounds simple enough but it is when we get in the trenches of life that we discover how torturous it can be inside of us. Luther called it going to the school house of the Holy Spirit. He said that because it is the Holy Spirit who works within, through the judgment of the Law, to bring us into and through inner conflict. His purpose is to bring about the death of the Old Adam within us.

The Old Adam always wants to claim to be a "good person" not like other people who don’t measure up to our standards. The Old Adam wants to assert that by trying hard we can live a good and acceptable life. The Old Adam clings to the Ten Commandments as a measuring stick whereby it can pat itself on the back for good work done and use the same stick to condemn others who just don’t try hard enough. The Old Adam rejects the notion that Christ’s love controls us, and not the Law (II Cor. 5:14).

The Old Adam has to die. However we cannot do it. The Holy Spirit has to do it within us. The inner conflict is the work of the Spirit. Regin Prenter in his book on Luther’s Concept of the Holy Spirit which is titled, Spiritus Creator, writes that for Luther this inner conflict is best described in Romans 8:26-28, where Paul writes, "Likewise the Spirit helps us in our weakness; for we do not know how to pray as we ought, but the Spirit intercedes with our spirit with sighs too deep for words. And He who searches the hearts of men knows the mind of the Spirit, for the Spirit intercedes for the saints according to the will of God."

The task of the Spirit is to strip from us any attempt to be self righteous, or good, before God. We are all sinners under the judgment of the Law. There is NO DISTINCTION between us. No one is less sinful than another. NO ONE! (Romans 3:22) It is the Spirit’s work to strip all notions of self goodness before God, IN ORDER THAT we find our refuge ONLY in the CROSS of CHRIST.

Free Will is a lie. It is the false idea that we have a choice to do good or do evil. NOT TRUE! Luther declared, "Free will, since the Fall (when Adam and Eve ate of the forbidden fruit and sin came into the world) exists IN NAME ONLY. And as long as it does what it is able to do, it commits a mortal sin" (Thesis 13, Heidelberg Disputation, April 26, 1518). Now isn’t that a kick in the butt! The only thing you can do with your own effort is to SIN ALL THE MORE! See what I mean when I said the Holy Spirit leads us into the HELL of INNER CONFLICT. Prenter writes that the torture of inner conflict is such that blasphemy against God Himself is part of the experience!

The Old Adam is built on arrogance and the Spirit is about the task of taking that away from us. Luther declared," arrogance cannot be avoided and true hope be present unless the judgment of condemnation is feared in EVERY WORK" (Thesis 11, Heidelberg Disputation, April 26, 1518). IN EVERY THING we do, no matter how good it may be in the eyes of others, in our own eyes we must fear the judgment of condemnation in what we have done. There is no way we can rid ourselves from arrogance and pride. But the Spirit can through the Hell of Inner Conflict. His goal is to bring us down to death.

Paul described this whole process in that remarkable statement that sums up for us who are what we are. He writes, "I through the Law DIED TO THE LAW, that I might live for God. I HAVE BEEN CRUCIFIED WITH CHRIST. I DON’T LIVE ANY LONGER! IT IS CHRIST WHO LIVES IN ME! And the life I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God who loved me and gave Himself for me" (Galatians 2:19-20).

It is the same Spirit (Holy Spirit) who drives us through inner conflict interceding on our behalf, because there is no way we could EVER do the work of inner conflict, who is also the one who mediates the presence of Christ in us as our new life following death to the Law. Under the Law we see Christ has "Imitatio", that is, one who is out there in front of us as our Leader, one whom we are to follow, imitate, and try to be like. The Law kills this in us through inner conflict. We die to it. Now the Spirit reveals to us Christ in us. This is not Imitation. But it is the real Christ in Conformity to Him. Under the Law, Christ is seen as "Imitatio,"

here Christ is seen as "Conformitas." Paul puts it this way: "And those whom he foreknew he also predestined to be CONFORMED to the image of His Son in order that He might be the first-born of many brethren" (Rom. 8:29).

At Heart River Lutheran Church, where I serve as Pastor, we minister to the youth at the North Dakota State Youth Correctional Center. In the Sunday Service after we have read together in Confession about being in bondage of sin and that we cannot free ourselves, then I proclaim to them all as I PROCLAIM TO YOU AS WELL: "Take heart my friends, Christ lives in you as a redeeming reality. And where Christ is there is forgiveness of all yours sins, past, present and future. You are always 200 percent, which mathematically makes no sense what ever. You are always 100 percent sinner and at the same time you are always 100 percent saint: sinless, perfect, holy, and righteous in the eyes of God because of Christ. You don’t live anymore. When Christ died he pulled you up upon the cross and you died with Him. (In baptism: Romans 6:3ff; and II Cor.5:14). IT IS CHRIST WHO LIVES IN YOU, NOW AND FOREVER!

Rev. Dick Smith, serves Heart River Lutheran Church, bringing Christ to youth at the Youth Correctional Center in Mandan, North Dakota. You may write directly to Rev. Smith at dicksmith9@bis.midco.netmailto:dicksmith9@bis.midco.net

MULTI-MEDIA YOUTH BIBLE STUDY

Augsburg Lutheran Churches is creating a multi-media Bible Study for Youth on the subject of Sexuality and Homosexuality. This article on Law and Gospel is Part 3 of the series. Two other articles from the series are included in this issue of The Crux of the Matter.

Part 4: "Sexuality, Idolatry, and Disbelief" appears in the "From the District Pastor" section.

Part 5: "Christ’s Peace: Silencing the Accusing Voice," appears in the second Table Talk article..

Three more articles will appear in the next issue.

Rev. Dick Smith is giving the Bible Study at our gathering in Brookins, SD, this year. He is a dynamic preacher and the the author of Feeling The Rapture of Being Alive!

"This book is like lying on the beach and letting the waves of God’s goodness wash over you and refresh you. Get this wave into your world and enjoy the rapture of life." - Pastor Johan Hinderlie, Mount Carmel Ministries.

"If you have ever wondered how Lutheran Doctrine could climb down out of its ivory tower into real life, read this book. It makes justification by fath alone work." - Dr. Joeseph A. Burgess, Former Executive Director, Division of Theological Studies - Lutheran Council in USA.

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