January 4th
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Under Grace, Not Law
For sin shall not have dominion over you: for you are not under law but under grace. (Romans 6:14)
Sin dominates every one's life, unless they are learning of God's remedy. Grace is our only hope that sin will no longer dominate our lives. Furthermore, grace is a sufficient hope that sin need not exercise a dominating influence over us.
Before we came to faith in Jesus Christ, we were fully under the dominion of sin. We were condemned before God because of our sin. Others may not have been aware of our truly sinful condition. Still, we were so controlled by sin that God called us "slaves of sin" (Romans 6:6).
The law brought us no hope of escape. In fact, the law condemned us (Romans 3:19). We could never have found freedom from sin's condemnation by attempting to perform better under the law of God, for "by the works of the law no flesh shall be justified" (Galatians 2:16).
On the other hand, the grace of God is our fully effective hope. There is forgiveness of sins by His grace (Ephesians 1:7). There is justification through faith by the grace of God (Galatians 2:16a). There is growth in spiritual life by the grace of God (2 Peter 3:18). None of these heavenly blessings become ours from attempting by our ability to live up to the law standards of Almighty God.
Our relationship with the Lord is based upon grace, not upon law. We began a walk with the Lord by His grace at work for us. We continue to walk with Him by His grace at work in our lives.
O Lord, my God, I rejoice greatly that I am under Your grace and not under Your law. Your holy law rightly condemned me for my trespasses against You. I thank You for forgiving my sins by Your glorious grace. I praise You for justifying me, declaring me not guilty in Your sight, by Your rich grace. I extol You for continuing to touch and shape my life by Your inexhaustible grace, in the name of Christ Jesus, my Lord. Amen