July
31, 2003
GREAT
PEACE
"Great
peace have those who love Your law, and nothing causes them
to stumble" (Psalm 119:165, NKJV).
With
Jesus there is "Perfect Peace" and with those who
keep His law there is "Great Peace". Because they
keep His law, nothing causes them to stumble.
Paul
gave a wonderful comparison and illustration of this in Galatians.
Here he compared the lusts of the flesh and the works of the
Spirit. His illustration even suggests that Christ has liberated
us and made us free from the "yoke of bondage."
"For you, brethren, have been called to liberty; only
do not use liberty as an opportunity for the flesh, but through
love serve one another. Far all the law is fulfilled in one
word, even this: 'You shall love your neighbor as yourself'...
I say then: Walk in the Spirit, and you shall not fulfill
the lust of the flesh. For the flesh lusts against the Spirit,
and the Spirit against the flesh; and these are contrary to
one another, so that you do not do the things that you wish.
But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under the law.
"Now
the works of the flesh are evident, which are: adultery, fornication,
uncleanness, lewdness, idolatry, sorcery, hatred, contentions,
jealousies, outbursts of wrath, selfish ambitions, dissensions,
heresies, envy, murders, drunkenness, revelries, and the like;
of which I tell you beforehand, just as I also told you in
time past, that those who practice such things will not inherit
the kingdom of God.
"But
the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering,
kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control.
Against such there is no law. And those who are Christ's have
crucified the flesh with its passions and desires" (Galatians
5:1,13-24).
Here,
Paul is saying that those who allow the Holy Spirit to lead
them "will not fulfill the lust of the flesh" and
will receive the fruits of the Spirit against which there
is no law. God's law only condemns practices that harm and
destroy relationships. His Spirit leads us into practices
that only build up and strengthen relationships. When we practice
the Spirit's values in our lives we are fulfilling the law,
"You shall love your neighbor as yourself" (Galations
5:14). By
inspiration, David said "those who love your law, - nothing
causes them to stumble" and they have "Great peace"
(Psalm 119:165).
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