Briefing: When you hear the term “free from the law”, what thoughts does it conjure up in you? Can you be free from the law?

Dispatch (Assignment): Read Romans 5:12-6:14.

On the Street: We are not talking about free from the law in the sense that foreign dignitaries (ambassadors) are free from persecution of the laws of the United States; “dignitary protection”. This is not even the professional courtesy that officers gave each other “back in the day” for minor traffic infringements. No, this is freedom from the law that condemns a man’s soul to eternal damnation.

God gave us a conscious to discern right from wrong. Humans have a tendency to ignore their conscious to the point of being unaware of right and wrong (some say the lines are blurry, there is too much gray). God gave us the law (The Ten Commandments) so there would be no more gray area; no difference of opinion. With the law written down, surely man would no longer have an excuse for their behavior. Before the law, they were playing the game of life without a rule book. Now that we know the rules, everyone will follow them, right? No more excuses. Who needs umpires and referees, no one is going to cheat. Now people argue the spirit of the law and look for “loop holes” in the law. It becomes a game of circumventing the system.

The law only convicts, there is no forgiveness or grace in the law. If we only had the law to measure us, our behavior, our lives, we would all be found guilty. Being guilty without forgiveness, compassion, grace or mercy is death. All have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God. We have no excuse and no defense.

Paul says we (Christians) are free from the law because, although guilty of sin and worthy of death, Jesus took our punishment. Jesus, who is totally innocent, never blemished by sin, intervened and saved us from a guilty verdict and a death penalty. He did not just get us off by technicality or some defense attorney trickery. We were found guilty and the punishment handed down was death. He took our place. We don’t deserve what He did for us but we accept it. Because of Jesus’ sacrifice, we are now free from the law. Double jeopardy is in place, we cannot be re-tried.

Do we now have carte blanch to sin all we want? I could go on but I need to defer to Romans 5:12-6:14. If you have Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior then you are blessed to be free from the law, yet a slave to righteousness.

Investigational Resources: Romans chapter 6.

Officer Safety Principle: Freedom is not free. Jesus paid the ultimate penalty for it. He gives it to us for believing in Him, repenting of our sins, and giving our lives to serve Him.

from The Book of Romans Through the Eyes of a Cop
©by Charles Gilliland. Used by permission.
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