abomination among the fowls. They shall not be eaten, they are an abomination: the eagle and the osiphrage and the osprey” (Leviticus 11:13). In this case God was protecting them against physical dangers. There was a characteristic about these unclean animals that, if Israel were to eat of them, harm might come to their bodies. Under the law, God had a way to point out the dangers of its violation. In a similar fashion the Lord has given to the believer under grace guardrails which will protect him from physical, social and spiritual harm. The first phase is the sinner’s position. Paul writes: “ For if by one man’s offense death reigned by one, much more they who receive abundance of grace and of the gift of righteousness, shall reign in life by one, Jesus Christ” (Romans 5 :17 ). The sinner now has liberty in Christ. The second phase is the Christian’s proposition, which we find in Romans 6 :1 : “ What shall we say then? Shall we continue in sin that grace may abound?” This is the danger of a person who abuses the doctrine of grace. If where sin did abound grace did much more abound, why not then continue in sin that grace may abound all the more? (Romans 6 :2 ). Paul protests, “ God forbid!” Such a person knows nothing about the lordship of Christ. Instead of encouraging a Christian to sin, Paul says the doctrine of grace would cause him to reckon himself to be dead indeed to sin but alive unto God (Romans 6 : 11 ). The content of every one of the decalogue, with one exception, is
from the binding shackles of rigid legalism. As a result he was immediately tempted to flex his muscles of temptation. He began doing an y th ing he wished, experiencing all that the law had been telling him he could not do. This illustration shows the dangers of grace. How does God protect us from going astray? Paul, writing under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit discusses this in Romans 6:1 and 2. Before a person becomes a Christian he has the dominion of sin reigning in his life. This will bring its ultimate end of death. When he becomes a C h ris tian God gives him a "guardrail” so that grace will reign through righteousness unto eternal life. Paul never condemned the law. He merely places it in its proper perspective (Romans 7 :7 ). The law simply calls sin what it really is. It gives us certain protective boundaries. It does not create sin but merely identifies it. In the Old Testament days the law protected man from his real enemy. God gave Israel the law so these people might recognize the dangers of sip and transgression. “ Thou shalt have no other gods before me” (Exodus 20:3) was a spiritual protection. It showed tha t their Jehovah was the supreme God. Another portion states, “ Thou shalt not covet thy ne ighbo r’s house , nor thy n e ig h b o r ’ s w if e , nor th y ne ighbo r’ s servants . . . nor anything that is thy neighbors” (Exodus 20 :17). This provided the c h i l d r e n o f Israe l socia l protection. Later we read: “ And these are they which ye shall have in Page 20
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