I am not sure that I would understand the good news about Jesus if I didn’t understand the nature of what the law of God requires. It seems that God reveals His law to show us how far we have fallen into sin, and only then do we start asking the question:
How is it possible for anyone to be saved?
God’s law demands perfect 100% obedience. Our first problem to consider is that we have all sinned and are therefore under the penalty of death. There is no make up exam or extra credit. We are all doomed. Next, even if God found a way to forgive us of past sins we would still have present and future sins to contend with. Therefore God has to find a way to satisfy what His law requires, so that He can forgive ALL of our sins. That is the problem.
But Jesus lived a perfect life and died in our place. One drop of His blood is of eternal value, and He gave His life as the ultimate sacrifice for our sins. Eternal life is now offered as a gift for all who place their trust in the atoning blood of Christ. This is the solution.
It seems that the only true way to appreciate the good news of Jesus is to understand the bad news first. This is why God’s law seems harsh and unforgiving. It is meant to teach us the importance of the extent that Jesus would have to go to free us from the penalty of sin.
Those who accept Christ and receive the Holy Spirit into their hearts are still bound to struggle with bad habits, sinful tendencies, evil desires, and imperfect obedience. Even the good things we do are tainted with sin. The Holy Spirit helps us to grow spiritually, but we are never morally perfect on this side of heaven. But because of the blood that was shed on the Cross we are accounted blameless before God as we trust in the merits of Jesus Christ.
But why would the Father allow His beloved Son Jesus Christ to die for our sins? He did this because He loves us and wants us to live with Him for eternity. But He cannot tolerate sin in heaven, and His will is for us to live in loving obedience to His commandments. When Jesus comes again, He will give us perfected bodies that are able to live up to the holy standards of the divine law. At that point we are glorified and taken to heaven to live in perfect obedience to God who has proven His love for us by dying for us on the cross.
This is the fullness of what it means to be a Christian. It means accepting the blood of Jesus as assurance of eternal life, it means being full of the Holy Spirit that pours the love of God into our hearts, and it means understanding that God does not save us to live in spiritual anarchy. His desire is that we live in perfect obedience to the divine standard of His holy law.
~Stephen Beagles