“Wherefore, my Brethren, you also are become dead to the law by the Body of Christ; that you should be married to another, even to Him who is raised from the dead, that we should bring forth fruit unto God.” Romans 7:4

Being crucified with Christ, baptized into His Death because we freely chose to believe in the finished work of Jesus Christ for our Salvation, we are now dead to the law.  The law is not dead but we are dead to it and are now married to another, Jesus Christ.  Through this marriage, the Holy Spirit is now commissioned to bring forth fruit onto God.

“For when we were in the flesh, the motions of sins, which were by the law, did work in our members to bring forth fruit unto death.” Romans 7:5

Before we were born again, we were married to the law.  We are all born under law and will be judged according to law unless we accept Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior.  To be sure, there is but One Who fulfilled the Law and that is Jesus.  God gave us the Law to show us sin.  God then sent His only begotten Son, Jesus Christ, born of a virgin without spot or blemish, to fulfill the Law (of which He did so completely) and through His Death pay the penalty of sin for whosoever will believe.  Three days later Jesus Christ was Resurrected, proving that every sin was paid in full.  He walked the earth for 40 days and has now ascended unto Heaven where He sits at the Right Hand of the Throne of God searching to and fro to show Himself strong on behalf of those whose heart is perfect toward Him (John 3:16, Matthew 1:18, Matthew 5:17, Luke 24:6-7, Acts 1:9-11, Hebrews 12:2, 2 Chronicles 16:9).

Once the believing sinner comes to Christ, they are born again…born of the Spirit. One cannot see the Kingdom of God lest they be born of water (natural child birth, NOT water baptism) and born of the Spirit (John 3:3-7).

Before being born again, we are in the flesh and married to the law where we brought forth fruit unto death.  Being married to the law, one cannot produce fruit unto God but only unto death.  Crucified with Christ, we are dead to the law.  Not yet perfected, we stumble in our walk with the Lord and the first thing we do is make a rule (a law) to not do that again.  Our faith now being in that law not to stumble, we are once again married to this law…whatever that law may be.  Some may say to fast, take the Lord’s Supper, pray more, read your Bible more, etc. to overcome that which made you stumble.  All of these things, although Scriptural and right, become laws given to overcome sin yet these things were not given to the Body of Christ to overcome sin…the death of Jesus Christ was given to break the power of sin in the Believer’s life and nothing else.

“For sin shall not have dominion over you: for you are not under the Law, but under Grace.” Romans 6:14

If given half the chance, we will turn anything into a law in order to receive the credit when “we” fulfill that law! This is not God’s Way but in fact spiritual adultery.  Being married to Christ and dead to the law, we will quickly turn back to laws once we have received liberty in Christ Jesus by Grace through faith and it will be the sincerest of Christians offering such laws in order to help.  In reality, these sincerely deceived Christians are doing nothing more than offering for doctrine the commandments of man to overcome the sin which caused us to stumble.

“⁸ This people draw nigh unto Me with their mouth, and honor Me with their lips; but their heart is far from Me.

⁹ But in vain they do worship Me, teaching for doctrines the commandments of men.” Matthew 15:8-9

Consider in whom you are married.  Jesus? Praise the Lord!  Now consider in whom you are betrothed to break the power of sin which caused the stumbling.  If it was anything other than faith in Jesus Christ and Him crucified, it was a law and will produce fruit unto death and not unto God.  Being married to the law, the Holy Spirit is not commissioned to produce Fruit unto God.  Prayerfully consider.

-Donna Clark Warren