WHAT THE LAW COULD NOT DO

"For what the law could not do, in that it was weak through the flesh, God sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh, and for sin, condemned sin in the flesh: that the righteousness of the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit."  (Romans 8:3,4).

The Old Testament is the story of God's dealings with man under the law.  It is a tragic story of man's utter failure to live according to the law's holy demands.  Since the original fall, God has allowed man to gorge himself on the fruit of the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil only to discover that the result of eating that fruit was what God indicated it would be in the beginning: death.  "For what the law could not do in that it was weak through the flesh..."  The problem was not so much with the law - for it is holy, just, and good - but with the flesh.  Those men and women in the Old Testament who found grace in the eyes of the Lord, did so by faith and obedience.  They believed that God could do for them what they could not do for themselves.  "If there had been a law given which could have given life, verily righteousness should have been by the law.  But the scripture hath concluded all under sin, that the promise by faith of Jesus Christ might be given to them that believe."  (Galatians 3:21b, 22).

There is a well-known story in Matthew that tells of Peter's walk on the sea of Gallilee.  The story speaks of Jesus sending His disciples across the sea by boat ahead of Him, and their encountering a storm at sea that impeded their progress.  The disciples found themselves working hard to row against the storm to try to reach their destination.  Sometime between 3 and 6 a.m., Jesus came to them walking across the waves.  At first they were frightened, thinking it was a ghost, but Peter called out and said, "Lord, if it be Thou, bid me come unto Thee on the water."  (Matthew 14:28).  Jesus simply said "Come."  Miraculously, Peter did just that.  He left the ship, and its relative security, and walked out to Jesus on the water.  Many lessons have been taught about this story.  The water represents life in general: it is very fluid and unpredictable.  It can be smooth as glass at one moment, and dangerous and contrary the next.  The storm represents those things in our lives that work against our spiritual progress whether it be sin, temptation, heartache, financial pressures, sickness, or affliction.  As long as we keep our eyes on Jesus, and not on the storms, we can walk above the waves and not sink under them.  I would like to focus on something that is commonly overlooked, however: the boat. 

In our story in Matthew 14, the boat represents many things.  It was something that the fishermen were very familiar and comfortable with.  It was a vessel that offered a great deal of security when crossing the waters of life.  There were times that they could hoist their sails and let the winds carry them easily to where they wanted to go.  There were other times, however, (as in our story) when the winds would blow against them, and they would then have to work strenuously to reach their goal, sometimes to no avail.  The boat was a very imperfect vehicle, though it was the only alternative they had for crossing water other than swimming.  It was not even an ideal protection for them.  A powerful enough storm could sink their vessel and leave them at the mercy of the waves.  In the end, the boat was only as good as the men who sailed it, and what they could do was limited by their own strength and ability, and by the violence of the elements.  In short, the boat can represent the law and man's effort to keep the law in his own strength and works.  "For what the law could not do, in that it was weak through the flesh, God sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh, and for sin, condemned sin in the flesh."  At the point in which the disciples were toiling against the storm to steer their boat where it should go, Jesus appeared walking in the storm.  What a contrast!  Jesus needed no boat to cross the waves!  He didn't need to toil against the storm!  He was the Master of the waves.  By faith, Peter realized that if Jesus could do it, then he himself no longer needed a boat to navigate the waves either.  He was suddenly able to think "outside the boat."  Peter said "Bid me come," and Jesus said, "Come."  True revelation comes first from seeing Jesus, and then from realizing that He is inviting us to be like Him in ways we never before imagined possible.

Man's problem is being content to struggle in the boat even when he knows it isn't a perfect solution - it is all he knows.  As long as he feels he is in control, he is satisfied.  Never mind that many around him are going down with their boats - it's still the best conveyance he knows.  Jesus, however, presents an altogether different solution.  He asks us to fix our eyes on Him, ignore the storm, leave the boat, and walk on water!  When we do, we find that faith in Christ is a much more secure form of transportation across life's uncertain seas.  The law can't get us there.  Our own efforts can't get us there.  Only Jesus can make us what we want to be, and get us where we want to go.  "For the law made nothing perfect, but the bringing in of a better hope did; by the which we draw nigh unto God."  (Hebrews 7:19).

Where Jesus is, there is peace.  The storms were raging all about the Lord, but where He was, there was a calm.  Another time there was a storm at sea and Jesus was asleep in the boat - the perfect picture of peace in the midst of turmoil.  This is what we find when we follow Jesus out on the waves. 

The New Testament is the story of God's grace to man, and the gift of His Son Jesus Who is the Tree of Life.  God invites us now to leave the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil and eat freely from the Tree of Life.  It is all about believing that by faith in Jesus Christ we can do what was impossible for us to do before.  We can be like Jesus!  The righteousness of the law can be fulfilled in us if we walk in the Spirit (on the water), and not in the flesh (in our own works through the law).  What a glorious liberty is ours in Christ!  By faith we find that we can walk through the storms as we keep our eyes on Jesus and not on the waves.  Sin, temptation, heartache, financial pressures, sickness, and affliction no longer have the power to destroy us as we look to Him.  It is not life with all its unpredictability that changes - the storms still come; it is the vessel that has changed.  We have an Ark of safety, an Anchor for our souls, and a Fortress sure and steadfast.  The law could ever only bring about a vain effort to conform outwardly to God's holy standards; but the faith that is in Christ Jesus transforms us from the inside, and we are changed.  Praise be to God for His immeasurable Gift!  Thanks be to our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ for His sacrifice and love!

 

"But before faith came, we were kept under the law, shut up unto the faith which should afterwards be revealed.  Wherefore the law was our schoolmaster to bring us unto Christ, that we might be justified by faith.  But after that faith is come, we are no longer under a schoolmaster.  For ye are all the children of God by faith in Christ Jesus."  (Galatians 3:23-26).