ENCOURAGEMENT FOR THE DAY

Is the Law the Source of Sin?

Romans 7:7-8

What shall we say, then? Is the law sin? Certainly not! Indeed I would not have known what sin was except through the law. For I would not have known what coveting really was if the law had not said, "Do not covet." But sin, seizing the opportunity afforded by the commandment, produced in me every kind of covetous desire. For apart from law, sin is dead.

Yesterday was my day to drive our nine year old daughter Amanda to school. Our time together on the way to school has become one of my most treasured possessions. It was a cold morning for Southern California, so we cranked up the heat to the maximum and even turned on the seat heaters -- yet it was beautifully clear. The sun was still low on the horizon and it shined right into Amanda's eyes -- underneath the sun visor. She squirmed around in the seat trying unsuccessfully to avoid the glare. After awhile she said to me: "Dad, the surface of the sun is really hot isn't it?" "Yes, it's about 10 times hotter than the hottest day here on earth," I answered. She said: "That's really hot, right? It would burn you up if you got too close, right?" "Right," I answered. She was silent for a few moments as she thought about the sun. Then she said: "Isn't it weird how something so good can hurt us so bad? We need the sun to grow food and plants, and to keep us warm, but it also gives you skin cancer and dries stuff out. Isn't that weird? Why did God do that?"

As I prayed this morning for fresh insight into our passage today, the Lord reminded me of my conversation with Amanda, and the question Paul poses rhetorically in our passage: "Is the Law sin?" And perhaps a more subtle consideration, "Why would God have given us the Law if it was going to make us sin more?" Or put into Amanda's words, "Why did God do that?" Paul tells us: "I would not have known what coveting really was if the law had not said, 'Do not covet.'" The logical conclusion would then be: the Law must be sin because from it springs evil desires. Going back to my conversation with Amanda regarding the sun -- it would be the same as thinking the sun was evil and bad because too much exposure to it could cause skin cancer. However, unlike the ultraviolet rays of the sun, the Law is not the problem. The Law is perfection and when we compare ourselves to perfection we find ourselves lacking in so many ways. The Law didn't create sin -- sin has always been there, simmering in the background, since the Garden of Eden. The Law only exposes sin. And once exposed it grows exponentially.

Take a moment right now and consider the Ten Commandments given to us by God through His servant Moses. Let God and His perfect Law expose the sin in your life. What is God speaking to you about today? Will you address this sin or let it continue to grow and fester in your life? Right now, ask for the Lord's forgiveness; repent, and accept the peace God offers through the sacrifice of His Son Jesus. God offers help -- His name is Jesus.

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