The Naked Gospel: Truth You May Never Hear in Church Read Online Free PDF Page B

and Gentiles. Today, he recognizes two different groups—believers and unbelievers. In the Old Testament, the law was only for Jews. Today, the law speaks to only one group, namely, unbelievers.So if you’re a Christian, what place should the law have in your life?
S HUT U P !
    The law has one
intended audience—unbelievers.
    The law has one intended audience—unbelievers. But what is the law saying to them? And what is the typical response when the law speaks? The best way to summarize the law’s message is by using an expression that was forbidden in my home as I was growing up: “Shut up!” My mother never tolerated that phrase. But this is precisely what the law says to the unbeliever. In fact, the whole world is silenced by the law:
Now we know that whatever the law says, it says to those who are under the law, so that every mouth may be silenced and the whole world held accountable to God. Therefore no one will be declared righteous in his sight by observing the law; rather, through the law we become conscious of sin.
    R OMANS 3:19-20
    Sometimes people aren’t listening. If you want their attention, you have to shout. Through the law, God shouts that he demands no less than perfection. When we see the standard, we have no choice but to “shut up.” Our mouths are silenced. We’re not empowered to try harder. Nor are we safe just giving up and making a go at it without righteousness. We’re caught in a predicament. And without intervention, we’d remain in a bewildered state.
    Like Adam and Eve, we become conscious of our nakedness before God. But there’s no covering on earth that will hide our unrighteousness. The law exposes our addiction to sin and our need for Christ:
Why the Law then?…But the Scripture has shut up everyone under sin, so that the promise by faith in Jesus Christ might be given to those who believe.
    G ALATIANS 3:19, 22 NASB
    Once in a while, I have the privilege of speaking to prison inmates about the gospel. Some of the men are under life sentences. They’ll be locked up until they die. As I enter these prisons, and the heavy metal doors close behind me, I imagine what it’d be like to be incarcerated. (I’ve even imagined a mistake with the paperwork that leaves me trapped inside!)
    Being held prisoner, locked up indefinitely, is not generally seen as desirable. But this is precisely how Paul describes life under the law. It’s like being locked up as a prisoner:
Before this faith came, we were held prisoners by the law, locked up until faith should be revealed. So the law was put in charge to lead us to Christ that we might be justified by faith.
    G ALATIANS 3:23-24 NIV
    Being under the
law is like being
in prison.
    Being under the law is like being in prison. You’re constantly reminded that you’re guilty and awaiting your sentence. The law doesn’t encourage us, nor does it build us up. With its perfect standard, it only tears down our pride. It shows us that we’ll never succeed. As Paul says, the law has been “put in charge to lead us to Christ.” How does it lead us to Christ? By showing us our spiritual death and our need for new life.
D RIVERS E XCELLENCE A WARD
    As a teenager, I accrued many violations in my pursuit of speed on America’s highways. I seldom struggled with the most commontemptations that teens deal with. But for some reason, the allure of a speeding automobile always seemed to get the better of me.
    For a few years, I was constantly receiving warnings and speeding tickets. I was even once charged with reckless driving due to excessive speed. Of course, there were times when I would feel remorse for my actions—and I’d slow down for a while. But nothing really curbed my addiction to speed.
    But imagine, as I make my way to school one morning, driving at the legal speed limit, I notice the familiar flashing blue lights in my rearview mirror. So I pull over to the side of the road and watch as the police officer exits his patrol car and motions