But now we have been released from the law, for we died to it and are no longer captive to its power. Now we can serve God, not in the old way of obeying the letter of the law but in the new way of living in the spirit.
Romans 7:6
I am a rule follower. Even as early as my childhood daycare, I was the child who would get in trouble for scolding other kids that they were not following the rules. I rather like a list of rules that imply if these things are followed then nothing bad will happen, I need only follow the rules.
Sometimes I think how nice it would be if the world was a series of equations and formulas that if you do X then Y will happen. Of course, this wouldn’t really be all that great because then there would be no room for the surprises of life, which would mean we wouldn’t be taken off guard by any of the bad, but neither would we be surprised with the unexpected good fortune God bestowed upon us.
When the Israelites received the law it was very black and white. There was a (very!) long list of dos and don’ts. The Israelites were bound by this law, they had to follow it, or else they were living in sin. And unlike you and me who only need to repent to Jesus in prayer to be forgiven, they had to sacrifice animals to atone for their sin!
Then along comes Jesus and He changes everything. We are no longer bound by the law in fear and anguish of what will happen if we don’t, but rather we are now bound by love to adhere to the law. Some use this as an excuse to slacken their adherence to the law, stating that if they sin they will just ask for forgiveness—that’s not exactly how this works. While God will always forgive someone who sincerely repents, He knows who is sincere.
Living freed from the law comes with even more responsibility than living bound by the law. We are now bound by our love for Jesus to serve Him even more than we might do if we were simply bound by the law.
If two people marry and they do only what is required of them for the other person, i.e. fidelity, maintaining the house, working to pay bills, etc., they have a household but the marriage may not last. Why? Because there is no expression of love! No simple kindnesses such as pouring coffee for the other person in the morning, no hugs, no phone calls just because—the marriage is simply a glorified business arrangement.
I believe this is exactly the type of relationship Paul is talking about us having with Jesus in Romans 7. We are not bound by the law to do this list of things, rather we are bound by our love. We don’t have to read the Bible—we get to as a way to gain wisdom and learn more of God’s love. We don’t have to obey the commandments but we want to as a way to show our commitment to Jesus. As great as I might think rules are; even I have to admit that love is even greater.