When you think of Jesus' teachings, themes like love and forgiveness likely pop into your mind. But then you run across passages where Jesus says you cannot be His disciple unless you hate your children and carry a cross (Lk 14:26-27).
Uh . . . come again, Jesus?
Read the red letters of your Bible and you will see many examples of unprecedented grace. But you'll also see many harsh moral demands. So, how do we make sense of this? Is Jesus double-minded? Nope. He simply has two different messages: one is Law and the other is Gospel.
What is the Law?
The Law is any and every moral command from God.
The Purpose of the Law
Most Christians think the purpose of the Law is to be our guide for righteous living. But that's not what Scripture teaches. Paul says the primary function of the Law is to reveal our sin.
Paul writes in Romans 3:20, "No one will be declared righteous in God's sight by the works of the law; rather, through the law we become conscious of our sin." (see Rm 7:13)
The Law is not a roadmap for righteousness, it's a spotlight on wickedness.
So, by the time Jesus arrived, Jews had 14 centuries to learn what the Law should have taught them – that they were dreadfully sinful and in desperate need of a Savior. However, the religious teachers replaced God's Law with their own watered-down version (Mk 7:6-8). In doing this, they robbed the Law of its power to expose sin.
As a result, Jews didn't see their true sinful condition and need of a Savior. Self-righteousness reigned! So, Jesus had to do the Law teachers' job for them: preach the unfiltered Law.
The Big Mistake
Many preachers today don't understand the purpose of the Law and therefore have no idea what to do with Jesus' harsh demands. So, they water them down to make them more "doable" for us.
Some common examples:
"When Jesus commands you to love God with every fiber of your being (Mk 12:30), He really just wants you to read your Bible and go to church."
"When Jesus commands you to love your neighbor as much as you love yourself (Mk 12:31), He really just wants you to be nice."
"When Jesus commands you to give up everything to follow Him (Lk 14:33), He really just wants you to put more in the offering plate."
"When Jesus commands you to gouge your eyes out (Mt 5:29), He really just wants you to stop watching porn."
"When Jesus commands you to be morally perfect (Mt 5:48), He really just wants you to try your best."
Do you see what's happening? Modern preachers are making the exact same mistake as ancient Pharisees – they're replacing God's Law with their own watered-down version. And self-righteousness reigns! The biggest problem in the church today is not "cheap grace," but cheap Law: watering down God's Law to make it doable for us.
What is the Gospel?
The Gospel is God's forgiveness of our sins in the death and resurrection of Jesus (1 Co 15:1-5).
Two Words; Two Audiences
So, Jesus has two different messages: Law (commands) and Gospel (grace). Which one He gives depends on His audience.
If He's talking to the self-righteous, He delivers the unfiltered force of the Law against them in order to reveal their wickedness (e.g., The Rich Young Ruler, The Law Expert, etc.). On the flip side, if He's talking to those who already know that they're sinful, He sets them free with the Gospel (e.g., The Woman Caught in Adultery, The Prostitute, etc.).
As Reformer Philip Melancthon wrote, “The Law shows the disease, the Gospel provides the cure.”
Toxic Mix
Law and Gospel are like oil and water –– they don't mix! We must keep these words distinct, clearly defining and explaining the purpose of both. But sadly, it's more common for preachers to serve up Law/Gospel cocktails from the pulpit for their congregations. A dash of Gospel is blended with a pound of Law to make one confusing mess. Nobody can taste the refreshing waters of forgiveness because they're busy choking down all the made up rules they're supposed to be obeying.
Freedom
And that's the whole point!
Believers are no longer under the condemnation of the Law (Rm 8:1), for Jesus has completely fulfilled the Law (Mt 5:17) and brought it to an end: "Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to all who believe" (Rm 10:4). But our focus on watered-down law-keeping prevents us from walking in the freedom Jesus purchased for us.
So, because He loves us, Jesus crushes us with the real Law and its impossible demands, so He can then give us the word of the Gospel that raises us to a new life of forgiveness, freedom, and rest in Him.
For Further Reading