The Unbeliever and the Law of God
Matthew 5:19
In our message last Sunday we dealt with a foundational subject in regard to our faith, and that is the relationship between the Christian and the Law of God.
I made some points that I would like to now reiterate before moving on to the message for today, as they set the stage for our message.
Last week, we discussed how Christ “fulfilled” the Law of God.
He did not abolish it, but rather He obeyed it perfectly and fulfilled every requirement of it.
His life was one lived in perfect obedience to the Law of God.
He “filled to the brim” all of God’s Laws, the ceremonial, the governmental and even the moral laws.
He satisfied the requirement of them all.
Now, the believing Christian is said to be “in Christ”.
As a result, God imputes the perfect righteousness of Christ to the believer.
Which is why the Apostle Paul can say, “There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.” (Romans 8:1)
Likewise, all of the sins we commit have been charged to Christ - and He paid for them on the cross.
Colossians 2:13-14 “And you, who were dead in your trespasses and the uncircumcision of your flesh, God made alive together with him, having forgiven us all our trespasses, 14 by canceling the record of debt that stood against us with its legal demands. This he set aside, nailing it to the cross.”
Thus, for the believer, the Law has a very specific function.
It first showed us that we were sinners, in need of a Savior.
Paul calls it our “School Master” which leads us to Christ (Gal 3:24).
The Law shows us how helpless we are to be righteous on our own.
In addition, the Law shows us why Christ came.
Christ did not come simply to live a “good” life, or an “exemplary” life.
Christ came to live a “Perfect” life in regard to the Law of God.
His was the only life to ever “fulfill” the Law of God.
Now, that was a condensed version of what I said in our message last week.
This week, I want to key in on one portion of the text which we looked at, specifically in regard to the “relaxing” of the Law.
Sometimes Christians are accused of “relaxing” the Law because of our refusal to practice sacrifices, obey strict dietary laws, etc.
But what I want us to see is that it is actually the “UNBELIEVER” who relaxes the Law, and as a result is under the condemnation of Christ in this passage.
READ: Matthew 5:19
I have entitled my message today, “The Unbeliever and the Law of God.”
Now, before we get into the meat of the message, I want to make sure we have a proper definition of terms.
“Unbeliever” can mean different things in various contexts.
I am an unbeliever about many things.
I am an unbeliever in regard to Islam... they would call me “infidel”.
I am an unbeliever in regard to the “Word-Faith” movement... I think these charlatans are using the Gospel for financial gain.
I am an unbeliever when it comes to the promises of most politicians.
So, being an unbeliever can have many connotations.
But in today’s message, we are going to be very specific with our definition of “unbeliever”.
We are going to use the term to describe someone who does not have a genuine and living faith in the Lord Jesus Christ.
An unbeliever, in this sense, is an unregenerate individual.
Simply speaking, he is not saved.
Note: There are a lot of people who claim to be Christians, and are not. Lip service to Christ is not faith, and faith that does not give a desire to follow Christ is not genuine. James would call such faith, “dead”.
The simple reality is that all people in the world can be boiled down to two categories.
Those who are in Christ.
Those who are not in Christ.
Those who are NOT in Christ are “unbelievers” in him, and this is how we will be using the term today.
Within the realm of unbelief, there is a great deal of variety, but for today I want to simply examine three types of unbeliever:
The Religious Unbeliever
This is the person who has strong religious convictions, but have no allegiance to Christ.
The Atheistic Unbeliever
This is the person who has strong beliefs about the non-existence of God and by extension would have no belief in Christ as His Son.
The Unconcerned Unbeliever
This is the person who doesn’t really care one way or another, possibly attends religious services occasionally, and possibly might even call himself a Christian because he was born in America.
QUESTION: Some of you may be thinking, “Pastor, this is great and all, but how does this relate to the passage we read this morning?”
Let’s quickly go back and look at the passage...
Matthew 5:19 “Therefore whoever relaxes one of the least of these commandments and teaches others to do the same will be called least in the kingdom of heaven, but whoever does them and teaches them will be called great in the kingdom of heaven.”
Jesus is here making a condemnation regarding people who “relax” the Law of God.
Relax (ESV) is translated “annuls” in the NASB and the NIV and KJV simply say “break”.
The Greek word is “Luo” and it means to loosen, break up or dissolve.
Essentially, this is a condemnation of anyone who sees any part of the Law as unbinding and not worthy of obedience.
As we have already noted, this is not a condemnation of believers.
Believers in Christ understand that the entire Law has been fulfilled in Christ, and not one iota was left unfulfilled by Him.
The Christian does not relax the Law, He understands the place of the Law and that in Christ it is completely fulfilled.
So, who is it who relaxes the Law?
It is the unbeliever.
I want to demonstrate to you today that the person who is under the condemnation of Christ in this passage is the unbeliever - whether he be religious, atheistic or unconcerned - for it is the unbeliever who has decided to “relax” the Law of God, and teach others to do so.
How do unbelievers “relax” the Law of God?
The Religious Unbeliever
This is the person who has strong religious convictions, but have no allegiance to Christ.
Why do I say this person “relaxes” the Law of God?
I mean, these are sometimes the most “religious acting” people in the world.
They are always trying to live up to some holy standard.
How can I accuse them of “relaxing” God’s Law.
Well, let’s look at Islam for instance.
Muslims are very religious people... some of them so religious that they are willing to die on behalf of their beliefs.
But when it comes to the Law of God, they have a very “relaxed” view.
Islam teaches that at judgment, our good deeds will be weighed against our bad deeds.
And as a result, if our good “outweighs” our bad, we will be accepted by Allah.
Consider what this means about the Law of Allah...
It means that all the sins which were committed have been swept under the rug.
Allah has turned a “blind eye” to all of the sins which were committed.
In essence, He has “relaxed” His judgment against those sins.
Some people might say, “Well that’s great.... he is so forgiving.”
But slow down.
In that sense, the God of Islam is unjust.
People have broken his law, but their sins are never punished.
Illustration: “Judge and the Rapist” It is like a rapist standing before judge, and the judge saying, ‘Yes, you have committed this vile deed, but because you also donated money to the poor, you are free to go.’
Would that be justice???
Certainly NOT!
In this sense, the God of Islam demonstrates that he is unjust because he is allowing many sins to be committed and yet unpunished.
But in Christianity, the Bible teaches that not one sin goes unaccounted for; God judges every single sin.
Either He places judgment on the perpetrator themselves by sending them to Hell... or He places the judgment they deserve upon Christ, who offered Himself as a substitutionary sacrifice.
But in Christianity, God is never UNJUST... sin is ALWAYS dealt with.
No law is ever relaxed.
NOTE: This same scenario could be made regarding orthodox judaism, hinduism, buddhism, and even groups like the Mormons and Jehovah Witnesses.
They all in some way believe that their religious devotion will in some way “outweigh” the badness of their sin.
And they are all wrong.
God will not relax one of His Laws - their penalty will either be paid by Christ, or by the unbeliever.
No religion can save without the true Christ as its Savior.
How do unbelievers “relax” the Law of God?
The Religious Unbeliever relaxes God’s Law by denying God demands it fulfilled perfectly...
The Atheistic Unbeliever
This is the person who has strong beliefs about the non-existence of God and by extension would have no belief in Christ as His Son.
How this person would “relax” the law of God is fairly simple; it is by flat-out denial of it.
And here is the real danger, they teach others to do the same, something Jesus specifically condemned.
Atheists have, in recent years, become very evangelistic in regard to their faith.
Note: They get angry when we call atheism “faith” because they do not believe it is faith; they believe that they are the most logical people on the planet, and faith is not required.
However, when you begin to study the things they believe, you see that it takes a lot of faith to be an atheist. They believe in tons of things they cannot see or verify in regard to man, evolution, the origins of the universe and our purpose in it.
Yet, though they deny that what they spread is “faith” and instead call it “science” they still proselytize as if it were a faith.
They hold conferences, they start study groups, they wear shirts and have bumper stickers all to perpetuate their “belief” in atheism.
There is even now an “Atheist Church” movement.
They gather in buildings much like our own, and they sing songs and give inspirational talks.
And, just like a real church, they recently went through their first church split!
Even in our little town there is a group called “Jaxatheists”
QUOTE: On their website it says, “The Jacksonville Atheists Meetup group is devoted to bringing atheists, agnostics, humanists, freethinkers, and everyone else together for comradery and support. It can be tough living in this part of the country and not subscribe to a religion or faith based group. That's why it's really important that we get together, and even more importantly STAY together.”
You see, these people are not just satisfied with ignoring the Law of God... they are committed to teaching others to do so as well.
How do unbelievers “relax” the Law of God?
The Religious Unbeliever relaxes God’s Law by denying God demands it fulfilled perfectly...
The Atheistic Unbeliever relaxes God’s Law by denial, and teachers others to do the same...
The Unconcerned Unbeliever
Who is this? This is the person who doesn’t really care one way or another about religion or Christ.
But if you ask this person if he/she is going to heaven, he will give you a resounding, “Yes!”
Why? Because be will say he is, “A Good Person”.
Beloved, there is no person who has “relaxed” the law of God more than a person who can look at themselves with honest eyes and say he is “good”.
Yet, millions do it every, single day.
They believe that because they might work hard, give to charity or volunteer their time that they are good.
They refuse to accept that they are sinners worthy of hell.
You tell the person they are sinners, and what do they say?
Oh, everyone is... God’s not concerned with my “little” sins.
And by their very words they demonstrate their own willingness to relax the Law of God.
Jesus condemns those who relax the Law of God, and no one is so guilty as the one who is unconcerned about what it says.
As Christians, we do not relax God’s Law. We believe it must be fulfilled in its entirety, and that it was fulfilled - perfectly and completely - in Christ.
CONCLUSION: I want to paint you a picture from the Old Testament which might help you understand the condition of the unbeliever in regard to the Law.
There was a man who lived very early after the creation of man, who’s name was Noah.
Noah was a man of faith who lived during a time of severe sin and rampant depravity.
It was a time when the intentions of men’s hearts were only evil continually, the Bible tells us (Genesis 6:5).
So God told Noah that He was going to bring judgment on the world, and swallow it whole in a great and disastrous deluge.
The only persons who would survive this flood would be Noah and his family.
He had three sons, who all had wives... these eight people would be the only human survivors.
Noah was also commanded to make the ship large enough that it could contain a stock of earth dwelling animals, and protect them as well.
Now, most of you are familiar with Noah and the ark.
But there is a part that folks often miss.
Noah and the Ark is a true story... but it is also a picture of a much more present reality.
Noah’s ark was salvation for his family.
All those inside the ark were saved from the wrath of God.
All those outside the ark perished under the weight of God’s fury.
Beloved, there are few pictures of Christ’s work in Scripture which are so potent.
Believers are “In Christ” in much the same way as Noah and his family were “in” that ark.
Unbelievers are “outside” of Christ in much the same way as those who were “outside” the ark.
They, for whatever reason, believe that they are safe.
They either believe that Jesus is not required for salvation, or that God does not exist, or that in some way they are good enough.
And beloved, they are in error of the most serious kind.
A person who does not believe he needs Christ is like a person standing outside Noah’s Ark dancing in the rain. He may sing happily for a time, but eventually he will be crushed under the weight of God’s judgment.
Beloved, does that describe you?
Are you outside of Christ this morning?
Are you just another religious person who does not have a true fidelity to the Savior?
Are you someone who disbelieves God’s existence?
Are you one who just lives daily, unconcerned about the judgment which is coming?
If so, I urge you today to give up your disbelief and turn to Christ.
You will face God the judge One Day... and you will be accountable to his Law.
Hebrews 9:27 “It is appointed for man to die once, and after that comes judgment”
We all have an appointment with the judge of the universe.
Either you will have trusted Christ as the One who fulfilled the Law on your behalf...
Or you will be judged guilty before God as one who has spent a lifetime in disobedience to His Law.
So, again I implore you to repent of your sin, and trust the Savior.
Do not be as the fool who dances in the rain...
But come safely into the Ark of Christ, the only Savior.
He said, “I am the way, the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.” (John 14:6)
He wasn’t lying.
He was not exaggerating.
There are not many paths up the mountain... Christ is the only way.
If you are looking for another way, “STOP!!!”
Turn to Christ, and be saved!
If you are here today, and you are an unbeliever, I am going to pray for you.
I am going to pray that God will open your heart to hear and receive His Gospel.
So that you might repent of your sins, call upon Christ as Savior and Lord, and seek to be baptized in demonstration of that faith and begin your new walk with Him.
