August 18, 2022
What does it say?
People who lived under the Law of Moses were cursed; then Jesus took away that curse on the cross. People no longer live under the Law, but by faith.
What does it mean?
No one has ever been able to perfectly adhere to the Law (Rom. 3:10-11). To stumble in even one point of the Law means to be guilty of breaking it all (James 2:10), and those who break the Law are under a curse (Deut. 27:26). However, Jesus took away the curse associated with sin by His sacrifice on the cross. Those who trust in Jesus and receive Him have changed lives – lives that demonstrate faith in Him and thankfulness for what He has done. Believers do not do good things in order to be morally perfect, but to show love and gratitude to God.
How should I respond?
You don’t have to do good deeds to offset the bad; Jesus took away the guilt of your sin on the Cross. That thought should flood your heart with gratitude. How can you express that gratitude to the Lord by doing something nice for someone today? Jesus even instructed His followers to do their good deeds privately (Matt. 6:3-4), which guards against actions motivated by pride instead of obedience. What word best describes the condition of your heart right now – grateful or prideful? When you do good things simply out of love for God and gratitude for your salvation, you become more like His Son.