WEBVTT - No Condemnation-Part 2 0:00:00.760 --> 0:00:04.320 Today on Bold steps, pastor Mark Jobe explains the freedom 0:00:04.320 --> 0:00:06.519 we have through the law of the spirit. 0:00:07.240 --> 0:00:10.520 The law of the spirit has overcome the law of 0:00:10.520 --> 0:00:13.920 sin and death so that now, even though we should 0:00:13.920 --> 0:00:16.960 be condemned, we're not. Even though we should be subject 0:00:16.960 --> 0:00:20.200 to sin, we're not. Even though we should be slaves, 0:00:20.200 --> 0:00:22.480 we are free. Because the law of the spirit has 0:00:22.480 --> 0:00:24.119 overcome the law of sin and death. 0:00:36.920 --> 0:00:40.480 And welcome to Bold Steps with pastor Mark Jobe, president 0:00:40.479 --> 0:00:42.960 of Moody Bible Institute and senior pastor of New Life 0:00:42.960 --> 0:00:46.640 Community Church in Chicago. Today, we're continuing our discussion about 0:00:46.640 --> 0:00:49.880 what it means to live condemnation free and truly break 0:00:49.880 --> 0:00:52.839 the ties of sin and shame. In the first part 0:00:52.840 --> 0:00:54.680 of our message, we began learning how the law of 0:00:54.680 --> 0:00:57.320 the spirit affects our relationship to the law of sin 0:00:57.320 --> 0:01:01.360 and death. Mark explained that through the sacrifice of Jesus Christ. 0:01:01.400 --> 0:01:04.720 Our past sins cannot be counted against us. Our present 0:01:04.720 --> 0:01:08.319 struggles are not punishment from God. And our eternal future 0:01:08.319 --> 0:01:11.040 is no longer in doubt. So let's pick up with 0:01:11.040 --> 0:01:14.160 the fourth result of Christ's sacrifice. Here's Mark Jobe with 0:01:14.160 --> 0:01:16.440 his message. No condemnation. 0:01:17.959 --> 0:01:22.920 Number four. It means my personal acceptance is not earned. 0:01:23.920 --> 0:01:29.040 My personal acceptance before God is assured. It's there. It's 0:01:29.040 --> 0:01:33.720 complete based on what someone has done for me, not 0:01:33.760 --> 0:01:37.600 what I have done myself. There is therefore in Christ 0:01:37.600 --> 0:01:43.959 Jesus no condemnation. So I am fully accepted before the father. 0:01:44.360 --> 0:01:48.560 And number five. And lastly, my access to God is 0:01:48.560 --> 0:01:54.920 not limited because there is no condemnation to separate me 0:01:54.920 --> 0:01:58.720 from the God Almighty who listens to me and loves 0:01:58.720 --> 0:02:05.610 me and hears me. There is therefore no condemnation. This 0:02:05.610 --> 0:02:08.130 is a powerful truth and I really wish, I hope 0:02:08.130 --> 0:02:10.930 I can preach it well because this is a life changing, 0:02:10.930 --> 0:02:16.530 life altering, dramatic truth. And the Apostle Paul says, because 0:02:16.970 --> 0:02:20.209 through Christ Jesus, the law of the spirit who gives 0:02:20.210 --> 0:02:23.010 life has set you free from the law of sin 0:02:23.010 --> 0:02:27.130 and death. Because you are therefore no condemnation to those 0:02:27.130 --> 0:02:31.730 that are in Christ Jesus, that no condemnation is a 0:02:31.730 --> 0:02:34.970 result of the fact that you were condemned by the 0:02:34.970 --> 0:02:37.690 law of sin and death. But the law of the 0:02:37.690 --> 0:02:42.370 spirit has overcome the law of sin and death. There's 0:02:42.370 --> 0:02:46.130 not a person in this auditorium that hasn't sinned. In fact, 0:02:46.130 --> 0:02:50.169 your sin condemns you before God, and my sin condemns 0:02:50.169 --> 0:02:54.010 me before God. You and I are condemned before a 0:02:54.010 --> 0:02:59.970 holy and perfect God. His holiness demands our condemnation. He 0:02:59.970 --> 0:03:03.170 can't just excuse it. He can't just turn his face 0:03:03.169 --> 0:03:05.890 from it. It demands a penalty and a price to 0:03:05.930 --> 0:03:10.450 be paid. So we stand fully under the wrath of 0:03:10.450 --> 0:03:14.650 God and condemned by God, except for what Jesus Christ 0:03:14.650 --> 0:03:17.450 has done. And if you're in Christ Jesus, the Bible 0:03:17.450 --> 0:03:20.489 says there's no condemnation. Well, how does that happen? Because 0:03:20.490 --> 0:03:23.810 you were born with a sinful nature. You sin in 0:03:23.810 --> 0:03:27.890 your life. You've blown it before God. You violated the 0:03:27.889 --> 0:03:31.170 Ten Commandments. You've lusted in your heart, you've had pride, 0:03:31.169 --> 0:03:34.489 you've had egotism. And so before a holy God we 0:03:34.490 --> 0:03:38.130 stand condemned. It's the law of sin and death. Whoever 0:03:38.130 --> 0:03:43.010 sins dies. The Bible says that death into the world 0:03:43.010 --> 0:03:46.890 because of sin. If you sin, you die. That's why 0:03:46.890 --> 0:03:51.530 all of us die. But that's also why death could 0:03:51.530 --> 0:03:56.730 not keep Jesus in the grave. Because Jesus did not sin. Therefore, 0:03:56.890 --> 0:04:00.980 death had no power over him. And the law of 0:04:00.980 --> 0:04:03.340 sin and death demands that if you sin, you die. 0:04:04.220 --> 0:04:07.180 The law of sin and death demands our mortality. The 0:04:07.180 --> 0:04:09.820 law of sin and death demands a payment. The law 0:04:09.820 --> 0:04:15.220 of sin and death demands condemnation. If we sin, we die. 0:04:15.260 --> 0:04:19.780 We're under that law. But the Apostle Paul says, In 0:04:19.779 --> 0:04:24.300 Christ Jesus there is another law that has set you 0:04:24.300 --> 0:04:28.340 free from the law of sin and death. And it's 0:04:28.339 --> 0:04:31.900 the law of the spirit that sets us free from 0:04:31.900 --> 0:04:36.580 the first law that condemns us. We live in this 0:04:36.580 --> 0:04:39.980 world with the law of gravity. Hello. The law of 0:04:39.980 --> 0:04:47.300 gravity means that everything is pulled downward. Everything. Some of 0:04:47.300 --> 0:04:50.659 you tried to play basketball. I could tell the law 0:04:50.660 --> 0:04:54.380 of gravity is heavy in your life. You say? Well, 0:04:54.380 --> 0:04:56.420 I feel like Michael Jordan. Yeah. You don't float like 0:04:56.420 --> 0:04:58.900 Michael Jordan, though. It's a little hop, not a float. 0:05:00.420 --> 0:05:03.380 What goes up comes down. You throw a pen in 0:05:03.380 --> 0:05:06.620 the air and it comes down. The older we get, 0:05:06.620 --> 0:05:10.740 the law of gravity pulls everything down to right. Everything 0:05:10.740 --> 0:05:15.020 is pulled down. If you're only everything on earth is 0:05:15.020 --> 0:05:18.900 pulled down by the gravitational pull of the Earth. Scientists 0:05:18.900 --> 0:05:21.740 call it the law of gravity. Only if you're in 0:05:21.740 --> 0:05:24.260 space can you throw something. And it goes on and on, 0:05:24.260 --> 0:05:26.580 because it's not pulled by the law of gravity. But 0:05:26.580 --> 0:05:29.180 as long as you live on this earth, we all understand. 0:05:29.220 --> 0:05:31.500 I jump out of a building, I don't float, I 0:05:31.500 --> 0:05:34.980 go down. So I understand and respect the laws of gravity. 0:05:34.980 --> 0:05:37.500 There's nothing that frees us from the law of gravity. 0:05:37.500 --> 0:05:41.620 It's a law that's there. But however, at airports across 0:05:41.620 --> 0:05:46.380 this country, every single day, the laws of gravity are 0:05:46.380 --> 0:05:51.100 being defied. I went to I flew in and out 0:05:51.100 --> 0:05:54.460 of Nashville. I got in a plane at O'Hare airport, 0:05:54.460 --> 0:05:58.900 and I got into this big, monstrous mechanical instrument with 0:05:58.940 --> 0:06:02.830 two wings on it with several hundred people and some 0:06:02.830 --> 0:06:05.710 engine roars and went down a runway, and the laws 0:06:05.710 --> 0:06:08.349 of gravity were pulling us down. They were saying, no, 0:06:08.350 --> 0:06:11.549 you can't fly, stay down. But suddenly there are some 0:06:11.550 --> 0:06:15.950 laws that overcame the laws of gravity, the laws of thrust, 0:06:15.950 --> 0:06:20.190 the laws of lift, the laws of aerodynamics that suddenly, 0:06:20.190 --> 0:06:23.950 with wings and thrust and lift, we began to take off. 0:06:23.950 --> 0:06:28.989 And this big heavy plane is flying in the air. 0:06:29.230 --> 0:06:32.469 And I'm looking out a window, thousands of feet in 0:06:32.470 --> 0:06:37.510 the air, defying the laws of gravity. The laws of 0:06:37.550 --> 0:06:44.590 aerodynamic have overcome the laws of gravity. We shouldn't be 0:06:44.589 --> 0:06:47.390 able to fly. But there's a law that overcame the 0:06:47.390 --> 0:06:50.750 law of gravity. This is exactly what the Bible is 0:06:50.750 --> 0:06:53.390 telling us. That there's a law of sin and death 0:06:53.390 --> 0:06:56.670 that keeps you condemned a law of sin and death 0:06:56.670 --> 0:06:59.750 that says you cannot be right before God, a law 0:06:59.790 --> 0:07:02.790 of sin and death that says, you will sin and 0:07:02.790 --> 0:07:07.310 you will die. But Jesus introduced another law. It's called 0:07:07.310 --> 0:07:09.710 the law of the spirit, and the law of the 0:07:09.710 --> 0:07:13.790 spirit has overcome the law of sin and death, so 0:07:13.790 --> 0:07:17.110 that now, even though we should be condemned, we're not. 0:07:17.150 --> 0:07:19.830 Even though we should be subject to sin, we're not. 0:07:19.870 --> 0:07:23.070 Even though we should be slaves, we are free. Because 0:07:23.070 --> 0:07:25.150 the law of the spirit has overcome the law of 0:07:25.150 --> 0:07:37.070 sin and death. We've felt it. You felt the tug 0:07:37.070 --> 0:07:40.870 of both the flesh and the spirit inside of you. 0:07:40.870 --> 0:07:44.670 You may not call it that. You say I'm struggling. 0:07:46.750 --> 0:07:48.790 But all of us have felt the desire to do 0:07:48.790 --> 0:07:51.470 good and the good that we want to do, we 0:07:51.510 --> 0:07:53.510 don't end up doing and the bad that we don't 0:07:53.510 --> 0:07:55.390 want to do, we end up doing. Hello. How many 0:07:55.390 --> 0:07:58.510 of you know that? How many of you have felt that? 0:07:59.870 --> 0:08:03.520 That's exactly what the apostle Paul says in the previous chapter, 0:08:03.520 --> 0:08:07.880 in Romans chapter seven, verse 21 and 25. He says, 0:08:07.880 --> 0:08:12.480 so I find to be a law that even when 0:08:12.480 --> 0:08:16.680 I want to do what's right, evil lies close at hand. 0:08:17.120 --> 0:08:19.240 For I delight in the law of God in my 0:08:19.280 --> 0:08:22.520 inmost self. But I see in my members another law. 0:08:23.160 --> 0:08:25.880 It's the law of sin and death. It's at war 0:08:25.880 --> 0:08:28.720 with the law of my mind, making me captive to 0:08:28.760 --> 0:08:34.280 the law of sin which dwells within my members. So 0:08:34.280 --> 0:08:37.640 the Apostle Paul, this great man of God, the Apostle Paul, says, 0:08:37.640 --> 0:08:40.800 I struggle with that, I feel it. I feel the 0:08:40.800 --> 0:08:44.080 old nature fighting against the new nature. I feel the 0:08:44.080 --> 0:08:46.480 law of sin and death, fighting against the law of 0:08:46.480 --> 0:08:49.880 the spirit. It's at war within me. I feel the 0:08:49.880 --> 0:08:52.280 tug of wanting to live for God, but then being 0:08:52.280 --> 0:08:55.719 drawn in the other direction, I feel the temptation of 0:08:55.720 --> 0:08:59.200 wanting to praise him, but I criticize. I feel the 0:08:59.200 --> 0:09:01.760 tug of wanting to live in purity, but I lust. 0:09:01.760 --> 0:09:04.319 I feel the tug of wanting to live selfless, but 0:09:04.320 --> 0:09:07.400 I'm egotistical. I feel the tug of wanting to tell 0:09:07.400 --> 0:09:09.800 the truth, but I lie. I feel the tug of 0:09:09.800 --> 0:09:14.040 wanting to really give to others. But I'm selfish. I 0:09:14.080 --> 0:09:17.679 feel the fight within me. It's a battle between the 0:09:17.679 --> 0:09:22.240 flesh and the spirit. It's a real battle inside of me. 0:09:22.280 --> 0:09:24.360 It's a battle between two laws the law of the 0:09:24.360 --> 0:09:27.400 flesh and the law of the spirit. But I want 0:09:27.400 --> 0:09:32.480 you to understand what no condemnation does, because unless you 0:09:32.480 --> 0:09:35.280 understand the power of not being condemned, then you will 0:09:35.280 --> 0:09:39.360 always be under the law of sin and death. If 0:09:39.360 --> 0:09:43.280 you remember in the Gospels, there's a story of Jesus 0:09:43.280 --> 0:09:47.359 encountering a woman. We call her the woman caught in adultery. 0:09:48.120 --> 0:09:50.120 How many of you know she wasn't the only one caught? 0:09:50.120 --> 0:09:53.319 Because it takes two to tangle. But anyway, that's a 0:09:53.320 --> 0:09:56.560 that's a side point there. This was not a woman 0:09:56.559 --> 0:09:59.320 that they thought had committed adultery. This is a woman 0:09:59.320 --> 0:10:03.010 they caught in the very act of adultery. She was 0:10:03.010 --> 0:10:05.850 in a in the bedroom with a married man. They 0:10:05.850 --> 0:10:10.130 caught her in the act. They set it up, watched her, 0:10:10.370 --> 0:10:12.449 didn't make her commit adultery. But they knew this was 0:10:12.450 --> 0:10:15.370 going to happen. And so the Pharisees dragged her out 0:10:15.370 --> 0:10:17.290 and they put her in front of Jesus. And the 0:10:17.290 --> 0:10:21.010 law said that if someone was caught in adultery, by 0:10:21.010 --> 0:10:23.250 the way, the law said that both man and woman 0:10:23.250 --> 0:10:25.410 should be stoned, but they only had the woman, and 0:10:25.410 --> 0:10:28.650 they took rocks in their hands, and they brought the 0:10:28.650 --> 0:10:32.170 woman in the middle before Jesus. And the law said 0:10:32.170 --> 0:10:34.170 that this woman should be put in the middle. Rocks 0:10:34.170 --> 0:10:36.530 should be thrown at her until she was dead. And 0:10:36.530 --> 0:10:38.730 so they brought her to Jesus to trap him. And 0:10:38.730 --> 0:10:41.170 they said, Jesus, what should we do with this woman? 0:10:43.570 --> 0:10:45.929 The Bible says that Jesus started to write in the 0:10:45.929 --> 0:10:48.090 sand not because he was stalling for time. That would 0:10:48.130 --> 0:10:54.650 have been me. Uh. But he wrote in the sand. 0:10:56.890 --> 0:10:59.050 Some people thought he wrote the Ten Commandments. Some people 0:10:59.050 --> 0:11:01.330 thought he wrote the names of the Pharisees that wanted 0:11:01.330 --> 0:11:03.730 to condemn her. But he wrote in the sand. And 0:11:03.730 --> 0:11:06.210 when he lifted up his head, he said, he who 0:11:06.210 --> 0:11:10.050 is without sin, let him throw the first stone. 0:11:16.130 --> 0:11:19.050 Well, I promise we'll continue today's message in just a moment. 0:11:19.050 --> 0:11:21.890 This is bold steps with Mark Jobe. Right now. We 0:11:21.890 --> 0:11:24.170 want to say thank you to the faithful listeners who 0:11:24.170 --> 0:11:27.410 make this program possible through monthly support. Mark. They're very 0:11:27.410 --> 0:11:29.050 important people to us. Yeah. 0:11:29.050 --> 0:11:30.410 And I know our listeners hear. 0:11:30.410 --> 0:11:33.370 Us say this often, and we do it on purpose 0:11:33.370 --> 0:11:39.730 because it is very, very important. Uh, the partnership that 0:11:39.730 --> 0:11:43.890 we have with our listeners that say we are supporting 0:11:43.890 --> 0:11:47.810 this ministry monthly, which is our group that we call 0:11:47.809 --> 0:11:48.929 our bold partners. 0:11:48.970 --> 0:11:51.250 Um, I'll give more information about how to become a 0:11:51.250 --> 0:11:52.970 bold partner in a moment, but let me give you 0:11:52.970 --> 0:11:56.450 some evidence that it's working because those partners are making 0:11:56.450 --> 0:11:59.370 letters like this one possible. This comes from Malawi, Africa. 0:11:59.410 --> 0:12:02.859 Listen to this, Mark. Hello. Let me register my gratitude 0:12:02.860 --> 0:12:05.060 for the Bold Steps program, for it is such a 0:12:05.059 --> 0:12:09.699 program that has changed our bad behaviors like quarreling, exchanging 0:12:09.700 --> 0:12:13.500 bad words to each other, and even fighting each other. Therefore, 0:12:13.540 --> 0:12:16.940 through listening to this program, I have found Jesus. Even 0:12:16.940 --> 0:12:19.260 though my husband is refusing to let me join one 0:12:19.260 --> 0:12:21.740 of the churches, I believe right now that I have 0:12:21.740 --> 0:12:27.059 already joined those believers as an unseen believer Muslim in parentheses. 0:12:27.100 --> 0:12:29.620 Thank you for helping me find Jesus. 0:12:29.660 --> 0:12:34.220 Wow. So beautiful. You know, Wayne, it just brings tears 0:12:34.220 --> 0:12:38.699 to my eyes to think that there is this woman 0:12:38.700 --> 0:12:43.540 listening to the radio in a marriage that's difficult. And 0:12:43.540 --> 0:12:46.900 she's coming to Jesus. Not able to join a church 0:12:46.900 --> 0:12:50.700 yet because of the restrictions in her marriage. But. But 0:12:50.700 --> 0:12:53.500 coming to Jesus and growing. And what a what a 0:12:53.500 --> 0:12:57.380 beautiful thing that is. And again, it's the partnership with 0:12:57.380 --> 0:13:00.660 our bold step partners, the monthly gift that allows us 0:13:00.660 --> 0:13:04.500 to expand to places like Africa and beyond. And so 0:13:04.500 --> 0:13:07.140 we want to say thank you, thank you, thank you. 0:13:07.179 --> 0:13:11.020 Yeah, I underlined our bad behaviors. So apparently it's changing 0:13:11.020 --> 0:13:13.460 her and her husband. So isn't that terrific? If you 0:13:13.500 --> 0:13:15.819 would like to have a part in this kind of ministry, 0:13:15.980 --> 0:13:18.700 we'd welcome you as a bold partner. Right now, when 0:13:18.700 --> 0:13:21.460 you give $30 or more each month, you'll receive a 0:13:21.460 --> 0:13:24.940 benefit that's 50% off the purchase of any item in 0:13:24.940 --> 0:13:28.420 the Moody Publishers catalog, plus a signed copy of Mark's book, 0:13:28.460 --> 0:13:31.660 Unstuck Out of Your Cave and Into Your Call. So 0:13:31.820 --> 0:13:33.860 if you would like to partner with us today, prayerfully 0:13:33.860 --> 0:13:39.300 visit us online at bird-stamps.org. All right, again, the message today, 0:13:39.340 --> 0:13:42.260 no condemnation. And once again, here's pastor Mark. 0:13:48.100 --> 0:13:51.620 You see, Jesus knew very well. Jesus knew very well 0:13:51.860 --> 0:13:54.060 that because everybody is subject to the law of sin 0:13:54.059 --> 0:13:56.260 and death, that there was no one without sin, and 0:13:56.260 --> 0:14:00.830 so that no one could not everybody was guilty as 0:14:00.830 --> 0:14:04.429 the woman was guilty. But but, but but the point 0:14:04.429 --> 0:14:07.590 that I want you to hear and see is that 0:14:07.590 --> 0:14:12.589 he said to the woman, woman, where are those accusers 0:14:12.590 --> 0:14:19.190 of yours? Has no one condemned you? She said, no one, Lord. 0:14:19.390 --> 0:14:27.150 And he said to her, neither, neither do I condemn you. 0:14:28.670 --> 0:14:37.630 Go and sin no more. The Pharisees would condemn her, 0:14:38.510 --> 0:14:43.190 but they could not, because they were with sin. Jesus 0:14:43.550 --> 0:14:48.510 could condemn her, but chose not to condemn her. Let 0:14:48.510 --> 0:14:51.790 me tell you something. Think about this. The only person 0:14:51.790 --> 0:14:55.550 in that whole crowd without sin that could have thrown 0:14:55.550 --> 0:15:01.400 a stone was Jesus. He had the right to condemn her. 0:15:01.760 --> 0:15:05.200 He had the right to throw a stone. Was she guilty? 0:15:06.440 --> 0:15:11.600 Did she deserve punishment? Was she a trickster? And if 0:15:11.600 --> 0:15:13.600 you were the other woman, the wife, would you have 0:15:13.600 --> 0:15:19.160 thrown the stone? Probably so. I don't condemn her. No, no, 0:15:19.160 --> 0:15:21.960 I'm going to throw my stone in there. Give me 0:15:21.960 --> 0:15:28.720 a big one. But the point is, this is that 0:15:28.720 --> 0:15:32.000 I want you to see. Jesus said neither. Neither do 0:15:32.000 --> 0:15:34.920 I condemn you. Now go and sin no more. Here's 0:15:34.920 --> 0:15:36.200 what I want you to see. I want you to 0:15:36.200 --> 0:15:38.240 see the sequence of events. First of all, he had 0:15:38.240 --> 0:15:41.040 to declare no condemnation over. And then he declared, the 0:15:41.040 --> 0:15:43.120 power of sin is broken in your life. I want 0:15:43.120 --> 0:15:46.000 you to understand there had to be no condemnation before 0:15:46.000 --> 0:15:48.960 the power of sin was broken. You see, you cannot 0:15:48.960 --> 0:15:53.920 break the power of sin unless you are declared not condemned. 0:15:53.920 --> 0:15:57.120 When there is a declaration in a position of not 0:15:57.120 --> 0:16:00.520 being condemned. Now you have the power to not go 0:16:00.520 --> 0:16:03.920 and sin anymore because there is no condemnation to hold 0:16:03.920 --> 0:16:07.880 you down. We first of all, are declared guilt free, 0:16:08.760 --> 0:16:11.520 even though we sinned, even though we deserve it. And 0:16:11.520 --> 0:16:15.080 then we are given the power to be able to 0:16:15.120 --> 0:16:17.640 not do sin. Let me say this. This is very important. 0:16:19.480 --> 0:16:21.880 I know as a believer you may struggle with sin. 0:16:21.880 --> 0:16:26.200 We all do. But before you became a believer, before 0:16:26.200 --> 0:16:28.080 you were in Christ, you were subject to the law 0:16:28.080 --> 0:16:31.280 of sin and death. You had to sin. You were 0:16:31.280 --> 0:16:34.240 a slave to sin even if you didn't want to. 0:16:34.280 --> 0:16:36.040 You would sin. I want you to hear me. Well, 0:16:36.040 --> 0:16:41.040 what I'm saying in Jesus you sin, but you don't 0:16:41.040 --> 0:16:45.920 have to sin. You have been set free from the 0:16:45.920 --> 0:16:50.200 law of sin and death. We struggle with the flesh 0:16:50.200 --> 0:16:54.480 and so we sin. But you are not driven to sin. 0:16:54.520 --> 0:16:58.320 You don't have to sin. You're not a slave to sin. 0:16:58.480 --> 0:17:01.480 If you were walking in the spirit, in the full 0:17:01.480 --> 0:17:05.040 potential that God has given you. You could go without 0:17:05.040 --> 0:17:08.439 sinning because we are. We have been set free from 0:17:08.440 --> 0:17:11.480 the law of sin and death. We've been set free 0:17:11.480 --> 0:17:13.480 from the law of sin and death. So you are 0:17:13.480 --> 0:17:17.399 not compelled to sin anymore, because we have been set 0:17:17.400 --> 0:17:20.440 free from the power of sin and death. But we, 0:17:20.480 --> 0:17:22.520 when we do sin, we have the power to confess 0:17:22.520 --> 0:17:24.560 it before God. And God is faithful and just to 0:17:24.600 --> 0:17:27.360 forgive us our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness. 0:17:27.359 --> 0:17:32.040 Thanks be to God. Now I want you to understand 0:17:32.040 --> 0:17:36.160 that it says for what the law was powerless to do. 0:17:38.359 --> 0:17:41.159 For what the law was powerless to do because it 0:17:41.160 --> 0:17:44.040 was weakened by the flesh. Some of you have lived 0:17:44.040 --> 0:17:46.320 under the power of the law, thinking that the law 0:17:46.359 --> 0:17:48.840 can make you right with God, but you are still 0:17:48.840 --> 0:17:52.159 condemned because the law cannot make you right with God. 0:17:55.760 --> 0:17:58.240 Some of you decide to start reading through the Bible 0:17:58.240 --> 0:18:00.850 at the beginning of the year, he said, I'm going 0:18:00.850 --> 0:18:03.370 to read through the whole Bible. And so you get 0:18:03.369 --> 0:18:07.410 through Genesis and you say, that was awesome. The flood. Noah, 0:18:07.690 --> 0:18:11.770 Adam and Eve. Awesome. Then you go to Exodus and 0:18:11.810 --> 0:18:14.370 you're reading all about, you know, you know, in Genesis, 0:18:14.369 --> 0:18:16.850 you read about Abraham and, you know, the Tower of Babel. 0:18:16.890 --> 0:18:19.490 Then you go to Exodus and the story of Joseph 0:18:19.490 --> 0:18:23.090 and the people being set free from the, from Israel. And, and, 0:18:23.130 --> 0:18:25.810 you know, it's incredible. Mount Sinai, all that. And then 0:18:25.810 --> 0:18:31.450 you get to Leviticus. And some of you, every year 0:18:31.450 --> 0:18:33.730 you quit reading the Bible because you quit in Leviticus, 0:18:34.450 --> 0:18:38.050 because Leviticus is all the dietary laws. You can't do this, 0:18:38.050 --> 0:18:39.450 and you can't do that, and you can't eat this, 0:18:39.450 --> 0:18:41.250 and you can't do that, and you can't eat this. 0:18:41.369 --> 0:18:42.850 And if you eat that kind, you have to do this, 0:18:42.850 --> 0:18:44.649 and you can't grab this animal and touch that one. 0:18:44.650 --> 0:18:47.130 If you do this, you do that, the sacrifice. And 0:18:47.130 --> 0:18:48.969 you're like, what does that have to do with me? 0:18:51.369 --> 0:18:57.889 It's the law. The law was a tutor to teach 0:18:57.890 --> 0:19:01.859 you how bad you were and how you can't keep 0:19:01.859 --> 0:19:05.740 the law. The law was never meant to save you, 0:19:05.780 --> 0:19:09.419 heal you, not condemn you. The law was there to 0:19:09.460 --> 0:19:13.700 teach you that the law can't save you. It was 0:19:13.700 --> 0:19:15.740 there to show you how bad you were and how 0:19:15.740 --> 0:19:18.860 much you needed a savior. The law has never been 0:19:18.859 --> 0:19:23.380 able to save anybody. I compare the law back then 0:19:23.380 --> 0:19:26.740 to religion today. Some of you were brought up in 0:19:26.740 --> 0:19:31.340 religion and you were taught moralism. Moralism says, if I 0:19:31.340 --> 0:19:34.700 can be good, I can be right with God. So 0:19:34.700 --> 0:19:37.140 you pray your prayers. You try not to break the 0:19:37.140 --> 0:19:40.060 Ten Commandments. If you do break a commandment, you try 0:19:40.060 --> 0:19:42.820 to make it up to God by going twice, twice 0:19:42.820 --> 0:19:45.060 as much to church and giving a little bit more 0:19:45.100 --> 0:19:47.980 in the offering, and walking the little old lady across 0:19:47.980 --> 0:19:51.420 the street. But you feel like you keep falling and breaking. 0:19:51.420 --> 0:19:53.859 So you try to be good. And in your mind 0:19:53.859 --> 0:19:56.100 you think if my good works outweigh my bad works, 0:19:56.100 --> 0:19:58.179 maybe I'll be okay with God? And I want to 0:19:58.180 --> 0:20:01.180 tell you something. The harder you try, the more you 0:20:01.220 --> 0:20:05.379 condemn yourself because you can never, ever, ever, ever, ever 0:20:05.420 --> 0:20:07.780 on your own. Be good enough for the standard that 0:20:07.780 --> 0:20:11.419 God sets. You are condemned. If you try to be 0:20:11.420 --> 0:20:14.379 a good person, you are condemned. If you try to 0:20:14.380 --> 0:20:17.580 make religion your way to God, you are condemned. If 0:20:17.580 --> 0:20:19.260 you try to say, I'm going to try to be 0:20:19.260 --> 0:20:23.580 good enough for God, because good enough is not good enough. 0:20:25.140 --> 0:20:27.060 Some of you say, pastor, well, I'm here in church 0:20:27.060 --> 0:20:33.380 trying to be good. And you're telling me. I'm not good. Exactly. 0:20:33.380 --> 0:20:39.379 That's what I'm telling you. I thought I just racked 0:20:39.380 --> 0:20:41.100 up some points in heaven because, you know, I went 0:20:41.100 --> 0:20:42.900 out and got a little drunk, and so I figured 0:20:42.900 --> 0:20:45.620 I'd go to church. It'll kind of nullify the negative, 0:20:45.660 --> 0:20:48.139 the positive. And I'm kind of even. I thought it 0:20:48.140 --> 0:20:53.100 was working that way. No. Wrong. You're condemned. Let me 0:20:53.100 --> 0:20:55.699 tell you what the law does. The law is a thermometer. 0:20:56.780 --> 0:20:58.380 When you feel like you have a fever, you say, 0:20:58.380 --> 0:21:01.939 I think I have a fever. You get a thermometer out. 0:21:02.619 --> 0:21:09.300 Does a thermometer heal you? No. A thermometer detects how 0:21:09.300 --> 0:21:15.500 bad you are, but it doesn't defeat your infirmity. The thermometer. 0:21:15.780 --> 0:21:17.899 You know, I've never seen someone say, man, I have 0:21:17.900 --> 0:21:20.820 a high fever. Let me put the thermometer in. Okay, 0:21:20.859 --> 0:21:24.100 now I'm better. No, no no no. Thermometer doesn't heal you. 0:21:24.340 --> 0:21:28.580 A thermometer tells you how bad your fever is. The 0:21:28.580 --> 0:21:34.060 law doesn't save you. The Ten Commandments don't fix you. 0:21:34.380 --> 0:21:38.900 Morality doesn't get you right before God. The laws of 0:21:38.900 --> 0:21:42.419 God tell you how bad you are. They tell you 0:21:42.420 --> 0:21:46.580 that your temperature is really bad and that you're really fallen, 0:21:46.580 --> 0:21:50.100 and that you're really condemned. The law was there to 0:21:50.140 --> 0:21:54.020 show you how much you really need a savior to 0:21:54.060 --> 0:21:57.340 save you, because the law cannot fix you. Come on, 0:21:57.340 --> 0:22:05.510 someone better understand that and know that. Because he says, 0:22:05.510 --> 0:22:12.750 listen for what the law was powerless to do, God did. Oh, man. 0:22:13.510 --> 0:22:16.030 God did by sending his own son in the likeness 0:22:16.070 --> 0:22:21.990 of sinful flesh to be a sin offering. And so 0:22:21.990 --> 0:22:26.590 he condemned sin in the flesh in order that the 0:22:26.590 --> 0:22:30.950 righteous requirements of the law may be fully met in 0:22:30.950 --> 0:22:33.750 us who are not living according to the flesh, but 0:22:33.750 --> 0:22:36.070 according to the spirit. Let me break that down for you. 0:22:36.109 --> 0:22:39.310 But in essence, what he's saying is this is that 0:22:39.350 --> 0:22:42.230 since the law could not save us, the law is like, 0:22:42.430 --> 0:22:45.629 it's like duct tape on a car. Don't act like 0:22:45.630 --> 0:22:48.030 you know what I'm talking about. I've seen some of 0:22:48.030 --> 0:22:52.149 your cars in the parking lot. Hey, that mirror cost 0:22:52.150 --> 0:22:54.550 $300 to fix. And so that duct tape over it, 0:22:54.550 --> 0:22:56.630 you know, just don't hit it. Don't slam the door 0:22:56.630 --> 0:22:59.950 because it falls off the muffler's. Dragging duct tape will 0:22:59.950 --> 0:23:02.350 fix it. You got a whole car fixed by duct tape. 0:23:02.350 --> 0:23:04.790 But let me tell you, it's not really fixed. It's 0:23:04.790 --> 0:23:09.230 a temporary Band-Aid reminding you you need a permanent fix. 0:23:10.109 --> 0:23:13.510 And some of you have a temporary Band-Aid of religion 0:23:13.510 --> 0:23:18.070 and morality and law trying to fix what only Jesus 0:23:18.070 --> 0:23:19.550 Christ can fix. 0:23:26.190 --> 0:23:29.110 You're listening to Bold Steps, the Bible teaching ministry of 0:23:29.109 --> 0:23:31.630 Mark Jobe, and be sure to keep listening next time 0:23:31.630 --> 0:23:33.990 for the third and final part of this lesson titled 0:23:33.990 --> 0:23:37.709 No Condemnation. But before then, we invite you to go 0:23:37.710 --> 0:23:40.550 to our website at Bold steps.org and check out some 0:23:40.550 --> 0:23:43.909 of the faith building resources we've made available, like Mark's 0:23:43.910 --> 0:23:47.550 latest resource on prayer called Teach Us to Pray the 0:23:47.550 --> 0:23:51.030 Six P's of the Lord's Prayer. If you've ever struggled 0:23:51.030 --> 0:23:53.429 to pray or struggled to find the right words, the 0:23:53.430 --> 0:23:57.230 right attitude, or the consistent motivation, Mark has good news 0:23:57.230 --> 0:23:59.679 for you. Jesus taught us how to pray in the 0:23:59.720 --> 0:24:03.399 Gospels with a central Christian prayer, the Lord's Prayer. To 0:24:03.440 --> 0:24:05.880 make his format of prayer easier to remember, we have 0:24:05.880 --> 0:24:11.960 broken it down into six P's position, priorities, provision, people protection, 0:24:11.960 --> 0:24:14.920 and praise. No matter where you are at in your 0:24:14.920 --> 0:24:18.320 prayer life, beginner or mature, it's always good to return 0:24:18.320 --> 0:24:21.639 to the basics of what Jesus taught. Request this Bold 0:24:21.640 --> 0:24:24.680 Steps prayer journal today and dig deeper into the daily 0:24:24.680 --> 0:24:28.200 blessing of prayer. Request this today and discover a fresh 0:24:28.200 --> 0:24:30.840 approach to prayer. We'll send you a copy of this 0:24:30.840 --> 0:24:33.399 relevant book when you give a donation of any amount. 0:24:33.440 --> 0:24:42.080 Call 800 D.L. Moody. That's (800) 356-6639 or give online at bird-stamps.org. 0:24:43.000 --> 0:24:45.320 You can also request your copy of Teach Us to 0:24:45.359 --> 0:24:48.000 Pray and give your gift of any amount by writing 0:24:48.040 --> 0:24:52.000 to us. Just address your envelope to bold steps. 820 0:24:52.040 --> 0:24:57.719 North LaSalle Boulevard, Chicago, Illinois 606 ten. And remember, if 0:24:57.720 --> 0:24:59.840 you ever want to listen to these messages while you're 0:24:59.880 --> 0:25:02.840 out for a walk or running errands. You can access 0:25:02.840 --> 0:25:06.840 each of these daily programs anytime through our podcast. Simply 0:25:06.840 --> 0:25:10.399 open up your favorite podcast app and click the subscribe button. 0:25:10.400 --> 0:25:13.960 You'll find us listed as Bold Steps with doctor Mark Jobe. 0:25:14.359 --> 0:25:16.800 And while you're there, consider leaving a comment to let 0:25:16.800 --> 0:25:19.440 us know what these Bible teachings have meant to you. 0:25:19.960 --> 0:25:22.600 You can also leave a comment for us on social media. 0:25:22.640 --> 0:25:25.840 You'll find us on Facebook, Instagram, YouTube. When you search 0:25:25.840 --> 0:25:28.440 for Bold Steps Radio, just be sure to like and 0:25:28.440 --> 0:25:30.680 follow our pages to get a personal behind the scenes 0:25:30.680 --> 0:25:34.080 look at bold steps. Well, I'm Wayne Shepherd and that's 0:25:34.080 --> 0:25:36.240 all the time we have today. Be sure to join 0:25:36.240 --> 0:25:38.840 us next Monday for the conclusion of our message titled 0:25:38.840 --> 0:25:43.160 No Condemnation. That's coming up Monday on Bold Steps with 0:25:43.160 --> 0:25:48.040 Mark Jobe. Bold steps is a production of Moody Radio, 0:25:48.080 --> 0:25:50.320 a ministry of Moody Bible Institute.