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Study 10

The Law and the Gospel

The law reveals sin and drives us to Christ; the gospel establishes the law by writing it on the heart.

Hands-free narration of this study — good for the car.

Synopsis

Sequeira insists that law and gospel are not enemies but servants of one another. The law is the transcript of God's character and the standard of the judgment; it can define sin, expose sin, and condemn sin, but it can never remove sin or produce righteousness. Its saving function is diagnostic — it is the mirror, not the soap. When the law is preached as a means of gaining acceptance, it becomes a ministry of death; when it is preached as the revelation of God's character and the standard of love, it becomes a schoolmaster leading to Christ. Sequeira addresses the Adventist distinctive of the perpetuity of the moral law, showing that the gospel does not abolish it but fulfils it in the believer through the indwelling Christ. He also distinguishes the covenants: the law in the old covenant framework produces bondage, while the same law in the new covenant framework, written on the heart, produces liberty. The chapter is a direct answer to the charge that Adventists are legalists.

Key points

  • The law defines and condemns sin but cannot save.
  • Law and gospel are complementary; each is destroyed without the other.
  • The moral law is permanent because it reflects God's unchanging character.
  • The new covenant writes the same law on the heart, producing willing obedience.

Key passages

  • Romans 3:20
  • Romans 7:7-12
  • Galatians 3:19-25
  • Jeremiah 31:31-34
  • Romans 8:3-4
  • Matthew 5:17-20

Study questions12 total

  1. 1.

    What functions does Sequeira assign to the law, and which function can it never perform?

    Comprehension
  2. 2.

    Study Galatians 3:19-25. Why was the law added, and what is meant by 'schoolmaster' or 'guardian'?

    Scripture
  3. 3.

    Explain Romans 8:3-4. How is the righteousness of the law 'fulfilled in us'?

    Scripture
  4. 4.

    Contrast old-covenant law-keeping with new-covenant law-keeping using Jeremiah 31:31-34. What changes — the law, or its location?

    Contrast
  5. 5.

    How would you answer someone who says the gospel makes the Ten Commandments unnecessary?

    Doctrinal Clarity
  6. 6.

    Why does Sequeira say the law is the mirror and not the soap? What happens when the two are confused?

    Doctrinal Clarity
  7. 7.

    How does Romans 7:7-12 defend the goodness of the law while exposing its powerlessness to save?

    Scripture
  8. 8.

    In Matthew 5:17-20 Jesus deepens rather than relaxes the law. What does that say about the standard of the judgment?

    Scripture
  9. 9.

    How does the third angel's message hold together 'the commandments of God' and 'the faith of Jesus' without legalism?

    Doctrinal Clarity
  10. 10.

    Where has Sabbath observance in your experience functioned as law rather than as gospel rest? How would you correct it?

    Application
  11. 11.

    Draft a short talk explaining the law to a visitor who assumes Adventists are trying to earn salvation.

    Application
  12. 12.

    What practical difference does 'obedience because I am saved' make in the details of a week?

    Application