What exactly are we standing on?

God's promise, at least i am!

I am standing on the hope that God is a just judge.

BibleBeliever1611 said:

This is a question that needs to be asked. You trust that you're saved from hell and will go to heaven when you die. But why? For what reason? What are we standing on?

Many people would say that if you have a good lifestyle, that really proves that you got saved. That proves that you are "really" saved, as they would say. But is your lifestyle something that you should be standing on? Absolutely not. We should be standing on the promises of God alone. Why because God is the boss and you better stand on what he says.

"In hope of eternal life, which God, that cannot lie, promised before the world began;" - Titus 1:2

Man's wisdom says that you cannot go to heaven if your works don't add up, if you're not holy enough, if you live like the world, etc. God's wisdom says otherwise. We go with what God says in the Bible, not what man's wisdom says.

So what exactly are we standing on in regards to salvation from hell? The promises of God. God which cannot lie promised eternal life, that's it and it's case closed.

Things that we are NOT standing on:

• Lifestyle
• Not being a drunkard
• Not committing fornication
• Not being a murderer
• Thoughts
• Feelings
• Emotions
• Not falling into sin
• "At least I have not committed that sin"
• "At least I'm not living in regular sin"

You get the point. Jesus is the rock on which we stand. Stand on promises of God, don't stand on shifting sands. This is what people need to understand. I like how that one hymn goes, "Jesus is a rock in a weary land, a shelter in a time of storm."

Here is a hymn called "Standing on the promises of God"

Click to expand...

And yet the Bible teaches that no murderers, liars, fornicators, etc will enter heaven…

Most Christians are standing on sand. And that is because they have been sold on everything BUT the rock the teachings of Jesus represent. They are the "Cornerstone" which all the various religious leaders have rejected. I suggest you watch this video, and pray for wisdom:

BibleBeliever1611 said:

This is a question that needs to be asked. You trust that you're saved from hell and will go to heaven when you die. But why? For what reason? What are we standing on?

Many people would say that if you have a good lifestyle, that really proves that you got saved. That proves that you are "really" saved, as they would say. But is your lifestyle something that you should be standing on? Absolutely not. We should be standing on the promises of God alone. Why because God is the boss and you better stand on what he says.

"In hope of eternal life, which God, that cannot lie, promised before the world began;" - Titus 1:2

Man's wisdom says that you cannot go to heaven if your works don't add up, if you're not holy enough, if you live like the world, etc. God's wisdom says otherwise. We go with what God says in the Bible, not what man's wisdom says.

So what exactly are we standing on in regards to salvation from hell? The promises of God. God which cannot lie promised eternal life, that's it and it's case closed.

Things that we are NOT standing on:

• Lifestyle
• Not being a drunkard
• Not committing fornication
• Not being a murderer
• Thoughts
• Feelings
• Emotions
• Not falling into sin
• "At least I have not committed that sin"
• "At least I'm not living in regular sin"

You get the point. Jesus is the rock on which we stand. Stand on promises of God, don't stand on shifting sands. This is what people need to understand. I like how that one hymn goes, "Jesus is a rock in a weary land, a shelter in a time of storm."

Here is a hymn called "Standing on the promises of God"

Click to expand...

Someone having a good lifestyle proves that they are being saved from not having a good lifestyle. Jesus saves us from our sin (Matthew 1:21) and sin is the transgression of God's law (1 John 3:4), so Jesus graciously teaching us to be a doer of it is intrinsically the way that he is giving us his gift of saving us from not being a doer of it, which is in complete accordance with standing on the promises of God alone. In Luke 10:25-28, Jesus affirmed that the way to inherit eternal life is by obeying the greatest two commandments, and something that we inherit is a gift, so he was speaking about the way to experience the gift of eternal life, not about the way to be good enough to earn it. In Matthew 7:21-23, Jesus said that only those who do the will of the Father will enter the Kingdom of Heaven in contrast with saying that he would tell those who are workers of lawlessness to depart from him because he never knew them, so the reason why our entrance into the Kingdom of Heaven requires us to be workers of lawfulness is not in order to be good enough to earn it but because that is the way to know Jesus.

BibleBeliever1611 said:

Why, because the strength of sin is the law, as the Bible said. The more you think about sin sin sin all the time, you just gave sin more strength, just like that.

It's not about your lifestyle, your lifestyle is crap. It's filthy rags and it doesn't get you one inch closer to heaven. Get over it and think about something else.

Click to expand...

This is dead on. I was caught in this for many years when younger and it is a trap that keeps you locked into sin rather than setting you free of them. Then... people point at particular sins after teaching entrapment theology and say "look at you, you dirty sinner, you are not saved at all."

But God the Son told us about this in His day when He walked the Earth and taught us directly:

Luke 18:9-14
9Also He spoke this parable to some who trusted in themselves that they were righteous, and despised others: 10“Two men went up to the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. 11The Pharisee stood and prayed thus with himself, ‘God, I thank You that I am not like other men—extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even as this tax collector. 12I fast twice a week; I give tithes of all that I possess.’ 13And the tax collector, standing afar off, would not so much as raise his eyes to heaven, but beat his breast, saying, ‘God, be merciful to me a sinner!’ 14I tell you, this man went down to his house justified rather than the other; for everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted.”

The one is trusting in his lifestyle as evidence that God has saved him, the other (tax collector) is trusting in God's goodness and righteousness. God does set us free from sin, but depending on your ability to get free of sin (with His help might I add) does not mean one is suddenly sinless without God's good graces and mercy.

Also, faith is based on Christ and what He done and us believing in Him, not in us becoming perfect. He is the one that does the work in us, and anyone boasting in their own lifestyle has pride and pride itself is a sin. Condemning people that have not been fully sanctified is self-righteousness and short memory since no one has ever been perfected apart from getting there through the blood of Christ. We all have to go through the process of learning to live in God's ways, and no one started out that way and was perfect when born but Christ Himself.

Galatians 3:1-7
1O foolish Galatians! Who has bewitched you that you should not obey the truth, before whose eyes Jesus Christ was clearly portrayed among you as crucified? 2This only I want to learn from you: Did you receive the Spirit by the works of the law, or by the hearing of faith? 3Are you so foolish? Having begun in the Spirit, are you now being made perfect by the flesh? 4Have you suffered so many things in vain—if indeed it was in vain? 5Therefore He who supplies the Spirit to you and works miracles among you, does He do it by the works of the law, or by the hearing of faith?— 6just as Abraham “believed God, and it was accounted to him for righteousness.” 7Therefore know that only those who are of faith are sons of Abraham.

It does not say... "Abraham lived a Godly and holy life and God accounted it to him as righteousness."

No, it says "Abraham believed God, and it was accounted to him for righteousness.

You must know that you are clean to ever have the motivation to stay clean. Telling people they are dirty is prideful, as if they were not dirty without Christ at one time, or like they are clean by what they do, rather than by what Christ done for them. Telling people they are sinful and dirty and cannot be saved because they are not "bearing good fruit" keeps them discouraged and makes them feel like Christ did not give them salvation that He gave to others, and this is a lie. When one realizes they are completely forgiven and cleansed of their sin by believing, then and only then can they have the optimism and the upper hand against sin itself to continue in being clean because God has cleansed them.

BibleBeliever1611 said:

The way I see it, is that the more you are involved in this whole subject of discussion about "really" being saved and this whole discussion about sin, the more you will actually commit sin. Why, because the strength of sin is the law, as the Bible said. The more you think about sin sin sin all the time, you just gave sin more strength, just like that.

Click to expand...

A law that is the strength of sin is a law that is sinful, however, the Law of God is not sinful, but how we know what sin is (Romans 7:7), so the Law of God is not the strength of sin and there is nothing inherent to instruction to refrain from sin that causes sin to increase, but rather that is the role of the law of sin. Paul spoke about the Law of God as being the good that he wanted to do and the law of sin that was working within his members to cause him not to do the good that he wanted to do.

BibleBeliever1611 said:

It's not about your lifestyle, your lifestyle is crap. It's filthy rags and it doesn't get you one inch closer to heaven. Get over it and think about something else.

Click to expand...

In Isaiah 64:6, it is not God speaking about how He views our obedience to Him, but rather it is the people hyperbolically complaining about God not coming down and making His presence known. The reality is that God is not a commander of filthy rags but rather the righteous deeds of the saints are like fine white linen (Revelation 19:8).

In Matthew 7:21-23, Jesus said that only those who do the will of the Father will enter the Kingdom of Heaven in contrast with saying that he would tell those who are workers of lawlessness to depart from him because he never knew them, so the reason why our entrance into heaven requires us to choose to be workers of lawfulness is not in order to be good enough to work our way there but because that is the way to know Jesus.

Soyeong said:

A law that is the strength of sin is a law that is sinful, however, the Law of God is not sinful, but how we know what sin is (Romans 7:7)

Click to expand...

This section in the NKJV for context is titled by the translators "The Law Brings A Curse."

Galatians 3:10-14
10For as many as are of the works of the law are under the curse; for it is written, “Cursed is everyone who does not continue in all things which are written in the book of the law, to do them.” 11But that no one is justified by the law in the sight of God is evident, for “the just shall live by faith.” 12Yet the law is not of faith, but “the man who does them shall live by them.”

13Christ has redeemed us from the curse of the law, having become a curse for us (for it is written, “Cursed is everyone who hangs on a tree”), 14that the blessing of Abraham might come upon the Gentiles in Christ Jesus, that we might receive the promise of the Spirit through faith.

Romans 7 is relevant, but it is often used without chapters 6 and 8 which bring abundant light on what Paul is really saying, along with the entire book really. Romans is said by many scholars to be the most profound book in the NT, but when quoting single verses it can easily be used to teach opposite of what it is saying.

For example, if we simply go to the verse preceding 7:7 we gain some context.

Romans 7:6
6But now we have been delivered from the law, having died to what we were held by, so that we should serve in the newness of the Spirit and not in the oldness of the letter.

Not to mention the verses that follow it which explain why we are "delivered from the law."

Romans 8-12
8But sin, taking opportunity by the commandment, produced in me all manner of evil desire. For apart from the law sin was dead. 9I was alive once without the law, but when the commandment came, sin revived and I died. 10And the commandment, which was to bring life, I found to bring death. 11For sin, taking occasion by the commandment, deceived me, and by it killed me. 12Therefore the law is holy, and the commandment holy and just and good.

So yes, the law is holy and good and just, just like it says, but it does not mean we are still bound to the law. Only when one pulls verses out of context rather than reading entire books and chapters do they believe they are somehow still attached to the law. Being under the law produces sin, like Romans 7:10 says.

Paul being used by God explains how this is possible, that something good can be producing death in us in verse 13...

Romans 7:13
13Has then what is good become death to me? Certainly not! But sin, that it might appear sin, was producing death in me through what is good, so that sin through the commandment might become exceedingly sinful.

Lastly, Paul wraps this all up in the context of Romans 7:6 to explain more deeply why we are separated from the law and ends by thanking God for delivering us from it in our "bodies of death" by being under Christ instead of the law.

Romans 7:14-24
14For we know that the law is spiritual, but I am carnal, sold under sin. 15For what I am doing, I do not understand. For what I will to do, that I do not practice; but what I hate, that I do. 16If, then, I do what I will not to do, I agree with the law that it is good. 17But now, it is no longer I who do it, but sin that dwells in me. 18For I know that in me (that is, in my flesh) nothing good dwells; for to will is present with me, but how to perform what is good I do not find. 19For the good that I will to do, I do not do; but the evil I will not to do, that I practice. 20Now if I do what I will not to do, it is no longer I who do it, but sin that dwells in me.

21I find then a law, that evil is present with me, the one who wills to do good. 22For I delight in the law of God according to the inward man. 23But I see another law in my members, warring against the law of my mind, and bringing me into captivity to the law of sin which is in my members. 24O wretched man that I am! Who will deliver me from this body of death? 25I thank God—through Jesus Christ our Lord!

Now... Paul headed this off at the very beginning of the chapter by explaining how exactly we are separated from the law so that we can be connected to Christ... The verses preceding 7:6 explain exactly how this works, not just declaring what has happened through Christ.

Romans 7:1-5
1Or do you not know, brethren (for I speak to those who know the law), that the law has dominion over a man as long as he lives? 2For the woman who has a husband is bound by the law to her husband as long as he lives. But if the husband dies, she is released from the law of her husband. 3So then if, while her husband lives, she marries another man, she will be called an adulteress; but if her husband dies, she is free from that law, so that she is no adulteress, though she has married another man. 4Therefore, my brethren, you also have become dead to the law through the body of Christ, that you may be married to another—to Him who was raised from the dead, that we should bear fruit to God. 5For when we were in the flesh, the sinful passions which were aroused by the law were at work in our members to bear fruit to death.

Yes, the law is good, but that does not mean that it does not produce sin in us. Pulling verse 7 out of context in Romans chapter 7 does not mean that we are under the law or that the law being good means we are still under it.

Romans 8 goes further into this and doubles down on the declaration of being freed from the law.

Romans 8:1-3
1There is therefore now no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus, who do not walk according to the flesh, but according to the Spirit. 2For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has made me free from the law of sin and death. 3For what the law could not do in that it was weak through the flesh, God did by sending His own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh, on account of sin: He condemned sin in the flesh,

Romans 6 also clarifies this whole situation...

Romans 6:15
15What then? Shall we sin because we are not under law but under grace? Certainly not!

Romans 6:18
18And having been set free from sin, you became slaves of righteousness.

Romans 6:22
22But now having been set free from sin, and having become slaves of God, you have your fruit to holiness, and the end, everlasting life.

No one is saying the law is bad, but we are not under it, and being under it brings a curse on us because we cannot live it out properly. Only Christ could do that and He alone lived by the law and died for us to take us from under the curse of the law.

Finally, the ultimate purpose of the law was to show us we are unable to follow God's ways without following Him directly, that is, being in and under Christ rather than being under the law. We are not able to get free of our sin without God's help, and without God's help we can do nothing (John 15:5). We are under the law of love in Christ now, not under the law of the letter (2 Corinthians 3:6).

The purpose of the law is to form us into the image of Christ who is the love of God revealed to us all and who we are meant to become like. In other words, God wants us to serve Him in His love, with His love in us, and to others through His love (John 3:16-17) (Matthew 22:37-40).

1 Timothy 1:5
Now the purpose of the commandment is love from a pure heart, from a good conscience, and from sincere faith,


Anyone who puts themselves under the law is cursed as Galatians 3 says clearly, cannot please God, will never keep the law, and will be permanently unable to ever stop sinning because they cannot do that until they are dead to the law and under and in the grace of Jesus Christ.

We are meant to exceed the letter of the law by the law of God's love. His love in us tells us not only to not lie to our neighbor, but to go above and beyond to show them God's love and do far more than the letter of the law ever commanded.

When we are connected to God and His Spirit lives in us then He compels us in our heart to do the things that please Him, rather than things that please us and we serve Him out of love for Him, not for fear of a curse that is no longer over us.

BibleBeliever1611 said:

This is a question that needs to be asked. You trust that you're saved from hell and will go to heaven when you die. But why? For what reason? What are we standing on?

Many people would say that if you have a good lifestyle, that really proves that you got saved. That proves that you are "really" saved, as they would say. But is your lifestyle something that you should be standing on? Absolutely not. We should be standing on the promises of God alone. Why because God is the boss and you better stand on what he says.

"In hope of eternal life, which God, that cannot lie, promised before the world began;" - Titus 1:2

Man's wisdom says that you cannot go to heaven if your works don't add up, if you're not holy enough, if you live like the world, etc. God's wisdom says otherwise. We go with what God says in the Bible, not what man's wisdom says.

So what exactly are we standing on in regards to salvation from hell? The promises of God. God which cannot lie promised eternal life, that's it and it's case closed.

Things that we are NOT standing on:

• Lifestyle
• Not being a drunkard
• Not committing fornication
• Not being a murderer
• Thoughts
• Feelings
• Emotions
• Not falling into sin
• "At least I have not committed that sin"
• "At least I'm not living in regular sin"

You get the point. Jesus is the rock on which we stand. Stand on promises of God, don't stand on shifting sands. This is what people need to understand. I like how that one hymn goes, "Jesus is a rock in a weary land, a shelter in a time of storm."

Here is a hymn called "Standing on the promises of God"

Click to expand...

The promise of the covenant does come with requirements. You mentioned standing on the rock instead of on shifting sand. Where did you get that scriptural reference from? Was it from Matthew 7:21-27?

““Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father who is in heaven will enter. Many will say to Me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in Your name, and in Your name cast out demons, and in Your name perform many miracles?’ And then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness.’ “Therefore everyone who hears these words of Mine and acts on them, may be compared to a wise man who built his house on the rock. And the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and slammed against that house; and yet it did not fall, for it had been founded on the rock. Everyone who hears these words of Mine and does not act on them, will be like a foolish man who built his house on the sand. The rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and slammed against that house; and it fell—and great was its fall.””
‭‭Matthew‬ ‭7‬:‭21‬-‭27‬ ‭NASB1995‬‬

BibleBeliever1611 said:

The way I see it, is that the more you are involved in this whole subject of discussion about "really" being saved and this whole discussion about sin, the more you will actually commit sin. Why, because the strength of sin is the law, as the Bible said. The more you think about sin sin sin all the time, you just gave sin more strength, just like that.

It's not about your lifestyle, your lifestyle is crap. It's filthy rags and it doesn't get you one inch closer to heaven. Get over it and think about something else.

Click to expand...

Our works are filthy rage in God’s sight before we come to Christ because they are tainted by our sin. Once we’ve come to Christ and have been cleansed by the blood of Christ our good works are pleasing in His sight.

“For this reason also, since the day we heard of it, we have not ceased to pray for you and to ask that you may be filled with the knowledge of His will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding, so that you will walk in a manner worthy of the Lord, to please Him in all respects, bearing fruit in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God;”
‭‭Colossians‬ ‭1‬:‭9‬-‭10‬ ‭NASB1995‬‬

“Therefore Jesus also, that He might sanctify the people through His own blood, suffered outside the gate. So, let us go out to Him outside the camp, bearing His reproach. For here we do not have a lasting city, but we are seeking the city which is to come. Through Him then, let us continually offer up a sacrifice of praise to God, that is, the fruit of lips that give thanks to His name. And do not neglect doing good and sharing, for with such sacrifices God is pleased.”
‭‭Hebrews‬ ‭13‬:‭12‬-‭16‬ ‭NASB1995‬‬

Zceptre said:

This is dead on. I was caught in this for many years when younger and it is a trap that keeps you locked into sin rather than setting you free of them. Then... people point at particular sins after teaching entrapment theology and say "look at you, you dirty sinner, you are not saved at all."

But God the Son told us about this in His day when He walked the Earth and taught us directly:

Luke 18:9-14
9Also He spoke this parable to some who trusted in themselves that they were righteous, and despised others: 10“Two men went up to the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. 11The Pharisee stood and prayed thus with himself, ‘God, I thank You that I am not like other men—extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even as this tax collector. 12I fast twice a week; I give tithes of all that I possess.’ 13And the tax collector, standing afar off, would not so much as raise his eyes to heaven, but beat his breast, saying, ‘God, be merciful to me a sinner!’ 14I tell you, this man went down to his house justified rather than the other; for everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted.”

The one is trusting in his lifestyle as evidence that God has saved him, the other (tax collector) is trusting in God's goodness and righteousness. God does set us free from sin, but depending on your ability to get free of sin (with His help might I add) does not mean one is suddenly sinless without God's good graces and mercy.

Also, faith is based on Christ and what He done and us believing in Him, not in us becoming perfect. He is the one that does the work in us, and anyone boasting in their own lifestyle has pride and pride itself is a sin. Condemning people that have not been fully sanctified is self-righteousness and short memory since no one has ever been perfected apart from getting there through the blood of Christ. We all have to go through the process of learning to live in God's ways, and no one started out that way and was perfect when born but Christ Himself.

Galatians 3:1-7
1O foolish Galatians! Who has bewitched you that you should not obey the truth, before whose eyes Jesus Christ was clearly portrayed among you as crucified? 2This only I want to learn from you: Did you receive the Spirit by the works of the law, or by the hearing of faith? 3Are you so foolish? Having begun in the Spirit, are you now being made perfect by the flesh? 4Have you suffered so many things in vain—if indeed it was in vain? 5Therefore He who supplies the Spirit to you and works miracles among you, does He do it by the works of the law, or by the hearing of faith?— 6just as Abraham “believed God, and it was accounted to him for righteousness.” 7Therefore know that only those who are of faith are sons of Abraham.

It does not say... "Abraham lived a Godly and holy life and God accounted it to him as righteousness."

No, it says "Abraham believed God, and it was accounted to him for righteousness.

You must know that you are clean to ever have the motivation to stay clean. Telling people they are dirty is prideful, as if they were not dirty without Christ at one time, or like they are clean by what they do, rather than by what Christ done for them. Telling people they are sinful and dirty and cannot be saved because they are not "bearing good fruit" keeps them discouraged and makes them feel like Christ did not give them salvation that He gave to others, and this is a lie. When one realizes they are completely forgiven and cleansed of their sin by believing, then and only then can they have the optimism and the upper hand against sin itself to continue in being clean because God has cleansed them.

Click to expand...

Actually Abraham believed and obeyed God. Yes he was justified by his faith but he remained in good standing with God because he humbled himself to God. Belief isn’t a license to sin.

Zceptre said:

This section in the NKJV for context is titled by the translators "The Law Brings A Curse."

Galatians 3:10-14
10For as many as are of the works of the law are under the curse; for it is written, “Cursed is everyone who does not continue in all things which are written in the book of the law, to do them.” 11But that no one is justified by the law in the sight of God is evident, for “the just shall live by faith.” 12Yet the law is not of faith, but “the man who does them shall live by them.”

13Christ has redeemed us from the curse of the law, having become a curse for us (for it is written, “Cursed is everyone who hangs on a tree”), 14that the blessing of Abraham might come upon the Gentiles in Christ Jesus, that we might receive the promise of the Spirit through faith.

Romans 7 is relevant, but it is often used without chapters 6 and 8 which bring abundant light on what Paul is really saying, along with the entire book really. Romans is said by many scholars to be the most profound book in the NT, but when quoting single verses it can easily be used to teach opposite of what it is saying.

For example, if we simply go to the verse preceding 7:7 we gain some context.

Romans 7:6
6But now we have been delivered from the law, having died to what we were held by, so that we should serve in the newness of the Spirit and not in the oldness of the letter.

Not to mention the verses that follow it which explain why we are "delivered from the law."

Romans 8-12
8But sin, taking opportunity by the commandment, produced in me all manner of evil desire. For apart from the law sin was dead. 9I was alive once without the law, but when the commandment came, sin revived and I died. 10And the commandment, which was to bring life, I found to bring death. 11For sin, taking occasion by the commandment, deceived me, and by it killed me. 12Therefore the law is holy, and the commandment holy and just and good.

So yes, the law is holy and good and just, just like it says, but it does not mean we are still bound to the law. Only when one pulls verses out of context rather than reading entire books and chapters do they believe they are somehow still attached to the law. Being under the law produces sin, like Romans 7:10 says.

Paul being used by God explains how this is possible, that something good can be producing death in us in verse 13...

Romans 7:13
13Has then what is good become death to me? Certainly not! But sin, that it might appear sin, was producing death in me through what is good, so that sin through the commandment might become exceedingly sinful.

Lastly, Paul wraps this all up in the context of Romans 7:6 to explain more deeply why we are separated from the law and ends by thanking God for delivering us from it in our "bodies of death" by being under Christ instead of the law.

Romans 7:14-24
14For we know that the law is spiritual, but I am carnal, sold under sin. 15For what I am doing, I do not understand. For what I will to do, that I do not practice; but what I hate, that I do. 16If, then, I do what I will not to do, I agree with the law that it is good. 17But now, it is no longer I who do it, but sin that dwells in me. 18For I know that in me (that is, in my flesh) nothing good dwells; for to will is present with me, but how to perform what is good I do not find. 19For the good that I will to do, I do not do; but the evil I will not to do, that I practice. 20Now if I do what I will not to do, it is no longer I who do it, but sin that dwells in me.

21I find then a law, that evil is present with me, the one who wills to do good. 22For I delight in the law of God according to the inward man. 23But I see another law in my members, warring against the law of my mind, and bringing me into captivity to the law of sin which is in my members. 24O wretched man that I am! Who will deliver me from this body of death? 25I thank God—through Jesus Christ our Lord!

Now... Paul headed this off at the very beginning of the chapter by explaining how exactly we are separated from the law so that we can be connected to Christ... The verses preceding 7:6 explain exactly how this works, not just declaring what has happened through Christ.

Romans 7:1-5
1Or do you not know, brethren (for I speak to those who know the law), that the law has dominion over a man as long as he lives? 2For the woman who has a husband is bound by the law to her husband as long as he lives. But if the husband dies, she is released from the law of her husband. 3So then if, while her husband lives, she marries another man, she will be called an adulteress; but if her husband dies, she is free from that law, so that she is no adulteress, though she has married another man. 4Therefore, my brethren, you also have become dead to the law through the body of Christ, that you may be married to another—to Him who was raised from the dead, that we should bear fruit to God. 5For when we were in the flesh, the sinful passions which were aroused by the law were at work in our members to bear fruit to death.

Yes, the law is good, but that does not mean that it does not produce sin in us. Pulling verse 7 out of context in Romans chapter 7 does not mean that we are under the law or that the law being good means we are still under it.

Romans 8 goes further into this and doubles down on the declaration of being freed from the law.

Romans 8:1-3
1There is therefore now no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus, who do not walk according to the flesh, but according to the Spirit. 2For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has made me free from the law of sin and death. 3For what the law could not do in that it was weak through the flesh, God did by sending His own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh, on account of sin: He condemned sin in the flesh,

Romans 6 also clarifies this whole situation...

Romans 6:15
15What then? Shall we sin because we are not under law but under grace? Certainly not!

Romans 6:18
18And having been set free from sin, you became slaves of righteousness.

Romans 6:22
22But now having been set free from sin, and having become slaves of God, you have your fruit to holiness, and the end, everlasting life.

No one is saying the law is bad, but we are not under it, and being under it brings a curse on us because we cannot live it out properly. Only Christ could do that and He alone lived by the law and died for us to take us from under the curse of the law.

Finally, the ultimate purpose of the law was to show us we are unable to follow God's ways without following Him directly, that is, being in and under Christ rather than being under the law. We are not able to get free of our sin without God's help, and without God's help we can do nothing (John 15:5). We are under the law of love in Christ now, not under the law of the letter (2 Corinthians 3:6).

The purpose of the law is to form us into the image of Christ who is the love of God revealed to us all and who we are meant to become like. In other words, God wants us to serve Him in His love, with His love in us, and to others through His love (John 3:16-17) (Matthew 22:37-40).

1 Timothy 1:5
Now the purpose of the commandment is love from a pure heart, from a good conscience, and from sincere faith,


Anyone who puts themselves under the law is cursed as Galatians 3 says clearly, cannot please God, will never keep the law, and will be permanently unable to ever stop sinning because they cannot do that until they are dead to the law and under and in the grace of Jesus Christ.

We are meant to exceed the letter of the law by the law of God's love. His love in us tells us not only to not lie to our neighbor, but to go above and beyond to show them God's love and do far more than the letter of the law ever commanded.

When we are connected to God and His Spirit lives in us then He compels us in our heart to do the things that please Him, rather than things that please us and we serve Him out of love for Him, not for fear of a curse that is no longer over us.

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You quoted Romans 6:15,18, and 22. Why didn’t you quote verse 16? It’s directly connected to verse 15.

“What then? Shall we sin because we are not under law but under grace? May it never be! Do you not know that when you present yourselves to someone as slaves for obedience, you are slaves of the one whom you obey, either of sin resulting in death, or of obedience resulting in righteousness?”
‭‭Romans‬ ‭6‬:‭15‬-‭16‬ ‭NASB1995‬‬

BNR32FAN said:

You quoted Romans 6:15,18, and 22. Why didn’t you quote verse 16? It’s directly connected to verse 15.

“What then? Shall we sin because we are not under law but under grace? May it never be! Do you not know that when you present yourselves to someone as slaves for obedience, you are slaves of the one whom you obey, either of sin resulting in death, or of obedience resulting in righteousness?”
‭‭Romans‬ ‭6‬:‭15‬-‭16‬ ‭NASB1995‬‬

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I would quote the entirely of the book if I thought people would read it or I thought it were necessary. I think honestly people should read it on their own and study it in depth and that quoting it in its entirety should not be necessary for me. I was also pointing to particular parts that made the point clear, not excluding parts that I thought were not valid. The entire book is valid, and people should read it again and again as often as they can. All of the verses.

I can do this same "interrogation question" with your post. Why didn't you quote more of the chapter? It is quite simple, it wasn't relevant to your point and you didn't think it necessary. People have access to the entire book, don't they? To presume I was intending to hide anything when I quoted massive portions of three chapters (and nearly all of chapter 7) and especially for the most part very few single verses should make it clear I was not skipping anything but trying to make my post more concise, considering it was getting lengthy.

My post was very obviously pointing to this particular fact that the context is crucially key.

The fact is that if we truly love God we will obey Him because we realize we are loved and we love Him because He loved us first. No one loves God first, He loves us all first (1 John 4:19). This is called the principle of First Love.

No one follows God because they were told to follow Him, and then after they follow they are forgiven. No one can clean their own sin up in their own power. Only God can do that, and when they realize what God's love has done in forgiving them, then they obey because they love God.

Cain tried to obey God in his own strength, rather than depending on God, and his sacrifices were rejected because they were not blood sacrifices that pointed to Christ who is the only way we can be forgiven. This is an example of trying to clean up our behavior on our own before coming to God. We cannot please God in our own strength and we must depend on Christ to clean us first.

The two commandments Christ gave us are the fulfillment of the law, by His own statements, not mine (Matthew 22:37-40).

He did not say to the woman caught in adultery, "Get your life right and I will forgive you." He said, "Neither do I condemn you, go and sin no more." Meaning He first forgave her and cleansed her, and then and only then did she know she was still loved and could overcome the sin.

The prodigal son parable is told by Christ to represent this concept, and to show that whether we are the son that strayed from home, or the one who had pride in his obedience and thought himself deserving of more honor because he stayed, we are all in need of God's love before we can be made whole. We cannot be made whole by a rule book, but only through the blood of Christ which was given through the love of our Father in Heaven (John 3:16-17).

Zceptre said:

The fact is that if we truly love God we will obey Him because we realize we are loved and we love Him because He loved us first. No one loves God first, He loves us all first (1 John 4:19). This is called the principle of First Love.

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First I’d like to apologize, my post came out sounding accusative and it was not warranted and I do sincerely apologize for that. I jumped the gun and I should’ve worded my post more cordially. The reason I posted that was because people are diverse and not everyone has the same outlook on how we receive salvation or how we walk in the Spirit. Some go so far as to say that we’re not even required to walk in the Spirit. But with that being said I shouldn’t have responded to you as if that was your mindset and that’s where I made my mistake. What I should’ve done was taken the time to get to know your position more clearly before I responded. Again I sincerely apologize, please forgive my rudeness, I’ll try do do better in my future posts.

BNR32FAN said:

First I’d like to apologize, my post came out sounding accusative and it was not warranted and I do sincerely apologize for that. I jumped the gun and I should’ve worded my post more cordially. The reason I posted that was because people are diverse and not everyone has the same outlook on how we receive salvation or how we walk in the Spirit. Some go so far as to say that we’re not even required to walk in the Spirit. But with that being said I shouldn’t have responded to you as if that was your mindset and that’s where I made my mistake. What I should’ve done was taken the time to get to know your position more clearly before I responded. Again I sincerely apologize, please forgive my rudeness, I’ll try do do better in my future posts.

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That's very refreshing to know. Reading mine again it seems very stern, and more so than intended while I was typing though really I was only trying to clarify that I would have included the mentioned verses if I had not quoted so much already.

We absolutely must walk in the Spirit. Walking in the Spirit supersedes following the letter of the law. We should be loving other people far better than not offending them or doing wrong by them. We should be loving them with a love like Christ has loved us with, even laying down our lives for the truth and to protect the weak. We should be visiting the sick and helping the needy, feeding the poor and caring for our neighbor like the parable of the good samaritan.

Within the passages I quoted Paul is used by God to clearly state that the goal is to live Godly. But to do so by our own strength is impossible and removes the need for the sacrifice Christ made for us. This can be debated by people, but until someone realizes they have no sin on their account, why would they have any desire to stop doing something when their record is still littered with sins?

The only way a person can become sin free in their walk is through the gratitude of knowing their slate is wiped clean and they are pardoned of all wrongs. Otherwise, they are looking at their mistakes and their identity is the identity of sin, which leads to discouragement, and discouragement leads to failure, and failure leads into a vicious cycle of committing the same sin due to having no hope of escape at that point. "Get yourself right and clean and then come to Lord Jesus" theology is a theology that leaves people condemned in their sins because they can't get clean until they come to Lord Jesus first.

Only after being freed from sin in Christ can someone truly, truly walk free of sin and without self-righteousness or pride in "their achievement" for they will know and testify that it was Christ alone who done it and will not look down on others or put them down, but will lift others up and build them up and pull them out of sin by leading them to Christ to be set free.

Like Christ states in Luke 7:47, whoever is forgiven much, loves much. While the spiritual leader in the house was ready to condemn the woman who was a "sinner," Christ commended her for wanting to honor Him in her heart from the gratitude she felt for being forgiven by Him. She knew she could not be sinless on her own, nor in her own strength, let alone walk with God and bear good fruit without Him first.

No worries about the intensity or tone of the post. No offense was taken even if my response seemed to display otherwise so hope it wasn't taken that way. I can be sharp and heavy on countering points and truly I mean nothing but friendly discourse. Definitely not offended, just passionate. Also, I don't think you were rude at all, so no need to apologize in my opinion. Text is unforgiving with tonality being so open to interpretation by the reader after all. No harm no foul.

P.S. No freebies on the next serve. Ball is in your court. lol

Zceptre said:

This is dead on. I was caught in this for many years when younger and it is a trap that keeps you locked into sin rather than setting you free of them. Then... people point at particular sins after teaching entrapment theology and say "look at you, you dirty sinner, you are not saved at all."
But God the Son told us about this in His day when He walked the Earth and taught us directly:

Luke 18:9-14
9Also He spoke this parable to some who trusted in themselves that they were righteous, and despised others: 10“Two men went up to the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. 11The Pharisee stood and prayed thus with himself, ‘God, I thank You that I am not like other men—extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even as this tax collector. 12I fast twice a week; I give tithes of all that I possess.’ 13And the tax collector, standing afar off, would not so much as raise his eyes to heaven, but beat his breast, saying, ‘God, be merciful to me a sinner!’ 14I tell you, this man went down to his house justified rather than the other; for everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted.”

The one is trusting in his lifestyle as evidence that God has saved him, the other (tax collector) is trusting in God's goodness and righteousness. God does set us free from sin, but depending on your ability to get free of sin (with His help might I add) does not mean one is suddenly sinless without God's good graces and mercy.

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God is trustworthy, therefore His law is also trustworthy (Psalms 19:7), so the way to trust in God is by obediently trusting in His instructions, it is contradictory to think that we can trust in ourselves by obediently trusting in God's instructions, and it is contradictory to have faith in God for salvation instead of having faith in His instructions.

Zceptre said:

Also, faith is based on Christ and what He done and us believing in Him, not in us becoming perfect. He is the one that does the work in us, and anyone boasting in their own lifestyle has pride and pride itself is a sin. Condemning people that have not been fully sanctified is self-righteousness and short memory since no one has ever been perfected apart from getting there through the blood of Christ. We all have to go through the process of learning to live in God's ways, and no one started out that way and was perfect when born but Christ Himself.

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The Bible repeatedly connects our faith in God with our obedience to Him such as with Revelation 14:12 where those who kept faith in Jesus are the same as those who kept God's commandments. In Matthew 4:15-23, Jesus began his ministry with the Gospel message to repent for the Kingdom of God is at hand, which was a light to the Gentiles, and the Law of God was how his audience knew what sin is (Romans 3:20), so repenting from our disobedience to it is a central part of the Gospel of the Kingdom. In Titus 2:14, Jesus gave himself to redeem us from all lawlessness and to purify for himself a people of his own possession who are zealous for doing god works, so the way to believe in in what Jesus has done for us through his life, death, and resurrection is by repenting and becoming zealous for doing good works in obedience to the Law of God. The work that God does in us is graciously teaching us to obey His law. The reason why God graciously gave us His law was not so that we would have something to boast about.

Zceptre said:

Galatians 3:1-7
1O foolish Galatians! Who has bewitched you that you should not obey the truth, before whose eyes Jesus Christ was clearly portrayed among you as crucified? 2This only I want to learn from you: Did you receive the Spirit by the works of the law, or by the hearing of faith? 3Are you so foolish? Having begun in the Spirit, are you now being made perfect by the flesh? 4Have you suffered so many things in vain—if indeed it was in vain? 5Therefore He who supplies the Spirit to you and works miracles among you, does He do it by the works of the law, or by the hearing of faith?— 6just as Abraham “believed God, and it was accounted to him for righteousness.” 7Therefore know that only those who are of faith are sons of Abraham.

It does not say... "Abraham lived a Godly and holy life and God accounted it to him as righteousness."

No, it says "Abraham believed God, and it was accounted to him for righteousness.

You must know that you are clean to ever have the motivation to stay clean. Telling people they are dirty is prideful, as if they were not dirty without Christ at one time, or like they are clean by what they do, rather than by what Christ done for them. Telling people they are sinful and dirty and cannot be saved because they are not "bearing good fruit" keeps them discouraged and makes them feel like Christ did not give them salvation that He gave to others, and this is a lie. When one realizes they are completely forgiven and cleansed of their sin by believing, then and only then can they have the optimism and the upper hand against sin itself to continue in being clean because God has cleansed them.

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While it is true that Abraham was declared righteous because he believed God (Genesis 15:6), it is also true that he was a doer of righteous works because he believed God (Genesis 18:19), and that he obeyed God's command to offer Isaac because he believed God (Hebrews 11:17), so the same faith by which he was declared righteous was also embodied through his works but he did not earn his righteousness as the result of his works (Romans 4:1-5). In James 2:21-24, it quotes Genesis 15:6 to support saying that Abraham was declared righteous by his works when he offered Isaac, that his faith was active along with his works, and his faith completed his works, so he was declared righteous by his works insofar as they embodied his faith, but not insofar as they were earning it as a wage. The Bible frequently connect our belief in God with our obedience to him such as with Revelation 14:12 where those who kept faith in Jesus are the same as those who kept God's commandments. While the only way to become righteous is through faith apart from being required to have first done enough works in order to earn it as the result, it would be contradictory to become righteous apart from becoming a doer of righteous works in obedience to the Law of God (1 John 3:4-7).

Zceptre said:

Romans 7 is relevant, but it is often used without chapters 6 and 8 which bring abundant light on what Paul is really saying, along with the entire book really. Romans is said by many scholars to be the most profound book in the NT, but when quoting single verses it can easily be used to teach opposite of what it is saying.

For example, if we simply go to the verse preceding 7:7 we gain some context.

Romans 7:6
6But now we have been delivered from the law, having died to what we were held by, so that we should serve in the newness of the Spirit and not in the oldness of the letter.

Not to mention the verses that follow it which explain why we are "delivered from the law."

Romans 8-12
8But sin, taking opportunity by the commandment, produced in me all manner of evil desire. For apart from the law sin was dead. 9I was alive once without the law, but when the commandment came, sin revived and I died. 10And the commandment, which was to bring life, I found to bring death. 11For sin, taking occasion by the commandment, deceived me, and by it killed me. 12Therefore the law is holy, and the commandment holy and just and good.

So yes, the law is holy and good and just, just like it says, but it does not mean we are still bound to the law. Only when one pulls verses out of context rather than reading entire books and chapters do they believe they are somehow still attached to the law. Being under the law produces sin, like Romans 7:10 says.

Paul being used by God explains how this is possible, that something good can be producing death in us in verse 13...

Romans 7:13
13Has then what is good become death to me? Certainly not! But sin, that it might appear sin, was producing death in me through what is good, so that sin through the commandment might become exceedingly sinful.

Lastly, Paul wraps this all up in the context of Romans 7:6 to explain more deeply why we are separated from the law and ends by thanking God for delivering us from it in our "bodies of death" by being under Christ instead of the law.

Romans 7:14-24
14For we know that the law is spiritual, but I am carnal, sold under sin. 15For what I am doing, I do not understand. For what I will to do, that I do not practice; but what I hate, that I do. 16If, then, I do what I will not to do, I agree with the law that it is good. 17But now, it is no longer I who do it, but sin that dwells in me. 18For I know that in me (that is, in my flesh) nothing good dwells; for to will is present with me, but how to perform what is good I do not find. 19For the good that I will to do, I do not do; but the evil I will not to do, that I practice. 20Now if I do what I will not to do, it is no longer I who do it, but sin that dwells in me.

21I find then a law, that evil is present with me, the one who wills to do good. 22For I delight in the law of God according to the inward man. 23But I see another law in my members, warring against the law of my mind, and bringing me into captivity to the law of sin which is in my members. 24O wretched man that I am! Who will deliver me from this body of death? 25I thank God—through Jesus Christ our Lord!

Now... Paul headed this off at the very beginning of the chapter by explaining how exactly we are separated from the law so that we can be connected to Christ... The verses preceding 7:6 explain exactly how this works, not just declaring what has happened through Christ.

Romans 7:1-5
1Or do you not know, brethren (for I speak to those who know the law), that the law has dominion over a man as long as he lives? 2For the woman who has a husband is bound by the law to her husband as long as he lives. But if the husband dies, she is released from the law of her husband. 3So then if, while her husband lives, she marries another man, she will be called an adulteress; but if her husband dies, she is free from that law, so that she is no adulteress, though she has married another man. 4Therefore, my brethren, you also have become dead to the law through the body of Christ, that you may be married to another—to Him who was raised from the dead, that we should bear fruit to God. 5For when we were in the flesh, the sinful passions which were aroused by the law were at work in our members to bear fruit to death.

Yes, the law is good, but that does not mean that it does not produce sin in us. Pulling verse 7 out of context in Romans chapter 7 does not mean that we are under the law or that the law being good means we are still under it.

Romans 8 goes further into this and doubles down on the declaration of being freed from the law.

Romans 8:1-3
1There is therefore now no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus, who do not walk according to the flesh, but according to the Spirit. 2For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has made me free from the law of sin and death. 3For what the law could not do in that it was weak through the flesh, God did by sending His own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh, on account of sin: He condemned sin in the flesh,

Romans 6 also clarifies this whole situation...

Romans 6:15
15What then? Shall we sin because we are not under law but under grace? Certainly not!

Romans 6:18
18And having been set free from sin, you became slaves of righteousness.

Romans 6:22
22But now having been set free from sin, and having become slaves of God, you have your fruit to holiness, and the end, everlasting life.

No one is saying the law is bad, but we are not under it, and being under it brings a curse on us because we cannot live it out properly. Only Christ could do that and He alone lived by the law and died for us to take us from under the curse of the law.

Finally, the ultimate purpose of the law was to show us we are unable to follow God's ways without following Him directly, that is, being in and under Christ rather than being under the law. We are not able to get free of our sin without God's help, and without God's help we can do nothing (John 15:5). We are under the law of love in Christ now, not under the law of the letter (2 Corinthians 3:6).

The purpose of the law is to form us into the image of Christ who is the love of God revealed to us all and who we are meant to become like. In other words, God wants us to serve Him in His love, with His love in us, and to others through His love (John 3:16-17) (Matthew 22:37-40).

1 Timothy 1:5
Now the purpose of the commandment is love from a pure heart, from a good conscience, and from sincere faith,


Anyone who puts themselves under the law is cursed as Galatians 3 says clearly, cannot please God, will never keep the law, and will be permanently unable to ever stop sinning because they cannot do that until they are dead to the law and under and in the grace of Jesus Christ.

We are meant to exceed the letter of the law by the law of God's love. His love in us tells us not only to not lie to our neighbor, but to go above and beyond to show them God's love and do far more than the letter of the law ever commanded.

When we are connected to God and His Spirit lives in us then He compels us in our heart to do the things that please Him, rather than things that please us and we serve Him out of love for Him, not for fear of a curse that is no longer over us.

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Paul spoke about multiple categories of law other than the Law of God such as the law of sin and works of the law, so it is important to correctly identify which law he was referring to. For example, in Romans 7-8:2, Paul said that the Law of God is good, that he wanted to do good, that he delighted in obeying it, and that he served it with his mind in contrast with the law of sin, which was working within his members to cause him not to do the good that he wanted to do, which was waging war against the law of his mind, which he served with his flesh, which held him captive, and which the Law of the Spirit has free us from. Moreover, in Romans 8:3-7, Paul contrasted those who walk in the Spirit with those who have minds set on the flesh who are enemies of God who refuse to submit to the Law of God.

The Law of God leads us to do what is holy, righteous, and good (Romans 7:12) while the law of sin leads us in the opposite direction by stirring up sinful passions in order to bear fruit unto death (Romans 7:5). So if a verse refer to something that would be absurd for Paul to delight in doing, then it should not be interpreted as referring to the Law of God while verses that refer to a law that is sinful, that causes sin to increase, or that hinders us from obeying the Law of God should be interpreted as referring to the law of sin. For example, in Romans 6:14, Paul described the law that we are not under as being a law where sin had dominion over him and it would be absurd for Paul to delight in sin having dominion over him, but rather that is the role of the law of sin. In Romans 6:15, being under grace does not mean that we are permitted to sin, and in Romans 7:7, the Law of God is not sinful but how we know what sin is, so we are still under the Law of God. In Romans 7:6, it would be absurd for Paul to delight in being held captive to sin, but rather it is the law of sin that he described as holding him captive (Romans 7:23).

In Romans 6:16-23, Paul contrasted these two directions where we are slaves to the one that we obey, either the law of sin, which leads to death, or obedience to the Law of God, which leads to righteousness. We are no longer to present ourselves as slaves to impurity, lawlessness, and sin, but are now to present ourselves as slaves to God and to righteousness leading to sanctification, and the goal of sanctification is eternal life in Christ, which is the gift of God, so being a doer of the Law of God is His gift of eternal life. So if you're not careful about how you interpret Romans 7, then you can end up dying to God's gift of eternal life. We need to die to the law of sin in order to be free to obey the Law of God, not the other way around.

In Romans 7:1-4, at no point was the woman set free from needing to obey the Law of God and if she were to get married to a second husband after the death of her first husband, then she would still be required to refrain from committing adultery, so there is nothing that leads to the conclusion in verse 4 that in the same way we have been set free from the Law of God. It would not make sense to think that we need to die to what Christ taught in order to become unified with him or that we need to die to God's Word in order to become unified with God's word made flesh, but rather we need to die to the law of sin. Likewise, it wouldn't make sense to think that we need to die to God's instructions for how to bear fruit for Him in order to be free to bear fruit for Him, but rather we need to die to a law that was hindering us from bearing fruit for God, namely the law of sin.

In Romans 7:8-13, it is the law of sin that takes the opportunity through the Law of God to produce all manner of evil desire and apart from the law of sin sin would be death. Paul said that the Law of God is good and that it was not that which is good that brought death to him, but the law of sin working through that which is good to produce death in him. For example, there is nothing inherent to the command against coveting that causes coveting to increase, but other that command leads us away from coveting and causes coveting to decrease. The problem is that there is law of sin that is working within our members that react to the command against coveting that causes coveting to increase.

Zceptre said:

This section in the NKJV for context is titled by the translators "The Law Brings A Curse."

Galatians 3:10-14
10For as many as are of the works of the law are under the curse; for it is written, “Cursed is everyone who does not continue in all things which are written in the book of the law, to do them.” 11But that no one is justified by the law in the sight of God is evident, for “the just shall live by faith.” 12Yet the law is not of faith, but “the man who does them shall live by them.”

13Christ has redeemed us from the curse of the law, having become a curse for us (for it is written, “Cursed is everyone who hangs on a tree”), 14that the blessing of Abraham might come upon the Gentiles in Christ Jesus, that we might receive the promise of the Spirit through faith.

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In Romans 3:27, Paul contrasted a law of works with a law of faith, in Galatians 3:10-12, he contrasted the Book of the Law with "works of the law", and in Roman 3:31 and Galatians 3:10-12, he said that our faith upholds the Law of God in contrast with saying that "works of the law" are not of faith, so that phrase does not refer to the Law of God, which is why it is not of faith. According to Deuteronomy 28-30, the way to be blessed is by relying on the Book of the Law while the way to be cursed is by not relying on it, so Galatians 3:10 should not be interpreted as Paul quoting from that passage in order to support a point that is arguing the opposite of that passage. Rather, the fact that cursed is everyone who does not continue to do everything in the Book do the Law means that we should continue to do everything in the Book of the Law, which is why those who rely on "works of the law" instead come under that curse.

In Galatians 3:10-12, Paul associated a quote from Leviticus 18:5 that the one who obeys the Law of God will attain life by it with a quote from Habakkuk 2:4 that the righteous shall live by faith, so those who were obeying the Law of God are the same as those who are living by faith. In 1 John 3:4-7, everyone who is a doer of righteous works in obedience to the Law of God is righteous even as they are righteous, and Isaiah 51:7, the righteous are those on whose heart is the Law of God, so the righteous living by faith does not refer to a an alternative means of living that is not in obedience to it. God is trustworthy, therefore His law is also trustworthy (Psalms 19:7), so the way to trust in God is by obediently trusting in His instructions, it would be contradictory to think that we should have faith in God for salvation but not in His instructions, and the position that God's instructions are not of faith rather than "works of the law" denies the faithfulness of God.

The Law of God was not given as a curse, but rather it was given in order to teach us how to be blessed, so Christ setting us free from the curse of the law is setting us free from lawlessness so that we can be free to enjoy the blessing of lawfulness. In Titus 2:14, it does not say that Jesus gave himself to redeem us from the Law of God, but in order to redeem us from all lawlessness and to purify for himself a people of his own possession who are zealous for doing good works, so the way to believe in what Jesus accomplished through the cross is by becoming zealous for doing good works in obedience to the Law of God (Acts 21:20).

Soyeong said:

so those who were obeying the Law of God are the same as those who are living by faith.

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King David did not depend on living by the law when he slept with Bathsheba and sent her husband to the front lines to be killed.

He depended on God in faith of the promise of a Messiah just the same as we do, and the mercy of God and God's righteousness, not his own righteousness. Psalm 51 was written in response to this event and depicts clearly the difference between following the law itself for the sake of being righteous in one's own strength versus depending on God's righteousness and His mercy in Christ to hold us up when we come to realize that all (and there are no exceptions but Christ Jesus) have fallen short of the glory of God and need His forgiveness and helping hand to cleanse them (Romans 3:23).

King David would have brought the curse on himself if he depended on the law just like God Himself (not I) states in Galatians 3, and we will do the same if we do differently than king David who is known as a man after God's own heart, not known as a man after God's own law. Only with Christ's sacrifice applied to their life through surrender to Him can anyone have any righteousness.

Like I said in my previous post, we should be superseding the law by following the leading of God's Spirit in us. As Christ states when He sums up the law in Matthew 22 that by loving God with all our being and loving our neighbor as ourself we then fulfill the whole law. Paul restates this later in his epistles and so does James. (James 2:8) (Galatians 5:14) (Romans 13:10)

No one is exempt and able to follow the law perfectly without God's forgiveness and mercy but Christ. Anyone claiming they can has lost themselves in pride.