“What the Law could not do, because human nature was weak, God did…” Romans 8:3-4 (GNT).
God had given His people the law to help and guide them to do the good. But it was impossible for the law to make anyone perfect according to their conscience; it could not take away sins. (Hebrews 7:19; Hebrews 9:9-10; Hebrews 10:1-4.) The law was a great help. The saints in the Old Testament who lived according to it received great blessings, but nothing could make them perfect. Therefore, we read that the law was weak and useless, but now we have a better hope through which we can come near to God. (Hebrews 7:19.)
God did!
This better hope that we have now, is that everything can become perfect. In this hope we can come closer to God. Only a few people truly believe this, but for them, this hope becomes real when they seek God.
To become perfect? Almost everyone says that’s impossible! As long as a person is under the law, it is impossible; but what was impossible, God did! Many say, “Jesus fulfilled the law for us, so now grace covers our life no matter how weak and sinful we might be, and God sees us through Jesus who is perfect.”
But we read in Romans 8:4 (GNT): “… that the righteous demands of the Law [that which the law was intended to do, but couldn’t] might be fully satisfied in us who live according to the Spirit, and not according to human nature.” It is not something that was just fulfilled in Jesus and is now reckoned as being true in us; no, it shall also be fulfilled in our life. Cross out the word “impossible” and replace it with “possible”. Jesus gave us that better hope.
“For if the blood of goats and oxen, and the dust from the burning of a young cow, being put on the unclean, make the flesh clean: How much more will the blood of Christ, who, being without sin, made an offering of himself to God through the Holy Spirit, make your hearts clean from dead works to be servants of the living God?” Hebrews 9:13-14 (BBE).
The sacrifices that the law required to receive forgiveness for one’s sins, could only bring an outward cleansing, an outward righteousness, but nothing happened on the inside. (Matthew 23:28.) They could do much good according to the law, but nothing changed on the inside. They knew it was not perfect. The result was only dead works.
The Son took on flesh and blood
The law was weak and useless as far as people’s sinful human nature was concerned. Sin had spread through all of human nature and kept people captive. Therefore God sent His Son who took upon Him flesh and blood just as us. (Hebrews 2:14.) And through Him the impossible became possible. Now we can become perfect. We can change on the inside.
Forgiveness through the blood of goats couldn’t help the sinner to overcome sin, because the goat itself hadn’t overcome sin, therefore this couldn’t lead people to overcome sin. People sinned over and over again, and therefore they had to bring the same sacrifices over and over again, which reminded them of their sins every time. (Hebrews 10:1-4.)
But it was different with the blood of Jesus. Jesus was also tempted by the sin in His human nature, but He overcame it; therefore, His blood is so much more effective. He cannot only give forgiveness, but also victory over all sin so that everything is put into order according to the light we have. (Hebrews 9:10.)
Most people pray for forgiveness for the sins they have done in their life, but they think it is impossible to change. Others have faith that it is possible to change some things but they still believe it is impossible to put everything in order. But God be praised, we have received the good news that what was impossible has now become possible for those who are upright.
Therefore, we are exhorted in Hebrews 6:1: “Leaving the discussion of the elementary principles of Christ, let us go on to perfection…” Paul forgot the things that were behind him and he reached out for perfection. He did this because of the knowledge of Christ that had given him this hope and this zeal. (Philippians 3:8.) He knew that the impossible had become possible, and he sacrificed everything to become perfect.
It is very difficult for people to accept this “better hope” because they do not want to give up the benefits they could get in the world. We cannot go on to perfection and at the same time seek to be something in this world. That is impossible; but it is possible to crucify our human nature with its passions and desires by the Spirit of Christ and be perfect according to our conscience. (Galatians 5:24.)
God’s will be done
Jesus said, “You did not want animal sacrifices or sin offerings. But you have given me a body to offer. You were not pleased with burnt offerings or other offerings for sin. Then I said, ‘Look, I have come to do your will, O God— as is written about me in the Scripture.’” Hebrews 10:5-7 (NLT).
God did not want sacrifices and offerings, but He wanted His will to be done. But that was impossible under the law. That is why Jesus came with a body. He ended the first system, which was all the sacrifices, and established a new way, which was to do God’s will. (Hebrews 10:9.) That is the perfect thing to do. Jesus’ body was sacrificed by doing the Father’s will.
“For by one Spirit we were all baptized into one body…” 1 Corinthians 12:13. Anyone who does not have the Spirit of Christ does not belong to Him. Those who have received the Spirit of Christ, they are only in this world to do God’s will. They have received the Spirit of Christ which has crucified the sinful human nature with its passions and desires and seeks the things that are above, not the things on the earth. They have left everything behind and hate even their own life, their own will (Luke 14:26); they are the church and the body of Christ. Their bodies are a living, holy, and acceptable sacrifice to God. (Romans 12:1.)
For us who have been baptised with one Spirit to be one body, it is not slavery to keep God’s commandments. For us the commandments are easy. We don’t say that we shall do nothing because Jesus did everything in our place. We talk about works all the time, about doing God’s will in whatever area we have received light, for by the Spirit of Christ we have become members of the body that came to do only God’s will.
Those heavy and sad “impossibles” have disappeared and we’ve received a better hope. We rejoice and are glad in doing all God’s will, which has now become “possible”.
