THERE’S NO DENYING THIS…
The root cause of every aspect of every single person’s personal, familial, social, academic, occupational, ecclesiastical, economic, mental, physical, and [fill in the blank] troubles is sin. Whether directly or indirectly; whether committed by the individual or by others; sin is the foundation of all of our woes.
Heaven is free of troubles because it, and its inhabitants, are (1) free of sin and (2) free from sin. Where there is sin, there are difficulties and miseries; where there is no sin, there is perfect peace and bliss. It is impossible to be utterly free from sin, and to be surrounded by those who are likewise utterly free from sin, and to still experience affliction or distress. Similarly, it is impossible to have sin, and to be surrounded by those who likewise have sin, and to not experience affliction or distress.
Test this truth for yourself. Look at your own life. Trace back every sorrow, every source of pain, every torment, and you will find (if you are being honest), the transgression of God’s extant law as its direct or indirect origin.
To the extent that one loves God’s law, they hate sin. Likewise, to the extent that one truly hates sin, they love God’s law. The desire of every TRUE Christian is to keep God’s commandments, to delight in his law, and to walk in His way. To the extent that they do this, there is peace, to the extent that they do not, there is woe. The question is, can this be proven biblically? The answer is, of course it can!
Psalm 119:174 “I have longed for thy salvation, O LORD; and thy law [is] my delight.”
Romans 7:22 “For I delight in the law of God after the inward man…”
Psalm 119:165 “Great peace have they which love thy law: and nothing shall offend them.”
Ezekiel 36:27 “And I will put my spirit within you, and cause you to walk in my statutes, and ye shall keep my judgments, and do [them].”
Revelations 22:14 “Blessed [are] they that do his commandments, that they may have right to the tree of life, and may enter in through the gates into the city.”
John 15:10 “If ye keep my commandments, ye shall abide in my love; even as I have kept my Father’s commandments, and abide in his love. 11 These things have I spoken unto you, that my joy might remain in you, and [that] your joy might be full. 12 This is my commandment, That ye love one another, as I have loved you.”
1 John 5:2-3 “By this we know that we love the children of God, when we love God, and keep his commandments. 3 For this is the love of God, that we keep his commandments: and his commandments are not grievous.”
2 John 1:6 “And THIS IS love: that we walk after his commandments. This is the commandment, That, as ye have heard from the beginning, ye should walk in it.”
Romans 13:9 “For this, Thou shalt not commit adultery, Thou shalt not kill, Thou shalt not steal, Thou shalt not bear false witness, Thou shalt not covet; and if [there be] any other commandment, it is BRIEFLY COMPREHENDED [G346 / anakephalaioō / ἀνακεφαλαιόω: “it is summed up;” “it is condense into [the following] summary;” ‘it is gathered/condensed together…’] in this saying, namely, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself.”
To KEEP the extant law of God is to ‘protect it, guard it, store it up securely’ in your heart so as to do it, to obey it, as God enables. To OBEY the extant law of God requires God working in you BOTH to will, and to do, of His good pleasure. To truly (agape) LOVE anyone is to act towards them in a manner that is in complete accordance with the commands/imperatives of God. We keep perfectly, obey perfectly, delight perfectly, and love perfectly after the inward man, which cannot sin, by the Holy Spirit, and through eternal vital union with God the Son. However, in this body of death, we (due to indwelling sin) still manifestly sin. For God’s people, there is no perfection on this side of glory. And yet, for those already made perfectly holy and righteous in/by/through Christ, there is no requirement to keep the (extant) law to “get saved” or to “stay saved.” Instead, the perfect law of liberty has set us free from the bondage/dominion of sin, and has freed God’s people to be able to do what they could never do before… and that is to serve God, please God, and to obey God, all by His effectual workings and might. The Christian cannot keep/guard, obey, delight, or love perfectly in this life; however, we can pray for grace/mercy/strength to abound in these things more, and more, and more. Let us do so, Lord willing.
To God be the glory, forever and ever, amen.
