Law and Gospel Distinguished
Demands vs Gives
Law and Gospel · 6 verses
The law demands perfect obedience and threatens eternal punishment for failure; the gospel gives perfect righteousness and promises eternal life through faith. This fundamental distinction must be maintained: law requires, gospel provides; law extracts, gospel bestows; law drains, gospel fills. Confusing these categories produces either despair or presumption. The law shows what man owes God; the gospel shows what God gives man. Both are necessary, but they must not be conflated.
Scripture References
“For Moses describeth the righteousness which is of the law, That the man which doeth those things shall live by them.”
“For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.”
“And the law is not of faith: but, The man that doeth them shall live in them.”
“For if by one man's offence death reigned by one; much more they which receive abundance of grace and of the gift of righteousness shall reign in life by one, Jesus Christ.)”
“For the law was given by Moses, but grace and truth came by Jesus Christ.”
“Now therefore why tempt ye God, to put a yoke upon the neck of the disciples, which neither our fathers nor we were able to bear? But we believe that through the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ we shall be saved, even as they.”