Who were Jesus's enemies? Was it the prostitutes, the thieves or the outcast? No, it was the religious law keeping Pharisees. They hated him so much that they finally had him crucified. The ones that loved and accepted Jesus were the prostitutes, the thieves and the outcast. The Pharisees accused Jesus of being a wine bibber and a friend of sinners, Luke 7:34. At least the sinners were not trying to kill him.
If you want to know what Jesus thought about the religious law keeping Pharisees read the 23rd chapter of Matthew. He called them hypocrites seven times, besides a bunch of other things. The worse being "serpents" Matthew 23:33. The Pharisees were super religionist, they even tithed down to the mint in their gardens, Matthew 23:23.
Every time I have to go to a Catholic church, I can count on seeing a life size statue of the crucified Christ hanging on the wall. Jesus is not on the cross, he is in heaven as the "King of Kings and the Lord of Lords" Revelation 19:16. Worse yet, at Christmas time here are all of those manger scenes. Jesus is not in a manger. Why doesn't someone show Jesus sitting on a throne as a King? It appears to me that the Spirit of anti-Christ is alive and well.
Paul said, "But sin, taking occasion by the commandment, wrought in me all manner of concupiscence (Lust) for without the law sin was dead" Romans 7:8.
It was the law that caused Paul to lust. This is why Jesus abolished the law for Christians, Ephesians 2:15. Where there is no law, there is no sin, Romans 4:15. Knowing this, why would anyone want to follow the law? There is something in human nature when told not to do something we want to do it. God told Eve, "Don't eat of the tree in the midst of the garden." What did Eve do? She had to go look at it. Before God said don't eat of the tree no one paid any attention to the tree. But now God said, "Don't eat of the tree".
I had a teenage friend that had a lot of success with the girls that went to the Baptist church. I asked him one day what his secret was. He said, those girls are being told so much not to do it that they can't wait to do it. A classic example of human nature. If you are bound by laws, rules and religion you will sin. I didn't say that, Paul did. Paul also said, "For he that is dead is freed from sin" Romans 6:7. So, how do we become dead to the law? We become dead to the law when we stop being religious and believe that we have been crucified with Christ.
When Jesus died on the cross, we spiritually died with him. Our old sinful nature was crucified with Christ, Galatians 2:20. This is not make-believe stuff. We have been crucified with Christ. If we have been crucified with Christ then we are dead to the law. If we have been crucified with Christ, then we don't have to obey our old sinful nature. When tempted to sin you can now say, "I am dead to that". What is our spiritual position in Christ? This is our spiritual position, "For you are dead (crucified with Christ) and your life is hid with Christ in God" Colossians 3:3.
If you want to know what Jesus thought about the religious law keeping Pharisees read the 23rd chapter of Matthew. He called them hypocrites seven times, besides a bunch of other things. The worse being "serpents" Matthew 23:33. The Pharisees were super religionist, they even tithed down to the mint in their gardens, Matthew 23:23.
Every time I have to go to a Catholic church, I can count on seeing a life size statue of the crucified Christ hanging on the wall. Jesus is not on the cross, he is in heaven as the "King of Kings and the Lord of Lords" Revelation 19:16. Worse yet, at Christmas time here are all of those manger scenes. Jesus is not in a manger. Why doesn't someone show Jesus sitting on a throne as a King? It appears to me that the Spirit of anti-Christ is alive and well.
Paul said, "But sin, taking occasion by the commandment, wrought in me all manner of concupiscence (Lust) for without the law sin was dead" Romans 7:8.
It was the law that caused Paul to lust. This is why Jesus abolished the law for Christians, Ephesians 2:15. Where there is no law, there is no sin, Romans 4:15. Knowing this, why would anyone want to follow the law? There is something in human nature when told not to do something we want to do it. God told Eve, "Don't eat of the tree in the midst of the garden." What did Eve do? She had to go look at it. Before God said don't eat of the tree no one paid any attention to the tree. But now God said, "Don't eat of the tree".
I had a teenage friend that had a lot of success with the girls that went to the Baptist church. I asked him one day what his secret was. He said, those girls are being told so much not to do it that they can't wait to do it. A classic example of human nature. If you are bound by laws, rules and religion you will sin. I didn't say that, Paul did. Paul also said, "For he that is dead is freed from sin" Romans 6:7. So, how do we become dead to the law? We become dead to the law when we stop being religious and believe that we have been crucified with Christ.
When Jesus died on the cross, we spiritually died with him. Our old sinful nature was crucified with Christ, Galatians 2:20. This is not make-believe stuff. We have been crucified with Christ. If we have been crucified with Christ then we are dead to the law. If we have been crucified with Christ, then we don't have to obey our old sinful nature. When tempted to sin you can now say, "I am dead to that". What is our spiritual position in Christ? This is our spiritual position, "For you are dead (crucified with Christ) and your life is hid with Christ in God" Colossians 3:3.