The Modern Face of Antinomianism: Looking at the Law

Yesterday I had the privalege of gong to Crawley to hear (nearly-doctor) Richard Barcellos speak on the use of the 10 commandments in the Christian Life.

The two lectures given addressed the issue of antinomianism. Literally the word means 'against law'. It's implications are that the moral law is not a binding rule for the Christian today. Barcello argued that the law is applicable today as it was for the Old Testament believers. Not that we attain our righteousness by the law. No, we receive righteousness through faith in Christ. But that the breaking any of the ten commandments is seen as sin in the eyes of God (1 John 3:4).

Here are my notes from the first session: Looking at the Law
1) Through the Baptist Confession of Faith (BCF)
2) Through Calvin
3) Through Scripture

1) Through the BCF

BCF 4:2 after words ‘having law of God written’ there’s a reference to Rom 2:14-15.
This text proves that there is somewhat a law written on the natural mans heart.

God wrote the basic elements of the 10 commandments on the hearts of Adam and Eve. After the fall our constitution changes although the revelation of the law gets through. This is the law that the religious man tries to satisfy (wrongly).
Law written on the hearts = the natural law.
A and E also received a positive law: ‘don’t eat from the fruit of the tree’. Obedience to this law can win Adam into a immutable state.
The obedience of Adam could have attained our righteousness

Adam and Eve transgressed the positive and moral law.
BCF 6:1
BCF 19:1-5 God gave Adam a law of universal obedience.
The moral law transcends covenants and cultures because it is originally written on our hearts at creation.

Jews got the law revealed to them on their heart and in the tablet.
Christians get the law via the scriptural canon, the natural heart, and at regeneration.

Moral law = the inscription of the natural law.
Natural law = the law on the heart.

The moral law is an administration of the natural law.

The fundamental law of the OC = the same law written on the hearts of men.
Besides this law God gives ceremonial and judicial laws to point to Christ.

2) Through Calvin

Calvin is not clear on some of the questions concerning the 4th commandment although it is clear that he believed in the law after creation as creation write the 10 commandments on the heart.

General rev = law on the hearts
Special rev = the 10 commandments

Calvin believes all 10 of the 10 commandments are relevant for Christians. See the institutes.
On Gen 2:3 Calvin comments that the creation Sabbath is incorporated into the NC.

According to Calvin the Sabbath is:
A day of public worship
A day of rest for servants

Calvin wasn’t clear on the absolute necessity of worshipping on the first day.

3) Through Scripture

This passage is evidently a prophecy of NT life.
Whenever ‘My law’ is used in Jeremiah it always refers to a law that had been previously revealed by God to Israel (6:19, 9:13, 16:11, 26:4, 31:33, 44:10).
Everyone in this covenant will have the same redemptive privileges.
God wrote the law explicitly with His finger (Exodus 31:18).
See 2 Corinthians 3:3 for a fulfilment of Exodus 31:18 and Jeremiah 31:31-33.
The 10 commandments don’t need to be repeated as they pre-date the OC and are based on creation.

Romans 13:8 proves that all commands for Christians can be summed up by love.
The commandments can be reduced to there bare essential elements see Romans 7:7.

It is the essence of the commandment that is morally binding not a particular form in which the commandment is expressed.

Notes from the 2nd session to be uploaded soon. Books by Barcellos

Made for us....

I've just been reading the 2nd chapter of marks gospel and was struck by verse 27:

'The Sabbath was made for man, and not man for the Sabbath.'

Amazing! A whole day made for us so that we can delight in God, it was made for us! I reckon that too often Sunday becomes a day when we do more restricting than liberating. For example don't go to this place or don't watch that. If negative rules are the extent of the sabbath then it's going to be dull. There has to be a postive as well as a negative. We most seek our joy in God especially on Sunday. This comes from regulating what we don't do but more importantly what we DO do.

Matthew Henry says:

The sabbath is a sacred and divine institution; but we must receive and embrace it as a privilege and a benefit, not as a task and a drudgery. God never designed it to be an imposition upon us, and therefore we must not make it so to ourselves.

'If you turn away your foot from the Sabbath, From doing your [worldly] pleasure on My holy day, And call the Sabbath a delight, The holy day of the Lord honorable, And shall honor Him, not doing your own ways, Nor finding your own [worldly] pleasure, Nor speaking your own words, Then you shall delight yourself in the Lord' (Isaiah 58v13)

'For this is the love of God, that we keep His commandments. And His commandments are not burdensome' (1 John 5v3)

It's time to get excited!

Yup it is time to get very excited. Why? Well actually not because of Christmas. Actually it's because tomorrow is Sunday. And Sunday for Christians should be the best day of the week!

Tomorrow is a day when we can give our whole selves (heart, soul, mind and strength) to worshipping and adoring God. Now don't get me wrong-even if we eat or drink we're worshipping Him; but Sunday is a time to be in His immediate presence.

Let me clarify: We can worship God though what is carnal (physical/temporary). 1 Corinthians 10v31 states this: 'whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God'.
This means that fajitas and filter coffee are worship!

So out of something carnal comes the worship. The worship is always spiritual though. It should be done in Spirit and in Truth (John 4v24) like our prayers should be' in the Holy Spirit' (Jude 20) true prayer is always in th Holy Spirit becuase God is spirit.

Sunday is a day for worship that is not based on the carnal (ie secular jobs, food etc)-it's just us adoring God through the Bible, Prayer, communion and fellowship with each other. Sunday should be the destination and climax of the Christian week. We should wish for a month of Sundays! Sundays are golden.

How can you encourage someone in your Church tomorrow? Do you need to exhort or rebuke someone who is back sliding? Who can you give comforting scriptures to? Can you challenge an un-believer? Why don't you offer to pray with someone after the service to build them up? Why don't you ask them about their soul? Don't be satisifed with small-talk:

'Hi, how are you?'
'Well thanks, you?'
'Yeah good thanks, see you next week.'
'See you, bye'

How about something like this:

'Hey! How are you doing?'
'Good thanks'
'How did God speak to you through the service?'
'Well he reminded me about grace and how all I need to do is to trust in the cross and not work my way to Him'
'That's really cool! God is amazing he loves to bless us!'

The 2nd is so much better and more encouraging!!

What is Sunday worship to us? Can we spend long amounts of time around the word of God and prayer? If Sunday worship doesn't thrill us then Heaven wont either. The seventh day will be turned into an eternal seventh day or sabbath soon.

'There remains therefore a rest for the people of God' (Hebrews 4v9)

Rest from what...worship? No way! A rest from worship would be a seeking to find happiness in everything apart from God. It's a rest from carnal work. From a sin diseased world. From a corrupted heart. Rest from imperfect obedience and imperfect servant hood. A rest from faith because it will be turned to sight. A rest from picturing Jesus through the scriptures....we will see him face to face. A rest from worry and grief. A rest from the devil hounding us to temptation. A rest from worldliness trying to pollute our mind with anti-Jesus thoughts. A rest from Chrsitians who are luke-warm and half-hearted. A rest from the deception and stalking of the devil. A rest from 'contending earnestly for the faith' (Jude 3). A rest from false prophets and decievers. A rest from tears over our sin. A rest from evangelism (although it's our joy). A rest in Jesus arms-complete comfort and adoration to King Jesus. The rest is in Heaven.

Meditate on this verse for 10 minutes

'Their Redeemer is strong;
The Lord of hosts is His name.
He will thoroughly plead their case,
The He may give rest to the land,
And disquiet the inhabitants of Babylon' (Jeremiah 50v34)

If this verse doesnt make you praise God then you need to seek God either for salvation or a greater filling of the Holy Spirit.


“God hath made it our duty, by his institution, to set apart this day [the Sabbath] for special seeking of his grace and blessing. From which we may argue, that he will be especially ready to confer his grace on those who thus seek it… The Sabbath day is an accepted time, a day of salvation, a time wherein God especially loves to be sought, and loves to be found…”
Jonathan Edwards

Get excited about tomorrow!