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Preface to "The Body of Christ under Grace Not Law" List
And the "Comparative Difference of Israel and the Body of Christ"

The following list of passages demonstrate that the body of Christ is " not under Law, but under grace." Romans 6:14. This gives the reader a quick look into God's explanation to the body of Christ that we are heavenly people who have died to the law, whether Gentiles who by instinct do what is of the law or a Jew who was under the law with its ceremonies and regulations that were very specific. The Mosaic Law was given only to Israel as a covenant and a tutor that they would be under until the Seed (Jesus Christ) of Abraham came (Galatians 3:15-29).

Once the seed of Abraham (Jesus Christ) came, the law would be fulfilled by Him and He would redeem Israel from the law, the written law, as it would thereafter (under the promised New Covenant) be written on their hearts as prophesied. Jeremiah 31:27-40 and Ezekiel 36:22-38 explain that God will make a New Covenant with Israel including giving them a heart of flesh, a new spirit - His Spirit. John's gospel addresses this teaching as John says in John 1:17 "For the Law was given through Moses; grace and truth were realized through Jesus Christ." John also addresses the fact that Jesus is the shepherd who, as God and Man, the last Adam (1 Corinthians 15:45), came to find His lost (scattered, neglected) sheep Israel, as Ezekiel 34 prophesies. Jesus will then pasture Israel. God had first given a promise to Abraham and his seed (Jesus Christ), see Galatians chapter 3 and note verses 15-29. Paul, here, explains that first God gave promises to Abraham and his seed, then 430 years later, because of transgressions, the law covenant was given to the newly created elect nation, Israel. Paul explains that it would be there for Israel (to do) until faith came (Jesus Christ, Abraham's seed) for them to have faith in Christ, to be able to be justified (declared righteous). The law was temporarily a righteousness for Israel if they kept it, see Deuteronomy 6:24-25.

Paul explains in Romans 3 and Galatians 3 that no one is, or will ever be, justified (declared righteous) by law. Paul explains in Romans 5 that condemnation came to all men, and in Romans 3 that no one is righteous. Only the Heavenly Man can save the earthly man and this is the plan of God overall, to save and live with man to the praise of His glorious grace by what is done through Christ, as all justified men will live with God on the new earth in His light. Man is just only if he possesses God's righteousness as God's Word explains.

He has this specific plan explained and carried out from Genesis to Revelation. Paul explains in Romans 3:21 that now, after Jesus was sacrificed, apart from law, the righteousness of God has been manifested. The passage goes on to explain how this has happened and it is received by faith. The whole point being that the law would be from God as a righteousness, leading Israel to the seed of Abraham and once the seed came He would come only to the lost sheep of Israel to fulfill the law and provide redemption as Paul explains in Colossians 2.14, canceling the certificate of debt consisting of decrees against them which was hostile to them, having taken it out of the way, having nailed it to the cross.

First, Jesus, as Ezekiel 34 explains, seeks out His lost sheep Israel. He, after John the Baptist calls them to repentance and announces that the Daniel 2:44 kingdom is at hand or near, calls them to repentance and announces the kingdom is at hand. In several passages in the gospels Jesus also sends disciples with the same message, only to Israel, and gives them authority to do God's signs by God's working of miracles of all sorts including casting out demons, Read Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John's accounts of the seed of Abraham/Christ's coming. Paul explains that after faith came, the law was no longer required (for Israel as a righteousness). We now revisit Abraham as a justified believer whose works, testing by God, prove he has faith as God's Word says Abraham believing God was credited to him as righteousness, see Romans 4:3. Read all of Romans 4 for a fuller explanation.

The confusion in the body today begins with the lack of understanding of Deuteronomy 6:24-25 and the book of Daniel, especially Daniel 2:44 and 9:24-27 and what the so called gospels, which are accounts of the coming of the Christ only to the lost sheep of Israel, literally say. There were hundreds of prophecies fulfilled from the birth to the resurrection of the Christ, including fulfilling Ezekiel 34 where God said He would personally come and find His lost sheep and heal them and then pasture them, though they are not pastured at this time. All of this is what was to happen from Daniel's 69th week (last 3 1/2 years of the 69th week) to the birth pangs of the 70th week of years where wrath is poured out on all the inhabitants of the earth to: purify Israel, punish the wicked, destroy the would be kingdom of anti-Christ and his Gentile rule and world system and effort to be like God, destroying, at His return to earth, the Gentiles who attack Jerusalem and judgment of Israel and the nations for entrance to, or denial of entrance to, His Kingdom from heaven here on earth. These are just some of the things mentioned throughout the prophets, Moses, the gospels, and the epistles. The kingdom will be birthed on earth after the birth pangs (70th week of years — Daniel 9) as Jesus describes them in Matthew 24, note vs. 8. Scripture shows in places where, as a woman has birth pangs before the birth occurs, likewise, God would bring sorrows (birth pangs) upon Israel before blessings (throughout Moses and the prophets). Jesus, in Matthew 24 and Revelation 6-19, is teaching that birth pangs will come on the wicked on the earth and as with a woman about to give birth, at first the pain is less, then the pain is more intense, then birth.

While the Christ was in the flesh at His coming in the first century, He was under law and at the Sermon on the Mount in Matthew 5 He says He is there to fulfill the law. This can also be a preface for some of the other pages, for example, the In Christ page and the Chart. One most important thing to understand is that the nation Israel was redeemed from Egypt, a specially created, covenanted nation, with many promises which were given while Israel conditionally lived under a righteousness for them called law. When the Seed came, died and rose again, the Mosaic Law was put aside because a righteousness of God now by faith is the only way to have righteousness. Jesus' death and resurrection brought in ''... a new covenant, not of the letter, but of the Spirit; for the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life." II Cor 3:6. The body of Christ is the first group being brought into the Kingdom (Col. 1:13) which presently is located in heaven and is entered by a spiritual birth (where flesh and blood cannot enter), by God's grace through the faith, given by His message of the gospel to everyone who believes.

Israel, presently, is partially hardened as a nationality, but any individual Jew can believe the gospel and be in Christ, see 2 Cor. 3, just as any Gentile. Paul, in his explanation of law and grace, explains our dying to law and its commandments, in Christ. Read Romans 3-8 carefully and Paul will, by the Holy Spirit, walk you through this doctrine. Then read Galatians 2:16-5:13 for added explanation. Then finally, read Paul's letters in full concerning the body of Christ who is seated in the heavenlies, citizenship in heaven, transferred into God's Son's Kingdom, and many other aspects of the body's heavenly position.

The list is of passages which clearly point to the fact that the body of Christ is under grace, not under law and how the apostle Paul, at the beginning of the body of Christ, is perplexed by the fact there are many who are turning back to the law (Gal. 4:20,21). Nearly all believers will go to the gospels to see how believers, under grace, should live and worship, whether we can lose our salvation and many other doctrines, which will never allow one to mature and will cause believers to be unsure of their heavenly position, beginning with their spiritual birth. Even worse, a false gospel will usually be given as the gospels teach salvation of a nation from coming wrath and righteousness being conditional, by works and only then, after judgment, will the Spirit be given for rebirth spiritually for entrance into the Daniel 2:44 Kingdom on earth. The revelation given to Paul, concerning the death to law in Christ, spiritual birth gospel by grace through faith, not works or self effort, heavenly citizenship, blessings, focus, life, salvation known as fact upon spiritual birth, etc. is ignored for the most part.

The Gentiles were never under law. When Paul says 'we' in Galatians, concerning being led to Christ, he was referring to Jews. It is often assumed that Paul was only talking to Gentiles but by this time the Jews were scattered all over the Roman Empire. This list will assume that Israel was under law. See Deuteronomy 6:24-25.

1. Romans 2:12 — "For all who have sinned without the Law will also perish without the Law; and all who have sinned under the Law will be judged by the Law."
2. Romans 3:19-20— "Now we know that whatever the Law says, it speaks to those who are under the Law, that every mouth may be closed, and all the world may become accountable to God; because by the works of the Law no flesh will be justified in His sight; for through the Law comes the knowledge of sin."
3. Ephesians 2:11-13 — "Therefore remember, that formerly you, the Gentiles in the flesh, who are called "Uncircumcision" by the so-called "Circumcision", which is performed in the flesh by human hands - remember that you were at that time separate from Christ, excluded from the commonwealth of Israel, and strangers to the covenants of promise, having no hope and without God in the world. But now in Christ Jesus you who formerly were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ."
4. Romans 2:14 — "...For when Gentiles who do not have the Law do instinctively the things of the Law, these, not having the Law, are a law to themselves, ..."
5. Romans 3:21-24 - "But now apart from the Law the righteousness of God has been manifested, being witnessed by the Law and the Prophets, even the righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ for all those who believe; for there is no distinction; for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, being justified as a gift by His grace through the redemption which is in Christ Jesus; ..."
6. Ephesians 2:13-19 — "But now in Christ Jesus you who formerly were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ. For He Himself is our peace, who made bath groups into one, and broke down the barrier of the dividing wall, by abolishing in His flesh the enmity, which is the Law of commandments contained in ordinances, that in Himself He might make the two into one new man, thus establishing peace, and might reconcile them both in one body to God through the cross, by it having put to death the enmity." Old Testament quote: "And He came and preached peace to you who were far away, and peace to those who were near;" for through Him we both have our access in one Spirit to the Father. So then you are no longer strangers and aliens, but you are fellow citizens with the saints, and are of God's household, ..."
7. Colossians 2:6-17 - "As you therefore have received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in Him, having been firmly rooted and now being built up in Him and established in your faith, just as you were instructed, and overflowing with gratitude. See to it that no one takes you captive through philosophy and empty deception, according to the tradition of men, according to the elementary principles of the world, rather than according to Christ. For in Him all the fullness of Deity dwells in bodily form, and in Him you have been made complete, and He is the head over all rule and authority; and in Him you were also circumcised with a circumcision made without hands, in the removal of the body of the flesh by the circumcision of Christ; having been buried with Him in baptism, in which you were also raised up with Him through faith in the working of God, who raised Him from the dead. And when you were dead in your transgressions and the uncircumcision of your flesh, He made you alive together with Him, having forgiven us all our transgressions, having canceled out the certificate of debt consisting of decrees against us and which was hostile to us; and He has taken it out of the way, having nailed it to the cross. When He had disarmed the rulers and authorities, He made a public display of them, having triumphed over them through Him. Therefore let no one act as your judge in regard to food or drink or in respect to a festival or a new moon or a Sabbath day — things which are a mere shadow of what is to come; but the substance belongs to Christ."
8. Romans 6:14 - "For sin shall not be master over you, for you are not under law, but under grace."
9. Romans 7:4-6 — "Therefore, my brethren, you also were made to die to the Law through the body of Christ, that you might be joined to another, to Him who was raised from the dead, that we might bear fruit for God. For while we were in the flesh, the sinful passions, which were aroused by the Law, were at work in the members of our body to bear fruit for death. But now we have been released from the Law, having died to that by which we were bound, so that we serve in newness of the Spirit and not in oldness of the letter."
10. Read all of Galatians chapter 3 here for full context of going from Law (Israel under law specifically; Gentiles that did instinctively what was of the law — not having or being under the law) to grace beginning with the unconditional promises, covenant to Abraham the believer - to temporary, conditional, promises to Israel the law keeper. We pick up in verse 19 . "Why the Law then? It was added because of transgressions, having been ordained through angels by the agency of a mediator, until the seed should come to whom the promise had been made. Now a mediator is not for one party only; whereas God is only one. Is the Law then contrary to the promises of God? May it never be! For if a law had been given which was able to impart life, then righteousness would indeed have been based on law. But the Scripture has shut up all men under sin, that the promise by faith in Jesus Christ might be given to those who believe. But before faith came, we were kept in custody under the Law, being shut up to the faith which was later to be revealed. Therefore the Law has become our tutor to lead us to Christ, that we may be justified by faith. But now that faith has come, we are no longer under a tutor. For you are all sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus. For all of you who were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ. There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free man, there is neither male nor female; for you are all one in Christ Jesus. And if you belong to Christ, then you are Abraham's offspring, heirs according to promise."
11. Read all of Galatians chapter 4 here for full context of Paul being perplexed that these believers, members of Christ's body, wanting to go back under the law, including the allegory of Sarah and Hagar, the spiritual disposition of their representative children: Hagar under law, unsaved Jews, persecuting those under grace, believers in Christ. We pick up in verse 19 — "My children, with whom I am again in labor until Christ is formed in you - but I could wish to be present with you now and to change my tone, for I am perplexed about you. Tell me, you who want to be under law, do you not listen to the law For it is written that Abraham had two sons, one by the bondwoman and one by the free woman. But the son by the bondwoman was born according to the flesh, and the son by the free woman through the promise." This is allegorically speaking: for these women are two covenants, one proceeding from Mount Sinai bearing children who are to be slaves; she is Hagar. Now this Hagar is Mount Sinai in Arabia, and corresponds to the present Jerusalem, for she is in slavery with her children. But the Jerusalem above is free; she is our mother...'
12. Read all of Galatians chapter 5 here for full context of those in Christ, being led by the Spirit are not under law. We pick up in verse 1 — it was for freedom that Christ set us free; therefore keep standing firm and do not be subject again to a yoke of slavery. Behold I, Paul, say to you that if you receive circumcision, Christ will be of no benefit to you. And I testify again to every man who receives circumcision, that he is under obligation to keep the whole Law. ... You were running well; who hindered you from obeying the truth? ... But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under the Law. ..."
13. Read all of 2 Corinthians chapter 3 about the difference between the New Covenant of the Spirit and Old Covenant of the stone tablets. Moses was showing the Glory of the Old Covenant to Israel and it was fading. The Glory of the New Covenant is much more Glorious. The Old Covenant was the letter that killed and the New Covenant is by the Spirit that gives life, etc. When a Jew believes, he can be saved, as an individual, but the nationality is partially hardened as Paul teaches in Romans. But even the nationality will be saved as such in the future as explained in Romans 11. All of this about law and grace and is in chapter 3.
14. Read the entire letter to the Hebrews and see the difference between Moses and everything given through him (the law Covenant, the earthly priesthood of Aaron, etc.) and Jesus, who is superior to Moses and the promises that came through Him (the new Covenant, the new priesthood by oath of appointment, etc). The letter explains how and why God did all of this. This list may be touched on but is not taught in churches (there can be confusion about the New Covenant terminology in Hebrews but Israel as a nation is a group that will receive the promised New Covenant but, presently, the Christ has a bride being created just as the nation Israel was created, out of the nations, through Abraham, his seed, by grace through faith.) The body of Christ is a revealed mystery, neither Jew nor Gentile, as Paul explains, while Israel the nation, is partially hardened even though an individual Jew from the nationality can believe the command to all mankind to repent and believe in Jesus Christ and be placed into Jesus as a member of His Body and be therefore a member of His bride (Eph. 5:30-32) who will reign with Him in the Daniel 2:44 Kingdom on earth, the 5th and final world empire, over the angels, Israel the nation and the Gentile nations. Everyone in the nation Israel and the nations will have to be born again to go into the Kingdom of the God of Heaven as Jesus, talking to a Jew under the law, says in John 3:3. People in the Kingdom will be born to those going in and will have their own circumstances to deal with. Believers in Christ presently are transferred into the Kingdom of God, in Heaven, the Kingdom of God which flesh and blood cannot enter. See Colossians 1:13; 1 Corinthians 15:50. Read all of Colossians chapter 1 and all of chapter 15 of 1 Corinthians for fuller context. Bear this in mind, Jesus told Pilate that His kingdom was not of this world. All through the gospels the language is the coming kingdom, to earth. Daniel 2:44 speaks of "...the God of Heaven will set up a kingdom..." etc.

All Scripture quoted in the Preface is from the NASB Translation; Holman Bible Publishers; copyright 1981

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