James invites us to gaze deeply into the perfect law of freedom. James 1:25-26 CSB But the one who looks intently into the perfect law of freedom and perseveres in it, and is not a forgetful hearer but a doer who works — this person will be blessed in what he does.

James 2:12-13 CSB Speak and act as those who are to be judged by the law of freedom. For judgment is without mercy to the one who has not shown mercy. Mercy triumphs over judgment.

James might be able to help me answer a question that I’ve been asking myself. How do we govern the church, the body of Christ, when our relationship with the good and holy law comes to an end in the literal body of Christ on the cross? This is a valid and important question to ask and answer, because throwing Moses’ law out with the baptism water, and being a new creation, sounds like a dangerous idea. In the new covenant our relationship with the law of Moses is over, and we receive the Spirit as our guide. We have new laws for the new covenant, and the perfect law of freedom is one of them.

My goal is to define the law of freedom through the lens of Romans 7, where we have been released from the rule of the law of Moses, to walk in the Spirit. I also want to define the law of freedom through the lens of Acts 15, where the Jerusalem Council had a big debate about our freedom from the law of Moses, that neither we, nor our ancestors could obey. James attended the Jerusalem Council, and I believe he is operating in, and writing to us about the perfect law of freedom from the law of Moses.

Hightlighted in the green are the people who were at the Jerusalem Council, I’m making a note that Peter, Paul, Barnabas and James attended. Our good book authors were free people. The Christians who want us to obey the law of Moses are testing God by putting a yoke on our necks for Christan living. The good and holy law gets removed from us, and we receive the Spirit, in it’s place.

I confess I’m guilty of reading James and Peter through a bound conscience. It is a difficult spiritual discipline to read through the law of freedom lens. James is on my bucket list since Faith without works is dead, James 2:17 has swallowed up the good news that faith itself is the good work that God prepared for us to do. Faith in Christ for the forgiveness of sins is a gift that we receive from the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit is a gift. Freedom from the good and holy law is a gift. We have freedom to consider what works we would like to do to be of benefit to our neighbor. That’s a gift that the perfect law of freedom gives to us.

James 1:17 CSB
Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, who does not change like shifting shadows.

As free people we have permission to read scripture as appeals to a freed conscience. We have permission to relax into Christ and trust that the Spirit and our spirit are in union. Consider what we are willing and able to do, consider what we are interested in, trusting that what our spirit wants to do might be what the Spirit wants us to do. Maybe we will be surprised to discover that we operate best in the perfect law of freedom from the law of Moses.

This is an alien way to think about it, but I’m trusting that God is going to continue to prune commands and demands from me to walk in the law of freedom bearing fruit for God from the heart.

According to the law of faith we have permission to live in the absolution: We are forgiven and free. We are righteous, holy, Christ-like as a gift, on account of Christ, crucified and resurrected. These gospel affirmations are a comfort in the face of both the good and the bad that we will do in this world.

Enjoying life in Christ.

Related:

The Law of Faith