On Fulfilling the Royal Law

James 2:8-13
April 4, 2021
Abraham Hong

Sermon Script

The book of James is very humbling. We who are united with Christ Jesus strive to love and obey him with everything. We want to do well. And we often think that we are doing well. But God’s word humbles us. And it is for our good. The Lord wants us to remember that his law - his law that we want to fulfill - is more high and glorious than we think. He wants us to realize that perhaps we are not doing as well as we think we are. He wants us to repent of our foolishness. And he wants us to request for more wisdom from him. This is all very humbling.

But this is all very good. Jesus loves you. He wants you to do well. So let us listen carefully to him now. Here are three things that you need to know about God’s law.

First, dear Highland, know that the law of Christ Jesus is royal. Jesus’ law is royal because Jesus is the King. Jesus is God. He created all things. He has the greatest majesty and exaltation and glory. His throne and his kingdom will last forever. Jesus is your king. And his law is royal. His law is royal because he made the law and he declared the law. And since you could never fulfill the law that he made and declared, Jesus - because of his love and mercy and grace - paid the penalty of the law and fulfilled the requirements of the law… for you. For your salvation. Therefore, Jesus paid the penalty of the law with his royal body and blood. And Jesus fulfilled the requirements of the law with his royal obedience and righteousness. Your King died for you and lived for you and saved you. And now you are royal as well. Now we fulfill the law - not in order to be saved but because we are saved. All of this is why the law of Christ is royal. But when we strive to fulfill the law of God, we must remember that God’s law is more high and glorious than we think. God’s law is holy. And when we obey his law, we are doing something very royal. We are bowing down before and worshipping and loving our King. Never forget this. Never forget that the law is royal.

This is very humbling. Do we view God’s law as royal? Do we have this kind of fear of the Lord? Let us take the law of Christ more seriously. Let us approach it differently. Let us remember that we too are royal. Our obedience is a royal obedience. Your life is a royal life. Please consider all the ways in which you are not doing well. And be royal as your God is royal.

Second, dear Highland, know that the law of Christ Jesus is one. Jesus’ law is one because God is one. God is three persons: Father, Son and Holy Spirit. And God is one substance. Our God is Triune. Three and one. This is a mystery. But what is not a mystery is this. All of the royal law comes from one source, one author, one God. This means that if you do not commit adultery but you do commit murder, then you are not fulfilling the law. You may think that you are doing well. But you are not. You are only fulfilling part of the law. And when you fulfill only part of the law, you are not fulfilling any of the law. It is all or nothing. Imagine that you are taking a test for school. The test has 100 questions on it and each question is worth 1 point. Imagine that you take the test and get 99 questions correct and 1 question wrong. And now imagine that the grade you get for your test is not 99% but rather 0%. All or nothing. If you can imagine this, then you can begin to understand the reality of the royal law and begin to grow in wisdom. The law is one. You can believe and say that you do love your neighbor as yourself. But if you show partiality, then you are not fulfilling the law. You are not fulfilling the one royal law. You are not doing well. This is astounding. But it shouldn’t be. Because God is one. And God’s law is one. And when you do not fulfill the law, you are not ultimately wronging a rule. You are ultimately wronging the Ruler. Never forget this. Never forget that the law is one.

This is very humbling. Perhaps you do not struggle with adultery or murder in your heart. Perhaps you are good in your marriage or in your relationships overall. Perhaps you give a decent amount of money to the church. Perhaps you have served on many praise teams or mission trips or ministry events. But if you do well with all of that and yet you show partiality (or commit any other one sin), then you cannot say that you are doing well. Do not be proud of your good works. You are not really fulfilling anything. You are still sinning against the Lord. Do not show partiality, so to speak, with the one royal law. Do not show partiality, so to speak, with your own personal righteousness by highlighting all the things that you do right and downplaying all the things that you do wrong. This is a wake up call. Whoever keeps the whole law but fails in one point has become guilty of all of it. The royal law is all connected. Please consider all the ways in which you are not doing well. And be perfect as your God is perfect.

Third and finally, dear Highland, know that the law of Christ Jesus is a law of liberty. Jesus’ law is a law of liberty because God has shown us mercy and not judgment. God forgave your sins. God showed you mercy. God set you free from sin and from death. This is liberty. All of your brothers and sisters in Christ have this same liberty that you have. Therefore, speak and act as those who are to be judged under the law of liberty. And do not show partiality toward some church members. Instead, show mercy toward all church members. The law that you now strive to fulfill is a law of liberty. And you were not given judgment. You were given mercy. Mercy triumphed over judgment in you relation to God. And now mercy triumphs over judgment - and now mercy must triumph over judgment - in your relation to the church. Never forget this. Never forget that the law is a law of liberty.

This is very humbling. The showing of partiality is very much connected to a lack of mercy. We lack mercy. Are we merciful church members? Or are we judging church members? The Lord knows. And he loves us. Jesus does not judge us now. There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. For the law of the Spirit of life has set you free in Christ Jesus from the law of sin and death (Romans 8:1-2). Please consider all the ways in which you are not doing well. And be merciful as your God is merciful.

What strong words and strong medicine. But it is really strong love from our Lord Jesus Christ.

In Mark 10, a man ran up to Jesus and knelt before him and asked, “Good Teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?” Jesus said to him, “Why do you call me good? No one is good except God alone. You know the commandments: ‘Do not murder, Do not commit adultery, Do not steal, Do not bear false witness, Do not defraud, Honor your father and mother.’” The man said to Jesus, “Teacher, all these I have kept from my youth.” And Jesus, looking at him, loved him, and said to him, “You lack one thing: go, sell all that you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow me.” Disheartened by the saying, he went away sorrowful, for he had great possessions.

Dear Highland, if you don’t listen or read carefully, you’ll miss a beautiful thing in this story. Right before Jesus told the rich man to sell all of his possessions and follow him, it says that Jesus looked at him. And it says that Jesus loved him.

Jesus loves you. He loves you so much. And he loves you so much that he speaks strong words that cleanse us and change us and challenge us. Words that humble us and wake us up. This is his gracious discipline. This is his shepherding love. Therefore, dear church, repent of your sins. Repent of your failures in fulfilling the royal law. And receive God’s royal sanctification with joy and thanksgiving. We who are united with Christ Jesus strive to love and obey him with everything. We want to do well. And we often think that we are doing well. But God’s word humbles us. And it is for our good.

Soli Deo Gloria