Page 46 - The Road from Babylon to Zion

Acts 15:5
But some of the sect of the Pharisees who had believed stood up, saying,
"It is necessary to circumcise them and to direct them to observe the
Law of Moses."

The Pharisees were proud of their adherence to the Law of Moses. Paul was himself
formerly a Pharisee, and he proclaimed that according to the righteousness found in
the Law, he was perfect (Philippians 3:6). However, in the passage we just looked at
we have Yahshua’s words, “that unless your righteousness exceeds the righteousness
of the scribes and Pharisees, you will by no means enter the kingdom of heaven.”

How do we get to this point of having a righteousness that exceeds the Scribes and
Pharisees? Is it by keeping the letter of the Law better than they did? Absolutely not!
We exceed the righteousness of the Pharisees by becoming partakers of the finished
work of Christ. He becomes our righteousness.

II Corinthians 5:21
He made Him who knew no sin to be sin on our behalf, so that we might
become the righteousness of God in Him.

I Corinthians 1:30-31
But by His doing you are in Christ Jesus, who became to us wisdom
from God, and righteousness and sanctification, and redemption, so
that, just as it is written, "LET HIM WHO BOASTS, BOAST IN THE
LORD."

Yet we find that the same saints today who so scorn the Pharisees, act just like the
early Pharisees found in the church as they try to place the saints back under the
Law. Many are sincere in this, but they are sincerely deluded.

This man whose writings I posted to my website began to speak more and more of
keeping the Law, and I tried to reason with him from the scriptures. I shared with
him that it was no longer necessary to teach the Law to the saints and to encourage
them to place themselves under its jurisdiction. Those who now walk in the Spirit no
longer need to be held in check by an external body of legislation, for the Spirit
within convicts the saint of “sin and righteousness and judgment”. The Spirit
accomplishes what an external body of rules never could, He brings our inner being
into conformity to Christ where we DESIRE to pursue righteousness and holiness
and to walk in obedience to the leading of the Spirit in all matters.

This man knew the letter of the scriptures. He set forth many arguments as to why
the saints still needed to keep the Law today, and for a time I wavered in doubt. Yet
the Spirit within me would not allow me to be swept away from the liberty that I