The Spiritual Fruit of Law-Abiding Love: The Ten Commandments Coupled with the Fruit of the Spirit

In the popular evangelical sub-culture of America, there is an ongoing tension between law and grace. The law stands in opposition to grace. Romans 6:14 becomes a slogan, “You are not under law but under grace.” This sloganeering throws the proverbial baby out with the bathwater. The grace of God in Christ does not stand opposed to the Ten commandments. God’s grace stands against the concept that obedience to the Ten Commandments is a means of pleasing God and gaining salvation from Him. The grace of God in Christ and the law of God summarized in the Ten Commandments are entirely compatible. Therefore, Jesus teaches, “If you love Me, you will keep My commandments” (John 14:15). He then adds, “He who has My commandments and keeps them is the one who loves” (John 14:21). The Apostle John defines love in terms of the Ten Commandments. “For this is the love of God, that we keep His commandments” (1 John 5:3). And again, “This is love, that we walk according to His commandments (2 John 1:6 ). Since law and grace are compatible, I call this study of the Ten Commandments and the fruit of the Spirit, “The Spiritual Fruit of Law-Abiding Love.”