The Difference Between the Law and the Gospel
“rightly dividing the Word of Truth” (2 Tim. 2:15)
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Secondly, for discerning and discussing the difference between the Law and the Gospel, how these two parts are to be separated and distincted asunder as repugnant and contrary, and yet notwithstanding how they both stand together in Scripture and doctrine [i.e. that “the Law has become our tutor to lead us to Christ,” Gal. 3:24], and yet in doctrine no repugnance. The knowledge whereof how requisite it is for all Christians to learn, the miserable lack thereof will soon declare. For where these two be not rightly parted, but confounded [as in John MacArthur’s book The Gospel According to Jesus], what can follow there, but confusion of conscience, either leading to despair [when there is a lack of good works in one’s life], or else to blind security [when good works are present], without any order in doctrine, or true comfort of salvation? As by examples of time is soon seen, namely if we look into the later times of the Romish Church, where for want of right distinguishing between these two [i.e. between Law and Grace], great errors have risen; and no great marvel. For where the Gospel is taken for the Law, and the Law for the Gospel, and Christ received but only for a lawgiver: and where things go by works and law of deserving, what hope or assurance of salvation can be there, considering our works in their best kind be so imperfect and unprofitable? And what shall be said then of our naughty works? But especially what shall be said then to the mourning and lamenting sinner, who feeleth no good thing dwelling in him, but all wickedness? [Such a one] shall then despair, or how else will ye comfort him? For if Christ in His principal office be but a Teacher of the law and of works, and that be the chiefest thing to be required in a Christian, to work salvation by the law of working: where is then grace, mercy, promise, faith justifying, peace and rest of conscience, redemption from malediction of the law, if we be under the law still? Briefly, where is the new covenant of God made by His Son, if the old covenant made by Moses do yet remain? If it do not remain, then must there needs be a difference between the Law and the Gospel: between the old Testament and the new: between the law of works & the law of faith: between Moses and Christ, between the master and the servant: between Hagar and Sarah, and their two children. Now what difference this is, thou shalt not need, Christian Reader, by me to be instructed, having here the book of Martin Luther to read and peruse. Who as in his former Treatise before set forth upon the Epistle to the Galatians, so likewise in these his Commentaries upon the Psalms, doth so lively and at large discourse that matter, with many other things more, full of heavenly instruction and edification, that having him, though thou hadst no other expositor upon the holy Scripture, thou mayest have almost sufficient to make a perfect soldier against all the fiery darts of the tempting enemy. Again, having all other, and lacking this writer [i.e. Martin Luther], thou shouldest yet want something to the perfect practice and experience of a Christian Divine.”[1]
Reference:
[1] John Foxe, “To The Christian Reader”, Martin Luther’s A Commentarie Upon the Fifteene Psalmes (London: 1615), no page number. Editor’s note: The spelling of certain archaic words has been updated in order to conform to modern English spelling.
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Martin Luther expounds more on the difference between Law and Gospel in his commentary on Psalm 126:2, “Then shall our mouth be filled with laughter, and our tongue with joy. Then will they say among the heathen: The Lord hath done great things for them.” Commenting on this verse, Luther writes the following:
“This Psalm hath in it a singular majesty, and therefore the Prophet useth here many figurative or borrowed speeches. By laughter he signifieth the voice of the Gospel. For the Gospel should be to us nothing else but joy and gladness, especially if we compare it with the law. For the law terrifieth and killeth: whose use and office is, to break and to mollify the hard and stony hearts of the impenitent [i.e. the unrepentant], as Ezekiel saith. For they must be broken with this iron scepter (as it were) and beaten down to hell, as the Psalm[ist] prayeth: Let the wicked be turned into hell and all nations that forget God. For seeing they have a heart of iron, and as the Prophet saith, a brazen forehead, they must be terrified with the thundering of the law, that is, they must be brought to the fear of God’s judgment, and filled with the terror of death, as it happened to the people of Israel at the mount Sinai when the law was published by the voice of the Lord. But they that have a fleshy heart, that is to say, a soft and a tender heart, may not be killed with the law, but revived and raised up with another kind of doctrine, which the holy Ghost here calleth laughter and joy, that is to say, the Gospel. This is the right dividing of the word which S. Paul speaketh of, to preach and set forth to the impenitent [the unrepentant] and hard hearted, the threatening of the law, the wrath of God against sin, and the terrors of God’s judgment: but to the weak and broken hearted, the sweet comforts of the Gospel, that they which are secure and without fear [because they are proudly trusting in themselves], may now learn to fear the Lord: and they that are too much oppressed with fear [i.e. the brokenhearted or despairing ones], may be of good comfort and now begin to trust in the Lord. This difference between the law and the Gospel is well known, but by experience and practice it is not so well known. For our infirmity is such, that we are rather touched with the sense of sin and death, than with the laughter and joy, that is, the sweet comforts and joyful promises of the Gospel. For, to speak of myself and of mine own feeling, the redemption and life given by Christ doth not so much pierce my heart, as it is terrified with one word or one cogitation of sin and of the judgment of God. The cause whereof is, for that we cannot sufficiently learn this difference between the law and the Gospel. For although it be both written and taught, yet is it not so effectually felt in the heart: Else should it follow that terrified hearts should cast away all heaviness: for to them (as is said) pertaineth the voice of laughter and joy, and not the voice of terror and heaviness.”
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“And here also we find Satan to be our deadly adversary, which most subtly disputeth with us touching the law, and useth such arguments as we cannot deny. For when he layeth unto us our sins, we are constrained to confess and acknowledge them, which albeit we cover them sometimes before men, our conscience as a thousand witnesses pronounceth against us, and will not suffer us to forget them or hide them. Whereof sometimes ariseth also a doubting or mistrust even of holy works: To speak nothing of those which are manifestly wicked. With these darts Satan pierceth and grievously woundeth the soft and tender heart, only because this distinction is not so well known by practice as it is by speculation. For if we had this practice indeed, we should rightly discern between the law and the Gospel, also between the disciples of the law and of the Gospel, and beat back Satan with this answer, that like a lying spirit he seeketh nothing else, but to blind and deceive the heart with falsehood and lies. For whereas hard and stony hearts be, those he doth not kill or terrify, but flattereth and filleth them with hope and fair promises: which do not pertain to such hearts. Contrariwise, whereas such tender and timorous hearts be, as are too much terrified already, and therefore should be confirmed and raised up with the promises of the Gospel, those hearts Satan most of all, not only goeth about further to afflict and terrify, but to beat them down also to utter discomfort. Wherefore the Christian man must learn and labour by feeling and practice to make this distinction in his heart, and say unto Satan: Away from me Satan with thy lies. When I am void of the fear of God, secure and hard hearted, then come and plead the law against me: then will I hear thee: for then that is the time to teach the law. But since thou comest now to me with the law, whereas my heart is terrified already with sin and death, I will not hear thee: for thy doctrine pertaineth not unto me, but laughter and joy: not terror and death.”
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“So should Satan be answered when he goeth about to terrify us. But by experience we feel that when most need is, our heart is not able thus to answer, although we have heard these things before never so often. The cause is this: that albeit heaven be ours and wide open for us, yet such is our nature, and such is our infirmity, that all this cannot make us so joyful, as the gaping gulf and horror of hell doth terrify us: so that one cogitation of our sins doth more afflict us, than all the teaching and preaching of the merits of Christ can comfort us. Wherefore we must earnestly endeavor to learn this practice, or at the least to attain to some knowledge thereof, and raise up ourselves with these words: that the Gospel is nothing else but laughter and joy: which properly pertaineth to the captives, that is, to those that feel the captivity of sin and death, to the fleshy and tender hearts, terrified with the feeling of the wrath and judgment of God. These are the disciples in whose hearts should be planted laughter and joy, and which only should hear the voice of joy and gladness in the tabernacles of the righteous, and that by the authority of the holy Ghost: which this verse setteth forth. For it signifieth that this people was in Zion, and after the outward shew of the kingdom and priesthood, did mightily flourish. But if a man consider them according to the Spirit, he shall see them to be in miserable captivity, and then their tongue is full of heaviness and mourning, because their heart is terrified with the sense of sin and death. This is Moses’ tongue or Moses’ mouth, full of wormwood and of the bitterness of death: wherewith he ought to kill those only which are too lively and full of security [because they are vainly trusting in themselves]. But they which feel their captivity should have their mouths filled with laughter and joy, that is, the redemption and deliverance from sin and death, purchased by the blood of Christ, should be preached unto them. This is the sense and meaning of the holy Ghost, that the mouth of such should be filled with laughter, that is, their mouth should sound and shew forth nothing else but great gladness and those inestimable consolations of the Gospel, with voices of triumph and victory by Christ, overcoming Satan, destroying death and taking away our sins. This was first spoken unto the Jews: for this laughter was first offered to that people, then having the promises. Now he turneth to the Gentiles, whom he calleth to the partaking of this laughter.”
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“Then shall they say among the Gentiles, &c. The Gentiles naturally hated and disdained the Jews, and could abide nothing less than their religion. Yet these Gentiles, saith he, when this laughter, this joy, shall be published and preached, shall marvel there at, and shall praise the great works of the Lord. Now, the Gentiles would not thus do, or esteem this work of God as a benefit, except they also should be partakers of the same. Therefore when the holy Ghost saith, that the Gentiles should publish, praise and magnify this benefit of the Jews deliverance out of captivity, he plainly signifieth withal, that they should be partakers of this deliverance, and that they likewise should extol and magnify this great mercy of God, this deliverance from sin and death. To this do almost all the Prophets bear witness. In the eighth of Zechariah it is said that out of all languages of the nations, men should take hold of the skirt of him that is a Jew, and say, We will go with you, for we have heard that God is with you. Which place of Zechariah seemeth to be taken out of this Psalm. In the second of Isaiah likewise: All nations shall flow unto the Lord, and many people shall go and say: Come and let us go up to the mountain of the Lord, to the house of the God of Jacob, and He will teach us his ways, & we will walk in His paths, etc. These things do make for our comfort, which are not of the seed of Abraham after the flesh. For albeit the promise was not made unto us, yet when it was accomplished we were made partakers thereof, but by the Jews notwithstanding, according to the word of the promise: In thy seed shall all nations be blessed. And salvation, saith Christ, cometh of the Jews. Thus do we Gentiles pertain to this redemption, although it was not due unto us, (for to us it was not promised) but came by the free mercy of God through this laughter and joy [of the Gospel], which the Prophet speaketh of, published & preached not only in Zion, but amongst the Gentiles also, which do enjoy all the good blessings and benefits of God together with his holy people, as it followeth.”
(Martin Luther, A Commentarie Upon the Fifteene Psalmes [London: 1615], pp. 108-112, commentary on Psalm 126:2. Editor’s note: The spelling of certain archaic words has been updated to conform to modern English spelling.)
The Gospel means "Good News", so it makes sense that (as Luther pointed out and emphasized) it is a message of joy & gladness! It reminds me of what the apostle Paul says in his Second Epistle to the Corinthians: "Not that we are adequate in ourselves to consider anything as coming from ourselves, but our adequacy is from God, who also made us adequate as servants of a new covenant, not of the letter [i.e. not of the Law], but of the Spirit; for the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life." (2 Cor. 3:5-6, NASB 1977).
"For the Gospel should be to us nothing else but joy and gladness, especially if we compare it with the law." — Martin Luther
There is a famous stanza that goes like this:
"Run, John, run, the law commands
But gives us neither feet nor hands,
Far better news the gospel brings:
It bids us fly and gives us wings."
And similarly, the hymnist John Berridge wrote:
"Run, John, and work, the law commands,
yet finds me neither feet nor hands,
But sweeter news the gospel brings,
it bids me fly and lends me wings!"
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