The work of the flesh will start you climbing.

The fruit of the Holy Spirit is love,

not the work of the flesh. The work of the flesh will start you climbing and if you think I'm

going to love my way into justification I'm going to love people until God likes me.

I'm going to love people until he justifies me. You will fall off that hill and die.

How does justification by faith not only free us from thinking we have to earn God's favor,

but also empower us to love?

John Piper turns to Romans 3, 27 to 31, to tackle that question in this episode of Light and Truth.

This sermon was originally preached at Bethlehem Baptist Church on June 6th 1999.

Do we then nullify the law through faith?

May it never be?

On the contrary, we establish the law.

Now where did that question come from? Why does Paul raise the question?

It sounds like somebody's at his back saying, you're nullifying the law.

That's what they're accusing him of.

You're nullifying the law.

Something's wrong here.

This happens all the time in theological discussions, doesn't it?

You study, you get a handle on a truth, you love it, you speak it, and somebody listening is not totally on your

wavelength and is hearing other texts, bells going off there, says no no. If you say that, you nullify this.

If you say you believe in the sovereignty of God in the conversion of sinners, well then you nullify the moral accountability of men to believe.

If you say you believe in the providence of God over the world to such an extent that it decides

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