What do we understand in the Bible
by the word "law"?
In biblical conversations the word “law” is referred to as God's laws. Let's remember that Moses did not originate the Law, neither did Noah or any of the prophets, but God personally.
In the Bible there are two
main groups of laws. There are ritual laws, and behavior
laws. The ritual laws,
as indicated by their name, referred
to the rituals. It referred to
the sacrifices, and the ceremonies
that served as a prefigure to several
events: Jesus'
mission, when He came to die for
us, also they referred to the
coming of the Holy Spirit, the
Second Coming,
etc.. The main ritual laws were those that referred to the
Behavioral laws are those that God established for human beings to know how they were to behave towards God and their neighbor. Examples of these are the Ten Commandments, the laws that teach us how to act with foreigners, with our enemies, with the widows and the orphans, with the poor, with those things others have lost and we find, what if we injure others without intention, or out of irresponsibility, etc..
What does it mean to "be under the Law"?
The phrase, “being under the Law” is one of those that act as a wild card. Most of the time nobody defines them, they only pronounce them. It is regularly applied to those persons that consider that the sins that in the Old Testament were described as forbidden are also forbidden for Christians.
However, in the Bible, “not being under Law” generally means that to be saved we don't have to comply with circumcision, lamb sacrifices or other rituals.
But there are Christians who erroneously believe that this phrase means that Christians don't have to obey God's commandments. Is that true? Does that mean that all of us are not under the behavior laws that God established? Does that mean that we can now lie, worship images, commit adultery, steal, kill, consult the dead, etc.? Of course not! Then, why do they say we are not under the Law?
If by saying that we are not under the Law, they refer to not being under the ritual law, that is correct. In other words, if it means that to be saved we don't have to be circumcised, or sacrifice animals, or any of the sort, then the phrase is correctly used. But if they give it the meaning that we can do all kind of sin without being accountable for it, then it is a terrible lie, a horrible and satanic heresy.
What does "not being under the Law" mean?
It is very common in conversations between brothers as they talk about God's laws, to hear some say “we are not under the Law”. That depends which laws he is talking about, as I mentioned earlier. If he is talking about rituals, he is right. If he is talking about behavioral laws, he is dreadfully mistaken. Having accepted Christ is not a "letter of marque" to do as we wish and continue thinking we are saved. (Letter of marque was a government license for practicing piracy against enemy ships)
I personally know a sad case about a man who claims that because we are not under the Law, a Christian can sleep with somebody else's wife, be a homosexual, swindle, etc., and continue being saved.
He considers that once a person comes to Christ, he cannot sin, but not because he avoids sin with divine help, but according to him, when a non-Christian sleeps with his neighbor's wife, he commits adultery and because or this sin goes to Hell, but when a Christian sleeps with his neighbor's wife, it is not adultery, because he is not under the Law as is the non-Christian. Dreadful!! Disgusting!! Satanic!!