The Nature of Christ's Law

Moe Bergeron / Oct 14, 2024 (updated)

Recently, on an online forum, I was asked the following: "I'm not aware of any NCTer who disputes that internal nature of the law of Christ. Nor of any who say that Scriptures are not God's word. Wherein lies the folly? The question is whether that same law has a written value. This is not a fools errand by any means. Exegesis, not mere systems is what counts. I look forward to reading your exegesis of James and its use of 'law' and 'word'." His was a great question that begged an answer.

Hearing and Doing: Understanding the Law of Liberty in James

In the book of James, we find one of the clearest expressions of how Christians are to respond to God’s word in the New Covenant. James doesn’t just speak about faith as a concept; he insists that true faith must result in action. This brings us to a key passage in James 1:22-25, where we encounter terms like "word" and "law of liberty," and where James contrasts two types of responses to God's word: hearing only, and hearing that leads to doing.

Understanding this passage is essential for grasping how the New Covenant functions in the life of a believer, especially when it comes to the relationship between God’s word and the law of Christ. Let’s explore what James means by the word, how he uses the concept of law, and what implications this has for how we live out our faith.

The Central Contrast: Hearing Only vs. Hearing and Doing

James 1:22-25 presents a vivid contrast, but it may not be the contrast some might expect. Often, when we think about law, especially in New Covenant contexts, we tend to frame the discussion as a contrast between the Old Covenant (OC) law and the New Covenant (NC) law. While this is a valid theological contrast, it's not the specific one James is making in this passage.

James focuses on how people respond to God’s word, not on contrasting different types of law. He writes:

"But be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves. For if anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like a man who looks intently at his natural face in a mirror, for he looks at himself and goes away and at once forgets what he was like. But the one who looks into the perfect law, the law of liberty, and perseveres, being no hearer who forgets but a doer who acts, he will be blessed in his doing" (James 1:22-25, BSB).

James contrasts two types of people: the one who hears the word and does nothing about it, and the one who hears and then acts on what they’ve heard. The former is compared to someone who looks at themselves in a mirror, walks away, and immediately forgets their reflection. The latter is the one who peers deeply into the perfect law and lives accordingly, receiving blessing for their obedience.

Thus, the primary contrast in this passage is between two ways of responding to God’s word: mere hearing versus hearing that leads to action. James is calling believers to a whole-hearted response to the word of God, one that translates into real, lived-out obedience. This is the difference between a double-minded person, who hears but doesn’t act (James 1:8), and a single-minded person who is both a hearer and a doer.

The Word and the Law of Liberty: One Unified Reality

One of the fascinating aspects of this passage is how James shifts between using the terms word and law. Early in the chapter, James refers to the word of truth as something that gives new life to believers:

"He chose to give us birth through the word of truth, that we might be a kind of firstfruits of all He created" (James 1:18, BSB).

Later, in verse 21, James tells believers to “humbly accept the word planted in you, which can save you.” Here, the word is something implanted within the believer—a seed that must take root in the heart and produce fruit.

Then, in verse 25, James transitions to calling this same word the perfect law, the law of liberty. This switch might seem abrupt, but it reflects a deeper theological reality. James is using these terms—word and law of liberty—to describe the same thing. The word of truth that brings new life and the law of liberty that calls for obedience are not two different realities but one unified concept.

The law of liberty is God’s word, now implanted in the believer’s heart, which brings freedom and guides the Christian life. Far from being a burdensome law like the external code of the Old Covenant, this is a perfect law, one that brings true freedom. James is not setting up a contrast between the Old Covenant law and the New Covenant law in this passage but is instead focusing on how believers must respond to the word that has been given to them.

The Implanted Word: External and Internal

James 1:21 gives us a beautiful image of the implanted word, which is central to understanding how the law of liberty functions. He writes:

"Therefore, get rid of all moral filth and the evil that is so prevalent, and humbly accept the word planted in you, which can save you" (James 1:21, BSB).

This implanted word is both external and internal. It is heard externally as the message of the gospel, but it must also be received internally, taking root in the heart. The word that God used to give us new life (v. 18) now continues to work in us, shaping our hearts and calling us to live in obedience.

This resonates with the New Covenant promise found in Jeremiah 31:33 and Hebrews 8:10, where God promises to write His law on the hearts of His people. Just as the Old Covenant law was written on tablets of stone, the law of the New Covenant is written on the hearts of believers by the Holy Spirit. In James, we see a similar process—the word of God is heard externally but implanted internally, leading to a life of faithful obedience.

The Written Value of the Law of Christ

Some might ask whether the law of Christ, as internal and Spirit-empowered as it is, still has a "written value." The answer is yes, but in a transformed sense. The New Testament itself contains many written instructions, which reflect the teachings of Jesus and the apostles. These are not external laws to be obeyed in the old sense of the Mosaic law, but they are still normative expressions of how believers are to live.

For instance, Paul speaks of fulfilling the "law of Christ" (Galatians 6:2), and he urges believers to live lives worthy of the gospel (Ephesians 4:1). These commands are now lived out as the Spirit empowers believers to fulfill God’s moral will. Similarly, the law of liberty that James speaks of has a written value—it is the word of truth that was preached, heard, and now implanted in the heart.

This law, however, functions differently from the Old Covenant law. Under the New Covenant, the law is not an external code that we strive to obey in our own strength. It is a law that brings freedom because it is empowered by the Holy Spirit and rooted in the transformative work of Christ. The commands of the New Covenant flow out of the grace believers have received, rather than being a means to secure that grace.

Hearing and Doing: The Call to Wholehearted Obedience

James’ message is clear: the word that has saved us must also shape how we live. The law of liberty brings freedom, not just from sin’s penalty but from its power over our lives. But this freedom is realized in obedience. The one who looks into the perfect law and acts on it is blessed in what he does (James 1:25). This is the call to live out our faith, not merely in words but in actions, as those who are both hearers and doers of God’s word.

James teaches us that the word and the law of liberty are one and the same—God’s revealed truth, heard externally and implanted internally. It’s not enough to hear this word; it must be received with meekness and acted upon. This is the essence of New Covenant obedience: not a mechanical adherence to external rules, but a Spirit-empowered, heart-driven response to the implanted word that brings life and liberty.

In our response to God’s word, we are called to be single-minded, living out our faith with integrity and obedience, demonstrating that we are not just hearers but doers of the word. This is how we experience the blessing of the law of liberty in our lives.

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