Audio Download

Ezekiel 18:1-32  The Soul Who Sins Shall Die

[Study Aired May 27, 2024]

Introduction

Today’s study concerns the changing of the law by the Lord to make people accountable for their own sins instead of the sins of their fathers. Whenever there is a change in the law, there is resistance to the change as we naturally resist change. The people of Israel thought that the way of the Lord is not just in regard to people bearing their own sins. They preferred the situation where the fathers’ sins are borne by their children. As a result of their resistance to change, the people of Israel were surely going to be judged. The chapter concludes by giving us insight into the benefits of the Lord’s judgment.

The Changing of the Law

Eze 18:1  The word of the LORD came unto me again, saying,
Eze 18:2  What mean ye, that ye use this proverb concerning the land of Israel, saying, The fathers have eaten sour grapes, and the children’s teeth are set on edge? 

The proverb “The fathers have eaten sour grapes, and the children’s teeth are on edge” became a regularly used proverb in Israel because of the following scriptures:

Exo 20:5  Thou shalt not bow down thyself to them, nor serve them: for I the LORD thy God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children unto the third and fourth generation of them that hate me; 
Exo 20:6  And shewing mercy unto thousands of them that love me, and keep my commandments.

Exo 34:6  And the LORD passed by before him, and proclaimed, The LORD, The LORD God, merciful and gracious, longsuffering, and abundant in goodness and truth, 
Exo 34:7  Keeping mercy for thousands, forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin, and that will by no means clear the guilty; visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children, and upon the children’s children, unto the third and to the fourth generation.

In these verses, the Lord was demonstrating to the people of Israel that their iniquities have consequences on their children. As you can see, the Lord gave this rule when He was delivering the ten commandments to Moses. This means that this rule was an integral part of the Law of Moses. As we are aware, the purpose of the Law was to expose sin, but the Law did not have what it takes to change our behavior. Therefore, the rampant use of this proverb suggests to us that the people of Israel have resigned themselves to the fact that they cannot help themselves in hurting their beloved ones (children) through their actions.

Rom 7:7  What then shall we say? That the law is sin? By no means! Yet if it had not been for the law, I would not have known sin. For I would not have known what it is to covet if the law had not said, “You shall not covet.”  

Rom 7:21  I find then a law, that, when I would do good, evil is present with me. 
Rom 7:22  For I delight in the law of God after the inward man: 
Rom 7:23  But I see another law in my members, warring against the law of my mind, and bringing me into captivity to the law of sin which is in my members. 
Rom 7:24  O wretched man that I am! who shall deliver me from the body of this death?
Rom 7:25  I thank God through Jesus Christ our Lord. So then with the mind I myself serve the law of God; but with the flesh the law of sin. 

Deu 5:28  And the LORD heard the voice of your words, when ye spake unto me; and the LORD said unto me, I have heard the voice of the words of this people, which they have spoken unto thee: they have well said all that they have spoken. 
Deu 5:29  O that there were such an heart in them, that they would fear me, and keep all my commandments always, that it might be well with them, and with their children forever!

Visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children upon the third and fourth generation signifies that when we are dominated by our old man or the flesh, we are not different from our fathers. In other words, we are not different from the people of Israel in terms of their propensity to disobey the Lord since we are all of the flesh or the old man. The number three means becoming spiritually mature through the process of judgment. This implies that it is as we go through the process of judgment to become spiritually mature (third generation) that the iniquity of our fathers (the old man) is no longer relevant in our lives. The fourth generation mentioned symbolizes that the whole of the Lord’s elect have to go through suffering as a result of the deeds of our old man, which is the iniquity of our fathers. There is no exception to bearing the consequences of our actions as the Lord’s elect of every generation. 

Gal 6:7  Be not deceived; God is not mocked: for whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap. 
Gal 6:8  For he that soweth to his flesh shall of the flesh reap corruption; but he that soweth to the Spirit shall of the Spirit reap life everlasting.

Eze 18:3  As I live, saith the Lord GOD, ye shall not have occasion any more to use this proverb in Israel. 
Eze 18:4  Behold, all souls are mine; as the soul of the father, so also the soul of the son is mine: the soul that sinneth, it shall die. 

These verses give us glimpses to the change of the Law which became effective when Jesus, the reformer, came on the scene. Here we are made aware that everyone will bear his or her own sins. That is to say that everyone who eats sour grapes will have his own teeth set on edge.

Act 3:20  And he shall send Jesus Christ, which before was preached unto you: 
Act 3:21  Whom the heaven must receive until the times of restitution of all things, which God hath spoken by the mouth of all his holy prophets since the world began. 

Jer 31:29  In those days they shall say no more, The fathers have eaten a sour grape, and the children’s teeth are set on edge. 
Jer 31:30  But every one shall die for his own iniquity: every man that eateth the sour grape, his teeth shall be set on edge.

Who is a Righteous Man?

Eze 18:5  But if a man be just, and do that which is lawful and right, 
Eze 18:6  And hath not eaten upon the mountains, neither hath lifted up his eyes to the idols of the house of Israel, neither hath defiled his neighbour’s wife, neither hath come near to a menstruous woman, 

The verses here show us the characteristics of a righteous man or woman or simply, the Lord’s elect. According to verse 6, a righteous man must not eat at the mountain shrines. 

Isa 57:7  Upon a lofty and high mountain hast thou set thy bed: even thither wentest thou up to offer sacrifice.

In a negative sense, mountains or hills represent the place where the people of Israel perform their idolatrous acts against the Lord. In this case, the mountain represents Babylon where we imbibe false doctrines in our pursuit of another Jesus. It is in Babylon that we pay attention to the great swelling words of vanity of man’s wisdom and tradition. Not eating on a mountain therefore means that as the Lord’s elect, we have been delivered from Babylon and have come to know the truth of the Lord’s words. As a result, we are able to test the spirit to see if it is of the Lord.

2Pe 2:18  For when they speak great swelling words of vanity, they allure through the lusts of the flesh, through much wantonness, those that were clean escaped from them who live in error. 
2Pe 2:19  While they promise them liberty, they themselves are the servants of corruption: for of whom a man is overcome, of the same is he brought in bondage. 
2Pe 2:20  For if after they have escaped the pollutions of the world through the knowledge of the Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, they are again entangled therein, and overcome, the latter end is worse with them than the beginning. 

Lifting up our eyes to the idols of the house of Israel signifies harboring idols of the heart which came about as a result of our sojourn in the house of Israel or Babylon. Not lifting our eyes to the idols of the house of Israel therefore signifies the destruction of the idols of our hearts which we imbibed in Babylon.

Eze 14:3  Son of man, these men have set up their idols in their heart, and put the stumblingblock of their iniquity before their face: should I be enquired of at all by them? 
Eze 14:4  Therefore speak unto them, and say unto them, Thus saith the Lord GOD; Every man of the house of Israel that setteth up his idols in his heart, and putteth the stumblingblock of his iniquity before his face, and cometh to the prophet; I the LORD will answer him that cometh according to the multitude of his idols;
Eze 14:5  That I may take the house of Israel in their own heart, because they are all estranged from me through their idols.

According to the word of the Lord, a wife symbolizes the church. A neighbor, on the other hand, refers to the people of Israel as shown in the following verse:

Lev 19:18  Thou shalt not avenge, nor bear any grudge against the children of thy people, but thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself: I am the LORD.

Jesus made it clear to us that our neighbor is the one who has shown mercy to us. In other words, our brothers and sisters in Christ who acknowledge the mercy the Lord has shown to us. 

Luk 10:29  But he, willing to justify himself, said unto Jesus, And who is my neighbour? 
Luk 10:30  And Jesus answering said, A certain man went down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and fell among thieves, which stripped him of his raiment, and wounded him, and departed, leaving him half dead. 
Luk 10:31  And by chance there came down a certain priest that way: and when he saw him, he passed by on the other side. 
Luk 10:32  And likewise a Levite, when he was at the place, came and looked on him, and passed by on the other side.
Luk 10:33  But a certain Samaritan, as he journeyed, came where he was: and when he saw him, he had compassion on him,
Luk 10:34  And went to him, and bound up his wounds, pouring in oil and wine, and set him on his own beast, and brought him to an inn, and took care of him. 
Luk 10:35  And on the morrow when he departed, he took out two pence, and gave them to the host, and said unto him, Take care of him; and whatsoever thou spendest more, when I come again, I will repay thee.
Luk 10:36  Which now of these three, thinkest thou, was neighbour unto him that fell among the thieves? 
Luk 10:37  And he said, He that shewed mercy on him. Then said Jesus unto him, Go, and do thou likewise. 

Defiling our neighbor’s wife therefore refers to anything that we do to unveil the nakedness of the church or our brothers and sisters. This means that not defiling our neighbor’s wife means not doing or saying anything evil against our brothers and sisters. We, as the Lord’s elect, must not defile our neighbor’s wife.

James 4:11 Do not speak evil against one another, brothers. The one who speaks against a brother or judges his brother, speaks evil against the law and judges the law. But if you judge the law, you are not a doer of the law but a judge. (ESV)

As the Lord’s elect, we are not to have sexual relations with a woman during her period. A woman in her period signifies Babylon or the churches of this world in relation to the shedding of blood of the Lord and his messengers. In other words, if we are to worship the Lord acceptably, then we must leave Babylon.

Luk 11:49  Therefore also said the wisdom of God, I will send them prophets and apostles, and some of them they shall slay and persecute: 
Luk 11:50  That the blood of all the prophets, which was shed from the foundation of the world, may be required of this generation; 
Luk 11:51  From the blood of Abel unto the blood of Zacharias, which perished between the altar and the temple: verily I say unto you, It shall be required of this generation. 

Rev 18:4  And I heard another voice from heaven, saying, Come out of her, my people, that ye be not partakers of her sins, and that ye receive not of her plagues. 
Rev 18:5  For her sins have reached unto heaven, and God hath remembered her iniquities.

Eze 18:7  And hath not oppressed any, but hath restored to the debtor his pledge, hath spoiled none by violence, hath given his bread to the hungry, and hath covered the naked with a garment; 

In verse 7, we are required not to oppress anyone but return what we took in pledge for a loan if we are to be the Lord’s elect. The first time the word “oppression” was used in the Bible, it has to do with how Pharaoh and the people of Egypt have set taskmasters over the people of Israel to cause them to work hard for Egypt’s benefit. The oppression in verse 7 is also qualified by the fact that a righteous man returns what a borrower has given as security for a loan and does not rob anyone. In other words, we should not take advantage of anyone irrespective of the position the Lord has placed us. 

Exo 3:9  Now therefore, behold, the cry of the children of Israel is come unto me: and I have also seen the oppression wherewith the Egyptians oppress them.

Exo 3:7  And the LORD said, I have surely seen the affliction of my people which are in Egypt, and have heard their cry by reason of their taskmasters; for I know their sorrows;

As the Lord’s elect, we are not to oppress anyone for our benefit. This oppression is clearly seen in the churches of this world (Babylon) where many are working hard for the benefit of the pastors of these churches. Many shepherds of the Lord in the churches of this world have become robbers of the people the Lord has placed over them through extortion in the name of tithes and offerings.

Verse 7 also tells us that those who are righteous give bread to the hungry and cover their nakedness with a garment. Giving bread to the hungry means feeding the Lord’s people with the truth of the word of the Lord. It is the truth of the Lord’s words which covers our nakedness as we are given the garment of righteousness. Unfortunately, this was not what happened to us during our time in Babylon where the shepherds feed themselves.

Eze 34:2  “Son of man, prophesy against the shepherds of Israel; prophesy, and say to them, even to the shepherds, Thus says the Lord GOD: Ah, shepherds of Israel who have been feeding yourselves! Should not shepherds feed the sheep?
Eze 34:3  You eat the fat, you clothe yourselves with the wool, you slaughter the fat ones, but you do not feed the sheep. 

Rev 19:8  And to her was granted that she should be arrayed in fine linen, clean and white: for the fine linen (garment) is the righteousness of saints.

Eze 18:8  He that hath not given forth upon usury, neither hath taken any increase, that hath withdrawn his hand from iniquity, hath executed true judgment between man and man, 
Eze 18:9  Hath walked in my statutes, and hath kept my judgments, to deal truly; he is just, he shall surely live, saith the Lord GOD.

A righteous man does not lend to people at interest or take profit from them. That is to say that we do not take advantage of people to exploit them financially. As indicated, this is what we see in Babylon where the Lord’s people are exploited financially in the name of the Lord.

Jas 5:4  Behold, the hire of the labourers who have reaped down your fields, which is of you kept back by fraud, crieth: and the cries of them which have reaped are entered into the ears of the Lord of sabaoth. 
Jas 5:5  Ye have lived in pleasure on the earth, and been wanton; ye have nourished your hearts, as in a day of slaughter. 

To withdraw our hands from iniquity means we are being judged and as a result we are learning righteousness. Putting our hands to iniquity is therefore not an attractive option for the elect as the old man is diminishing and the new man is gaining ascendency in our lives. As Paul stated, the training the Lord is taking us through in this life helps us to judge fairly between two parties and therefore prepares us to judge the world and angels in an age to come. 

1Co 6:2  Do ye not know that the saints shall judge the world? and if the world shall be judged by you, are ye unworthy to judge the smallest matters? 
1Co 6:3  Know ye not that we shall judge angels? how much more things that pertain to this life? 

In verse 9, we are told that a righteous man or the Lord’s elect follows the Lord’s decrees and faithfully keeps His laws. This is because as we are being judged in this life, we are learning righteousness and therefore making it easier to obey the Lord’s commandments. 

Isa 26:8  Yea, in the way of thy judgments, O LORD, have we waited for thee; the desire of our soul is to thy name, and to the remembrance of thee. 
Isa 26:9  With my soul have I desired thee in the night; yea, with my spirit within me will I seek thee early: for when thy judgments are in the earth, the inhabitants of the world will learn righteousness. 

1Pe 4:1  Forasmuch then as Christ hath suffered for us in the flesh, arm yourselves likewise with the same mind: for he that hath suffered in the flesh hath ceased from sin; 
1Pe 4:2  That he no longer should live the rest of his time in the flesh to the lusts of men, but to the will of God.

In conclusion, if we live by the standards set here in Ezekiel 18:5-9, then we are the Lord’s righteous man and therefore we shall surely live. To be living here means that we shall be spiritually alive as we serve the Lord in this life. In other words, we shall be the Lord’s overcomers!! We must take note that the walk of the elect with the Lord is a process. That means it takes time for us to live according to the Lord’s standards. Let’s take confidence in the fact that the Lord who has called and chosen us will see to it that we overcome. It is not about our efforts. He who has called us is faithful!!

Rom 9:16  So then it is not of him that willeth, nor of him that runneth, but of God that sheweth mercy. 

Eze 18:10  If he beget a son that is a robber, a shedder of blood, and that doeth the like to any one of these things, 
Eze 18:11  And that doeth not any of those duties, but even hath eaten upon the mountains, and defiled his neighbour’s wife, 
Eze 18:12  Hath oppressed the poor and needy, hath spoiled by violence, hath not restored the pledge, and hath lifted up his eyes to the idols, hath committed abomination, 
Eze 18:13  Hath given forth upon usury, and hath taken increase: shall he then live? he shall not live: he hath done all these abominations; he shall surely die; his blood shall be upon him. 

These verses show us our lives before the Lord came to us, even though we are His sons who are called and chosen before the foundations of the world by the Lord who is righteous. Verses 10 to 13 show us that we were born in sin, and as a result, we manifest the deeds of the flesh until the Lord came to us with the spirit of His mouth and His brightness. In verse 13 we are told that we shall surely die and that we shall suffer the consequences of our lives in the flesh. That is to say our blood shall be upon us. The Lord’s coming to us is to judge us so that we learn righteousness. 

Eph 2:1  And you hath he quickened, who were dead in trespasses and sins; 
Eph 2:2  Wherein in time past ye walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that now worketh in the children of disobedience: 
Eph 2:3  Among whom also we all had our conversation in times past in the lusts of our flesh, fulfilling the desires of the flesh and of the mind; and were by nature the children of wrath, even as others. 
Eph 2:4  But God, who is rich in mercy, for his great love wherewith he loved us, 
Eph 2:5  Even when we were dead in sins, hath quickened us together with Christ, (by grace ye are saved;) 
Eph 2:6  And hath raised us up together, and made us sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus:

Eze 18:14  Now, lo, if he beget a son, that seeth all his father’s sins which he hath done, and considereth, and doeth not such like, 
Eze 18:15  That hath not eaten upon the mountains, neither hath lifted up his eyes to the idols of the house of Israel, hath not defiled his neighbour’s wife, 
Eze 18:16  Neither hath oppressed any, hath not withholden the pledge, neither hath spoiled by violence, but hath given his bread to the hungry, and hath covered the naked with a garment, 
Eze 18:17  That hath taken off his hand from the poor, that hath not received usury nor increase, hath executed my judgments, hath walked in my statutes; he shall not die for the iniquity of his father, he shall surely live. 
Eze 18:18  As for his father, because he cruelly oppressed, spoiled his brother by violence, and did that which is not good among his people, lo, even he shall die in his iniquity. 

Verse 14 shows us that our father was the devil and that through the mercies of the Lord, we were given to consider our father’s evil influence on our lives as the Lord came to us with His brightness to deliver us from committing the deeds of our father the devil. As a result, we learn righteousness every day as our old man dies daily. The devil will surely die in his iniquity and therefore shall face judgment in an age to come.

Joh 8:44  Ye are of your father the devil, and the lusts of your father ye will do. He was a murderer from the beginning, and abode not in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaketh a lie, he speaketh of his own: for he is a liar, and the father of it.

Rev 20:10  And the devil that deceived them was cast into the lake of fire and brimstone, where the beast and the false prophet are, and shall be tormented day and night for ever and ever.

Resistance to the Changing of the Law

Eze 18:19  Yet say ye, Why? doth not the son bear the iniquity of the father? When the son hath done that which is lawful and right, and hath kept all my statutes, and hath done them, he shall surely live. 
Eze 18:20  The soul that sinneth, it shall die. The son shall not bear the iniquity of the father, neither shall the father bear the iniquity of the son: the righteousness of the righteous shall be upon him, and the wickedness of the wicked shall be upon him. 
Eze 18:21  But if the wicked will turn from all his sins that he hath committed, and keep all my statutes, and do that which is lawful and right, he shall surely live, he shall not die. 
Eze 18:22  All his transgressions that he hath committed, they shall not be mentioned unto him: in his righteousness that he hath done he shall live. 
Eze 18:23  Have I any pleasure at all that the wicked should die? saith the Lord GOD: and not that he should return from his ways, and live? 
Eze 18:24  But when the righteous turneth away from his righteousness, and committeth iniquity, and doeth according to all the abominations that the wicked man doeth, shall he live? All his righteousness that he hath done shall not be mentioned: in his trespass that he hath trespassed, and in his sin that he hath sinned, in them shall he die. 

In spite of the changing of the law regarding each person suffering for his or her own sins instead of the children bearing the iniquity of the fathers, many Israelites questioned this change. In verses 20–22, the Lord is therefore explaining why there should be a change in the law. There is no salvation if this law is still in force. This is because, if we are to suffer the consequences of the actions of our fathers, then even if we turn from our wicked ways and become obedient to the Lord, we shall still be liable to the sins of our fathers and therefore, the blood of Christ, which was shared for our sins, would have been ineffective. However, thanks be to the Lord that this change of the law paved a new and living way where each person must give and account for his own deeds.

Heb 10:19  Having therefore, brethren, boldness to enter into the holiest by the blood of Jesus, 
Heb 10:20  By a new and living way, which he hath consecrated for us, through the veil, that is to say, his flesh; 
Heb 10:21  And having an high priest over the house of God; 
Heb 10:22  Let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled from an evil conscience, and our bodies washed with pure water. 
Heb 10:23  Let us hold fast the profession of our faith without wavering; (for he is faithful that promised;) 
Heb 10:24  And let us consider one another to provoke unto love and to good works:
Heb 10:25  Not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as the manner of some is; but exhorting one another: and so much the more, as ye see the day approaching. 

Eze 18:25  Yet ye say, The way of the Lord is not equal. Hear now, O house of Israel; Is not my way equal? are not your ways unequal? 
Eze 18:26  When a righteous man turneth away from his righteousness, and committeth iniquity, and dieth in them; for his iniquity that he hath done shall he die. 
Eze 18:27  Again, when the wicked man turneth away from his wickedness that he hath committed, and doeth that which is lawful and right, he shall save his soul alive. 
Eze 18:28  Because he considereth, and turneth away from all his transgressions that he hath committed, he shall surely live, he shall not die. 
Eze 18:29  Yet saith the house of Israel, The way of the Lord is not equal. O house of Israel, are not my ways equal? are not your ways unequal? 

Whenever there is a change in the law, there is always resistance to the new law. The reaction of the Lord’s people in questioning that the way of the Lord is not equal foreshadows the resistance to Christ’s work as a reformer when He came on the scene. This scenario is the same today as our brothers and sisters in Babylon resist the fact that the Lord will bring salvation to all humanity. In other words, Babylon is accusing the Lord that His way is not equal. Remember that we also in our time in Babylon accused the Lord that His way is not equal. However, through the mercies of the Lord, we were forgiven and given a new life in Christ to understand that the way of the Lord is perfect!!

Psa 18:25  With the merciful thou wilt shew thyself merciful; with an upright man thou wilt shew thyself upright; 
Psa 18:26  With the pure thou wilt shew thyself pure; and with the froward thou wilt shew thyself froward. 

Psa 18:30  As for God, his way is perfect: the word of the LORD is tried: he is a buckler to all those that trust in him. 

The Benefits of the Lord’s Judgment

Eze 18:30  “Therefore I will judge you, O house of Israel, every one according to his ways, declares the Lord GOD. Repent and turn from all your transgressions, lest iniquity be your ruin. 
Eze 18:31  Cast away from you all the transgressions that you have committed, and make yourselves a new heart and a new spirit! Why will you die, O house of Israel? 

Our resistance to the Lord’s ways means that we shall surely be judged. As we are aware, it is the Lord’s elect who are being judged in this life. In verses 30 and 31, we are shown the benefits of the Lord’s judgment. It causes us to repent and turn from all our transgressions so that sin does not disqualify us from the prize of His higher calling. Judgment destroys our old man who is the source of our transgressions against the Lord. The death of our old man or flesh is the birth of a new man described in verse 31 as the new heart and new spirit. It is this new man which keeps us alive in Christ. 

Eph 4:22  That ye put off concerning the former conversation the old man, which is corrupt according to the deceitful lusts; 
Eph 4:23  And be renewed in the spirit of your mind; 
Eph 4:24  And that ye put on the new man, which after God is created in righteousness and true holiness. 

Eze 18:32  For I have no pleasure in the death of anyone, declares the Lord GOD; so turn, and live.” 

In verse 32 we are told that the Lord does not have pleasure in the death of anyone. This implies that it is the Lord’s desire to bring salvation to all at His appointed time. 

Psa 135:6  Whatever the LORD pleases, he does, in heaven and on earth, in the seas and all deeps.

1Ti 2:3  This is good, and it is pleasing in the sight of God our Savior, 
1Ti 2:4  who desires all people to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth.

Conclusion

This whole chapter gives us glimpses of the change in the priesthood which necessitated the change of the law which took place when our Lord Jesus Christ came as a reformer. Today, our Lord is still carrying out His reformation works in our lives as He gives us the law of the spirit of life which sets us free from the law of sin and death. He who has started this good work in us, shall see to its completion.

Heb 7:12  For when there is a change in the priesthood, there is necessarily a change in the law as well. 
Heb 7:13  For the one of whom these things are spoken belonged to another tribe, from which no one has ever served at the altar. 
Heb 7:14  For it is evident that our Lord was descended from Judah, and in connection with that tribe Moses said nothing about priests. 
Heb 7:15  This becomes even more evident when another priest arises in the likeness of Melchizedek, 
Heb 7:16  who has become a priest, not on the basis of a legal requirement concerning bodily descent, but by the power of an indestructible life.
Heb 7:17  For it is witnessed of him, “You are a priest forever, after the order of Melchizedek.” 
Heb 7:18  For on the one hand, a former commandment is set aside because of its weakness and uselessness 
Heb 7:19  (for the law made nothing perfect); but on the other hand, a better hope is introduced, through which we draw near to God. 

Rom 8:2  For the law of the Spirit of life has set you free in Christ Jesus from the law of sin and death. 
Rom 8:3  For God has done what the law, weakened by the flesh, could not do. By sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh and for sin, he condemned sin in the flesh, 
Rom 8:4  in order that the righteous requirement of the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not according to the flesh but according to the Spirit. 

Thank you Lord, for your wonderful plan of salvation in which you have given us a significant role to play. Amen!!