The Pharisees were again trying to test The Lord by posing a question that they believed to be settled by the law. Can a man divorce his wife? As The Lord answered the question, he revealed the root cause for the giving of the law: it was because of the condition of man's heart.
As you look at the law, you will see countless "thou shalts" and "thou shalt nots". The lost see these as rules for earning salvation, but as the scripture states, the law was our school master teaching us our condition before God so that we may recognize our need for a savior. Another purpose for the law was to restrict the man who walks in his flesh and to create a cognitive reminder as to limits he must live within.
However grace is just the opposite. Grace does not hinder the believer from performing any act, but is intended to enable him to perform works beyond his ability. The Pharisees, like many of us today, wanted to live their lives in the realm of the Law with the end result being a strict, stifled, unfulfilling life. However those, who have experienced victory and the abundant life, found that grace is essential for that life.
For us, we must decide how we shall conduct our lives before God. Shall we have the view of him as unaccepting and always needing to be pleased or shall we see God as our loving and accepting Father who wants to deliver us from the works of our flesh and cause us to abound in his grace. You cannot have both. Both views are manners by which believers strive to yield themselves as instruments of righteousness to God (Romans 6:13): the former unto greater bondage and the latter to victory.
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