God is holy, righteous and true. The Law, or the Ten Commandments, was the embodiment of all these characteristics of God. Paul said to the Jews in Romans 3 that there was no value to them in just having the Law, since the requirement of the Law was to fulfill it. The heathen who were without the written law of God was also in unrighteousness because they did not observe the unwritten law of God which was apparent in the creation and cultural moral values. As such, there was no-one who was righteous with God. In spite of it being a reflection of the righteousness of God, the law was set aside as a means of attaining righteousness. In the book of Romans, Paul introduces the righteousness through faith which came from heaven. Righteousness with God is thus not through what you do and then faith, or faith and then what you do, but faith from the beginning to the end. The mercy seat or judgment seat on the Ark of the Covenant was a symbol of Jesus on the cross, before which we must all appear for the things done in flesh. Rejection of the cross brings degeneration to mankind but for the righteous, there is a re-generation from glory to glory with ever-increasing glory – only because of faith in the perfect and legal fulfillment of the Law by Christ Jesus. We are in a mystical, legitimate union with Him and thus there is no conflict between the holiness and righteousness of God and his love and mercy. We are legally and morally gifted with righteousness. We are the righteousness of God by faith alone, by grace alone, by Christ alone. Before we received the Spirit through Whom we were baptized in Christ it was not possible to not sin, but now that we are in Christ it is possible not to sin. We are holy and blameless, our sins forgiven and we are sealed with the Holy Spirit in Christ. We are legitimately placed as mature Sons and enabled through the Spirit to call out to God as our Father. Therefore the Holy Spirit converses with us on a mature level so that we grow up in the things of God. Everything which Jesus obtained on the cross is our legal right.
