First John 3:4 gives the Biblical definition of sin as follows: "Everyone 
who practices sin also practices lawlessness; and sin is lawlessness." To 
say that in another way, sin is acting without any restraint whether it is 
the rules laid down by dad and mom, human government or God's Word.

Satan rebelled by wanting to be like God, without restraint, and that was 
"the lie" he used to convince Adam: "If you eat the forbidden fruit you will 
be like God." Ever since he ate mankind has been acting without restraint. 
See Romans 1:25: "For they exchanged the truth of God for the lie, and 
worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed 
forever. Amen." In this section of Romans, 1:18 through 3:20, is described 
all mankind and their relationship to every kind of law from those chosen 
selectively by an individual up to and including the Ten Commandments and 
the Sermon on the Mount or if you will God's law. And in 3:20 the section 
concludes that no man will ever be justified or saved by keeping any law.

How grateful I am for the grace of God which provides the way of escape by 
faith in the good news declared by Paul in First Corinthians 15:1-5a: "Now I 
make known to you, brethren, the gospel which I preached to you, which also 
you received, in which also you stand, 2 by which also you are saved, if you 
hold fast the word which I preached to you, unless you believed in vain [to 
no purpose]. 3 For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also 
received, that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, 4 and 
that He was buried, and that He was raised on the third day according to the 
Scriptures, 5 and that He appeared to [many]."

Again, man would not choose to believe but for the grace of God as related 
by Paul in Ephesians 2:8-9 and 10.

"For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that [faith is]not of 
yourselves, _it _is the gift of God; 9 not as a result of works, so that no 
one may boast. 10 For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for 
good works, which God prepared beforehand so that we would walk in them." 
Did you notice that it is God who gives us the faith to believe, created, or 
places, us in Christ Jesus and then produces the good works as we allow Him 
to work through us? "For Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to 
everyone who believes." (Romans 10:) WOW! Thank You, Lord!

If I may, regarding the reference to "love", I would offer the following 
comments.

In Matthew 22:36-40 we read: "'Teacher, which is the great commandment in 
the Law?' 37 And He said to him, ' "YOU SHALL LOVE THE LORD YOUR GOD WITH 
ALL YOUR HEART, AND WITH ALL YOUR SOUL, AND WITH ALL YOUR MIND."
38 'This is the great and foremost commandment. 39 'The second is like it, 
"YOU SHALL LOVE YOUR NEIGHBOR AS YOURSELF." 40 'On these two commandments 
depend the whole Law and the Prophets.'"

Notice that it is the Law and the Prophets that depend on these two 
commandments. Christ was speaking to a Jewish lawyer during the time He was 
offering the Millennial Kingdom to Israel which they ultimately rejected. 
Later, in the Upper Room, just before His Death, burial and resurrection, He 
made this statement to His disciples in John 13:34-35. "A new commandment I 
give to you, that you love one another, even as I have loved you, that you 
also love one another. 35 "By this all men will know that you are My 
disciples, if you have love for one another."
In His first epistle John writes this in 4:10-11: "In this is love, not that 
we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son _to _be the propitiation 
for our sins. 11 Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one 
another."

Now then, it seems to me that the standard for our loving has been raised 
far above that given in the Law of Moses. We no longer are to love our 
neighbor as we love ourselves but to love as Christ loved us. That love is a 
self--sacrificial, other-centered love which should be willing to lay down 
both our lives and also our living for our brothers. We are not to live by 
trying to keep the Law because as Paul discovered and points out in Romans 
7, the Law provokes our sinful nature, but it has no means of delivering us 
from its influence. However, as Christians living in the dispensation of 
grace we now have the indwelling Holy Spirit who produces His fruit in us as 
we are in a proper relationship to God. "Therefore, since you have been 
co-raised up with Christ, keep seeking the things! above, where Christ is, 
seated at the right hand of God. Set your mind [or reflective thinking] on 
the things! above, not on the things that are on earth. For you have died 
and your life is hidden with Christ in God." (Colossians 3:1-3) And back in 
Romans 8:2-4 we read: "For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has 
set you free from the law of sin and of death. For what the Law could not 
do, weak as it was through the flesh, God _did: sending His own Son in the 
likeness of sinful flesh and _as _an _offering for sin, He condemned sin in 
the flesh, so that the requirement of the Law might be fulfilled in us, who 
do not walk according to the flesh but according to the Spirit."
Galatians 5:16 "But I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not carry out 
the desire of the flesh. 17 For the flesh sets its desire against the 
Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh; for these are in opposition to one 
another, so that you may not do the things that you please. 18 But if you 
are led by the Spirit, you are not under a Law. ... 22 But the fruit of the 
Spirit is love, joy, peace, long-suffering, kindness, goodness, faith, 23 
gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law."

So then, mentally consider it to be true that you are dead to the sinful 
nature and alive to God in Christ Jesus our Lord. (cp. Romans 6:11) This is 
a good place to begin so that the Holy Spirit can produce His fruit in us.
We cannot produce His fruit but we can, like the fireman with a hose in his 
hand, direct it toward the appropriate object at the appropriate time.

Listening for His shout!

Grant