Life and Death Again

"The Bible portrays the law of God as something deadly and something life-giving. We can see the tension in one verse: "The very commandment that promised life proved to be death to me" (Romans 7:10). Therefore, we must be careful that we do not make sweeping positive statements or sweeping negative statements about the law without an awareness of its diverse aims. Instead, we must distinguish different functions for the law. My way of describing the difference is that the narrow, short-term aim of the law led to death, and the larger, long-term aim of the law led to Christ, to faith in Him, and to life."

- John Piper, Future Grace: The Purifying Power of the Promises of God