Is it a sin to break the law????

There are two kinds of people in this world; the rule followers and the rule breakers. Right? What causes someone to want to break the rules when another person may be perfectly content with following the rules? Don't we all want to be law abiding citizens and contribute to our community in a positive way? Sorry, a lot of questions. But right now my head is swimming with all of these questions. I have always been the type of person to see the good in someone before I see the bad....my mom calls it being "naive." I call it being positive. Sometimes that mindset has gotten me into trouble and has caused me heartache, but for the most part I would say that it has helped me be more compassionate to those whose circumstances are different from my own. A couple of weeks ago we had a sermon in church on a passage from Romans 7;14-20. I like to call it the "do-do" passage-it's kind of funny to hear your own minister say the word "do-do." Yes, I am that person that laughs when I hear that word! Anyway, this passage sound like a lot of double talk to most people hearing it; "I do not do the good things I want to do , but I do the bad things I do not want to do. So, if I do things I do not want to do , then I am not the one doing them. It is sin living in me that does those things."(Romans 7:19-20) I don't know about you but by the time I get to the end of those verses I really don't understand what I'm doing or not doing?!?!? It just so happens that in my current daily reading of my bible I am reading the book of Romans and as I read some of the previous verses in chapter 7 it did begin to make more sense to me; this whole law vs. sin discussion that is a bit of a contention among Christians and non-Christians alike. I recently read something from the podcast, Then and Now dated December 15, 2013 by Ed Stevens who is a preterist, who is someone that views or interprets some or all of the prophecies of the Bible as events which have already happened, including Revelation. While I may not agree with all of the views of Preterism I found this part of the podcast interesting and relevant to my study. The excerpt from the podcast talks about Romans 3:20 and this is Mr. Stevens explanation of it; "Paul points out that there is a relationship between "the Law" and "sin." That relationship is explained here as being "through the Law comes the knowledge of sin." In other words, "the Law" defines what "sin" is. That is one of the functions of the Law." So, what does this all mean to us? Without a law telling us we can't do something we never would have even known not to do it? I kept reading and in Romans chapter 7 verse 7 it says "But the law was the only way I could learn what sin meant. I would never have known what it means to want to take something belonging to someone else if the law had not said, "You must not want to take your neighbor's things." v.8 "And sin found a way to use that command and cause me to want all kinds of things I should not want. But without the law, sin has no power." I am not a biblical scholar and I don't have a degree in theology, but this is what I know; there are laws and rules in our lives from day 1. Think back to infancy and as that infant begins to reach it's tiny hands out to grab a hold of something, we as the adult or parent are most likely to say ,"No-no." That is a rule that probably isn't written down anywhere, but it is an unwritten law that if a child reaches out for something that can cause that child harm or harm someone else we are supposed to tell that child "No." If sin was never introduced into the world by Satan and humans then we would not have a need for laws. Laws and rules are there to protect us, yes. But as humans we always seem to want what we can't have. Our human nature is to strive and drive ourselves to reach the unattainable at all costs! I am not saying that we are all breaking the law in order to do those things, but think about your own life and see if you can recall a time when you may have sinned in order to look good, be better or gain more. I know that I am guilty. We are all sinners. Sin is not going away anytime soon and neither are laws. The good news is that because we know that sin exists in this fallen world and that laws are there to protect us we can rely on our faith and our God to not only give us strength to resist sin but also give us the free gift of Grace that is available to everyone who believes in His son Jesus Christ! Those who feel that certain rules do not apply to them are making choices that could be looked at as sin, not by the world, but by God. Sin is always there tempting even the strongest Christian. We are God's children and just as we give our own children rules to follow, so does He. The goal isn't to be a "fun sponge" and just live this militaristic life of following the rules; but rather to live a life that exemplifies Christ and his compassion and forgiveness that is for everyone-regardless of your sin or shortcomings. If you put your hope in Jesus Christ your life will be more abundant than you can ever imagine. It won't be dull and lifeless because you want to obey God's law and it won't be without disappointments either, but remember this is not our home. Are you living for this life or your eternal life? It can be yours and Jesus is waiting. Blessings-Nicole