The Law condemns us to death, but the Gospel makes us alive

 "Further, when I denied that the righteousness of the law is evil, and condemned [only] the use which makes it censurable, Latomus showed again how learned he is in Holy Writ. he adduced II Cor. 3[:10]: 'What once had splendor has come to have no splendor at all, because of the splendor that surpasses it.' He believes that I have not read Ezek. 19[20:25]: 'I gave them statutes that were not good.' If he were to say this to me in person, I would think, if he were friendly, that he jests, or, if he were malicious, that he mocks. Nevertheless, we shall say a little about this for the sake of others. Many are persuaded that Paul deals in the above text with the ceremonial righteousness which is now repealed; yet he is speaking of the whole law, and comparing law with grace, not law with law. This error comes from the fact that they suppose the gospel is the teaching of laws, In brief then, let us point out that there are two ministries of preaching; one of the letter, the other of the spirit. The letter is the law, the spirit is grace. The first belongs to the Old Covenant, the second to the New. The glory of the law is the knowledge of sin; the glory of the Spirit is that revelation, or knowledge, of grace which is faith. Therefore the law did not justify: indeed, since human frailty found it unbearable, grace is veiled by it on Mount Tabor even to the present time.
Unless protected by grace, no one can withstand the power of the law. This is the reason Moses veiled his face [II Cor. 3:13]. It is because of this that the Jews do not understand the law even to this day. They seek to establish their own righteousness, and do not want that it become sin so that they may be subjected to the righteousness of God. The glory of the law makes all become sin, as Rom. 3[:9; cf. Gal. 3:22] says, 'All men are under the power of sin.' Thus the law is the strength of sin, working wrath and death; but the spirit makes alive. Therefore the verse of Ezekiel [20:25], 'I gave them statues that were not good and ordinances by which they could not have life,' has to do with the whole law, not only with ceremonies. Also, Paul's statement, 'What once had splendor has come to have no splendor at all,' refers to the entire law. The whole law was holy, just, and good, as Paul says in Rom. 7[:12]; but because of our fault, that which is good cannot be good to us, nor does it make us alive, but kills. God himself, the highest good, is not good to the ungodly but their greatest dread and distress,  as Hos. 5[:12, 14] says, 'I am like a moth of Ephraim, and like dry rot to the house of Judah. For I will be like a lion to Ephraim, and like a young lion to the house of Judah.'
So the error of our teachers is that they know absolutely nothing of the Scriptures, nor understand either what is law, or what is grace, or what is ceremonial, or what is legal. Being thus confused, they follow one instead of the other." - Martin Luther, Against Latomus, Pg. 117- 118