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Galatians Lesson 4 (2010)

FROM THE LAW TO THE PROMISE

“Before this faith came, we were held prisoners by the law, locked up until faith should be revealed. So the law was put in charge to lead us to Christ that we might be justified by faith. Now that faith has come, we are no longer under the supervision of the law.”

Some believers in Paul’s time, especially those among the Jewish believers, thought that salvation by faith alone is not taught in the Old Testament. Most of them thought that the Old Testament taught that a person could attain salvation by observing the law or by faith and observing the law, but not by faith alone. But Apostle Paul had been adamantly defending the truth of the gospel he preached, which is salvation by faith alone. It seems that he was repeating the same thing over and over again. Some of us might have lost our interest in talking about salvation by faith alone, thinking that we are wasting too much time in meaningless doctrinal studies. But Apostle Paul didn’t think that he was wasting his time at all. He was determined to defend the gospel he preached. In fact, Martin Luther also defended the gospel truth based on Romans 1:17, “For in the gospel a righteousness from God is revealed, a righteousness that is by faith from first to last, just as it is written: ‘The righteous will live by faith.’” (Hab 2:4) Why was this matter so important for both Apostle Paul and Martin Luther, who were determined to defend it as a matter of life and death? Why is it such a big deal to us?

We say, “I just live by faith in Jesus. That’s it. Isn’t that enough? Let those who have nothing to do waste their time arguing about those things. I am too busy.” Anyway, why are we spending so much time on the same subject over and over again? Can’t we talk about something more exciting and interesting? It’s because our salvation and our future depend on the truth of the gospel. In fact, unless we understand what it means to live by faith in the gospel truth, we might be running the race in vain. That’s why Apostle Paul also warned the Corinthian Christians by saying, “Now brothers, I want to remind you of the gospel I preached to you, which you received and on which you have taken your stand. By this gospel you are saved, if you hold firmly to the word I preached to you. Otherwise, you have believed in vain.” (1 Corinthians 15:1-2) In fact, the truth of the gospel is not something that we should take lightly. We should consider it very carefully and thoughtfully because it is the seed of the kingdom of God. Once it is sown in the good soil-heart, it will bear much fruit, a hundred times more than what was sown. (Luke 8:8)

In the previous passage, Galatians 2:1-3:15, Apostle Paul had been defending the true gospel principle that man is justified by faith alone, not by observing the law. In today’s passage, 3:15-25, he continues to prove the same point, but he does it by contrasting the Law and the Promise, which came from the same God in the Old Testament. His assumption here is that the Law of God cannot cancel the promise of God. He supports his argument by providing a human example in verse 15. “Brothers, let me take an example from everyday life. Just as no one can set aside or add to a human covenant that has been duly established, so it is in this case.”

To what promise is Paul referring? God promised an inheritance to Abraham and his descendants. (Genesis 12:2, 7, 18:18, 22:18) He said in 12:7, “To your offspring I will give this land.” Was Paul talking about the blessing of the land of Palestine? Not really. In the previous passage, we learned that the blessing was the blessing of justification, the Holy Spirit and eternal life through faith. It may be helpful to read Galatians 3:8-9 and 13-14 again. “The Scripture foresaw that God would justify the Gentiles by faith, and announced the gospel in advance to Abraham: ‘All nations will be blessed through you.’ So those who have faith are blessed along with Abraham, the man of faith…. Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us, for it is written ‘Cursed is everyone who is hung on a tree.’ He redeemed us in order that the blessing given to Abraham might come to the Gentiles through Christ Jesus, so that by faith we might receive the promise of the Spirit.” Apostle Paul is saying that the promise given to Abraham and to his descendants cannot be altered or cancelled, just as a man’s will or contract cannot be set aside or added to.

Look at verses 16-18. “The promises were spoken to Abraham and to his seed. The Scripture does not say ‘and to seeds,’ meaning many people, but ‘and to your seed,’ meaning one person, who is Christ. What I mean is this: The law, introduced 430 years later, does not set aside the covenant previously established by God and thus do away with the promise. For if the inheritance depends on the law, then it no longer depends on a promise; but God in his grace gave it to Abraham through a promise.” God’s promise to Abraham and his descendants was free and unconditional. It is like when a company offers you a free gift, and says, “No strings attached.” In fact, when God promised the blessing of salvation by faith, there were no strings attached and there was no fine print or tiny words to read at the bottom of the contract. Apostle Paul was saying that when God gave his law, which was summarized in the Ten Commandments to the people of Israel, God did not change his mind and alter the promise he had first given. The promise is still binding as it was in the beginning. Every sinner who trusts in Christ who was crucified for our salvation receives the blessing of justification, the Holy Spirit and eternal life, apart from any merit or good works.

Look at verses 19-22. Here Paul is explaining the true function of God’s law in relation to his promise by asking two questions: 1) Why then did God give the law? (19-20) 2) Is the law then against the promise of God? (22-23) First of all, what was God’s purpose in giving the Ten Commandments? Look at verse 19a. “What, then, was the purpose of the law? It was added because of transgressions until the Seed to whom the promise referred had come.” Here Apostle Paul was saying that in giving the law God didn’t mean to substitute the promise he already gave. In other words, he didn’t intend to provide salvation through obedience to the law; rather, God introduced the law to convince men of their need for salvation. The main function of the law is to expose our sin; the law acts as a mirror to our soul. Whenever we face the law, we are told that we are sinful and need faith in Christ- “the promised seed”- and the one through whom transgression would be forgiven. Fundamentally speaking, the law was intended to be a blessing because it was supposed to lead us to Christ.

The rest of verses 19 and 20 are very hard to understand. “The law was put into effect through angels by a mediator.” Who is the mediator between God and the people? Moses. But was there any mediator between God and Abraham when God gave his promise? No. God directly gave his promise to Abraham. That might be the reason that Apostle Paul said in verse 20, “A mediator, however, does not represent just one party; but God is one.”

The next question is: “Is the law, therefore, opposed to the promise of God?” The answer is again, “Absolutely not!” Why not? It’s because God never intended to use the law as a substitute for the promise he had already given. Look at verses 21b-22. “For if a law had been given that could impart life, then righteousness would certainly have come by the law. But the Scripture declares that the whole world is a prisoner of sin, so that what was promised, being given through faith in Jesus Christ, might be given to those who believe.” In these verses, Apostle Paul is says, “Look, guys! Has anyone been able to keep all the requirements of the law perfectly? Of course not! In fact, the Scripture declares that the entire human race is a prisoner of sin.

The God who gave his promise to Abraham is the same God who gave the law through Moses. The promise only had to be believed. But the law had to be obeyed. God’s dealings with Abraham were in the category of promise, grace and faith but God’s dealings with Moses were in the category of law, commandments and works. Was God contradicting himself by giving two standards that seemed to be contradictory to one another? No. Why not? It’s because the law eventually leads us to faith in Christ Jesus. The law and the promise came from the same God to bless us. Although the law makes us feel convicted, condemned and cursed because of our sinful nature, it is still a blessing from God. It reminds us of John 1:16 and 17, which read, “From the fullness of his grace we received one blessing after another. For the law was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ.” In other words, we can say that in order to know the grace of God, we need to go through the law of Moses.

Apostle Paul explains this further in verses 23-25. “Before this faith came, we were held prisoners by the law, locked up until faith should be revealed. So the law was put in charge to lead us to Christ that we might be justified by faith. Now that faith has come, we are no longer under the supervision of the law.”
Here, we learn that God intended for all of us to have a spiritual journey: we should pass through the law in order to enter into the land of promise. We cannot skip this journey because without knowing what sin really is, we cannot know the grace of God, either. Now, Apostle Paul explains that each of us is either held captive by the law, because he is still awaiting the fulfillment of the promise, or delivered from the law because he has inherited the promise in Christ. In other words, we are either living according to the Old Covenant or the New Covenant. If we are living by the Old Covenant, we are in slavery. If we are living by the New Covenant, we have inherited freedom through justification, eternal life and the Holy Spirit through what Jesus has done for us through his sacrificial death and resurrection. God never intended for us to live like we are in the Old Testament. But some people are still living in the Old Testament’s unhappy bondage. However, those who are in Christ are no longer under the supervision of the law.

Here, we must be very careful not to think that Apostle Paul was despising the law of God. Instead, Paul was saying that the law of God does have a place in the journey of our faith. Yet, he is distinguishing the life of faith from the life of legalism. In fact, the life of faith involves both the Old and the New Testaments. When Ludwig Van Beethoven, a great composer and pianist (1770-1827), was young, he had several music teachers, including his strict father, who taught him how to play piano and compose music. Some of his teachers were very harsh. But he later became a great musician. Likewise, we also need a personal tutor in our spiritual journey of faith. Mr. Law is our personal tutor. Apostle Paul said in 1 Timothy 1:8 that the law is good if one uses it properly. Paul was never opposed to the Law itself. He knew that Moses’ teachings are good if they are used as they were intended to be used. That’s why Paul said that by faith we don’t abolish the law. Instead, we uphold the law. (Romans 3:31) Jesus also said in Matthew 5:17-18, “Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them. I tell you the truth, until heaven and earth disappear, not the smallest letter, not the least stroke of a pen, will by any means disappear from the Law until everything is accomplished.” This shows that God’s purpose in giving us the law through Moses is very evident: he gave us the law to use as our training tool. In fact, Apostle Paul said in 2 Timothy 3:16, “All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the man of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.” What did he mean by training in righteousness? He meant that Christians should not stop seeking the holiness of God.

In verses 26-29, Apostle Paul describes what kind of blessings we have as Christians. First of all, we can be clothed with Christ through our faith in Jesus. Look at verses 26-27. “You are all sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus, for all of you who were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ.” Some people might think that once we are justified, we don’t need to struggle anymore. Apostle Paul said that we who were baptized into Christ have clothed ourselves with Christ. It does not mean that once we are justified, we don’t need to struggle. If that’s the case, why then do some Christians remain unchanged and even commit horrible sins? The answer is very simple. They are unchanged because they don’t live their lives by faith in Christ. They stop seeking the holiness of God, by failing to repent and confess their sins and be washed by the blood of Jesus. Unless we confess our sins, our conscience is burdened, and as a result we add sin to sin. Just going church once a week does not make us real Christians. We need to struggle to be united with Christ, crucifying our sinful nature moment by moment, confessing our sins immediately, and daily seeking God’s forgiveness. It’s extremely important to keep a clean conscience, immediately applying the blood of Jesus Christ. In other words, we should not take sin lightly. That’s what it means to remain in Christ. Although we may not be able to pray 3 hours a day, we need to do what we can do. Each person’s situation is different. From where we are, we need to come close to God by praying more, reading the Bible more and being more watchful against the devil. Our new law of living is Christ Jesus and the Holy Spirit.

Second, in Christ we are all one. Look at verse 28. “There is neither Jew nor Greek, slave nor free, male nor female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus.” Here, Apostle Paul is saying that in Christ we belong not only to God as His children but also to each other as brothers and sisters. Somebody said that this verse is one of the most revolutionary verses in the whole Bible. In Paul’s time, the world was so divided by classes. Slavery was so much a part of society that no one ever thought about abolishing it. Women were discriminated against and considered inferior by men. Even now the world is still divided by racism, classism and sexism. But Christians can become one in Christ. It does not mean that there will be no more racism, classism or sexism in the world. These things still exist. We can never be color-blind. We are always aware of people’s racial, cultural, and educational backgrounds. Yet, we can still have fellowship in Christ, overcoming the barriers and differences. The walls and barriers of hostility have been removed through Jesus Christ. We are all one in the Christ Jesus and fellowship with one another in the Spirit. In heaven, there is no distinction according to race, ranks and sex. Everyone is equal.

Look at verse 29. “If you belong to Christ, then you are Abraham’s seed, and heirs according to the promise.” In Genesis 15, God had not yet given Abraham a son, even though 10 years had passed since God had first given him the promise. God took him out and showed him the stars in the sky and said, “Look up at the heaven and count the stars – if indeed you can count them. So shall your offspring be.” Abraham believed the Lord, and God credited it to him as his righteousness. And now, God’s promise to Abraham has been fulfilled through Christ. There are as many spiritual descendants as the stars in the sky. People from different races, colors, languages and cultures who are in Christ are Abraham’s children, and heirs of the kingdom of heaven.

In fact, John the Apostle saw a vision in heaven when he was in exile on the Island of Patmos. He said, “After this I looked and there before me was a great multitude that no one could count, from every nation, tribe, people and language, standing before the throne and in front of the Lamb. They were wearing white robes and were holding palm branches in their hands. And they cried out in a loud voice: ‘Salvation belongs to our God, who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb.” (Revelation 7:9-10) Surely, you and I are to be there along with Abraham’s other descendants. Here, we see who we really are.

As we struggle daily with so many challenges in life, we feel discouraged. Some of us may think that life is too hard and meaningless. We often wonder why we suffer and face so many challenges in the world. We fail to see what blessings we have in the gospel we believe. When we belong to Christ, we belong to eternity. Our suffering in the world is very temporary. There will be God’s final judgment. We are not losers if we are in Christ. We are victors in Christ, and we will be clothed with white robes in heaven and rejoice forever in God’s salvation. In Christ, I am a child of God, connected to the redeemed people of God. I find my true identity in Christ. The gospel of Jesus Christ is a mystery. It is the wisdom and power of God for the salvation of everyone who believes. There is no other gospel that can bring such wonderful salvation. The real challenge is this, “Am I in Christ or under the law?” We need to be changed and transformed in our ways of thinking and lifestyle. Our hope should be heavenly and not earthbound. As long as we live by our sinful nature, we are bound by the law of this world. We need to trust in God in all things. Until we have complete trust in Him, we have no freedom. Our sinful nature and our old self has to be crucified, so that our new self in Christ can live. Without belonging to Christ, we cannot share in God’s blessing. It’s a reality, not just a theory.

In conclusion, we learn that we must know the relationship between Abraham, Moses and Christ and between the promise, the law and faith. Because we are now in Christ, our spiritual life should be changed from law-bound to Christ bound. Christian life is a spiritual journey from the law to the promise, from condemnation to justification, from curse to blessing and from Moses to Christ. Life by faith in the gospel is not a license to sin or to take sin lightly. It’s the way of justification and the way of sanctification, the true discipleship.