“Wherefore the law was our schoolmaster to bring us unto Christ, that we might be justified by faith. But after that faith is come, we are no longer under a schoolmaster,” [Galatians 3:24-25, KJV]
“So that the law is become our tutor to bring us unto Christ, that we might be justified by faith. But now faith that is come, we are no longer under a tutor,” [Galatians 3:24-25]
The nature of law is to divide. Black and white, good and bad, and right and wrong are all defined by law. The interpretation of law can only be clearly defined by God. God is completely Good and is forever unchanging –and His very Nature is Good, therefore He is the only qualified Person to determine right and wrong. When man makes laws, there is always be a tendency to make more and more laws so long as the interpretation of law is determined by man instead of God. Interpretations of right and wrong change when man makes good and evil relative to events of the day. The Scriptures clearly state: “We know that law is good if one uses it properly. We know that law is made not for the righteous but for lawbreakers and rebels, the ungodly and sinful, the unholy and irreligious…” [1 Timothy 1:8-9]. Ideally, Christians should never need external laws, because they have God’s Nature within them; laws are made for lawbreakers. But the purpose of God’s Law in the Old was to divide. He gave His Law because people had wandered so far from His Truth that He needed to explain to them the difference between holiness (His Nature) and sinfulness (the nature of a fallen world). Romans 3:20 says: “Therefore no one will be declared righteous in his sight by observing the law; rather, through the law we become conscious of sin.” God’s Law explains the Nature of God to fallen, sinful people. And God did this to help us, that we might come to the realize that we have no hope of avoiding God’s Just Judgment –unless there is a possibility to appeal to the mercy of God. So people who realize their own capacity to sin put their hope in faith that God will be merciful because they hate their own fleshly nature and desire to please God –even if they are helpless to do so. The Law was given to teach us that we desperately need God’s help; we need grace –which only God Himself can provide.
In Galatians, chapter 3, verses 24 and 25, we are told that the Law of God was given to “supervise” us until we could reach maturity by grace through faith. The KJV uses the word “schoolmaster” while the NIV says “supervision” but the actual word is “Paidagogos” which means “child leader.” The Greeks and Romans would often choose a trustworthy male slave who was charged with the duty of supervising the life and morals of upper class boys in a household. The slave would be a tutor, guardian and guide for these boys. They were usually not even allowed to step out of the house without the guardian until the boys reached adulthood. Now that this grace has come, all Christians are no longer under the supervision of Law. There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. And we no longer need to divide the world into black and white and fear God’s condemnation. Rather, we are free from Law and are charged to lead others into His marvelous grace. And grace does not disappoint us; it empowers us to be good by God’s Spirit. This is not to say that there is no longer a right and a wrong –it means that we are no longer part of the wrong and we are being transformed continually into the right. The very Nature of God is changing our nature to be like His. And He delights in His children who love the Nature of His grace.
And as we approach God’s throne, our new nature seeks to bring God’s Light into the dark places of this world –that others might experience the amazing freedom of God’s grace. Pray for grace to prevail in the lives of those around you so that others would not remain condemned but find the wonderful grace that sets captive free. When the Son sets you free, you are free indeed!
Pray with confidence,
George