By Rev. Ron Purkey
Guest Columnist

Read Galatians 3:19-29

“And if ye be Christ’s, then are ye Abraham’s seed, and heirs according to the promise.” (Galatians 3:29).

By Rev. Ron Purkey

All of Paul’s arguments are logical. But the particular arguments here depend especially on reasoning, as Paul compares the law to a human contract. “When two people make a contract, it is illegal for a third party to step in and change it or cancel it.

God made a contract (covenant) with Abraham 400 years before the law was given. The Law of Moses could never cancel God’s original promise to Abraham. God gave that promise to Abraham’s seed as well, and verse 16 indicates that this seed is Christ. The Mosaic Law was not a new way of salvation that canceled God’s promises to Abraham; this would not be logical. Promise and faith go together, but not promise and law.

“Why then did God even give the law?” his objectors would argue. Paul gave three answers:

First, the law was temporary and only for Israel. (Galatian 3:19-20) Romans 2:14 and Acts 15:24 make it clear that God never gave the law to the Gentiles. The moral law was already written in the Gentiles’ hearts (Romans 2:15). But the ceremonial law (including the Sabbath laws) was never given to the Gentiles. The law was “added” and was not a replacement for the Abrahamic promises. Once the seed (Christ) came, the law was superseded. “But the law was given with such glory!” the Judaizers would reply. “How can you say it was only temporary?” Paul’s answer: the law was given by angelic mediators, but God spoke personally to Abraham; and the fulfillment of his promise to Abraham depended on God alone.

Second, the law convicted us of sin but never saved us from sin. (Galatian 3:21-22) If there were a law that saved sinners, then God would have spared his Son and used that law instead of the cross. The law is not contrary to God’s promises; by revealing sin, the law forces the sinner to trust God’s promises. Law shows us our need of grace; grace enables us to please God through faith. The law places all under sin, which means that all can be saved by grace. If God permitted even one sinner to be saved by law, then no person could be saved by grace. All must be saved the same way.

Third, the law prepared the way for God’s son, Jesus Christ. (Galatian 3:23-29) Before the faith we now know came, the law shut men up, revealing their need for a Savior. The law was God’s “schoolmaster” (tutor) for the Jews in their national infancy. The Greek and Roman tutor used to guard and teach the minor children until they reached legal adulthood, after which the children were on their own. The law kept Israel “in line,” so to speak, until the Messiah came and the full revelation of the Gospel of Jesus Christ was given to both Jews and Gentiles.

Read Ron Purkey’s Bible study outlines at www.rcpbibleoutlines.com free on the website. Purkey has been an ordained Baptist minister for 50 years.