Doctrine of Law

The Mosaic Law ruled Jewish life from the time of Moses till Christ. The Law was established under the Mosaic Covenant (Ex. 19.3-8; 20.1-26). This covenant was temporary. It ended with the death of the Messiah. Prophesied for Israel's future was the New Covenant (Jer. 31.31-34; Ezek. 11.16-21, 36.22-32, 37.1-14). The Law's purpose was not to save. Rather, its purpose was to make sin manifest by revealing the righteous character of God. Christians are under the rulership of grace not Law. The Law was given to the Jews, not to the Gentiles (Rom. 2.14). The following key texts demonstrate the role and purpose of the Law and the new relationship of grace between God and mankind.

Many people believe that God's approval and acceptance can be earned by doing good works, by baptism, by belonging to a church, by taking the sacraments, by confessing their sins, or by keeping the Law. The Bible says this is impossible. No one can earn God's approval or accepatance by doing any of these things. There is only one way one to achieve God's approval. That is by trusting in the finished work of Christ--that Christ died for our sins and was raised from the dead for our justification.

Paul wrote to the Galatians,

"We are Jews by nature, and not sinners from among the Gentiles; nevertheless knowing that a man is not justified by the works of the Law but through faith in Christ Jesus, even we have believed in Christ Jesus, that we may be justified by faith in Christ, and not by the works of the Law; since by the works of the Law shall no flesh be justified" (Gal. 2.15-16).

And again,

"I do not nullify the grace of God; for if righteousness comes through the Law, then Christ died needlessly" (Gal. 2.21).

And again,

"For we maintain that a man is justified by faith apart from works of the Law" (Rom. 3.28).

The Law's purpose was never to save man. No one was ever saved by keeping the Law. That was not its intent.

In the following passage in Romans, Paul explains the purpose of the Law. Its purpose was to condemn. From the Law came the knowledge of sin. It revealed flaw like a mirror. Justification, the act whereby God declares us righteous in his sight, is obtained by exercising faith in Jesus. If justification could be achieved by works or by keeping the Law, then a person could boast that he had accomplished salvation by his own merit. Depending solely upon the death and resurrection of Christ excludes boasting. By solely depending upon the work of Christ, a person says recognizes that he has nothing to commend himself to God, that he can do nothing to merit God's approval nor can do nothing to save himself. He can depend only upon the death and resurrection of his Son.

Such an attitude establishes the true goal of the Law. Paul said,

"Now we know that whatever the Law says, it speaks to those who are under the Law, so that every mouth may be closed and all the world may become accountable to God; because by the works of the Law no flesh will be justified in His sight; for through the Law comes the knowledge of sin. But now apart from the Law the righteousness of God has been manifested, being witnessed by the Law and the Prophets, even the righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ for all those who believe; for there is no distinction; for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, being justified as a gift by His grace through the redemption which is in Christ Jesus; whom God displayed publicly as a propitiation in His blood through faith. This was to demonstrate His righteousness, because in the forbearance of God He passed over the sins previously committed; for the demonstration, I say, of His righteousness at the present time, so that He would be just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus. Where then is boasting? It is excluded. By what kind of Law? Of works? No, but by a Law of faith. For we maintain that a man is justified by faith apart from works of the Law. Or is God the God of Jews only? Is He not the God of Gentiles also? Yes, of Gentiles also, since indeed God who will justify the circumcised by faith and the uncircumcised through faith is one. Do we then nullify the Law through faith? May it never be! On the contrary, we establish the Law" (Rom. 3.19-31).

In Romans 6, Paul explains the new economy that has come into effect with the death of Christ. No longer is the Mosaic Law in effect. Grace has replaced Law as the means of life.

"For sin shall not be master over you, for you are not under Law but under grace. What then? Shall we sin because we are not under Law but under grace? May it never be!" (Rom. 6.14-15).

Paul used the Law itself to illustrate how it had ceased. Under the Law, a woman was free to remarry once her husband had died. In the same way, the believer in Christ has been freed from the Law because he is seen by God as having died with Christ. Why the below quote is lengthy, it is an important one to demonstrate the nature of the Law, its effect on fallen man (the flesh), and that it has now ceased. Paul wrote,

"Or do you not know, brethren (for I am speaking to those who know the Law), that the Law has jurisdiction over a person as long as he lives? For the married woman is bound by Law to her husband while he is living; but if her husband dies, she is released from the Law concerning the husband. So then, if while her husband is living she is joined to another man, she shall be called an adulteress; but if her husband dies, she is free from the Law, so that she is not an adulteress though she is joined to another man. Therefore, my brethren, you also were made to die to the Law through the body of Christ, so that you might be joined to another, to Him who was raised from the dead, in order that we might bear fruit for God. For while we were in the flesh, the sinful passions, which were aroused by the Law, were at work in the members of our body to bear fruit for death. But now we have been released from the Law, having died to that by which we were bound, so that we serve in newness of the Spirit and not in oldness of the letter. What shall we say then? Is the Law sin? May it never be! On the contrary, I would not have come to know sin except through the Law; for I would not have known about coveting if the Law had not said, "YOU SHALL NOT COVET." But sin, taking opportunity through the commandment, produced in me coveting of every kind; for apart from the Law sin is dead. I was once alive apart from the Law; but when the commandment came, sin became alive and I died; and this commandment, which was to result in life, proved to result in death for me; for sin, taking an opportunity through the commandment, deceived me and through it killed me. So then, the Law is holy, and the commandment is holy and righteous and good. Therefore did that which is good become a cause of death for me? May it never be! Rather it was sin, in order that it might be shown to be sin by effecting my death through that which is good, so that through the commandment sin would become utterly sinful. For we know that the Law is spiritual, but I am of flesh, sold into bondage to sin. For what I am doing, I do not understand; for I am not practicing what I would like to do, but I am doing the very thing I hate. But if I do the very thing I do not want to do, I agree with the Law, confessing that the Law is good. So now, no longer am I the one doing it, but sin which dwells in me. For I know that nothing good dwells in me, that is, in my flesh; for the willing is present in me, but the doing of the good is not. For the good that I want, I do not do, but I practice the very evil that I do not want. But if I am doing the very thing I do not want, I am no longer the one doing it, but sin which dwells in me. I find then the principle that evil is present in me, the one who wants to do good. For I joyfully concur with the Law of God in the inner man, but I see a different Law in the members of my body, waging war against the Law of my mind and making me a prisoner of the Law of sin which is in my members. Wretched man that I am! Who will set me free from the body of this death? Thanks be to God through Jesus Christ our Lord! So then, on the one hand I myself with my mind am serving the Law of God, but on the other, with my flesh the Law of sin" (Rom. 7.1-25).

In Romans 10.4, Paul states that Christ is the end of the Law. The Greek word for "end" is te/loj. While Christ is the "end" of the Law in the sense the Law had ended, the emphasis Paul is making here is that Christ in the "end" of the Law in the sense of being its goal. The Law's purpose was to bring men to Christ. With Christ's death and resurrection, the work that he was destined to do from eternity was finished. Paul said,

"For Christ is the end of the Law for righteousness to everyone who believes" (Rom. 10.4).

In Galatians 3, Paul explains why the Law was given. It was in effect, he says, until the "seed", that is, Christ came. He went on to explain that the Law never had the purpose nor the ability to impart life. It is only Christ, the goal of the Law, who can impart life. The Law was a tutor (Gr. paidagwgo\j), a guardian and a guide to lead to Christ. But now, in light of the fact that Christ has come, a tutor is no longer necessary. Paul explained,

"Why the Law then? It was added because of transgressions, having been ordained through angels by the agency of a mediator, until the seed would come to whom the promise had been made. Now a mediator is not for one party only; whereas God is only one. Is the Law then contrary to the promises of God? May it never be! For if a Law had been given which was able to impart life, then righteousness would indeed have been based on Law. But the Scripture has shut up everyone under sin, so that the promise by faith in Jesus Christ might be given to those who believe. But before faith came, we were kept in custody under the Law, being shut up to the faith which was later to be revealed. Therefore the Law has become our tutor to lead us to Christ, so that we may be justified by faith. But now that faith has come, we are no longer under a tutor. For you are all sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus" (Gal. 3.19-26).

In the early Church, which was composed mostly of Jews, some believers in the Messiah could not break with tradition and accept the fact that after so many hundred years, the reign of the Mosaic Law was over. There was a great controversy that Gentiles, who were also believing in Christ, should be brought under the Law. Paul adamantly and vigorously opposed this notion. Under his leadership, it was rejected by the church. In explaining this situation, Paul used the example of Hagar and Sarah and their children Ishmael and Isaac. Ishmael was the child of the slave woman Hagar while Isaac was the child of the free woman, Sarah. To be under Law was to be in bondage. To be in Christ is freedom. Which is better? The answer is obvious. Paul argued,

"Tell me, you who want to be under the law, are you not aware of what the law says? For it is written that Abraham had two sons, one by the slave woman and the other by the free woman. His son by the slave woman was born in the ordinary way; but his son by the free woman was born as the result of a promise. These things may be taken figuratively, for the women represent two covenants. One covenant is from Mount Sinai and bears children who are to be slaves: This is Hagar. Now Hagar stands for Mount Sinai in Arabia and corresponds to the present city of Jerusalem, because she is in slavery with her children. But the Jerusalem that is above is free, and she is our mother. For it is written: "Be glad, O barren woman, who bears no children; break forth and cry aloud, you who have no labor pains; because more are the children of the desolate woman than of her who has a husband." Now you, brothers, like Isaac, are children of promise. At that time the son born in the ordinary way persecuted the son born by the power of the Spirit. It is the same now. But what does the Scripture say? "Get rid of the slave woman and her son, for the slave woman's son will never share in the inheritance with the free woman's son." Therefore, brothers, we are not children of the slave woman, but of the free woman" (Gal. 4.21-31).

Paul states that we are not under the Law when we are led by the Holy Spirit since if we are led by the Holy Spirit we naturally fulfill the requirements of the Law. The Mosaic Law provided neither strength, power, nor the ability to keep it. But the indwelling Holy Spirit provides the power to fulfill the Law. Thus, Paul said,

"But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under law" (Gal. 5.18).

Paul, on occasion, limited his freedom for the sake of his kinsmen, the Jews. Though free from the Law, he placed himself under its demands to minister to Jews. Limiting one's freedom is an individual choice. In an age of grace, there is no place for legalism. Paul explained his own situation:

"To the Jews I became like a Jew, to win the Jews. To those under the law I became like one under the law (though I myself am not under the law), so as to win those under the law. To those not having the law I became like one not having the law (though I am not free from God's law but am under Christ's law), so as to win those not having the law" (1 Cor. 9.20-21).

Paul further explained the Law's purpose. Law is unnecessary for the righteous. One can make a reasonably accurate estimation of the righteousness of a society by the number and range of its laws. Generally speaking, the more laws a society has, the more unrighteous that society. Paul explained this concept by saying,

"But we know that the Law is good, if one uses it lawfully, realizing the fact that Law is not made for a righteous person, but for those who are lawless and rebellious, for the ungodly and sinners, for the unholy and profane, for those who kill their fathers or mothers, for murderers and immoral men and homosexuals and kidnappers and liars and perjurers, and whatever else is contrary to sound teaching, according to the glorious gospel of the blessed God, with which I have been entrusted" (1 Tim. 1.8-11).

The writer to the Hebrews explained that righteousness did not come through the Mosaic Law because the priesthood of the Messiah came out of the order of Melchizedek, not out of Aaron. The Aaronic priesthood's basis was the Mosaic Law. It could not effect perfection or righteousness. Only the Messiah can do that. Thus, he had to be from another priesthood. Also, Jesus was not a descendent of Aaron from whom came all the priests under the Mosaic Covenant. Rather, he was from the tribe of Judah and was a priest after the order of Melchizedek. Melchizedek lived at the time of Abraham (who is the father of faith), and is superior to the Aaronic priesthood. This priesthood was superior for two reasons: 1) It was more ancient and 2) Abraham paid titles to Melchizedek. The writer to the Hebrews wrote,

"Now if perfection was through the Levitical priesthood (for on the basis of it the people received the Law), what further need was there for another priest to arise according to the order of Melchizedek, and not be designated according to the order of Aaron? For when the priesthood is changed, of necessity there takes place a change of Law also. For the one concerning whom these things are spoken belongs to another tribe, from which no one has officiated at the altar. For it is evident that our Lord was descended from Judah, a tribe with reference to which Moses spoke nothing concerning priests. And this is clearer still, if another priest arises according to the likeness of Melchizedek, who has become such not on the basis of a Law of physical requirement, but according to the power of an indestructible life. For it is attested of Him, "YOU ARE A PRIEST FOREVER ACCORDING TO THE ORDER OF MELCHIZEDEK." For, on the one hand, there is a setting aside of a former commandment because of its weakness and uselessness (for the Law made nothing perfect), and on the other hand there is a bringing in of a better hope, through which we draw near to God" (Heb. 7.11-19).

Here, the writer to the Hebrews makes the point that the Law was merely a shadow of reality which was temporary, awaiting the true reality, Christ himself. When Christ burst into space-time, he accomplished all the requirements of the Law. He replaced the Law, and in Paul's words, he was the end or goal of the Law (see above). Thus, we have been made holy, not by the Law, but by the work of the Messiah. As the writer to the Hebrews explained,

"The law is only a shadow of the good things that are coming--not the realities themselves. For this reason it can never, by the same sacrifices repeated endlessly year after year, make perfect those who draw near to worship. If it could, would they not have stopped being offered? For the worshipers would have been cleansed once for all, and would no longer have felt guilty for their sins. But those sacrifices are an annual reminder of sins, because it is impossible for the blood of bulls and goats to take away sins. Therefore, when Christ came into the world, he said: "Sacrifice and offering you did not desire, but a body you prepared for me; with burnt offerings and sin offerings you were not pleased. Then I said, `Here I am--it is written about me in the scroll--I have come to do your will, O God.'" First he said, "Sacrifices and offerings, burnt offerings and sin offerings you did not desire, nor were you pleased with them" (although the law required them to be made). Then he said, "Here I am, I have come to do your will." He sets aside the first to establish the second. And by that will, we have been made holy through the sacrifice of the body of Jesus Christ once for all" (Heb. 10.-10).

tw~| a)gapw~nti h(ma~j kai\ lu/santi h(ma~j e)k tw~n a(martiw~n h(mw~n e)n tw|~ a(i/mati au)tou~.

Updated September 06, 2002