Some of the biggest mistakes people make in religion has to do with the Law. Let me give you an example. If I ask someone if why they think they are going to heaven, sometimes I get the response, “Oh I don’t know. I have lived a pretty good life.” Is that really why people go to heaven? No, it is not. If you think that you can obey the Law of God in order to get to heaven, you have made a big mistake. The Bible tells that all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God. God expects perfection when it comes to his Law. And we are not perfect by any means.

Another example of how people make a mistake in religion when it comes to the law is when it comes to motivation. If I ask someone why they obey the law, sometimes they answer, “Because God wants me to and he will be angry and punish me if I don’t.” Is that really why a Christian wants to obey the Law? I hope not. We have a loving God who sent his one and only Son to take away all of our sins. Through Jesus’ life, death, and resurrection, we have been forgiven. Forgiveness is a tremendous gift from God. And so our proper motivation to obey the law is not out fear but rather out love and thankfulness for this great gift.

These may seem like such elementary points to make and you may be thinking that you have heard this all before. But in my experience, even the most mature Christians make mistakes when it comes to the Law. It is very common. The Law does serve a purpose however. It can curb immoral behavior. It can show us our sins. It can show us how badly we need a Savior.

But the Law does have its shortcomings. The Law cannot do what faith can do. It cannot show us who our Savior from sin is. The Law cannot give us eternal life. Today as we examine these words from Paul’s letter to the Galatians, may we learn exactly what the Law can and cannot do. And let us learn exactly what faith does for us.

I. The Law

In these words the Apostle describes the Law as a strict disciplinarian. At the time that Paul wrote these words the Roman Empire was flourishing. One of the cultural aspects of the Roman world was that wealthy people often had slaves in charge of the children. This would start around six or seven years of age until they reached their teenage years. These slaves served as educators and disciplinarians. Often these slaves were rather ruthless in their instruction of the children. They kept them under close supervision and used corporal punishment to get them to learn their lessons. Think of them as very strict and cruel schoolmasters.

This is the way that Paul describes the Law. “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.” The translation that we use limps a little bit here. Instead of put in charge to lead us to Christ, it should be translated “put in charge until Christ came.” For the Law can never lead us to Christ and the Greek word has more of the idea of the cruel task master who has been put in charge of the children for a while until Christ came and changed everything.

God gave his Old Testament people the Law to train them and curb them from immorality. They were held prisoners by the Law and locked up by it. Their whole lives were focused on the Law, whether it was the Ten Commandments or the ceremonial laws centered on religious sacrifices or the civil laws keeping their society in check. And God was strict with his law. When the people disobeyed, there were dire consequences to be paid by the people.

God’s Law though was not just a strict disciplinarian. It also served as a blessing for the people. The Law served as curb so that they would stay close to God and not chase after the false gods of the nations around them. God’s Law also showed the people their sins. It revealed to them that he demanded punishment for their sins if they ever hoped to gain eternal life in heaven. Through the Law they were shown their transgressions and how much they needed a Savior.

But the Law was lacking. No matter what the people did they could not earn their way to heaven by obeying it. No matter how hard they looked, they would not see their Savior in the Law. For the Law cannot do what faith can do.

2. Faith

Paul’s point in the Scripture lesson is that Faith changed everything. The Law served its purpose until faith in Christ arrived. He wrote to the Galatians, “Now that faith has come, we are no longer under the supervision of the law.” The Apostle was telling the Galatians that they had been set free from the Law and no longer prisoners.

Another cultural aspect of the Roman Empire was that when a young boy finished his training under a slave, he became a man. Some time in his early teens he would, in a sense, graduate to adulthood. At that point there was a ceremony where the boy would take off his childhood clothes and put on his Roman toga to mark his manhood. This was a very special occasion because then he would have a different status in the family and become a full heir to the family inheritance.

This is the illustration that Paul was using here in these words. “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.” Faith in Jesus Christ changes everything for a Christian. The Law couldn’t save us, but Christ did. Because of our sins, we were eternally damned to hell. But Jesus paid the price that God demanded for our sins. God said he required perfection. Jesus is perfect. God said he required a blood sacrifice to pay for sin. Jesus Christ died on the Cross to make that payment for us. God said that the Savior would rise from the dead and live and rule eternally. Jesus Christ rose from the dead and lives and rules eternally.

The Law couldn’t do all that. Jesus did. And we are told that when we believe in him, we have the gift of eternal life in heaven. Faith saves us. And faith is the work of the Holy Spirit. Through your baptisms the Spirit put faith in your hearts and in essence you changed your clothes. No longer do you wear the child’s clothes of the law, but you have clothed yourselves with Christ.

Faith can do what the law couldn’t. With your new clothes of faith, God the Father now sees you as his children. The Father looks at you with love. He treats you like you are his own son or daughter and he doesn’t play favorites. Paul wrote that “There is neither Jew nor Greek, slave nor free, male nor female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus.” Yes, you have been brought into the family of God through baptism and given the full rights of children of God. We are all one in Christ Jesus.

And as sons and daughters of God, he gives you the full inheritance. You are heirs of the precious gift of salvation, heirs of heaven. The Law could never do that. Abraham was not credited with righteousness because he was such a good guy and obeyed the Law so well. No, we are told that Abraham’s faith was credited to him as righteousness. Only faith can give us our inheritance.

You are now sons and daughters of God through faith in Christ Jesus. It is a free gift given through your baptisms. So how will you respond to your loving Father? The Law no longer binds you in shackles, but it certainly can guide you. It can direct you in how to live with thankfulness and love. Don’t obey the Law because you fear a horrible punishment. But rather obey God because you want to thank him for bringing you into his family.

And the Law can guide you in your thankfulness. Jesus told his disciples a new command the night before he paid for the sins of the world. He told them to love God and love one another. That is how we show our thankfulness. Let us put God first in our lives. I know you have heard that before. But use the Law to examine to see if you are doing just that. Are you placing God as a priority in your life every day? Are you putting his Holy Word and worship at the top of your week’s to-do list? Do you truly love one another? Are you placing other peoples’ needs and wants above your own? Do you love your family? Do you love your fellow Christians? Do you love those who don’t have faith?

Yes, the Law does serve a purpose, but it cannot do what faith can do. Let us not make the mistake of thinking that we can obey the law to get to heaven. Let us not make the mistake of thinking that we obey the only because God will punish us if we don’t. But rather, as children of God, let us live in faith being confident of our salvation won by our Savior Jesus Christ. Let us live in faith loving and thanking God for our inheritance of eternal life. Amen.