Scripture Reading: Gal. 3:6-7, 9-10, Gal. 3:19a, Gal. 3:23-25; 4:2-3; Rom. 2:12; 7:5; John 3:18, 3:36; 16:9; Acts 16:31; Rom. 16:26; 2 Tim. 4:7b; Jude 1:3, 20; John 3:15; Acts 6:7; 1 Tim. 3:9
In the foregoing message we saw that the promise is versus the law. In this message we shall see that faith replaces law.
In 3:5 Paul asks, “He therefore Who is supplying to you the Spirit and doing works of power among you, is it by the works of law or by the hearing of faith?” The Spirit in this verse is the all-inclusive, compound Spirit, typified by the compound ointment in Exodus 30:23-25. It is the Spirit mentioned in John 7:39, who is the life-imparting Christ in resurrection. This Spirit is the bountiful supply to the believers in God’s New Testament economy. We receive this Spirit not by the works of law, but by faith in the crucified and glorified Christ.
In verse 6 Paul goes on to say, “Even as Abraham believed God, and it was reckoned to him for righteousness.” The bewitched Galatians, by drifting back to the law, were clinging to Moses, through whom the law was given. But Paul referred them to Abraham, who was the father of faith. Faith was of God’s original economy; the law was later added because of transgressions (v. 19). After Christ fulfilled the law through His death, God wanted His people to return to His original economy. With Abraham it was not a matter of keeping the law, but a matter of believing God. It should be so with all the New Testament believers.
In verses 9 and 10 Paul says, “So that they who are of faith are blessed with believing Abraham. For as many as are of the works of law are under a curse; for it is written, Cursed is everyone who does not abide by all the things written in the book of the law to do them.” Faith in Christ brings us into the blessing God promised to Abraham, which is the promise of the Spirit (v. 14). This faith had brought the Galatian believers into the blessing in Christ. They were enjoying the grace of life in the Spirit. But the Judaizers bewitched them and caused them to come under the curse of the law, thus depriving them of the enjoyment of Christ and causing them to fall from grace (5:4).
According to verse 8, the promise God gave to Abraham, “In you all nations shall be blessed,” was the gospel. It was preached to him not only before the accomplishing of redemption by Christ, but also before the giving of the law through Moses. What God promised to Abraham corresponds to what God accomplished in Christ, which is the fulfillment of His promise to Abraham. The New Testament economy is a continuation of His dealing with Abraham and has nothing to do with the law of Moses. All the New Testament believers should be in this continuation and should have nothing to do with the law given through Moses.
Law was the principle according to which God dealt with His people in the Old Testament economy. In dealing with the children of Israel according to the law, God dealt with them through the tabernacle with the priesthood and the offerings. On the one hand, He dealt with them according to the law; on the other hand, He dealt with them through the tabernacle. After the giving of the law, God came to dwell in the tabernacle. At the end of the book of Exodus, the tabernacle was set up. Then at the very beginning of Leviticus, we see that God spoke from within the tent of meeting. God was hidden within the tabernacle and spoke in the tabernacle. Thus, God dealt with His people from within the tabernacle, through the tabernacle, and according to the law.
Suppose an Israelite committed a certain sin. According to the law, that one had to be condemned, perhaps even put to death. The law exposed his sin and condemned him. However, the sinner could present a trespass offering, which was then offered on the altar by the priest. In this way the one who had sinned could be forgiven. After the law exposed and condemned him, it brought him to the tabernacle through the altar. This indicates that the law first exposes us and then brings us unto Christ. If there had been no law to condemn the people, there would have been no need of redemption. We need redemption because we are under the condemnation of the law. By exposing and condemning us, the law brings us to Christ.
The law is a custodian which keeps sinners by condemning them. Apart from the law’s condemnation, it could not function as a custodian. Without the law’s exposure and condemnation, we cannot realize how many sins we have committed against God. Without the law, we would be without regulation or restriction. But because the law condemns us, we are kept by the law.
In keeping us by condemning us, the law brings us to Christ. In the Old Testament, an Israelite who had sinned was condemned by the law and required to bring a trespass offering. The law functioned as a custodian to bring the sinning Israelite to Christ, his Redeemer, typified by the trespass offering. In this way the law keeps us and brings us to Christ.
On the one hand, Paul put the law in the position of Hagar, Abraham’s concubine. On the other hand, the law has a positive position, that of a custodian to keep us and that of a child-conductor to bring us to Christ. We should not return to the law. To do this is to go to Hagar. However, we should not despise the law either, for it serves as a warden to care for those who are weak or childish. In its role as a child-conductor, the law takes care of the child. It does this by convicting, judging, condemning, and exposing the child. When the child is tempted to do something wrong, the law rebukes him and condemns him in order to keep him and to bring him to the proper place. Therefore, by exposing us and condemning us, the law serves as a child-conductor to bring us to Christ.
We have pointed out that the law was the basic principle according to which God dealt with His people in the Old Testament. If it were not for the law, not many of the children of Israel would have come to the altar with a trespass offering. Because the law exposed them and condemned them, they realized their need to come to the altar with the required offering. In this, the law is very useful to God. Although God dealt with His people according to the law, He did not deal with them through the law, but dealt with them through the tabernacle.
In 3:19 Paul tells us that the law “was added because of transgressions.” The law was not an original part of God’s economy. It was added while God’s economy was proceeding because of man’s transgression, until the seed, Christ, should come, to whom God’s promise was made. Since it was added because of man’s transgressions, it should have been deducted when those transgressions were taken away. Because Christ, the seed, has come, the law must be terminated. Its function is to expose man’s fallen condition.
In 3:23 Paul says, “But before faith came we were guarded under law, being shut up unto the faith which was about to be revealed.” To be guarded is to be kept in custody, kept in ward. To be guarded under law, by being shut up there, can be compared to sheep being enclosed in a fold (John 10:1, 16). In God’s economy, the law was used as a fold to keep God’s chosen people until Christ came. Because Christ has come, God’s people should no longer be kept under the law.
The Greek word rendered “unto” in 3:23 can also be translated “with a view to.” This indicates that the shutting up has an objective or goal in view. It should result in bringing the guarded people to the faith.
In caring for their children, Christian parents need to preach the law to them. We should not first preach grace to the children. If we give them regulations according to the law, the law will keep them in custody for Christ. Thus, we should first give them the law in a strong way. The law will expose them, guard them, and keep them, serving as a custodian to keep them for Christ.
In 3:24 Paul continues, “So the law has become our child-conductor unto Christ, that we might be justified by faith.” The Greek word for “child-conductor” can also be rendered escort, guardian, or custodian. It denotes one who cares for a child who is under age and conducts him to the schoolmaster. The law was used by God as a custodian, a guardian, a child-conductor, to watch over His chosen people before Christ came, and to escort and conduct them to Christ at the proper time.
Galatians 3:25 says, “But faith having come, we are no longer under a child-conductor.” Since faith in Christ has come, we do not need to be under the guarding law any longer.
As a child-conductor, the law brings us unto Christ that we may be justified by faith. When an Israelite came to the altar with a trespass offering, he was justified by faith in that offering. Because of the trespass offering, God forgave him of his sin. The Israelite was justified not by works of law, but by his faith in the trespass offering. In typology, this is to be justified by faith. The principle in the New Testament is the same. The law still condemns all those who have sinned. Those condemned under the law should come to Christ and exercise faith in Him as their trespass offering. In this way, sinners are justified by faith.
The law is related to the flesh. This is indicated in Romans 7:5, where Paul says, “For when we were in the flesh, the passions of sins, which were through the law, operated in our members to bear fruit to death. ” The works of the law are always related to the flesh. A believer’s efforts to keep the law are not of the Spirit, but are of the flesh. Even if someone has the intention to please God by fulfilling the requirements of the law, that intention will cause him to be involved with the flesh.
In Romans 7 Paul tells us that the law is good, even spiritual. Thus, we have no right to find fault with the law. Instead, we should blame our flesh. Whenever we try to keep the law, we exercise the flesh.
In Galatians 3:10 Paul says, “For as many as are of the works of law are under a curse; for it is written, Cursed is everyone who does not abide by all the things written in the book of the law to do them.” If we try to keep the law, we shall be in the flesh and automatically be under the curse, for the works of the law are under the curse. Instead of trying to keep the law, we should thank the law for exposing us and condemning us and then bid it farewell. We should not form a permanent relationship with the law. We should leave the law and go to Christ and to the cross. If we stay in the flesh with the law, we shall remain under the curse. But if we go to Christ and the cross, we shall be justified by faith.
It is difficult to understand faith in a full way. In Acts 6:7 we are told that many priests were obedient to the faith, and in 2 Timothy 4:7 Paul says that he kept the faith. According to Jude 3, we must contend for the faith once delivered to the saints. Furthermore, Paul charged the deacons to hold the mystery of the faith (1 Tim. 3:9).
We can define faith in different ways. We may say that faith is a camera which photographs the scenery of grace. Faith is also the reflection of grace, and it is the appreciation of grace with the calling, receiving, accepting, joining, partaking, and enjoying.
Just as the law was the basic principle according to which God dealt with His people in the Old Testament, faith is the basic principle according to which He deals with people in the New Testament. All those who refuse to believe in Christ will perish, whereas those who believe in Him will be forgiven of their sins and receive eternal life. In John 16:9 we are told that the Spirit will convict the world concerning sin because of not believing in the Son of God. This indicates that the unique sin which causes people to perish is unbelief. God’s commandment to sinners is to believe in the Son of God.
In the New Testament the term faith is all-inclusive. It has both a divine aspect and a human aspect, for it implies something on God’s side and something on our side. On God’s side, the term “the faith” implies that God sent His Son to earth, that Christ died on the cross to accomplish redemption, that He was buried and was resurrected, that in resurrection He released the divine life and has become the life-giving Spirit — all that He might enter into all those who believe in Him to be grace, life, power, sanctification, and everything to them. On our side, faith is related to hearing, appreciating, calling, receiving, accepting, joining, partaking, and enjoying. Furthermore, faith involves rejoicing, thanking, praising, and overflowing. Faith hears and appreciates. Faith calls, receives, and accepts. Faith also joins, partakes, enjoys, rejoices, gives thanks, and praises. Therefore, faith results in the overflow of life from within us.
If we do not have faith, all that has been accomplished on God’s side will remain objective and not be personally related to us. We need our faith to function as a camera to photograph the scenery of grace. For faith to operate in this way implies that we apprehend the divine scenery by hearing, appreciating, calling, receiving, accepting, joining, partaking, enjoying, rejoicing, thanking, praising, and overflowing.
Faith is actually the all-inclusive Triune God infused into our being. This infusion takes place as we are under the preaching of grace and hear the word of grace. When the processed Triune God is infused into us, He becomes our faith. This faith is the reflection of grace. Therefore, grace and faith, faith and grace, are two ends of one thing.
Neither grace nor faith has anything to do with the law. Today God deals with people not according to law, but according to faith. We need to keep this faith, turn to it, obey it, and contend for it.
In 3:6, 7, and 9 we see that faith was the principle by which God dealt with Abraham. Verse 9 says, “So that they who are of faith are blessed with believing Abraham.” Under God’s dealing, Abraham was not working to please God; instead, he was believing Him.
On the one hand, faith is our believing in Christ. On the other hand, it is our taking Christ’s Person and redemptive work as the object of our faith (John 3:36; Acts 16:31; Rom. 16:26; 2 Tim. 4:7b; Jude 1:3, 20).
Faith replaces law (Gal. 3:23, 25). Since faith has come, we should not stay with the law any longer. The law kept us and brought us to Christ, but now in our experience it should be replaced by faith.
We have pointed out that 3:9 says that “they who are of faith are blessed with believing Abraham.” Faith brings us into the blessing God promised to Abraham, that is, to the all-inclusive land which typifies the all-inclusive Spirit. Hence, faith in Christ brings us the promise of the Spirit (3:14).
Furthermore, faith ushers us into Christ. According to John 3:15, everyone who believes in Christ, or into Christ (Gk.), has eternal life.
Finally, faith characterizes those who believe in Christ, and it distinguishes them from those who keep the law (Acts 6:7; 1 Tim. 3:9). We are not keepers of law — we are believers in Christ. We are the people of faith.
In 3:7 and 9 Paul speaks of those “who are of faith.” According to both Darby’s New Translation and the Chinese version, this expression denotes the principle of faith. These versions adopt the rendering “on the principle of faith.” To be of faith means to be on the principle of faith. We are those who take faith as our principle. Everything we do should be in keeping with this principle. By this principle we come to Christ, receive Him, and become one with Him.
Galatians 3:23 and 25 say that faith has come. This is another strong expression. Once we were guarded under law, but now faith has come. This means that the processed Triune God as grace has come. The coming of faith also includes the coming of appreciation, receiving, and rejoicing. This is the faith which replaces law!
