“Brothers, let me take an example from everyday life. Just as no one can set aside or add to a human covenant that has been duly established, so it is in this case. The promises were spoken to Abraham and to his seed. The Scripture does not say “and to seeds,” meaning many people, but “and to your seed,” meaning one person, who is Christ. What I mean is this: The law, introduced 430 years later, does not set aside the covenant previously established by God and thus do away with the promise. For if the inheritance depends on the law, then it no longer depends on a promise; but God in his grace gave it to Abraham through a promise. What, then, was the purpose of the law? It was added because of transgressions until the Seed to whom the promise referred had come. The law was put into effect through angels by a mediator. A mediator, however, does not represent just one party; but God is one. Is the law, therefore, opposed to the promises of God? Absolutely not! For if a law had been given that could impart life, then righteousness would certainly have come by the law. But the Scripture declares that the whole world is a prisoner of sin, so that what was promised, being given through faith in Jesus Christ, might be given to those who believe. 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. Now that faith has come, we are no longer under the supervision of the law.” (Galatians 3:15–25)

What is the purpose of the Law? Paul asked that question here. People often get confused about that. Yesterday’s reading and devotion addressed the problem of thinking that God’s Law is simply a checklist of behavior in order to curry God’s favor. Other Christians think the Law no longer has any purpose in our lives. They don’t want to mention it or bring it up. They simply want to focus on Jesus and the Gospel.

Paul tells us here that Law and Gospel go together. They are not the same thing, and they have different purposes or functions, but they are both part of how God has revealed Himself to us. We should be careful not to confuse the two, and we need to understand that both are necessary.

I tried to explain this in simple terms when I taught catechism class. Both the Law and Gospel have an SOS. The Law Shows Our Sin. The Gospel Shows Our Savior. Both messages come from God. Both are needed in our spiritual formation. And this is not just prior to coming to faith, but throughout our lives. The Law always shows us our sins and why we need a Savior. It accuses us to lead us to repent. The Gospel tells us who that Savior is. Jesus lived, suffered, died and rose again so that we could have the forgiveness and life God wants us to have. His payment for our sin is what saves us.

Verse 24 of this passage says “So the law was put in charge to lead us to Christ that we might be justified by faith.” Faith in Jesus is what claims the righteousness He provides and ensures our salvation. But I want to point out that phrase “the law was put in charge.”  That expression is a translation of the Greek word paidagogos, from which we get the English word “pedagogue.” It referred to a personal slave-attendant who accompanied a freeborn boy wherever he went and exercised a certain amount of discipline over him on behalf of the boy’s parents. His function was to be a caretaker and babysitter and guardian for the boy until he reached adulthood. That is why the ESV renders this phrase “the law was our guardian until Christ came.” The Law prepares us for the Gospel, the Good News of Jesus.

 

Verse 25 tells us “Now that faith has come, we are no longer under the supervision of the law.” Some take this to mean the Law is no longer needed. A better understanding is that we see the Law in a different way after we come to faith, just as an adult sees a former babysitter in a different light than when he or she was a child. While the Law will still point out our sin, we know of the pardon and peace we have for Jesus’ sake. We now understand that while the Law is not what saves us, it does show us how to live a life that is God pleasing. That is what we should strive to do in response to knowing what Jesus has already done for us.