Galatians 5:1 says, “Stand fast therefore in the liberty wherewith Christ hath made us free, and be not entangled again with the yoke of bondage.” We learned last week that there is no possible way that a person can be justified by the works of the law. If the apostle Paul couldn’t do it - don’t fool yourself into thinking you can. Concerning the law, Paul was blameless, but he was not perfect; nor could he ever be by the law. Let’s examine this further this week, and get into The Word of God.

As we saw last week, the law made nothing perfect (Heb 7:19). Why did the law make nothing perfect? Because by the law comes the knowledge of sin, not the solution to sin (Rom 3:20). It just let’s you know, without a doubt, what sin is. It does nothing to help you overcome. It’s like your bathroom mirror. When you look in it in the morning, it let’s you know you have a problem. It shows you your hair is messed up. It shows you need a shave. However, it doesn’t comb your hair or shave your face. It just shows you the problem. That is what the law does. That’s why the Ten Commandments need to hang in every public building in the U.S. The law is for the unrighteous man (1Tim 1:9), and there are plenty of unrighteous people that need to see it. No, it doesn’t help them overcome their unrighteousness - but it does let them know what right and wrong is - so they are without excuse.

Why do you think these American Communist lawyer unions are always trying to get the Ten Commandments and The Bible out of public sight? Because it reveals their sin problem, and they think that if they can get God’s Word out of sight, that their problem is solved. That’s like thinking that breaking your mirror will solve the problem of you looking ugly. The problem is still there, regardless. Don’t put tape over your service engine light!

So we see the Law of God in itself is pure, holy, just, & perfect. We also see that it is made for the unrighteous man, not the righteous. It’s purpose is to slay, to kill, to condemn, to bring forth death, to work wrath, to curse (Rom 7:11, 2Cor 3:6-9, Rom 4:15, Gal 3:10). The law does not help you nor bless you. It is simply the vehicle by which you are driven to the destination - which is Christ. If I went to visit family and stayed in my car the whole time out in the driveway, they would think I’m crazy, or they would be offended. Why? Because my car just gets me to my loved one; it is not my loved one (Gal 3:23-26). Once you have been brought to Christ by the law, then the law has served it’s purpose.

Being right with God by keeping the law is not truth. The law was given by Moses, but grace and TRUTH came by Jesus Christ (Jn 1:17). The law was a type, a shadow, a temporary appeasement. It was and is and shall always be about Jesus Christ. Notice Paul rebuked the Galatians because they were not obeying the TRUTH (Gal 3:1). What truth were they not obeying? Imputed righteousness through faith in Christ. What lie were they believing? Righteousness through doing the works of the law. This was the great sin of the Galatians. In fact, it was so great a sin, that Paul worried if they were truly saved (Gal 4:10-11)! They were turning back to the weak and beggarly elements of the law (Gal 4:9). Were they crucifying the Lord Jesus again (Heb 6:4-6)? Were they treading the Son of God under their feet (Heb 10:26-29)? Wasn’t the theme of the entire Book of Hebrews a warning for the Hebrew Christians to not go back under the law? Indeed it was.

Sometimes when you teach on this subject, people get the idea that you are encouraging folks to forsake God’s Word and go live in sin. As Paul would say, “God forbid!” Being free from the law of Moses does not mean we are free from the law of Christ. The law of Christ is the law of love, or the royal law. We are free to love: love God and love our neighbor. We are not free to live like the devil. Our freedom is to live for God without fear of rejection. To be confident in our relationship with God. To be no longer under a sin consciousness, but rather a righteousness consciousness. This is spiritual freedom. This is true freedom - true Christian liberty. Until next time, rejoice in The Lord!