Yet the law is not of faith, but “the man who does them shall live by them.” – Galatians 3:12
Some might come back to Paul and say, “Look, I’ll do the best I can under the law and let faith cover the rest. God will look at my performance, my effort, and my good intentions and credit to me as righteousness. The important thing is that I am really trying.” Paul proved from the Old Testament itself that this simply isn’t good enough. No; the paths of approval by the law and faith don’t run together, because the law is not of faith.
The quote from Leviticus 18:5 is clear. If you want to live by the law, you must do it. Not try to do it, not intend to do it, and not even want to do it. No, it is only the man who does them who shall live by them. It is very easy to comfort ourselves with our good intentions. We all mean very well; but if we want to find our place before God by our works under the law, good intentions are never enough. A good effort isn’t enough. Only actual performance will do. Nehemiah (Nehemiah 9:29) quoted it in his great prayer for Israel. The LORD Himself quoted it through the prophet Ezekiel (Ezekiel 20:11, 13, and 21). Paul also quotes it again in Romans 10:5).The effect of Paul’s use of Scripture in Galatians 3:10-12 is overwhelming. We understand that we don’t actually do the law. More specifically, we understand that we don’t actually do all the law. And we understand that this put us under a curse. Galatians 3:10-12 is the bad news; now Paul begins to explain the good news.
One thing that always blows my mind is the amount of people who still try and earn God’s love. The apostle Paul was addressing a desire in the Jewish people to worship God’s law. In the mind of an ancient Jew, the law was their God. It was the way they knew God and the way they knew he loved them. But now we have Jesus. There is so much freedom knowing that we can fail. If you walk under the law, there is no freedom for you. The law is the law. If you make a mistake atonement is required. This is what Paul was trying to hammer into the brains of Galatia. IN JESUS ATONEMENT IS ACHIEVED! We do not have to fear our mistakes because the punishment for our mistakes have already been atoned for.
Amen.
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