Galatians 3:24 So the law was put in charge to lead us to Christ that we might be justified by faith.

There isn’t an English term that exactly corresponds to the term in the Greek, but Japanese has one that is spot on, if my understanding is correct. The NIV talks around the issue by saying things like “put in charge,” but the idea is more of a cross between a nursemaid and a drill sergeant. You might say, “one in charge of juvenile education,” but that’s certainly unwieldy. Paul’s point is that the Law was given to keep us in line until we were ready to learn about salvation by grace through faith. Anyone who has raised children knows very well that little children need rules and regulations. Actually, they are far more emotionally secure when they have them, and this is an area where many modern parents drop the ball, sometimes badly. However, children have to progress past “Don’t throw your food” and “Don’t bite your sister,” and that’s what Paul is talking about. It’s not that those things are OK, it’s that we have to internalize the principles behind the rules, to know what’s right and what isn’t without a checklist. The “gold standard” for human behavior is faith in God who is both gracious and holy. When we really believe in such a God we need no other controls on our behavior, because we are totally eager to please Him.

It’s sad and actually a bit odd that we have such trouble living in obedience to God by faith, but I certainly know that it’s true from my own experience. Simply knowing that something’s “off limits” brings the desire to try it! I’ve yielded to that impulse more times than I like to think about. I now realize that such sin is a clear indication I don’t love God sufficiently yet, which is in turn an indication I don’t yet grasp the totality of His love for me. That love is far beyond the power of human intellect to grasp, so it must be received and appropriated by faith.. This is very much in line with this morning’s message, which speaks of how our bodies are God’s property, and not our own. There’s an old hymn that says “I’ll live for Him who died for me.” That’s the principle I’m to operate on, and it’s the lifestyle I’m to communicate and encourage in the believers.

Father, You are doing wonderful things in and among us. Thank You. Thank You that I’ll be baptizing not one but two people next month, as an older couple have committed to follow You together. That’s the second such couple You’ve brought into Your family here. If I’m not mistaken, such cases are hardly common in Japan. Thank You for Your grace. I pray that I would be a good shepherd to them, and that they in turn would be an encouragement to the physically younger but spiritually older believers. May we all draw one another to love and follow You more closely, so that we may demonstrate Christ to this city and this nation, for the salvation of many and for Your glory. Thank You. Hallelujah!