Romans 3:21-22 But now a righteousness from God, apart from law, has been made known, to which the Law and the Prophets testify. This righteousness from God comes through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe. There is no difference.

One of the most remarkable things about the Bible is its internal consistency. The best commentary on the Bible is the Bible! Here, Paul refers to the fact that the Old Testament speaks of righteousness by faith, even though under the Old Covenant righteousness was generally thought of in terms of obeying the Law. In Galatians 3:23-25 Paul puts it this way: “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.” A major element of the Law of Moses was that it had been given to the Jews, and they were fiercely proud of it, to the point that they looked down on others who had not been given it. Breaking down that pride was perhaps the most scandalous thing about the Gospel for the Jews of the 1st Century, and God had to do many things to get the message across. Here, Paul reiterates that there is no discrimination (the NIV says “difference”) in the Gospel. It doesn’t matter if someone has been steeped in the Mosaic law from birth, or whether they have never heard of it, if they believe that God sent Jesus to die for them and be raised to life, they are declared righteous. That’s why legalism is so absurd. Of all of Paul’s letters, Galatians is the only one that doesn’t start out by complimenting those to whom he is writing. That’s because he was totally upset that they were getting sidetracked into legalism. The tension between law and grace is real, but we must remember that a major function of the God’s Law is to make us aware of how much we need His grace.

This is a tension I’ve lived with all my life, being raised in such a strongly Christian family. I’ve done more ignoring, and deliberate breaking, of God’s rules than I like to think about. That’s all the more reason to be deeply grateful for God’s grace! I am never to descend into what is currently called “hyper grace” (it used to be called antinomianism) but I am also never to get trapped in legalism. God calls us to be holy as He is holy, (1 Peter 1:15-16) but we achieve that only by grace through faith. (Ephesians 2:8-9) I am in the position of guiding others, setting boundaries for them and leading them into God’s truth. There’s no way I can do that right in my own wisdom and strength. Just a couple of days ago I made a real error by failing to listen carefully to God instead of my own fears. I am to focus on faithfulness, but remember that faithfulness is possible only by the grace and power of God.

Father, thank You indeed for Your grace. I ask Your solution for the mess I caused, for the blessing of everyone involved, building up the Body of Christ for Your glory. Thank You. Praise God!