The law is not our schoolmaster...
Illustration
Object:
The law is not our schoolmaster. It leads us to our teacher, who is Christ. We all have times when we feel trapped by the law and can't escape. The Jews had 613 laws in addition to the big ten! They tried to trap Jesus with all these miniscule rules, but he refuses to be trapped. So if we want an answer we should go to him and not just bring out more rules: don't drink or smoke or dance -- and on and on! There are so many that we can't even remember them all and feel trapped -- held prisoner to them! The law is only given as a guideline for our life. It shows us what pleases God.
When we realize that we have already violated many of those laws by thought, word, or deed, then we may feel we are lost! Hopefully this will drive us to the message of Christ that he has justified us, not by law but by our coming to him in faith. Faith in him is what makes us free.
The Old Testament may make us think that only Jews are saved if they believe in Christ, but the New Testament makes it clear that we are all children of Abraham through our faith. There is no longer any difference between Jew or Gentile. Not that we are better than Jews, but that we come to Christ as equals. All the distinctions and divisions in life are swallowed up in our relationship to Christ. We are all God's children: male or female, slave or free, Jew or Gentile. God has made us one in him, and we are all heirs to his wonderful rewards.
The door that leads to all these rewards is our baptism into Christ. Don't try to enter by any other means like trying to obey all the laws!
When we realize that we have already violated many of those laws by thought, word, or deed, then we may feel we are lost! Hopefully this will drive us to the message of Christ that he has justified us, not by law but by our coming to him in faith. Faith in him is what makes us free.
The Old Testament may make us think that only Jews are saved if they believe in Christ, but the New Testament makes it clear that we are all children of Abraham through our faith. There is no longer any difference between Jew or Gentile. Not that we are better than Jews, but that we come to Christ as equals. All the distinctions and divisions in life are swallowed up in our relationship to Christ. We are all God's children: male or female, slave or free, Jew or Gentile. God has made us one in him, and we are all heirs to his wonderful rewards.
The door that leads to all these rewards is our baptism into Christ. Don't try to enter by any other means like trying to obey all the laws!
