SLIDES

The Letter to the Galatians

Part 14

(Galatians 3:19-21)

Introduction

‌

Several years ago, I taught a lesson entitled, “What is your purpose.” I discussed that everything God makes, creates, or does has a purpose. I discussed that every day of creation had a specific purpose. I discussed other things that God makes,

‌

Most things that companies manufacture have a purpose. The purpose of a comb is to groom one’s hair. The purpose of a toothbrush is to clean one’s teeth. The purpose of a clothes dryer is to dry one’s clothes after they are washed. The purpose of antibiotics is to treat or prevent some types of bacterial infections. God has a purpose for each believer as well that usually is connected with their spiritual gifts. You get the point. Most everything has a purpose whether we know what that purpose is or not.

‌

Some of the believers in the five churches of Galatia were scratching their heads. The Judaizers were trying to persuade the Galatian believers that two of the purposes of the Mosaic Law was to help deliver people from their sins combined with trusting in Jesus a Messiah and Savior, as well as obedience to the Mosaic Law would allow one to come closer to God. From the very beginning Paul had argued that neither of the purposes given by the Judaizers were biblical and that the Mosaic Law had been replaced by the New Covenant. Keeping the commandments of the Mosaic Law neither saved nor allowed someone to grow closer to the Lord. So, if neither of the purposes outlined by the Judaizers were biblical, then what was the purpose of the Mosaic Law? We know that the Abrahamic Covenant was eternal and could not be superseded by another covenant, especially the Mosaic Covenant.

‌

We have learned that the Mosaic Law could not justify, save, or mature someone. We have learned that the Mosaic Covenant was made with literal, physical Israel, and was not made with the church or believers in Jesus. In light of these truths, Messianic scholar Arnold Fruchtenbaum made this statement,

‌

“The believer today must be careful not to be so zealous in obeying laws that do not apply to him that he ends up living in a state of disobedience to the laws that do apply to him.”

The New Covenant was specifically designed for believers in Jesus. It was specifically designed for Israel. We know that the Mosaic Law brought death and condemnation, not life. If the New Covenant brings eternal life and blessings to believers, then what was the purpose of the Mosaic Law that brought death and condemnation? Today we are going to allow Paul to answer that question.

‌

By giving and explaining one of the important purposes of the Mosaic Law, Paul was also demonstrating that justification is received by faith, not by observing the Mosaic Law.

‌

He had already given four proofs in chapter 3 that demonstrates that justification is by faith not by works of the Law. These are:

‌

1. By the experiences of the Galatian believers. (3:1-5)

‌

2. By the example of Abraham. (3:6-9)

‌

3. By the effect of the Law (3:10-12)

‌

4. By the death of Christ (3:13-14)

5. By the eternal promises of the Abrahamic Covenant (3:15-18)

6. By the purpose of the Law (3:19-29)

‌19 Why the Law then? It was added because of transgressions, having been ordained through angels by the agency of a mediator, until the seed would come to whom the promise had been made.

20 Now a mediator is not for one party only; whereas God is only one.

‌

Paul asks, “Why the Law then?” Or “Therefore, what was the purpose of the Law?” Then he answered his question. “It was added because of transgressions...” In this verse tells the believers at the churches in Galatia one of the purposes of God giving the Mosaic Law to Israel. The Mosaic Law had several purposes, but we are going to discuss only the one Paul discussed in Galatians 3:19.

‌

In answering his own question, Paul says four things concerning this important question.

‌

(1) It was added

‌

Rather than disallowing or nullifying the promise of justification by faith, the Law was added, or better, “added alongside” the Abrahamic Covenant in order to perform a specific function. It was not a codicil that altered, changed, added to or subtracted from the provisions in the Abrahamic Covenant. The Mosaic Covenant worked in conjunction with the Abrahamic Covenant. This will become clear in a few minutes.

‌

(2) Because of transgressions

‌

Their several words in Greek that are synonyms for sin that have different nuances. The term transgressions that Paul uses here means “an act of deviating from an established boundary or norm, overstepping one’s boundaries.”

‌

Please stay with me on this explanation. God gave Adam and Eve one Law - not to eat or touch any part of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. The consequence of doing so was physical and spiritual death (Romans 3:6:23). Adam and Eve sinned by breaking that Law and as a result God casting them out of the Garden of Eden so they could no longer eat or touch the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. From the time Adam and Eve ate from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil until the Mosaic Law was given to Israel, God did not give any laws to any nation, tribe, or individual.

Romans 5:12-14

‌

12 Therefore, just as through one man sin entered into the world, and death through sin, and so death spread to all men, because all sinned—

‌

13 for until the Law sin was in the world, but sin is not imputed when there is no law.

‌

14 Nevertheless death reigned from Adam until Moses, even over those who had not sinned in the likeness of the offense of Adam, who is a type of Him who was to come.

‌

The Greek past tense occurs in all three verbs in this verse. So, the entire human race is viewed as having sinned in the one act of Adam’s sin (cf. “all have sinned,” also the past tense, in 3:23). The way this is explained is that Adam is considered the “federal headship” the human race.

‌

In the federal headship view, Adam, the first man, is considered as the representative of the human race from which all people were generated. As the representative of all humans, Adam’s act of sin was considered by God to be the act of all people, and his penalty of both physical and spiritual death was judicially made the penalty for everybody.

‌

So, even though there were no laws from Adam to Moses, men were born spiritually dead, separated from God, and would physically die because they were in Adam. Men and women do not become sinners when they sin, they sin because they are sinners.

‌

 One further thing to think about today is that when God gave the Mosaic Law, He only give it to Israel. Gentiles or Gentile nations were not under he Mosaic Law. Also, man is under no laws today given by God unless they are under the authority of the New Covenant. If this is so, why are men spiritually dead and why do men physically die?

‌

Now, back to Galatians 3:19.

Paul says the Mosaic Law was added for the purpose of transgressions. The Mosaic Law was not added alongside the Abrahamic Covenant to prevent transgressions or to produce righteousness. Rather, the Mosaic Law was given to Israel to reveal or expose the sinfulness of man to the people. Remember what Paul said about the Mosaic Law and the knowledge of sin in Romans 7:7.

‌

What shall we say then? Is the Law sin? May it never be! On the contrary, I would not have come to know sin except through the Law; for I would not have known about coveting if the Law had not said, “You shall not covet.”

‌

In other words, the holiness of God as revealed in the Law became the test of man’s thoughts, words, and actions; and anything that failed to conform to the revealed holiness of God was sin.

‌

It was added alongside of the Abrahamic Covenant to reveal or expose the holiness of God by showing the sinfulness of man. One might think that the Mosaic Law would curb the number of sins committed by Israel, but just the opposite is true. In Romans 5:20 the Mosaic Law certainly revealed to Israel the sinfulness of the nation because it caused the number of sins that the nation of Israel committed to increase.

‌

The Law came in so that the transgression would increase;

‌

It’s like posting a sign that says, “DO NOT TOUCH! WET PAINT, or “DO NOT WALK ON THE GRASS.” These types of signs cause more disobedience, not less.

‌

The Mosaic Law would test Israel’s thoughts, words, and actions and anything that failed to live up to God’s standards. As the Mosaic Law revealed or exposed the holiness of God and the sinfulness of Israel, it regulated the blessings and curses Israel would receive.

The Relationship between the Abrahamic Covenant and the Mosaic Covenant

Genesis 15 –      God made a Covenant with Abraham

                            430 Years

  Abrahamic                                       The Giving of the 

  Covenant                                      Mosaic Law on Mt.   

   (Eternal)                                          Horeb

 Mosaic Law      1,500 Years  

 Death of the Messiah on Mount Calvery              

Mosaic Law Ends     New Covenant Begin                                        

                                New Covenant (Eternal)                                                               

If Israel obeyed the Mosaic Covenant, God would bless them through the Abrahamic Covenant as we see in Deuteronomy 28:1-2.

‌

1 “Now it shall be, if you diligently obey the Lord your God, being careful to do all His commandments which I command you today, the Lord your God will set you high above all the nations of the earth.

‌

2 “All these blessings will come upon you and overtake you if you obey the Lord your God:

‌

If they were not obedient, curses of the Mosaic Covenant would come their way as seen in Deuteronomy 28:15.

‌

“But it shall come about, if you do not obey the Lord your God, to observe to do all His commandments and His statutes with which I charge you today, that all these curses will come upon you and overtake you:

‌

Just as a mirror can expose dirt on someone, it cannot remove the dirt. Removing dirt is not the purpose of a mirror. In the same way, the Mosaic Law could reveal sin, but it could not remove sin. Removing sin was not its purpose.

‌

(3) Until the Seed would come

‌

With this phrase “Until the seed would come,” we find that the Law was temporary. The people of Israel needed a structured system of laws. The Mosaic Law provided that structure because it dealt with just about every aspect of their lives for 1500 years from Mount Sinai to Mount Calvary. When the Messiah, the promised seed or descendant of Abraham came, He initiated the New Covenant which had as a promise the indwelling of God, Himself, in each believer. When the New Covenant was initiated, the Mosaic Law was terminated.

‌

(4) By the agency of a mediator

A mediator refers to someone who is a trustworthy, neutral person such as an arbitrator or negotiator. Since God is Sovereign over all His creation, He has His own mediators in Kings, priests, prophets, and angels, and the Angel of the LORD. When God made the Abrahamic Covenant with Abraham, there was no mediator involved because God dealt directly with Abraham as seen in verse 20. God gave the details of the Mosaic Law to angels and the angels gave these details to Moses. The angels were not mediators. They were just curriers. Moses was the mediator, who functioned between the angels and the Israelites. Paul mentions the fact the Mosaic Covenant was mediated through Moses to demonstrate that the Abrahamic Covenant was superior to the Mosaic Covenant.

‌

Galatians 3:21

Is the Law then contrary to the promises of God? May it never be! For if a law had been given which was able to impart life, then righteousness would indeed have been based on law.

‌

The Mosaic was not contrary to the promises in the Abrahamic Covenant. As we discussed a few minutes ago, the Mosaic Covenant and the Abrahamic Covenant had different purposes. The Mosaic Covenant was used by the LORD to expose the sinfulness of Israel and to regulate the blessings and the curses He would give to Israel. It was never intended to give eternal life to Israel.

‌Application

‌Today believers are blessed with the blessings promised in the New Covenant because we are in Christ. There are no curses nor is there condemnation for disobedience of the New Covenant as there was in the Mosaic Covenant. However, there can be discipline from the LORD at His discretion, of course.

‌

In Hebrews 12:5–8 we find that the Jewish people reading what we now call the Book of Hebrews seemed to have forgotten the encouragement found in Proverbs 3:11–12, which presents divine discipline and as evidence of divine love for believers. I’m sure there are, times in our Christian life, while also going through the LORD’s discipline, that we forget about the purpose of divine discipline. We must keep in mind that, even though discipline is sorrowful and painful, that when we endure and persevere, we are being trained in the things of the Lord and this training brings peace that comes from living a righteous life. We must also regard divine discipline as evidence of sonship because we are in Christ.