I. Why the law? v.19-20. This section begins with Paul posing a question that is the logical next step in this text. “Why the law?” Why give the law to Moses and Israel? What role does it serve in our world today? The law was added because of our transgressions. It was never intended to be the way of salvation. “The law was meant to show men what hopeless sinners they were, so they would cry out to God to save them by His grace.” (MacDonald) Rom. 3:20, “Therefore by the deeds of the law there shall no flesh be justified in his sight: for by the law is the knowledge of sin.” God did not give the law to reveal the way to be justified; he gave it to disclose the evil power of sin. (Ryken) “Therefore,” wrote Martin Luther, “the true function and the chief and proper use of the Law is to reveal to man his sin, blindness, misery, wickedness, ignorance, hate and contempt of God, death, hell, judgment, and the well-deserved wrath of God.” “The law was given,” wrote Calvin, “in order to make transgressions obvious, and in this way to compel men to acknowledge their guilt.” Through a Mediator. (19b-20) This is important, people at peace need no mediator. Enemies, those who oppose one another, they need a “go between”. This is what Paul speaks of here. Israel understood the law to have come from God through Angels to Moses. Acts 7:53, “Who have received the law by the disposition of angels, and have not kept it.” The law was in place until Christ (the seed) came. One, needs no mediator. 2 at odds do, God needs no mediator…we do. So the law was added as a placeholder because of our sins, but is the law the opponent of the covenant of grace? (21) **II. Is the Law against the promises of God? v.21-26.** God forbid! (May it never be! Certainly not!) If righteousness could’ve been by the law, it would’ve been. The law is not bad. It is good. “In fact, it is so good that if a man could do what the law requires, he would find life.” (Boice) See 3:12. (cf.Lev.18:5, “Ye shall therefore keep my statutes, and my judgments: which if a man do, he shall live in them: I am the LORD.”) Galatians 2:20-21, “I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me. 21 I do not frustrate the grace of God: for if righteousness come by the law, then Christ is dead in vain.” “Humanity’s inability to keep the law, not the law itself, is the source of humanity’s broken relationship with God.” (Sproul) The the law has left us all guilty. (22) This is so that by faith in Christ we could inherit the promise. v.23 - Before faith came, we were in prison. In this illustration, Paul pictures the law as a prison warden to keep us locked up in sin’s jail. We are the inmates, and the law is our jail-keeper, or perhaps our prison cell. The law, with its penalties, restrains and punishes us. v.24 - The law was our schoolmaster (tutor, guardian). Anders explains, “In the Jewish culture a slave was assigned to each child to escort them to school and to assist in their supervision…Every time the child took liberties without permission on the path to school or did something wrong, this authoritarian nanny pointed her finger at the child and in no uncertain terms told the child what it had done wrong and delivered the punishment.” Paul is illustrating that the law was given to point out sin and to threaten a great punishment… Our inability to obey this law perfectly, and thus earn God’s approval, caused us to long for a better way to salvation and a relationship with God—by grace. God brought hope to mankind’s hopelessness in the most amazing way by sending Jesus Christ into the world. The law led us to Christ for forgiveness and righteousness. v.25 - Now that faith is come, we are no longer under the law. v.26 - By faith in Christ we are the children of God. Sinclair Ferguson writes, “The notion that we are children of God, His own sons and daughters…is the mainspring of Christian living… …Our sonship to God is the apex of creation and the goal of redemption” The law serves a wonderful purpose, one that is technically complete. It is not an opponent of the promise, both work together. Through the law, then through Christ because of the law, we can finally once again realize being… **III. Joined with Christ, v.27-29. ** v.27 - In baptism we profess to be dead to the world. We are buried into the name of Jesus. The meaning of that burial is that we profess ourselves from then on to be dead to everything but Christ. From there our lives are to be in Him, and we are to be as one raised from the dead to newness of life. In baptism (in Christ) we are dead and buried to the law, and to everything but Christ. “We are not baptized into Moses. We have put off legal robes and are dressed in the garments of grace.” -Spurgeon v.28 - One in Christ. We seek oneness among the nations, or racial equality — In God’s family there is neither Jew nor Greek. We seek oneness from injustice — In God’s family there is neither bond nor free! We seek oneness through gender equality — In God’s family there is neither male nor female. We are all ONE in JESUS CHRIST! v.29 - If you have faith in Christ, you get it all! Everything promised to and since Abraham. But, if you miss that one thing, you miss it all. Keep all the law, perform all the rites and ceremonies, devote your life entirely to all but simple faith in Christ and you will miss it.