But, But, But

Galatians 3:22-25 BUT the scripture hath concluded all under sin, that the promise by faith of Jesus Christ might be given to them that believe. 23 BUT before faith came, we were kept under the law, shut up unto the faith which should afterwards be revealed. 24 Wherefore the law was our schoolmaster to bring us unto Christ, that we might be justified by faith. 25 BUT after that faith is come, we are no longer under a schoolmaster.

Opening: Recently a history teacher who teaches children praised Incan child sacrifices, saying that most cultures practiced child sacrifice. She said that what the Incas did was receive “volunteers” from the upper class of society, and sacrificed these children after drugging them, and leaving them on mountain tops to freeze to death. This demon possessed moron from Littleton, Colorado, reprimanded “white education” for wrongly teaching that child sacrifice is bad. You can read about it here if you think I’m making this up. We have people like this teacher today who are defending child sacrifice on the basis that it was voluntary. When studying the Incas, you’ll find out that this was “voluntary”, but not for the child. Children as young as 4 years old were tied up and, exposed to the elements, sacrificed. And this woman – a teacher of children – believes that this is perfectly fine as long as the children are drugged beforehand.

This is what happens when there is no Law, and no Christ. This is what is happening in our civilization today!

Women are having abortions, posting videos of them online, and celebrating it. Teachers (not all, but yes, there are some) are advocating for assisted suicide, partial birth abortion, and the godless sacrifice of human life and dignity in the guise of “women’s reproductive rights”. What can turn the trend from this madness? Only Christ.

In an article “We Still Have Child Sacrifice” John Stonestreet and Glenn Sunshine of the Colson Center wrote:

“Believing that every human being is made in the image of God, Christians from the earliest centuries argued for the inherent dignity of the marginalized in society, especially women, slaves, and children. Christians in Rome opposed the practice of infanticide, rescuing unwanted infants who were left to die and raising them as full members of the Christian community. They also opposed abortion.

Thus, the defense of children became a feature of Christian witness throughout history. For example, in the nineteenth century, missionary Mary Slessor was known for rescuing twins who had been left to die. The tribal people of Nigeria believed one twin was always a child of a demon. Her actions ended that deadly practice.”

The only way that the darkness and evil are eradicated is when Christians cease to be nominal, and come to Jesus Christ empty handed and by faith to be born again. Is this schoolteacher particularly depraved? No. The Bible says:

Galatians 3:22 BUT the scripture hath concluded all under sin, that the promise by faith of Jesus Christ might be given to them that believe.

All people are born into this world under TWO things: (1) They are under SIN, and (2) They are under the LAW of God.

Whether they know it or not, every single person is born under the Law of God. There are portions of the Law of God that are written in our hearts, in our conscience. Take, for instance, murder, the taking of innocent life. Murder was written into the Noahic Code. When Noah got off the Ark, God told him:

Genesis 9:6 Whoever sheds man’s blood, By man his blood shall be shed; For in the image of God He made man.

God forbade child sacrifice. He forbade the taking of any life, unless that person took a life. The Inca who gave their 4 year old child up to die alone and under the elements on a mountaintop would be guilty of a capital offense under God’s Law. And we all know in our hearts that murder is wrong, just as we know that theft, lying, rape, sexual sins – these things are wrong. But the heart can be hardened by uncorrected sin. Paul warned us in:

1 Timothy 4:1-2 (ESV) Now the Spirit expressly says that in later times some will depart from the faith by devoting themselves to deceitful spirits and teachings of demons, 2 through the insincerity of liars whose consciences are seared

When people wallow in sin without repentance, the heart becomes hardened. This is what God said in Romans 1:18-24 that as they hardened their hearts:

Romans 1:24, 26-27 (NKJV) … God also gave them up to uncleanness, in the lusts of their hearts, to dishonor their bodies among themselves 26 For this reason God gave them up to vile passions. For even their women exchanged the natural use for what is against nature. 27 Likewise also the men, leaving the natural use of the woman, burned in their lust for one another, men with men committing what is shameful

This is where we are in America today. Christians must learn to speak up, to stand behind what God’s Law says, and to call whosoever will to Christ. If you are under the Law, you are under Sin, enslaved to sin. If you continue to be enslaved to sin, in time you will call “good evil, and evil good. Darkness is light, and light is darkness” (Isaiah 5:20). If we continue down this path as a nation, we will find the same thing the Incas found.

Total destruction.

God Gave Us The Law To Lead Us To Faith

Everyone is either under the Law of God – or under Christ. The Law was given to show us that we are all sinners. Paul breaks this down in

Romans 7:7-8 What shall we say then? Is the law sin? Certainly not! On the contrary, I would not have known sin except through the law. For I would not have known covetousness unless the law had said, “You shall not covet.” 8 But sin, taking opportunity by the commandment, produced in me all manner of evil desire. For apart from the law sin was dead.

It is the Law of God that points out what is righteous, and what is unrighteous. When the 10^th commandment says “You shall not covet or desire what your neighbor has” (Exodus 20:17) it was pointing out that just the desire was sinful.

Illustrate: How did King David end up murdering another man, and taking his wife? Because David, instead of walking with Christ as he had been doing, stopped walking with God and took a day off. Bathsheba had just finished her menstrual cycle and, according to the Law of God, was washing herself before going into their home (2 Samuel 11:2-4; Leviticus 20:18; 15:19-30; 15:24). King David, watching from his palace wall, coveted his neighbor’s wife. Sin starts in the heart, violating God’s Law. He sent men to take Bathsheba, to bring her to the palace, and then he committed adultery, a violation of the 7^th Commandment (Exodus 20:14). Continuing down this chain, David eventually violated the 6^th Commandment (Exodus 20:13), and murdered Uriah, Bathsheba’s husband.

The Law at each point addressed what sin was. It was proscriptive. But David did not repent, but instead covered up sin after sin. Hardening his heart, this “man after God’s own heart” (1 Samuel 13:14; Acts 13:22) walked far from God, and brought innocent blood on his household. When confronted with his sin by Nathan the Prophet, David simply replied:

2 Samuel 12:13 (KJV) I have sinned against the Lord.

The Law told David what sin was. But it was not the Law that saved David from death that day. It was faith in the Lord Jesus. “I HAVE SINNED AGAINST THE LORD”. Apart from the Law, we do not know what is and is not sin. The Law points out what sin is. But to point out sin to a sinner is to entice that person, for we are born enslaved to sin. The Apostle Paul wrote:

Romans 7:9-12 (NKJV) I was alive once without the law, but when the commandment came, sin revived and I died. 10 And the commandment, which was to bring life, I found to bring death. 11 For sin, taking occasion by the commandment, deceived me, and by it killed me. 12 Therefore the law is holy, and the commandment holy and just and good.

We think we are fine, that we are able to make good decisions and live out great lives. But the Law diagnoses the sin in our lives – but has no remedy. As Paul said,

Romans 7:14 (NKJV) … we know that the law is spiritual, but I am carnal, sold under sin.

Every person is born into this world, enslaved to sin. The Law shows us how badly we are enslaved. Paul went on to say:

Romans 7:18-20 (NKJV) For I know that in me (that is, in my flesh) nothing good dwells; for to will is present with me, but how to perform what is good I do not find. 19 For the good that I will to do, I do not do; but the evil I will not to do, that I practice. 20 Now if I do what I will not to do, it is no longer I who do it, but sin that dwells in me.

We are hopelessly, helplessly born into this world as sinners. We prove this by our deeds, by our actions. The Law points out our blemishes, but does nothing to fix them.

Only God can fix us. Only Jesus can make us right.

The Bible says “David was a man after God’s heart” because, when caught in his multiple sins, David didn’t go about trying to do penance. He didn’t tell Nathan, “How can I make this better? What can I do to right this wrong?” David confessed His sins to the Lord. No excuses. No fighting with Nathan or with God. He can’t bring Uriah back. He cannot restore the marriage he ruined. David knows this, and so he throws himself on the Grace of God. “I have sinned against the Lord”.

Galatians 3:23 BUT before faith came, we were kept {phroureō} under the law, shut up unto the faith which should afterwards be revealed.

Word Study: The Law of God is given to those who have no faith in God. “BEFORE FAITH CAME, we were KEPT UNDER THE LAW”. The word translated “KEPT” is the Greek phroureō, which means “to guard by armed soldiers, to besiege a city, to control it so that it will surrender”. In ancient times and in modern warfare, armies will surround a city, and cut off it’s supply lines so that the people would thirst or starve to death – unless they surrendered. The city would often go so hungry that people would kill their children and eat them (Deuteronomy 28:53). The intent of a siege is to rob you of your hope, to make the citizens of the city turn against themselves, and surrender to the besieging army.

The Law has 613 soldiers, commandments that surround every aspect of your life. The Law lays siege to your self righteousness, bringing you to the state where you realize your helplessness.

It is at this point that faith is revealed. As Paul said:

Romans 7:24-25 (KJV) O wretched man that I am! who shall deliver me from the body of this death? 25 I thank God through Jesus Christ our Lord. So then with the mind I myself serve the law of God; but with the flesh the law of sin.

When we are in the flesh, we cannot please God (Romans 8:8). The Law addresses the flesh. It says, “Do this, do that, and I am satisfied”. Those who are under the Law are not serving God by FAITH, but by the FLESH. It is not Christ honoring, but ME honoring. God is not glorified, but man is glorified. The truth is, no person can deliver themselves from sin. Only Jesus Christ our Lord can.

The Law Was Our Undepraved Schoolteacher

The schoolteacher I mentioned at the beginning of this sermon is a depraved and sin sick woman. She has no respect for the sacredness of life. It is sad that she is teaching children. The Law, however, is an Undepraved Schoolteacher. We read:

Galatians 3:24 Wherefore the law was our schoolmaster {paidagōgos} to bring us unto Christ, that we might be justified by faith. 25 BUT after that faith is come, we are no longer under a schoolmaster {paidagōgos}.

Word Study: In the ancient Gentile world, children were schooled differently than we are accustomed to today. The “SCHOOLMASTER” or paidagōgos was both guardian and guide to young people among the Greek and Roman society. The paidagōgos was often a well schooled slave, someone who was captured in battle. When King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon conquered Judah, the King …

Daniel 1:3-4, 6 (ESV) … commanded Ashpenaz, his chief eunuch, to bring some of the people of Israel, both of the royal family and of the nobility, 4 youths without blemish, of good appearance and skillful in all wisdom, endowed with knowledge, understanding learning, and competent to stand in the king’s palace, and to teach them the literature and language of the Chaldeans. … 6 Among these were Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah of the tribe of Judah.

Daniel and his three friends (we usually refer to them by the Gentile names Shadrach, Meshach, Abednego – see Daniel 1:7) were enslaved by Babylon because of their high education. They would be placed in the palace to rule and teach the children of the King, though they themselves were but slaves. These were paidagōgos, or “SCHOOLMASTERS”. The Schoolmaster took over all aspects of the child’s learning, and had direct and absolute authority over the child until they came of age. Once the child came of age, the child – now a man – became the Master, and the paidagōgos served him and his children.

It is interesting that Paul describes the Law as the paidagōgos. The Law serves God as a slave. When the Gentiles began coming to Christ by faith, the Jewish Church considered placing the Gentiles under the Law of Circumcision and the Law of Moses. We read about this in …

Acts 15:5 (ESV) But some believers who belonged to the party of the Pharisees rose up and said, “It is necessary to circumcise them {the Gentiles who believe on Jesus} and to order them to keep the law of Moses.”

There were Pharisees in the early Church – there are Pharisees in the Church today. They teach that – even though you received Jesus as Lord and Savior – you MUST keep the Law of God as the Jews did. Pharisees do not understand that the Law was a slave paidagōgos, given only until a person comes to faith in Christ. The Apostle Peter stood up and said:

Acts 15:7-11 (ESV) … Brothers, you know that in the early days God made a choice among you, that by my mouth the Gentiles should hear the word of the gospel and believe. 8 And God, who knows the heart, bore witness to them, by giving them the Holy Spirit just as he did to us, 9 and he made no distinction between us and them, having cleansed their hearts by faith. 10 Now, therefore, why are you putting God to the test by placing a yoke on the neck of the disciples that neither our fathers nor we have been able to bear? 11 But we believe that we will be saved through the grace of the Lord Jesus, just as they will.”

A person is saved by faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. Salvation has always, ALWAYS been an act of Grace, not of our abilities. The Law was God’s Slave, God’s paidagōgos, a YOKE that was unbearable. The purpose of that yoke, the Law, is to bring us to Christ. Jesus Christ is the fulfillment of the Law.

after that faith is come, we are no longer under a schoolmaster {paidagōgos}

The purpose of God’s Law was to teach Israel and the Gentiles that we are sinners. To teach us that our first birth brought us, as sinners, into this world. To teach us that there is no good thing we can do to save ourselves. The Law did this through brutal honesty, showing every person that “there are none righteous, no, not one”. I love what Evangelist Paul Washer said:

“A Christian is not somebody who stays away from all the wicked things he loves and clings to all the righteous things he hates so that he can go to heaven. The fear of the Christian is not going to hell. The fear of the Christian is being separated from Christ.”

The Evangelist went on to say:

God saved you FOR Himself;
God saved you BY Himself;
God saved you FROM Himself.

I’m A Christian, And Not Under The Law.
So I Can Live Whatever Way I Want To Live.

I have heard this nonsense before, and it’s prevalent even in our Southern Baptist congregations. People say, “Well, I’m not under the Law. Since Jesus saved me and I believe that, then I can wallow in drunkenness and sexual sin. I can be a ‘Christian homosexual’, for it was the Law that forbade homosexuality. I can marry my horse if I want, for the Law has no hold on me.”

Beloved, you’re wrong.

If you’re not walking with Jesus, YOU ARE STILL UNDER THE LAW. We are told in:

1 Timothy 1:8-10 (ESV) Now we know that the law is good, if one uses it lawfully, 9 understanding this, that the law is not laid down for the just but for the lawless and disobedient, for the ungodly and sinners, for the unholy and profane, for those who strike their fathers and mothers, for murderers, 10 the sexually immoral, men who practice homosexuality, enslavers, liars, perjurers, and whatever else is contrary to sound doctrine

That’s very clear. The “LAW IS NOT LAID DOWN FOR THE JUST”, for those who are “justified by faith in Christ Jesus” (Romans 5:1; Galatians 3:24). BUT the Law is still in effect for those who are “lawless and disobedient, for the ungodly and sinners, for the unholy and profane”. What the Law said in the Old Testament under the Old Covenant, it still says today.

Gravity did not change from the Old Covenant to the New Covenant. Days did not change from the Old Covenant to the New Covenant. The sun in the sky, and the moon by night did not change from the Old Covenant to the New Covenant. The LAW did not change from the Old Covenant to the New Covenant.

What changed? WE changed.

Galatians 3:25-26 But after that faith is come, we are no longer under a schoolmaster. 26 For ye are all the children of God by faith in Christ Jesus.

Before we were saved, we were children of Adam, enslaved to sin. After the Law convicted us of our hopeless and helpless estate, we cast ourselves on the mercies of God’s Grace. We received Jesus as Lord and Savior, and because of this we are reconciled to God (Romans 5:11). We follow the commandment:

Colossians 2:6 (KJV) Therefore, as you received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in Him

The Christian is born again of the Spirit of God (John 3:3, 7), born again to a living hope (1 Peter 1:3), born again through the living and abiding Word of God (1 Peter 1:23). The Christ does not walk by the Law, nor by the flesh. The Christian, a Child of God, walks with God and for God. We who are saved do not avoid what the Law deems sinful because we are afraid of hell. We who are saved “walk in the Spirit”, led of God. We know that “if you are LED OF THE SPIRIT, you are NOT UNDER THE LAW” (Galatians 5:18).

We who are saved are not Lawless. Our Law is Christ. Our Leader is the Holy Spirit. We fulfill the Law by following Jesus Christ.

Romans 8:1 (KJV) [There is] therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit.

We are followers of not the Mosaic Law but of Jesus. We live our lives for Jesus. Jesus Christ died to save “whosoever will”. Have you given your life to Him? We close with this:

Galatians 3:27-29 For as many of you as have been baptized into Christ have put on Christ. 28 There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither bond nor free, there is neither male nor female: for ye are all one in Christ Jesus. 29 And if ye be Christ’s, then are ye Abraham’s seed, and heirs according to the promise.

If you have received Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior, if you have recognized that without Him you are lost and undone – then you are Abraham’s seed, the children of promise. If you have not, you are under the Law of God. And dear one, no one will be saved by the Law.

I pray you make the right decision. Today. Amen.