Galatians

Salvation by grace! Justification by faith! Sanctification by faith!

Galatians 3

The Doctrinal Defense of Justification by Faith

-From Experience – 3:1-5

-From Abraham – 3:6-9

-From the negative effect of the Law – 3:10-14

-Priority of the covenant of promise over the covenant of Law – 3:15-18

-The real place and purpose of the law – 3:19-25

Verses 15-18 *Priority of the Promise over the Law*

God gave both the Covenant of Promise and the Covenant of Law, in that order. The latter did not take the place of nor add to the former.

The contract was made between God and Abraham and Abraham’s seed (singular), which is Christ. Thus the promise must be fulfilled in Christ, the Messiah.

The Covenant of Law, which came long after the promise, could in no way void the promise or alter God’s faithfulness in fulfilling the promise.

Verses 19-25 *The real purpose of the Law*

Reason: “…added because of transgressions…” So that sin might be unmistakably revealed.

Time Limits: “until the seed should come to whom the promise had been made.”

POINT: The Law covenant was temporal, limited, and subordinate to the Abrahamic Covenant which is eternal.

(seed chart in pdf notes)

The real place and purpose of the law – 3:19-25

Significance of the mediation of the Law: Angels are associated with the giving of the Law – Deuteronomy 33:2
Moses is the mediator – Exodus 20:19

POINT: The Law was administered by secondary agencies (angels and Moses), therefore it was inferior to the promise.

Where mediation is necessary, there must be mutual obligations agreed upon by two parties.

The promise contract is absolute and unconditional; its fulfillment rests totally with the One who made it, God!

(see table in pdf file)

The divine design was for law to complement the promise.

The righteousness which God demands, could never be produced in us by any type of law system.

The law locked everyone under sin, Jew and Gentile, that the promise system might clearly be the only way of salvation.

All the benefits of promise are by faith directed to the Savior, Jesus Christ!

CONCLUSION:

Justification must be solely by faith in the merits of Christ’s work for the sinner.

The Law was added so that human beings would stop looking to themselves for salvation and look only to God’s graciously provided Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ.