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Galatians 3:21-29 According to the Torah, God Had Promised Abraham That Through His Descendants All the Nations (The Gentiles) O

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Galatians 3:21-29 According to the Torah, God Had Promised Abraham That Through His Descendants All the Nations (The Gentiles) O Galatians 3:21-29 Aaron Eime, Christ Church Jerusalem, 2021 According to the Torah, God had promised Abraham that through his descendants all the nations (the Gentiles) of the world would be blessed. In particular the unique single ‘seed of Abraham’ referenced the coming Messiah that would redeem the world to the Lord. The physical Torah itself appeared later in history to Moses, and prior in time to the Messiah, and was given specifically to the people of Israel. Israel were instructed to be a distinct people that would bring light to the nations. As people were drawn to the monotheistic faith of Israel, they would come into contact with the teaching and instruction (the Torah) of God. Exactly how Gentiles participate in Torah has oscillated through Israel’s history. Now that the promised Messiah had indeed arrived and ascended to Heaven, what role does the Torah play in the life of the believer and was the Torah actually in opposition to the good news of the redeemer? The answer to which Paul replies - absolutely not! The Torah was not the device by which anyone was made righteous (see Psalm 143), rather it is the ethics and moral code by which Israel is to live by. God imputes righteousness, not the Torah, however the laws from Heaven remain by definition holy just and good. King David says he meditates on Gods Word day and night, however his righteousness is imputed by God, not through his personal studies. The Torah turned the light on to what was good and what was bad. The Torah was and is an expression of God’s will. It is only if you assume falsely that the Torah was given by God to impute righteousness and that it itself was the source of life that you then infer that the Torah was against the promises of God to Abraham. Recall that the Torah was given to Israel and Paul is speaking to Gentiles. This always has to be factored in when working out who we are talking about in Galatians. Jewish people already have a relationship with God. Paul then describes the situation prior to the Messiah. Torah was the guardian, sometimes described as a shield or as a tutor or school master and not in a negative way. References to ‘imprisonment, protective custody, guardian, shield or school master’ are referenced in a way to positively remove people from sin, harm and moral danger. The defence against idolatry and immorality were the teachings and instructions from God. Following the advent of the Messiah the Torah continues to operate in the hearts of the believers. It is not abolished, neglected, unread or removed from the Bible. Instead the Torah takes it place upon the heart exactly where it was always meant to be. Deuteronomy 6:6: ‘And these words which I command you today shall be upon your heart’. Recall that the Torah was given to Israel. Paul is commenting that Jews were originally the ones with the guardian or the shield of the Torah. And Jewish people as much as Gentiles are now under the guardianship of the Messiah and His Spirit. And Gentiles as much as Jewish people have the Torah written upon their hearts. Israel had a special relationship with God and were called the sons of God. Now too could Gentiles join in that relationship through the faithfulness of the Messiah. The distinctions between Jews and Gentiles disappear before the Messiah. His salvation and redemption are open and available to all. This does not remove distinctions altogether. Males remain males, females remain females and despite modern day insanity that disregards the science of biology, there really are only two genders. Jesus redeems, and righteousness is imputed by God. However, this does not automatically change your social economic status, you still have to work hard to make a million dollars. Jews and Gentiles likewise, also remain Jews and Gentiles. If you belong to the Messiah no one needs to ‘bewitch’ you into getting circumcised to be accepted by the Jewish community. 1.
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