The Apostle Paul and the book of Galations....Millions of people have wondered what the expression, �works
of the law� means as used by the apostle Paul. What are they?
Are works of law the Ten Commandments? Are they the Law
of Moses? Or something else? Paul said �a man is not justified
by the works of the law,� and that �by the works of the law shall
no flesh be justified� (Gal.2:16). What did he mean? What is
the Christian�s relationship to �works of the law�?
Anti-Law ministers� favorite book seems to be the book of Galatians. Anti-Law
advocates most often quote from this book in their attempt to �do away with God�s law.�
At first glance, it may seem that they have a point. Some of the expressions used by the
apostle Paul in this book may appear to be saying, on the surface, that the �Law� is a �curse,� or a temporary �schoolmaster,� and that those who are of �the works of the Law� are condemned and foolish!Would the apostle Paul praise and bless God�s Law in one place, and blast and condemnit in another? Was he double-minded? After hearing him discourse on faith and judgment, the Roman governor Festus exclaimed to Paul, �You are out of your mind, Paul. Your great learning has driven you insane� (Acts 26:24, NIV). Paul replied, �I an not insane, most excellent Festus.What I am saying is true and reasonable� (v.25).
The apostle Peter himself said of Paul�s writings, �His letters contain some things that are
hard to understand, which ignorant and unstable people distort, as they do the other Scriptures, to their own destruction� (II Peter 3:16).
The book of Galatians is a case in point. This book has been greatly misunderstood,
twisted, distorted, and misquoted. What is Paul really saying in Galatians? What is behind the mystery of the book of Galatians?
How could Paul, an apostle of Jesus Christ, possibly say the Law of God is not for
Christians or believers when he says elsewhere, in his epistles, that �the law is holy, and the commandment is holy and just and good� (Rom.7:12)? How could he call the Law a curse,when he says, �Do we make void the law through faith? Certainly not! On the contrary, we ESTABLISH the Law� (Rom.3:31).
The apostle Paul wrote, �Imitate me, just as I also imitate Christ� (I Cor.11:1). He
declared to the Corinthians, �For I delivered to you first of all that which I also received� (I
Cor.15:3). Paul preached the very same gospel and message that Christ Himself preached with no variation,He didn't alter anything......,To be continued!
Your own righteousness {your ability} is what attempts to keep the law according to your thread. In God's eyes you are offering up filthy rags to God for righteousness.
Isaiah 64:6 ��But we are all as an unclean thing, and all our righteousnesses are as filthy rags; and we all do fade as a leaf; and our iniquities, like the wind, have taken us away.
Also no man has ever kept the law and satisfied God's court except for Jesus Christ who is God.
Just the breaking of a minor offense and we are guilty of of it all and condemnation continues since our first since at birth.
James 2:10 �For whosoever shall keep the whole law, and yet offend in one point, he is guilty of all.
I hope you are not deceiving yourself into thinking you can keep the law as that is impossible since you like the rest of us are born a sinner, guilty of death.
Romans 3:23 �For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God;
Romans 5:12 �Wherefore, as by one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned:
Romans 3:27 �Where is boasting then? It is excluded. By what law? of works? Nay: but by the law of faith.
28 �Therefore we conclude that a man is justified by faith without the deeds of the law.
Romans 8:3 �For what the law could not do, in that it was weak through the flesh, God sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh, and for sin, condemned sin in the flesh:
4 �That the righteousness of the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit.
5 �For they that are after the flesh do mind the things of the flesh; but they that are after the Spirit the things of the Spirit.
6 �For to be carnally minded is death; but to be spiritually minded is life and peace.
7 �Because the carnal mind is enmity against God: for it is not subject to the law of God, neither indeed can be.
8 �So then they that are in the flesh cannot please God.
9 �But ye are not in the flesh, but in the Spirit, if so be that the Spirit of God dwell in you. Now if any man have not the Spirit of Christ, he is none of his.
James 2:10 For whosoever shall keep the whole law, and yet offend in one point, he is guilty of all.
This sounds to me that this could be the reason Paul stated the law is a curse because no one could live in the flesh and be able to stand before the Just God and not carry any spec of guilt in them. Take the Arc that was being carried to the Temple David built for God. If one dare touch it they would die. One did and fallen dead Holy is some thing only God is. Even the angels tremble with fear. We being a little lower than the angels and being born in sin can not be with out sin no matter how we stand perfect in the law. The law was made because it taught man to be able to live morally and to know God. But even then it became difficult to live under the law, he loved his children (people) so much that he made a way perfect in love that no man or any thing can take away from you.
It also state's that cursed is the one hung on a cross that is when our God proved publically and taken the curse from us. Lifted the curse from us where we no longer are cursed by the law but have a anointed priest to come to God the Holy God for our sin's.
But does that mean you shouldn't try to keep God's commandments? Or are we allowed to say, "oh well, I'm weak...I can't keep that one, I'll just ask forgiveness a lot". Jesus said to love your neighbor as yourself. Can you keep that one all the time? Or are we supposed to try to keep them all out of love and let grace cover our mistakes? Well...actually...let grace cover everything...
But does that mean you shouldn't try to keep God's commandments? Or are we allowed to say, "oh well, I'm weak...I can't keep that one, I'll just ask forgiveness a lot". Jesus said to love your neighbor as yourself. Can you keep that one all the time? Or are we supposed to try to keep them all out of love and let grace cover our mistakes? Well...actually...let grace cover everything...
No it does not mean that you shouldn't keep God's Commandments. That's His Word...you just can look at the Law a different way. I guess you could see it this way the Law has GRACE by the BLOOD that was SHED for our SINS that was under the LAW. Which is any LAW has a penalty of DEATH. By all means dont take it as if to use evil or sin of the flesh as a advantage just to SIN. No one would ever get out to that one...GOD knows all hearts and their thoughts....He knows the true repenter...IF ANYONE SEES GOD THAT WAY THEY ARE FOOLING THEM SELVES NOT GOD...I dont know how else to explain this but to just give it as good as I can. GivenLife
37 Jesus said to him, � �You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind.�[d] 38 This is the first and great commandment. 39 And the second is like it: �You shall love your neighbor as yourself.�[e] 40 On these two commandments hang all the Law and the Prophets.�
acts 26:20 but declared first to those in Damascus and in Jerusalem, and throughout all the region of Judea, and then to the Gentiles, that they should repent, turn to God, and do works befitting repentance.
