If you obey "some" of the Old Testament laws, then you are cursed because you are not continuing in "all things." You cannot pick and choose which Old Testament laws to abide by. Paul is saying in Galatians 3 that you either obey ALL of the law OR that you walk by faith. Faith in what? Faith in Christ and his redemptive work; freeing us from the “law of sin and death” (See Romans 8:2). You have to choose what saves you: the law or Christ. And Paul points out in this 3rd chapter of Galatians that the law CANNOT save, only Christ. Galatians 3:11 "But that no man is justified by the law in the sight of God, it is evident: for, The just shall live by faith."
I have recently read someone saying that Matthew 5:17-18 still binds us to the and that we must follow “some” of the laws. That is incorrect. Jesus said in verse 17 that he came to fulfill the law. He fulfilled the law by living a sinless life and dying on
Galatians 3:24-25 says "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." The LAW brought us to Christ by showing us our sinful nature and revealing to us our need for a Savior: it showed us our flaws and that we couldn't attain righteousness by our WORKS (i.e. the keeping of the law, because no man but Christ CAN successfully keep all the law). But AFTER that faith is come WE ARE NO LONGER UNDER THE SCHOOLMASTER. In verse 24, Paul calls the law our schoolmaster. In verse 25, he says we are no longer under the schoolmaster. Now, if he calls the law our schoolmaster and says we are no longer under the schoolmaster, that would mean that Paul is saying in verses 24 and 25 that we are no longer under the law.
Galatians 2:16 says "Knowing that a man is not justified by the works of the law, but by the faith of Jesus Christ, even we have believed in Jesus Christ, that we might be justified by the faith of Christ, and not by the works of the law: for by the works of the law shall no flesh be justified."
Jesus came and fulfilled the law so that we do not have to. Paul said in Galatians 5:14 "For all the law is fulfilled in one word, [even] in this; Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself."
If Paul the Apostle were to sit in front of some people today and tell them face-to-face all he told the Galatians, he’d be called a heretic; people would be warned about his “deception” and told to ignore his false teachings; he’d be accused of twisting scripture (although he wrote a HUGE portion of it); and would be told he was going to hell. I know this because in teaching and preaching the same things Paul did, I have had all sorts of things said to me and about me. And, in all honesty, there will still be those who read this and say all these things about me again. There will be those who read this and boldly call me a heretic and a heathen and accuse me of twisting scripture to fit my world view and absolve my conscience from my sins. They will say I am a liar and am attempting to deceive others. They will throw their religious stones at me and make all kinds of wild accusations against me. But to those people, I would caution people to prayerfully evaluate your actions and motives, and prayerfully study the book of Galatians. I’m not proclaiming anything crazy; I’m proclaiming God’s word written by the Apostle Paul.
Galatians 2:21 "I do not frustrate the grace of God: for if righteousness [come] by the law, then Christ is dead in vain." We can infer from this verse that if we believe righteousness comes by the law, then we frustrate the grace of God. Paul wrote the the in Galatians 1:6-9 "I marvel that ye are so soon removed from him that called you into the grace of Christ unto another gospel: (7) Which is not another; but there be some that trouble you, and would pervert the gospel of Christ. (8) But though we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel unto you than that which we have preached unto you, let him be accursed. (9) As we said before, so say I now again, If any [man] preach any other gospel unto you than that ye have received, let him be accursed." According to Paul's letter to the Galatians, the gospel of "the law" is a perversion of the gospel of Christ, and any man that preaches that you must follow the Old Testament law to attain righteousness is cursed. Those are Paul’s words, not mine. So I would caution you to be very careful in who you listen to, what you believe, and to study this subject for yourself. 2 Timothy 2:15 says “Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.” RIGHTLY DIVIDING THE WORD OF TRUTH.
Here is where I think a lot of Christians have trouble; they are afraid that if they “compromise” the beliefs they’ve always held, then they’ve somehow sold-out or fallen away. But that is not the case. Saul of Tarsus walked in all the righteousness he knew, standing up for what he believed in to the point that he was to Christians of that day what Adolf Hitler was to the Jews. But Saul, in all the understanding he had, was doing the right thing. UNTIL God met him on the
But the thing is, Paul had to make a choice: continue on in his ignorance in spite of having the truth revealed to him, OR follow Christ. And I think all Christians have at some point come to a crossroads like this; where we must decide to change our incorrect beliefs to align with the Word of God or remain in ignorance and continue in incorrect thinking.
If I’m driving down the road, and I don’t know the speed limit, does that mean there isn’t one? No, of course there is a speed limit. If I believe the speed limit is 55MPH, but I see a sign that says 45MPH I have a choice to make: do I continue doing 55MPH or do I follow the sign and do 45MPH? Am I compromising or selling out by doing 45 instead of 55? Of course not…I just have a new understanding of the speed limit on that road. I was always following a speed limit, but I wasn’t following the correct one because I didn’t know. But once it was made known to me, I had to decide if I was going to obey or not.
And you, dear reader, are faced with the same choice today. The law, according to God’s word, cannot save you. It was given to reveal to us our sin nature and show us our need for a Savior. But once the Savior came, we were freed from the law of sin and death. And so you must make a choice; align your beliefs with the word of God, penned by the hand of Paul the Apostle all throughout the New Testament, or believe that righteousness is still attainable through the law and that we must still abide by it. But again, examine Galatians 3:10. If you fail to follow ALL of it, you are under a curse. I suppose I could say it like this; I set before you today a choice. Life or death. Freedom or bondage. Choose life.
