Text – Galatians 3:24-25 – “Wherefore the Law was our schoolmaster to bring us unto Christ, that we might be justified by faith. But after that faith is come, we are no longer under a school master”
It’s been an exciting series on Spiritual Laws for the past 5 days. First, we established the unity and inerrancy of scriptures, and affirmed that since God cannot lie, there can be no contradiction in Scriptures.
We then went on to examine the three types of Laws in the Old Testament – Religious Ceremonial laws, Civil laws and Moral laws. Yesterday, we established from scriptures that the religious ceremonial laws of the Old Testament were abolished by the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ.
But then, what about civil laws and moral laws; are they rescinded as well?
First, let’s examine civil laws. The Civil laws of Israel were made for a theocratic government.
But then, the theocracy of Israel began to dwindle when their nation was conquered by successive empires, until democracy finally took the center stage.
However, when we consider many of the civil laws in the nations of the world today, we see a lot of similarities with the civil laws God gave to Israel in the Old Testament.
In this present dispensation, only the Church, whose head is Christ, has a good measure of theocratic governance. The Church, though not a physical nation, is God’s spiritual nation on earth.
Bible says in John 1:17, “For the law was given by Moses, but grace and truth came by Jesus Christ”. When we talk about the grace of God, it is specifically applied to the dictates of the civil laws of the Old Testament.
The civil laws of the Old Testament prescribe punishment and retribution, but the law of Grace, through Jesus Christ, makes forgiveness available even to the vilest offender, so long as he truly believes.
So then, scripturally speaking, the theocracy (and civil laws) of Israel in the Old Testament has been disbanded replaced with the Church, which is not a physical nation but a people from “all nations, and kindreds, and tongues” (Revelations 7:9)
In the New Testament theocracy, mercy prevails over judgement unlike in the civil laws of the Old Testament. The book of Romans explains this in great details.
Jesus also teaches that we should extend the same grace we have received to others who may, at one time or the other, offend us. He said in Matthew 5:38- 40:
“You have heard that it has been said, An eye for an eye, and a tooth for a tooth: But I say to you, that you contend not with an evildoer, but whosoever shall smite you on the right cheek, turn to him the other also. And if any man will sue you to the court of law, and take away your coat, let him have your cloak also”
In fact, the Supremacy of the Church Theocracy over Civil Laws is so much so that believers are even admonished never to sue one another to the law court, but to settle their disputes within the confines of the Church (1 Cor. 6:1-4). This should be our disposition, as Christians towards civil laws, especially those contained in the Old Testament.
PRAYER
Lord, please help me to fully comprehend the depth of your grace and mercy towards me, and to share the same with everyone around me in Jesus Name.
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