What Is the Purpose of the Law?

Many Christians don’t understand the purpose of the Law and that it is one of the most beautiful expressions of the grace of God to all of humanity. Don’t believe me? I’ll prove it to you in less than 10 minutes!

The Apostle Paul gave us the answer in Galatians 3. Let’s look closely at verses 23-29:

Now before faith came we were held in custody under the law, being kept as prisoners until the coming faith would be revealed. Thus the law had become our guardian until Christ, so that we could be declared righteous by faith. But now that faith has come, we are no longer under a guardian. For in Christ Jesus you are all sons of God through faith. For all of you who were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ. There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is neither male nor female—for all of you are one in Christ Jesus. And if you belong to Christ, then you are Abraham’s descendants, heirs according to the promise. (Galatians 3:23-29 NET)

Paul is telling the story of a Greek slave. The slave was responsible for the daily care of a child. He made sure they woke up on time; bathed properly; got to school; didn’t fight with their siblings. The most similar comparison would be a nanny or governess.

Paul says that this is what the Torah was given for. But what does that even mean?

1. The Purpose of the Law Was For Israel

A really good first step when reading a section of Scripture is to ask, “Who is writing this? And, who are they writing too?” Answering those questions about these verses will help a lot.

Paul wrote this, but that’s not the point of this question. To really understand it, we have to think of who Paul was. Paul was Jewish. He was very religious, and very nationalistic. Paul was also a Pharisee. He loved the Torah and knew it well. This is really important.

Look at the words Paul uses:

“Now before faith came we were held in custody under the law, being kept as prisoners until the coming faith would be revealed. Thus the law had become our guardian until Christ, so that we could be declared righteous by faith. But now that faith has come, we are no longer under a guardian.” (vs. 23-25)

When Paul writes about this “guardian,” he’s talking about the Torah and its purpose for Israel. Whatever it’s for, it’s for the descendants of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.

2. The Purpose of the Law Was Global

Now that we’ve seen who wrote these verses, we need to see who Paul wrote them for. The Letter to the Galatians is to a group of Gentile churches in what is modern day Turkey. Paul wrote this letter because some Jewish Christians came to these churches telling them that they needed to be circumcised.

It’s a logical argument: Jesus is the Jewish Messiah. YHWH is the God of Israel. Gentiles are welcome in the family, but they have to become full members of the family, first! And that means they needed to be circumcised.

Paul thinks this is crazy. He writes:

For in Christ Jesus you are all sons of God through faith. For all of you who were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ. (Galatians 3:26-27 NET)

Here’s where this is going. Paul wants these Gentile Believers to know that God gave the Torah to Israel to create a unique nation who would demonstrate to the world who He was. When the time was right, the Messiah came to redeem all of the world – not just the Children of Israel. And that time was finally here!

3. The Goal of the Law Was Jesus

So, the Law was a guardian for Israel. It provided an incubator of sorts until the Messiah came. But now, all nations and peoples are welcome in the family of God. Humanity is redeemed by faith in the Messiah of Israel.

There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is neither male nor female—for all of you are one in Christ Jesus. And if you belong to Christ, then you are Abraham’s descendants, heirs according to the promise. (vs 28-29)

It reminds me of the lyrics to that old hymn: “I’m so glad I’m a part of the family of God!”