The law and grace are two great matters in the Bible. If we want to know God and how He deals with man, we must know the law and grace. We will examine the law and grace briefly here, but we must spend much time to examine these matters further.
1. “The law is holy, and the commandment holy and righteous and good” (Rom. 7:12, see also v. 16).
The law was given by God. It is out of God and matches God’s holy nature. Therefore, it is holy. It also matches God’s righteousness and goodness, so it is righteous and good. Every requirement of the law on us and every demand on us is according to God’s holy nature, righteousness, and goodness because the law is holy, righteous, and good.
2. “The law is spiritual” (Rom. 7:14).
God is Spirit, and the law is spiritual because the law comes out of God. Every command of the law upon man is spiritual in nature. Although the law places demands upon man’s flesh, the requirements upon man are spiritual. Therefore, these requirements cannot be fulfilled by man’s flesh. Man cannot fulfill the law or keep the commandments of the law, because he is fleshly, and the law and its commandments are spiritual.
3. “The law is good” (1 Tim. 1:8).
Since the law is spiritual and holy, it is good. Although man’s misuse of the law is not good, the law itself is good.
1. “The law entered in alongside” (Rom. 5:20).
According to this verse, the law entered in alongside. In the beginning the law was not part of God’s original ordination for man, that is, something according to God’s eternal heart’s desire. It entered in alongside; that is, it was added later. God never intended to deal with man according to the law; the law was added on the way to the fulfillment of God’s desire because of the need discussed in the following sections. Knowing this, we can avoid inaccurate views concerning the law, such as those of the Seventh-day Adventists who still live under the law even though the law is over.
2. “The law, having come four hundred and thirty years after” (Gal. 3:17).
Following the creation of man, man fell repeatedly, reaching the lowest point of degradation with mankind’s complete rebellion against God in the construction of the tower of Babel. God then called Abraham out of rebellious mankind and promised to bless him by dealing with him according to grace (Gen. 12:1-5). Four hundred and thirty years later, God gave the law to man in order to temporarily deal with man according to the law. This shows that the law was not God’s original desire for man; God’s original desire for man was to grace him through the promise. The law was added along the way as a temporary measure.
3. “The law was given through Moses” (John 1:17).
The law was not given until Moses brought the Israelites to Mount Sinai. This was about two thousand five hundred years after the creation of Adam, around 1500 B.C.
4. “Until the law...from Adam until Moses” (Rom. 5:13-14).
Before Moses there was no law. God did not use the law to deal with man from the time of Adam to the time of Moses, a period of about two thousand five hundred years. God began to use the law to deal temporarily with man at the time of Moses. This lasted for about one thousand five hundred years, until John the Baptist came to preach. The law ended with the coming of the Lord Jesus, which was the beginning of the age of grace and the end of the law (Matt. 11:13).
1. “Received the law as ordinances of angels” (Acts 7:53; see also Gal. 3:19; Heb. 2:2).
The law was given through angels. God did not give it directly to man, because the law was not God’s original desire for man. This shows that in the giving of the law to man, God did not feel as if it was a dear and sweet thing for man. If He had felt that the law was a dear and sweet thing for man, He would have given it to man Himself.
2. “The law was given through Moses” (John 1:17; see also 7:19; Exo. 24:3).
The law was given not only through angels but also through Moses. Therefore, the law was established through the hand of angels and man. These two points show that the law was not given to man by God Himself.
3. “All the people witnessed the thunder and the flashes of lightning and the sound of the trumpet and the mountain smoking; and when the people witnessed it, they trembled and stood at a distance. And they said to Moses, You speak with us, and we will listen; but do not let God speak with us, so we do not die” (Exo. 20:18-19; see also 19:9-25; 20:20-21; Heb. 12:18-21).
When God gave the law at Mount Sinai, He descended in fire. This situation was truly frightening. The Israelites were frightened by the thunder, flashes of lightning, the sound of the trumpet, flames, thick clouds, and the mountain shaking. They trembled and stood at a distance, afraid to come closer. They even asked Moses to not let God speak to them directly so that they would not die. This shows that the law keeps man far from God. It cannot bring man close to God.