We need to consider what the position of the law is. In order to see the law's position, we have to take Paul's teaching.
The first thing we need to see concerning the position of the law is that the law entered in alongside the main line of God's economy (Rom. 5:20a). Because of this, the law does not have an orthodox position. It was not orthodox because it entered in alongside the main line of God's economy.
Many today do not see this main line. Instead, they teach the Bible according to the natural way, without any governing principles. Over sixty years ago, I first heard that we have to interpret the Bible with the proper principles. When I heard that, I was asking myself, "What are the principles for us to understand the Bible?" At that time, I did not understand, but gradually I came into the proper realization of the governing principles of understanding and interpreting the Bible. In this message I am interpreting the Word according to these principles.
The principle we need to see concerning the law is this—Paul in Romans 5:20a told us that the law entered in alongside. The Greek word here also means to "come in alongside." The law did not come in by itself. It came in alongside of something. This means that the main line of God's economy was there already.
After the creation of man, however, something happened. Satan came in, sin followed Satan, and man became fallen. Thus, man became a fallen man constituted with sin to be a sinner. God created man in His own image and after His own likeness (Gen. 1:26) with the intention that man could take in God, live God, and express God. The main line of God's economy began with man and was on the way when something happened. A "car accident" occurred. Therefore, the law needed to come in alongside the main line of God's economy. This should help us to understand Paul's word in Romans 5:20a.
The law was not originally ordained and arranged by God. In God's original economy, there was not such a thing. God in His economy planned to create and to have a man in His image and after His likeness that man one day could receive Him as life to live Him and to manifest Him so that He might have an organism to express His Divine Trinity. But Satan came in to deceive man, and Satan and man became one. The man created by God in His own image was constituted by Satan with Satan's nature to be a sinful man. Now God had to fix the situation. Would God keep man out of His plan, forgetting about man? Of course, God would never do that because He is the Alpha and also the Omega (Rev. 22:13). He cannot start anything without completing it.
In order to continue His purpose with man after man's fall, God added something to the main line of His economy. The Chinese version of the Bible says in Romans 5:20 that the law was added. It was something in addition to grace. The law was in addition to the orthodox line of grace in God's economy.