The Purpose of the Old Testament Law: Part 2

Question: My pastor said the law was given by God to keep Israel in a restored relationship with Him. That does not seem to coincide with what the Apostle Paul says in the Books of Romans and Galatians. What’s up?

Answer: Your pastor’s statement—that the law was intended to keep Israel in a restored relationship with God—reflects a common perspective, but it doesn’t align fully with Paul’s teaching in the New Testament. Paul consistently emphasizes that the law was never intended to restore or sustain a relationship with God. Instead, he teaches that the law served other purposes, such as revealing sin and pointing people to their need for Christ.

Here’s why Paul’s teaching differs from the idea of the law maintaining a “restored relationship”:

1. The Law Cannot Restore or Maintain a Relationship with God

Paul is clear that the law cannot justify or make anyone righteous before God:

• Galatians 2:16: “A person is not justified by the works of the law but through faith in Jesus Christ.”

The law was incapable of restoring or sustaining a relationship with God because human beings could not keep it perfectly. A relationship with God has always been based on faith (as seen in Abraham’s example in Genesis 15:6 and Romans 4:3).

2. The Law Brings Condemnation, Not Restoration

Paul describes the law as a ministry of condemnation:

• 2 Corinthians 3:7-9: “If the ministry that brought condemnation was glorious, how much more glorious is the ministry that brings righteousness!”

Instead of restoring people to God, the law highlighted their guilt and brought condemnation because it revealed their inability to live up to God’s standards. This condemnation was meant to drive them to seek God’s grace.

3. Israel’s Relationship with God Was Based on Covenant Promises, Not the Law

Israel’s relationship with God was rooted in His covenant promises, particularly the Abrahamic Covenant, which was based on faith and God’s grace, not law-keeping:

• Galatians 3:17-18: “The law, introduced 430 years later, does not set aside the covenant previously established by God and thus do away with the promise. For if the inheritance depends on the law, then it no longer depends on the promise; but God in his grace gave it to Abraham through a promise.”

Paul argues that the law could not alter the foundation of God’s relationship with Israel, which was His gracious promise.

4. The Law Was Given Because of Sin

Paul explicitly states that the law was given “because of transgressions” (Galatians 3:19). While the law did serve as a boundary to restrain sin and preserve Israel as God’s covenant people, it was not the means of restoring or maintaining their relationship with God. That relationship was upheld by God’s faithfulness and their response of faith, not their adherence to the law.

5. The Law Points to the Need for Christ

Paul’s teaching highlights that the law was preparatory, designed to lead Israel (and the world) to Christ:

• Galatians 3:24: “The law was our guardian until Christ came that we might be justified by faith.”

The law’s role was not to maintain Israel’s relationship with God but to expose their sinfulness and demonstrate their need for the Messiah, who would fully restore their relationship with God through His death and resurrection.

Reconciling Your Pastor’s View with Paul

Your pastor’s view might reflect how the law functioned in Israel’s historical context. The law did provide guidelines for Israel to live as God’s set-apart people and experience His blessings under the Mosaic Covenant. Obedience to the law demonstrated their faith and trust in God (Deuteronomy 6:24-25). However, Paul makes it clear that the law itself was not the source of restoration or ongoing relationship. Restoration and relationship with God always required faith in His grace, ultimately fulfilled in Christ.

Conclusion

Paul’s teaching challenges the idea that the law maintained Israel’s relationship with God. Instead, he emphasizes that the law exposed sin, pointed to Christ, and prepared the way for faith. Restoration and relationship with God have always depended on His promises and grace, received through faith—not on the law. If the law could restore or maintain a relationship, then Christ’s death would have been unnecessary (Galatians 2:21).