Galatians 2:15-21
15: “We are Jews by nature and not sinners from among the Gentiles;
16: nevertheless knowing that a man is not justified by the works of the Law but through faith in Christ Jesus, even we have believed in Christ Jesus, so that we may be justified by faith in Christ and not by the works of the Law; since by the works of the Law no flesh will be justified.
17: “But if, while seeking to be justified in Christ, we ourselves have also been found sinners, is Christ then a minister of sin? May it never be!
18: “For if I rebuild what I have once destroyed, I prove myself to be a transgressor.
19: “For through the Law I died to the Law, so that I might live to God.
20: “I have been crucified with Christ; and it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself up for me.
21: “I do not nullify the grace of God, for if righteousness comes through the Law, then Christ died needlessly.”
The Jews called all Gentiles sinners, which was based on God calling the nations, other than Israel, heathen. God had reserved Israel—the Jewish nation—for Himself as the line through which the Messiah would come. For centuries, anyone not Jewish was considered a sinner. So, when Paul said, "We are Jews by nature and not sinners from among the Gentiles," this is what he meant.
However, they—the believing Jews—had come to the understanding that no one was justified through the Law—Jew or Gentile—but only through faith in Jesus Christ. So, he asked, does that mean that since we now identify with the Gentiles as sinners, that Christ has made us sinners? Absolutely not! He doesn’t create sinners, His light shines and exposes the sin already in the heart, while He provides a way to cleanse the heart of it. Even the Law, if they would have been paying attention, revealed everyone to be a sinner. Some Jewish people, even those who believed in Jesus as the promised Messiah, were having trouble letting go of the Law and accepting faith in Christ alone as the means to righteousness.
Paul said he died to the Law so he might live to God. As one crucified with Christ, He lives in us and we live in Him by faith, not by keeping the Law. Salvation is by grace, not works of the Law. If one tries to resurrect the Law as a means of justification, then the only thing he proves is that he is a sinner. The Law reveals everyone to be a sinner, it doesn’t justify anyone, and the only solution to being a sinner is faith in Jesus Christ to become born-again, a new creature in Him.
Paul made the point that righteousness could not be obtained through the Law, so circumcision would not profit anyone. Those who were trying to say that the Gentiles needed to be circumcised to gain righteousness with God, or to be accepted socially, or obtain a respected position in the church, were in error to the point of trying to nullify the grace of God and make the death of Christ unnecessary. Paul was correcting this false doctrine.
16: nevertheless knowing that a man is not justified by the works of the Law but through faith in Christ Jesus, even we have believed in Christ Jesus, so that we may be justified by faith in Christ and not by the works of the Law; since by the works of the Law no flesh will be justified.
17: “But if, while seeking to be justified in Christ, we ourselves have also been found sinners, is Christ then a minister of sin? May it never be!
18: “For if I rebuild what I have once destroyed, I prove myself to be a transgressor.
19: “For through the Law I died to the Law, so that I might live to God.
20: “I have been crucified with Christ; and it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself up for me.
21: “I do not nullify the grace of God, for if righteousness comes through the Law, then Christ died needlessly.”
***
The Jews called all Gentiles sinners, which was based on God calling the nations, other than Israel, heathen. God had reserved Israel—the Jewish nation—for Himself as the line through which the Messiah would come. For centuries, anyone not Jewish was considered a sinner. So, when Paul said, "We are Jews by nature and not sinners from among the Gentiles," this is what he meant.
However, they—the believing Jews—had come to the understanding that no one was justified through the Law—Jew or Gentile—but only through faith in Jesus Christ. So, he asked, does that mean that since we now identify with the Gentiles as sinners, that Christ has made us sinners? Absolutely not! He doesn’t create sinners, His light shines and exposes the sin already in the heart, while He provides a way to cleanse the heart of it. Even the Law, if they would have been paying attention, revealed everyone to be a sinner. Some Jewish people, even those who believed in Jesus as the promised Messiah, were having trouble letting go of the Law and accepting faith in Christ alone as the means to righteousness.
Paul said he died to the Law so he might live to God. As one crucified with Christ, He lives in us and we live in Him by faith, not by keeping the Law. Salvation is by grace, not works of the Law. If one tries to resurrect the Law as a means of justification, then the only thing he proves is that he is a sinner. The Law reveals everyone to be a sinner, it doesn’t justify anyone, and the only solution to being a sinner is faith in Jesus Christ to become born-again, a new creature in Him.
Paul made the point that righteousness could not be obtained through the Law, so circumcision would not profit anyone. Those who were trying to say that the Gentiles needed to be circumcised to gain righteousness with God, or to be accepted socially, or obtain a respected position in the church, were in error to the point of trying to nullify the grace of God and make the death of Christ unnecessary. Paul was correcting this false doctrine.
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