Does Faith Abolish The Law?
Does Faith Abolish The Law?
Few questions in Christian theology are as significant as the relationship between faith in Christ and the Law of God. Does the arrival of faith in Jesus Christ mean the Law is set aside, or does it take on a new role for the believer? This Bible study explores the biblical teaching on this profound subject, focusing on key passages and their implications for our lives today.
The Law in the Old Testament
The Law, primarily the commandments given to Moses, constituted the heart of Israel’s covenant with God. It defined holiness, justice, and the means by which Israel was to live as God’s chosen people.
And Jehovah commanded us to do all these statutes, to fear Jehovah our God, for our good always, that he might preserve us alive, as at this day. - Deuteronomy 6:24 ASV
The Law pointed to God’s perfect standard but also revealed humanity’s inability to fulfill it completely (Psalms 19:7 ASV).
Christ and the Fulfillment of the Law
Jesus’ teaching clarified the Law’s purpose and pointed to its fulfillment in Himself:
Think not that I came to destroy the law or the prophets: I came not to destroy, but to fulfil. - Matthew 5:17 ASV
Jesus did not abolish the Law, but fulfilled its righteous demands. Through His sinless life and sacrificial death, He met the requirements of the Law on our behalf.
Faith and the Law: Paul’s Teaching
Paul addressed the relationship between faith and the Law extensively, especially in Romans and Galatians. He emphasized that justification—being declared righteous before God—comes by faith, not by works of the Law.
because by the works of the law shall no flesh be justified in his sight; for through the law cometh the knowledge of sin. - Romans 3:20 ASV
For we reckon that a man is justified by faith apart from the works of the law. - Romans 3:28 ASV
However, Paul directly answers whether faith abolishes the Law:
Do we then make the law of none effect through faith? God forbid: nay, we establish the law. - Romans 3:31 ASV
Faith does not nullify the Law. Instead, it confirms and upholds it, because in Christ, the righteous requirements of the Law are fulfilled in us (Romans 8:4 ASV).
The Law as a Tutor
One of Paul’s key illustrations is that the Law acted as a “tutor” or guardian, leading us to Christ:
So that the law is become our tutor to bring us unto Christ, that we might be justified by faith. But now that faith is come, we are no longer under a tutor. - Galatians 3:24-25 ASV
The Law reveals sin and points us to our need for a Savior. Once we have come to Christ by faith, we are no longer under the Law’s condemnation, but under grace (Romans 6:14 ASV).
The Believer’s Relationship to the Law
While we are not justified by the Law, the moral principles expressed in the Law reflect God’s character and are written on the hearts of believers by the Holy Spirit:
For this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, saith the Lord; I will put my laws into their mind, And on their heart also will I write them: and I will be to them a God, And they shall be to me a people: - Hebrews 8:10 ASV
Thus, faith leads to a new obedience, not out of obligation to the written code, but as a response of love and gratitude through the Spirit’s power (Galatians 5:18 ASV).
Summary and Application
- Faith in Christ does not abolish the Law, but fulfills its true intent.
- We are justified by faith apart from works of the Law, but the Law’s righteous requirements are fulfilled in us by the Spirit.
- The Law reveals our need for a Savior and points us to Christ.
- Believers live out the moral principles of the Law as a response to God’s transforming grace.
As followers of Christ, let us rejoice in the freedom and power of the gospel, which enables us to “serve in newness of the spirit, and not in oldness of the letter” (Romans 7:6 ASV).