Law versus Grace? The False Dichotomy

We Protestants have heard so much about 'law versus grace' that the role of the Old Testament has become muddled in our thinking. Our thought model, the paradigm in which we think, is that of 'law versus grace', as if the Old Testament were in opposition to grace. That is what 'versus' means after all, like in an athletic contest, one team versus another as opponents. That is an unfortunate development that, in my opinion, seriously misreads the apostle Paul on this matter.


The epistles of Romans and Galatians both come to mind. In Romans we read things like 'by the works of the Law no flesh shall be justified' (Rom. 3:20) and 'for you are not under law, but under grace' (Rom. 6:14). Surely that sounds like the two are opposed! And what about 'Oh foolish Galatians!...did you receive the Spirit by the works of the Law?' (Gal. 3:1-3) and again 'by the works of the Law shall no flesh be justified' (Gal. 2:16).  Yet this same Paul goes to great pains to point out that the Law is good!  'The Law is holy, and the commandment is holy and righteous and good' (Rom. 7:12), and 'For we know that the Law is spiritual' (Rom. 7:14); in Galatians, he goes on to say that the Law is good because it in fact leads us to grace, rather than being 'versus' grace, when he says, 'Therefore the Law has become our tutor to lead us to Christ that we may be justified by faith' (Gal. 3:24). In both Romans and Galatians, in the very same chapters where he speaks strongly about being under grace instead of under law he also takes pains to point out that the Law is good, holy, and leads us to faith. In the Old Testament, Jeremiah says that in the New Covenant God will write the Law onto the hearts of his people (Jer. 31:31-33). The very nature of grace, of the New Covenant, is that the Law will be written onto our hearts! How can it be 'law versus grace' if  receiving God's grace results in God's Law being written on our hearts?


If you look up the word 'Torah', which is the Hebrew word usually translated 'Law', the primary meanings given are 'teaching' and 'instruction' rather than 'Law'. We think of it in terms of 'the Law of Moses' but this Law was given to Moses as God's instructions to mankind. If we replace 'law versus grace' with 'teaching versus grace' it doesn't even make sense; God's instructions to us lead us to grace, they don't oppose it. That makes Paul's comment about the Law being our 'tutor' so much more clear: of course it teaches us! That is the very meaning of the word 'Torah'!


Paul, as a Jew, would have considered the Torah, the Law, a gift from God. He says as much in Romans 9:4 in talking about how God 'gave' the Law and the promises of the Old Testament. In fact, if you ask someone Jewish what they are celebrating at Shavuot, the Feast of Weeks which is also called Pentecost, they will tell you that Shavuot remembers and celebrates the gift of the Torah to Moses, and according to Exodus 19 the first time the date for Shavuot occurred after the first Passover was while Moses was on Mt. Sinai receiving the Torah from God. This helps me understand the Acts 2 Pentecost as well: at the first Pentecost, we received the gift of the Law and at the Pentecost of the New Covenant we received the gift of the Holy Spirit, which writes the Law on our hearts!


Viewing the Old Testament as promise and the New Testament as fulfillment, as Dr. Walt Kaiser points out so often in his writing, is a better paradigm than 'law versus grace'. The Torah instructs us so that we might come to grace, which then writes that Torah on our hearts.