NOTES for Gal 3:15-29

Today’s reading makes it clear that the apostle Paul does not reject law as such or consider human ordinances and rules inherently harmful. He says that “the law was our tutor until Christ.” In other words, while we were children, we needed external rules and ordinances. Moreover, these rules were the road to faith. But once a personal relationship with God is attained in its fullness, rules are no longer necessary. The question is how far you and I can afford to renounce external forms. Have we reached the fullness of faith of which Paul speaks? Yes and no. Yes, in the sense that, having been baptized into Christ, we are all mystically united with Him. But also no, because if we completely ignore the outward signs of belonging to Him, we can easily lose our faith. We truly have not yet attained full maturity in Christ.