Hi Megenta,
Paul also said:
1 Cor. 7:
19 Circumcision is nothing, and uncircumcision is nothing,
but the keeping of the commandments of God.
Rom. 2:
13 (For not the hearers of the law
are just before God,
but the doers of the law shall be justified.
Acts 26:
20 But shewed
first unto them of Damascus,
and at Jerusalem,
and throughout all the coasts of Judaea,
and then to the Gentiles, that they should (ALL) repent and turn to God,
and do works meet for repentance.
21 For these causes the Jews caught me in the temple, and went about to kill
me.
22 Having therefore obtained help of God, I continue unto this day,
witnessing both to small and great, saying none other things than those which the prophets and Moses did say should come:
So I'm not one to just pick and choose a scripture to support one religious doctrine or another, then ignore the rest as some do.
Not saying you do this. But these scriptures seem to directly contradict Paul's own words that you quote. Yes?
Since I am convinced Jesus was wise when He said we are to live by EVERY Word of God,
So I set about to understand, rather than just pick one or the other statements of Paul to believe. What I found is that Paul understands the Levitical Priesthood and their sacrificial, ceremonial "words and Deeds of the Law" that were specifically administered for the remission of sins. The Mainstream Preachers of his time did not believe in Jesus, so they continued pushing their doctrines and traditions which included the observance of these "Works of the Law" for the cleansing of sins. These Mainstream Preachers plagued the apostles in acts, and were still "Bewitching" the Galatians as well.
Gal. 3:
1 O foolish Galatians,
who hath bewitched you, that ye should not obey the truth, before whose eyes Jesus Christ hath been evidently set forth, crucified among you?
2 This only would I learn of you,
Received ye the Spirit by the works of the law, (written "Works" for the remission of sins)or by the hearing of faith?(Repentance and bringing Works worthy of repentance)
He is speaking to the Levitical Priesthood sacrificial "Works" that were "ADDED" Till the Seed should come. When you understand this, then you understand that Paul isn't contradictory at all.
"The only thing that counts is faith expressing itself through love."
This is truth to be sure. But everyone exhibits faith of some sort. The question I ask myself is: Do I have faith in God and His Son, or do I exhibit Faith in church traditions and man made doctrines.
That is the battle Jesus and Paul engaged in almost every day they taught, is it not?
Studyman, I thank you for your offering.
I would just like to add something.
You helped me see something in a new way, and this was the way I saw it.
St Paul is often saying Law of Spirit, and law of sin and death which is of the flesh.
I presumed the law of sin and death was what I/we followed before we converted,
and before we were given the holy commandments of the Spirit of God (which we are told came by Moses).
But Christians introduced me to a third law. The law of faith.
(I wasn't raised in a Church, so this was news to me.)
I believed our faith is supposed to be in Jesus and in God,
so to me, the law of faith was another reference to the law of Moses.
We're supposed to have faith in God's words, are we not?
But Christians are saying this law of faith comes after the "schoolmaster law",
which they are now calling an unbearable burden, and sin and death,
and actually heap on more negative names than I care to mention.
I'm like, hang on, it leads you to Jesus, and then you have to dump it?
The more you ask them about it, the weirder answer they start to give,
and what their law of faith says isn't clear at all.
And this law of faith is what they abide in.
Far as I can tell, it has only two commandments.
But it varies according to the individual's faith.
The first commandment they all seem to agree on.
It is, Don't do God's law.
The second goes something like Faith only, or Love only, or Faith and grace.
Seems like it is a, just take you pick, arrangement.
As long as mention faith, and Jesus' death, and disparage the law in your preach,
you will be accepted.
This law of their faith gives them full permission to wade through the flocks of God's people,
cutting and slashing as they will.
These are the beasts of the field that God speaks about in the law.
I wasn't even thinking about Pharisees and their silly Tulmud and Rabbinical scriptures,
and of course you are right.
We still see formalized carnal application of the law in places like Catholic and Anglican churches.
The Eucharist being the obvious example.
You know all this confusion over whether to keep the law or not is deliberate.
God is testing us, to see who loves Him, and who loves Him not.
Even so, bless God
Paul