-The truth is, I died to the law, and in doing so, destroyed it, destroyed its power to hold me captive. In Christ I entered in to the reality that the veil of the temple - that which barred sinful man (including Jews) from the presence of God - was torn in two, never to be mended. The law (and the curse contained therein) was both fulfilled and forever removed, never again to hold any jurisdiction over me whatsover. And yet, if for some reason I am beginning again to obligate myself in any way to observe the commands of the law in order to earn or maintain right standing with God, I am simultaneously abrogating what Christ did on the cross and embracing a standard of performance which no one has ever been able to keep. I will be vainly mending the unmendable. The intent of the law to begin with was not to ultimately enslave us to an impossible set of do’s and don’ts - rather the whole point was to point us to our need for a Savior, because on our own even on our best days we fall short.
-Yet Peter was supressing this salient truth and essentially rebuilding the law when he succumbed to the pressure to disassociate himself from uncircumcised Gentile believers in that assembly in Antioch, when he gave credence to the defunct notion that circumcision was necessary in order to be acceptable in God’s eyes (and Peter’s). Not only was he wrong to do this, but in doing so Peter was essentially placing himself back under that from which he had been freed in Christ. It’s like he was re-igniting the fire of the law in his life, and in so doing, immediately rekindled the searing heat of condemnation brought on by the law. The law shows us that we are transgressors, law-breakers, guilty as charged. Even Peter - under the law - was guilty. What we all desperately need (for which we need to be constantly reminded) is not the law but mercy, forgiveness - which totally levels the playing field. We need to die - to sin, to the law, to self. Which is where Jesus comes in...
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