What About Grace?

Romans 3:

19. Now we know that what things soever the law saith, it saith to them who are under the law: that every mouth may be stopped, and all the world may become guilty before God.

20. Therefore by the deeds of the law there shall no flesh be justified in his sight: for by the law is the knowledge of sin.

21. But now the righteousness of God without the law is manifested, being witnessed by the law and the prophets;

22. Even the righteousness of God which is by faith of Jesus Christ unto all and upon all them that believe: for there is no difference:

23. For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God;

24. Being justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus:

25. Whom God hath set forth to be a propitiation through faith in his blood, to declare his righteousness for the remission of sins that are past, through the forbearance of God;

26. To declare, I say, at this time his righteousness: that he might be just, and the justifier of him which believeth in Jesus.

27. Where is boasting then? It is excluded. By what law? of works? Nay: but by the law of faith.

28. Therefore we conclude that a man is justified by faith without the deeds of the law.

Galatians 2:

20. I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me.

21. I do not frustrate the grace of God: for if righteousness come by the law, then Christ is dead in vain.

Titus 3:

3. For we ourselves also were sometimes foolish, disobedient, deceived, serving divers lusts and pleasures, living in malice and envy, hateful,and hating one another.

4. But after that the kindness and love of God our Saviour toward man appeared,

5. Not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to his mercy he saved us, by the washing of regeneration, and renewing of the Holy Ghost;

6. Which he shed on us abundantly through Jesus Christ our Saviour;

7. That being justified by his grace, we should be made heirs according to the hope of eternal life.

Passages like those above are very reassuring to many Christians. Entire theologies have been built upon them. Reading some of Paul’s epistles, especially Galatians, one can come to the conclusion that the Law was done away with, and that the primary commitment of Christians is to believe; more exactly, to have faith – whatever that means.

I find such passages perplexing, even troubling, for they seem to contradict so much of what is in the Bible. According to the synoptic gospels, Jesus stated repeatedly that the Law is still in effect, that righteousness is important, that it is better to lose various body parts than to sin, and that people will be judged by their works. In fact, my thesis that Christianity is a narrow path, one with very high costs and benefits, is null and void if all Christians have to do is proclaim their faith at an altar call in order to be saved. (Quick political sidenote: if the Law was done away with at the Crucifixion, why have many Christians felt compelled to compel others to live to Christian standards?)

Were all these admonitions done away with on the Cross? If so, why did Jesus take the time to make these admonitions? It seems like a cruel joke on the Pharisees, if Jesus’ sermons were about the failures of the Pharisees to live up to the Old Covenant, and that future generations would live under a new covenant which doesn’t have such strictures.

I have listened to many a sermon where they speaker simply lived with both sides of the argument, saying that works were needed but that we can earn nothing on our own. Such sermons overheat my logic circuits; I feel like one of those computers in an old Star Trek episode, fried by a paradox.

Actually, my problem is not a new one. St. Peter alluded to it:

2 Peter 3:

15. And account that the longsuffering of our Lord is salvation; even as our beloved brother Paul also according to the wisdom given unto him hath written unto you;

16. As also in all his epistles, speaking in them of these things; in which are some things hard to be understood, which they that are unlearned and unstable wrest, as they do also the other scriptures, unto their own destruction.

17. Ye therefore, beloved, seeing ye know these things before, beware lest ye also, being led away with the error of the wicked, fall from your own stedfastness.

18. But grow in grace, and in the knowledge of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. To him be glory both now and for ever. Amen.

I think I have found a way to resolve the paradox, a way that gives hope for unbelievers, and fear to those who believe, but are slack in their Christian practice. The key can be found in Leviticus 4. I will quote part, but I suggest you read the entire chapter:

Leviticus 4:

1. And the Lord spake unto Moses, saying,

2. Speak unto the children of Israel, saying, If a soul shall sin through ignorance against any of the commandments of the Lord concerning things which ought not to be done, and shall do against any of them:

[for priests, omitted]

22. When a ruler hath sinned, and done somewhat through ignorance against any of the commandments of the Lord his God concerning things which should not be done, and is guilty;

23. Or if his sin, wherein he hath sinned, come to his knowledge; he shall bring his offering, a kid of the goats, a male without blemish:

24. And he shall lay his hand upon the head of the goat, and kill it in the place where they kill the burnt offering before the Lord: it is a sin offering.

25. And the priest shall take of the blood of the sin offering with his finger, and put it upon the horns of the altar of burnt offering, and shall pour out his blood at the bottom of the altar of burnt offering.

26. And he shall burn all his fat upon the altar, as the fat of the sacrifice of peace offerings: and the priest shall make an atonement for him as concerning his sin, and it shall be forgiven him.

27. And if any one of the common people sin through ignorance, while he doeth somewhat against any of the commandments of the Lord concerning things which ought not to be done, and be guilty;

28. Or if his sin, which he hath sinned, come to his knowledge: then he shall bring his offering, a kid of the goats, a female without blemish, for his sin which he hath sinned.

29. And he shall lay his hand upon the head of the sin offering, and slay the sin offering in the place of the burnt offering.

30. And the priest shall take of the blood thereof with his finger, and put it upon the horns of the altar of burnt offering, and shall pour out all the blood thereof at the bottom of the altar.

31. And he shall take away all the fat thereof, as the fat is taken away from off the sacrifice of peace offerings; and the priest shall burn it upon the altar for a sweet savour unto the Lord; and the priest shall make an atonement for him, and it shall be forgiven him.

…

The key point in Leviticus 4: an animal sacrifice was sufficient for inadvertent sins. Since Jesus fulfilled the sacrificial laws on the Cross animal sacrifices are no longer needed (see Hebrews), and God has allowed the Temple to be destroyed in order to make this point clear.

A pagan prior to conversion is ignorant of much of the Law, and is thus less responsible. Or as St. Paul wrote:

Romans 2:

12. For as many as have sinned without law shall also perish without law: and as many as have sinned in the law shall be judged by the law;

13. (For not the hearers of the law are just before God, but the doers of the law shall be justified.

14. For when the Gentiles, which have not the law, do by nature the things contained in the law, these, having not the law, are a law unto themselves:

On multiple occasions St. Paul alludes to the idea that unbelief makes one less responsible for one’s sins.

Romans 11:

29. For the gifts and calling of God are without repentance.

30. For as ye in times past have not believed God, yet have now obtained mercy through their unbelief:

31. Even so have these also now not believed, that through your mercy they also may obtain mercy.

32. For God hath concluded them all in unbelief, that he might have mercy upon all.

33. O the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God! how unsearchable are his judgments, and his ways past finding out!

1 Timothy 1:

12. And I thank Christ Jesus our Lord, who hath enabled me, for that he counted me faithful, putting me into the ministry;

13. Who was before a blasphemer, and a persecutor, and injurious: but I obtained mercy, because I did it ignorantly in unbelief.

Acts 17:

22. Then Paul stood in the midst of Mars' hill, and said, Ye men of Athens, I perceive that in all things ye are too superstitious.

23. For as I passed by, and beheld your devotions, I found an altar with this inscription, To The Unknown God. Whom therefore ye ignorantly worship, him declare I unto you.

24. God that made the world and all things therein, seeing that he is Lord of heaven and earth, dwelleth not in temples made with hands;

25. Neither is worshipped with men's hands, as though he needed any thing, seeing he giveth to all life, and breath, and all things;

26. And hath made of one blood all nations of men for to dwell on all the face of the earth, and hath determined the times before appointed, and the bounds of their habitation;

27. That they should seek the Lord, if haply they might feel after him, and find him, though he be not far from every one of us:

28. For in him we live, and move, and have our being; as certain also of your own poets have said, For we are also his offspring.

29. Forasmuch then as we are the offspring of God, we ought not to think that the Godhead is like unto gold, or silver, or stone, graven by art and man's device.

30. And the times of this ignorance God winked at; but now commandeth all men every where to repent:

31. Because he hath appointed a day, in the which he will judge the world in righteousness by that man whom he hath ordained; whereof he hath given assurance unto all men, in that he hath raised him from the dead.

Paul describes God as winking at certain sins! At least during a time of ignorance. This fits quite well with Leviticus 4. It also fits with common sense notions of justice. Perhaps more importantly, it makes salvation possible and fair. How can a child from a tribe of head hunters be judged to the same standards as one who grows up on an Amish farm? And if one is to be saved from past sins by works, we have a huge unfair burden on those who had the wrong upbringing. Many would consider themselves to be damned despite any possible human efforts. With damnation a sunk cost*, might as well enjoy sinning…

The opportunity to have a fresh start despite one’s past makes conversion worth the effort, regardless of where one is in life. This idea fits with the idea of baptism as rebirth, and of being “dead to the Law.”

But is “dead to the Law” a permanent state? Or is it a description of one’s past prior to conversion to Christianity? I lean towards the latter interpretation. It is consistent with the idea of “counting the cost” and with the many passages on the importance of good works and not sinning. It is also consistent with the sacrificial law in Leviticus 4. In fact, I am not alone in making this connection:

Hebrews 10:

26. For if we sin wilfully after that we have received the knowledge of the truth, there remaineth no more sacrifice for sins,

27. But a certain fearful looking for of judgment and fiery indignation, which shall devour the adversaries.

28. He that despised Moses' law died without mercy under two or three witnesses:

29. Of how much sorer punishment, suppose ye, shall he be thought worthy, who hath trodden under foot the Son of God, and hath counted the blood of the covenant, wherewith he was sanctified, an unholy thing, and hath done despite unto the Spirit of grace?

30. For we know him that hath said, Vengeance belongeth unto me, I will recompense, saith the Lord. And again, The Lord shall judge his people.

Hmmm, it looks like we do in fact get a free pass for past sins before baptism, and perhaps knowledge in general, but after that, we are responsible! This is a scary concept. Indeed, the passage in Hebrews ends with:

Hebrews 10:

31. It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God.

Scared yet? Here is some more:

2 Peter 2:

20. For if after they have escaped the pollutions of the world through the knowledge of the Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, they are again entangled therein, and overcome, the latter end is worse with them than the beginning.

21. For it had been better for them not to have known the way of righteousness, than, after they have known it, to turn from the holy commandment delivered unto them.

22. But it is happened unto them according to the true proverb, the dog is turned to his own vomit again; and the sow that was washed to her wallowing in the mire.

Now, we see some real reasons to count the cost: there are dangers in having spiritual knowledge!

*This brings up the issue of whether already baptized Christians can end up on a sunk cost situation. After all, no Christian leads a sinless life upon conversion. I think several answers are possible. First, I think that there are some opportunities for further repentance; no one is fully knowledgeable – and thus accountable – upon becoming a Christian. Second, there are procedures listed for earning forgiveness, including forgiving others and giving to the needy. See “The Power of Mercy” and “The New Levites” for relevant citations.

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