Bread of Life – December
I do not nullify the grace of God; for if justification were through the law, then Christ died to no purpose
With these words, St. Paul challenges St. Peter, who at Antioch obeyed the Mosaic Law but contravened the decision of the Council of Jerusalem to accept Gentiles into the Church. These words invite us to consider the purpose of law and the far greater purpose of Christ.
“I do not nullify the grace of God.” The grace of God is His friendship with us, made possible for us by His self-revelation. To become a friend of God is to see the world anew as the place of His Incarnation, Passion, Death, and Resurrection and to be transformed by these mysteries.
By saying that he does not nullify the grace of God, St. Paul refuses to deny or to ignore the truths that God has revealed to him, the faith that makes him a follower of Christ, that makes him who he is. We are called to do likewise – to remain faithful to God and to His self-revelation that He has entrusted to us.
“I do not nullify the grace of God; for if justification were through the law, then Christ died to no purpose”
Galatians 2:21
“If justification were through the law, then Christ died to no purpose.” Justification allows one
to stand before another confidently – freed of every accusation or pang of conscience, of every outstanding debt or obligation. Friends desire that each should stand before the other in this manner.
God seeks this for us. Yet, every creature owes a debt to its creator – each of us owes God a debt of service, of atonement, and of praise. Law – Mosaic Law, natural law, ecclesiastical law – reveal to us these debts. Obedience to law pays these debts. But it does not satisfy them, for no creature can fully repay its creator. Nor does conscience accept anything less than satisfaction. Thus, law teaches us the meaning of justification but does not justify.
Yet, God seeks our justification. To this end, therefore, He brought to fulfillment His self-revelation by the two Missions of the Trinity. On the one hand, the Son came to satisfy our debts, to render perfect worship to the Father on our behalf. On the other hand, because conscience would not accept such a substitution, the Holy Spirit came to incorporate us too into the sacrifice of Christ.
The Holy Spirit transforms us, conforming to the Son through Whom we encounter the Father, and thereby makes us into gifts that satisfy the debts of creatures. By grace, we become more than creatures – we become friends of God, sons and daughters pleasing to Him. In faith, we are justified, allowed to stand confidently in His Holy Presence, now and forever.
We pray: Lord, strengthen us in faith; teach us by Your Law; draw us ever more deeply into Your divine life.
– St. Irenaeus, Against Heresies V.6
Ben Martin
CiV co-ordinator of reflections
Ben, his wife Amelja, and their son Peter live in Tampa, FL, USA.