Those who received the law are not the Heirs!

Rom 4:14 For if those who are of the law [are] heirs, faith is made void and the promise made of no effect,

In the last post we looked at the fact that the seed of Abraham are those who are given a promise and ultimately only those who possess a righteousness attained thru faith in a promise given by God. Perhaps someone might have great concerns about where Paul is going with this thought process about only the seed of Abraham thru Promise are heirs and not the seed that are thru the law. He begins by stating that those who are of the law are NOT heirs. Why would he focus now on that aspect? Because he wants to insure that no one be deceived, heirs come by faith in God’s promises and those who are the law are NOT heirs, rather those who are of the faith in the promises of God are the heirs.

We must realize that Paul is very pointed and exerting his needful emphasis against the premise that the law recipients are the heirs. Who are the law recipients? Those who are of the law is the nation of Israel! He is saying here that if they are the heirs, then faith is made void. I must admit, it is delicate to come up with the words to explain this, and one might likely be averse to going down this path from anxious concern about the implications of what it leads to. But clearly, Paul is not only comfortable with the proclamation of this needful understanding that those who are of the law are not the heirs, but moreover, that they can not be the heirs, because the heirs are those who are of the Promise. Furthermore, Paul is not only comfortable with proclaiming this, which would seemingly have been even more sobering 2000 years ago than it even seems today, Paul is confident that his recipient must know and understand that those of the law are not heirs, and that the children of Abraham are the children thru Promise.

It is somewhat confusing to address the concern that if those who are the recipients of the law are not the heirs, well then, what are “they” that received the law? It seems that the law recipients where the chosen nation of God? It is interesting to consider, where do we get that notion? God called and made Abraham a child of Promise; he further called Isaac and not Ishmael to be a child of promise. We will see in Romans 9, that Jacob and not Esau is an heir according to promise, and all these three men were heirs apart from any law recipients. Hebrews 11 is remarkable to re-read with the notion that the heirs of God are men of faith, faith in the promises of God, with absolutely no mention what so ever of the recipients of the law. Further, the remarkable quality that is highlighted by the writher of Hebrews in this great faith chapter is the faith of these men in God, and really nothing to do with the law or those who received the law. Consider those he calls to mind

• Able (gave a sacrifice by faith), heir of righteousness by faith, and before he died he received witness from God that he was righteous
• Enoch – he also had testimony that his faith in God please God
• Noah - believed the warnings of God’s promises of what was to come and destroy the world – and proved his faith by condemning the world – he became an heir of righteousness by this very faith in God to do what he promised
• Abraham – believed God’s promises of providing his inheritance of the land, and went and dwelt in tents in the land with his son and his Grandson.
• Sarah – was the possessor of the same righteousness of faith in a promise of God, as scripture tells us that Sarah believed he who promised was faithful
• Isaac – by faith blessed Jacob and Esau of the things to come
• Jacob – by faith blessed each of the sons of Joseph and worshipped leaning on top of his staff
• Joseph – Made mention of the departure of departure of the Children of Israel – he believed in God’s promises and evidenced his faith by giving instructions concerning his bones
• Moses’ parents were of the same faith in knowing that God would do what he revealed and were not afraid to keep their son for three months despite the apparent danger in light of the kings commands
• Moses evidenced his faith in the promises of God and refused to be identified as an Egyptian! Rather he had faith in the promises of God and evidenced his believe in God’s promises, but taking his place among the people of God, and observed the Passover by faith, by faith passed thru the waters.

Something amazing to note! To this point the law is not mentioned! More over, the law had not been given! It was thru faith alone, that all these were noted by the writer of Hebrews as being acclaimed for what? God acclaims their unwavering faith in the promises of God. All these men and woman had in common; it was a faith in the power of God to do what he said he would do! That is the common thread and it is these who are the heirs of God. The law was given to Moses in the wilderness after this and the purposes for the giving of the law are often times misunderstood. Yet Paul makes it clear later in Romans 6 when he says that the law was given that sin would abound! It was not given in order to make heirs; rather it was given so that sin would actually increase. To restate the facts:

• The law was not given to a group of people in order that they might be heirs thru the receipt of it (rom 4:14)
• The law was given so that sin might increase (Rom 5:20)
• The law was given as a tutor to bring us to Christ (gal 3:24)
• Well then, did the law fail in its use for Israel? No, it did not, rather, not all Israel are the heirs (Rom 9:6)
• It is not the physical children of Abraham who are the heirs (Rom 9:8) but the children, the heirs along with Abraham are the seed who have faith in God like Abraham and all those listed in Hebrews 11 that exercise faith in the promises of God (Rom 9:8)

So we see that the heirs are those who put their faith in the promises of God and in believing receive righteousness by faith alone apart from the law and apart from keeping the law. This is so misunderstood by so many today. The first thing one must receive is an understanding of the promises of God and the power of God. Upon a proper receipt of understanding of what God is revealing he will do, heirs are going to be made by enabling the exercise of faith by the seed in the promises of God. Oh that you would see that the keeping of the law is not the means to anything, it is the resulting desire of the heart of the heirs of the promise thru the power of God, but it is not the means to becoming and heir, it is the result. Here Paul clearly says, if the heirs are those who are of the law, then the promises are made void, and of no effect. Let us press on in fear to know that we must properly understand this and pray that God would grant us wisdom by his grace alone.