4 Now I say, That the heir, as long as he is a child, differeth nothing from a servant, though he be lord of all;
2 But is under tutors and governors until the time appointed of the father.3 Even so we, when we were children, were in bondage under the elements of the world:
4 But when the fulness of the time was come, God sent forth his Son, made of a woman, made under the law,
5 To redeem them that were under the law, that we might receive the adoption of sons.
6 And because ye are sons, God hath sent forth the Spirit of his Son into your hearts, crying, Abba, Father.
7 Wherefore thou art no more a servant, but a son; and if a son, then an heir of God through Christ.
What does this passage above tell us about the law and it's place in the life of the believer? The law is a tutor and schoolmaster for the believer in order to bring him to Messiah. Paul is primarily describing the nation of Israel during it's time under the old covenant. The laws of the Mosaic administration served as an object lesson to Israel in order to foreshadow the coming Messiah and His perfect sacrifice. The sacrificial system in which there was a physical temple, earthly priesthood and animal sacrifices along with prescribed holy days pointed forward to the new system centered upon the sacrifice of the Messiah Jehoshua.
Jehovah God had Israel under this system of worship until the appointed prophetic time of the Messiah arrived. This is what Paul refers to as the fulness of time, here the baptism of the Son of God is in view. The sending forth of the Son was when He was sanctified (baptism) and sent into the world (Israel) after being made of a woman which describes His birth as He was a full human being.
The purpose of the Messiah's arrival was to redeem the nation of Israel who was under the law. Those who had faith in Jehovah's Son graduated from being servants i.e under the law to adoption and being made joint heirs with the Messiah. This is why now all believers have access to the Messianic Spirit which is the Spirit of God's Son. We receive the Spirit of the Son of God when we are begotten from above as sons and daughters of God. The key component is faith in and of the Son of God which entails His teachings, death, burial, resurrection, ascension and second coming. Paul says in Colossians 1:27:
"To whom God would make known what is the riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles; which is Christ in you, the hope of glory"
The Spirit of the Son of God being sent to us and dwelling in us is part of the mystery of the gospel and is the hope of glory. Here in Colossians, Paul has the Gentiles in view but this obviously includes the believing Israelites. The Spirit of adoption i.e. the Spirit of the Son of God causes us to cry out to God as our Abba which is an intimate term of endearment. God becomes our Father when we receive the gospel of His Son in faith and are then begotten by the Spirit of His Son from above.
The purpose of the Son of God's ministry was to bring the Israelites into an intimate Father-son relationship between them and God. He then sent the apostles to bring the Gentiles into this special relationship. Whereas the Israelites were to graduate from the tutor of the law of Moses, the Gentiles were to completely abandon their former pagan religions. This is why in one sense the Israelites had an advantage in receiving the gospel because the oracles of God were committed to their stewardship and they knew the prophecies concerning the coming Messiah. However, in another sense the Gentiles had the advantage because they didn't have the baggage of being under the rigors of the Mosaic administration and thereby no tendency to go back to it due to it's familiarity. Certainly there was always a danger of them mixing their pagan practices with the faith but there was a newness about the gospel that perhaps the Jewish believers didn't have.
Unfortunately, many believers are placing themselves back under the tutor and school master and removing themselves from enjoying the intimate sonship or daughterhood that they previously had with God the Father. The revival of the Law of Moses in the church has been one of the most significant developments in this century and the advent of the internet has only helped fuel it's growth. While the desire among believers to honor God's law is a refreshing change from the rampant anti-nomianism seen in mainstream Christianity, the placing oneself under the Law of Moses is unbiblical from a new testament standpoint. This is precisely what is going on the Hebrew roots/Torah observant movement as they are calling Christians to return to the law of Moses as a form of practice and church government. In effect, they are asking Christians to give up their sonship and daughterhood and become servants under governors and tutors.
In Galatians 2:14, Paul rebuked Peter for exactly what these Hebrew roots people are doing
"But when I saw that they walked not uprightly according to the truth of the gospel, I said unto Peter before them all, If thou, being a Jew, livest after the manner of Gentiles, and not as do the Jews, why compellest thou the Gentiles to live as do the Jews?"
I find it ironic that one of Jehoshua's 12 disciples, who had a huge role in building up the early church, was not even living a Hebrew roots lifestyle. Contrary to what Hebrew roots folks say, the issue here that Paul had with Peter was not that Peter wasn't Hebrew enough but rather that Peter by his actions was trying to get believing Gentiles to live as Jews. This one verse destroys the whole foundation of the Hebrew roots movement. Hebrew roots people obviously ignore the rebuke of Paul and even the warning of Peter in Acts 15:
10 Now therefore why tempt ye God, to put a yoke upon the neck of the disciples, which neither our fathers nor we were able to bear?
11 But we believe that through the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ we shall be saved, even as they.
Peter made it clear that to try and put the Gentile believers under the law of Moses was to tempt Jehovah God. Peter equated the requirement of believers being under the law of Moses with having yoke upon the neck. This exactly what the Hebrew roots movement is doing, they are tempting God by trying to put believers under the law of Moses.
Paul further writes regarding the comparison between being under the law of Moses and being righteous by faith in the Son of God in Galatians 4:
22 For it is written, that Abraham had two sons, the one by a bondmaid, the other by a freewoman.
23 But he who was of the bondwoman was born after the flesh; but he of the freewoman was by promise.
24 Which things are an allegory: for these are the two covenants; the one from the mount Sinai, which gendereth to bondage, which is Agar.
25 For this Agar is mount Sinai in Arabia, and answereth to Jerusalem which now is, and is in bondage with her children.
26 But Jerusalem which is above is free, which is the mother of us all.
27 For it is written, Rejoice, thou barren that bearest not; break forth and cry, thou that travailest not: for the desolate hath many more children than she which hath an husband.
28 Now we, brethren, as Isaac was, are the children of promise.
29 But as then he that was born after the flesh persecuted him that was born after the Spirit, even so it is now.
30 Nevertheless what saith the scripture? Cast out the bondwoman and her son: for the son of the bondwoman shall not be heir with the son of the freewoman.
31 So then, brethren, we are not children of the bondwoman, but of the free.
Paul allegorizes that those who place themselves under the old covenant are children of the flesh meaning they are carnal. In contrast, he says that those who are under the new covenant are of the spirit and are the children of promise likened unto Isaac. The old covenant is symbolized by Hagar who gave Abraham Ishmael, which was not the child of promise or faith that Sarah gave birth to. Sarah gave birth to Isaac in her old age as Jehovah promised Abraham and Sarah they would have a child despite both being older and Sarah being past the time of life. This was a promise that required faith from both Abraham and Sarah as the natural circumstances dictated otherwise.
The covenant of Mount Sinai is the old covenant that leans towards bondage and is compared to the child that Hagar gave to Abraham which was not of faith but of the flesh as Sarah wanted to give Abraham a child so out of her own will (will of the flesh) she let Hagar lay with her husband and hence Ishmael came to be.
