3:21
“But now apart from the Law the righteousness of God has been made known, to which the Law and the Prophets testify.” So far Paul has made two primary points. The first is that all have sinned and are therefore subject to the wrath of God. This applies to both Jews and Gentiles. The second point is that no one could be made righteous through the Law. The Jews thought that because they had the Law they could be righteous with God. This didn’t mean that they didn’t think how someone lived didn’t matter, for that was why the religious leaders had come up with so many rules over the years. It is a common trait in mankind. We see something of this when a problem arises in society. The problem is identified, as is the way things should be. We then think that we will now do things the way they ought to be done and the problem is solved. Except, this neglects the reality of sin, and things continue to go wrong.
So with these two primary points ( all have sinned, and the Law cannot justify us) it seems that we are in a hopeless situation. This is where the “but now ...” comes in. The gospel has made known the righteousness of God. This is new in the sense that it had not been fully revealed until Christ came, died and rose again, but it was not new in the sense that it was a completely new innovation that had never been thought of before. The Law and the Prophets testified to this righteousness of God that is revealed in the gospel.
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