βThe grace of Godβ¦ appearedβ¦ teaching us that, denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly, in this present worldβ (Titus 2:11,12).
When I was a boy, my mother taught me to be good. I wasnβt under grace, I was under lawβthe law that Solomon called βthe law of thy motherβ (Pr. 1:8)! When I was good, sheβd reward me, but when I was bad, sheβd punish meβjust like Mosesβ law did for the Jews (Lev. 26). Her βrod of correctionβ (Pr. 22:15) was one of those long leather straps that barbers used years ago to sharpen their razors, and I can assure you it sharpened my behavior on many occasions!
But as every parent eventually learns, the day comes when a child is too old to take over your knee. The Apostle Paul had that in mind when he wrote, βa childβ¦is under tutors and governors until the time appointed of the fatherβ (Gal. 4:1,2). In those days, children had tutors who taught them and governors who punished them with a rod. But that only went on until Dad realized his boy had become a young man. After that, heβd correct his son with words, the way you parents of older children correct your adult sons.
In the rest of Galatians 4, Paul uses this as a simple illustration of the difference between law and grace. Under the Law, God treated His people in Israel as children, rewarding them when they were good but spanking them when they were bad with the correcting rod of droughts, famines, pestilences, andβwhen all else failedβby allowing their enemies to take them captive. But under grace, God treats us as adult sons, correcting us with wordsβthe words of the Bible. The apostle of grace wrote: βAll Scriptureβ¦is profitableβ¦for correctionβ (II Tim. 3:16).
See the difference? Under the Law, God corrected the Jews with the rod of correction. Under grace, He corrects us with words of correctionβthe words found in His rightly divided Word. That means when you get some pestilent disease, or your community is going through a drought or famine, you donβt have to wonder if God is punishing you. Heβs not!
Now thereβs no question that Godβs people in Israel learned to be good under the law. They often fell into idolatry (Lev. 26:30), but after God spanked them with 70 years of captivity in Babylon they never messed with idols again. So the Law used to work well in making Godβs people godly. Thatβs probably why legalists insist that the law be taught today. They just donβt seem to understand how grace can teach us to be godly.
If youβre not sure that you understand it, consider how Paul spoke to the Ephesians about βfornication, and all uncleanness, or covetousnessβ and βfilthinessβ (Eph. 5:3,4), and then added,
ββ¦because of these things cometh the wrath of God upon the children of disobedience. Be not YE therefore partakers with themβ (Eph. 5:6,7)
Paul is saying, βSomeday Godβs wrath will come on unsaved people in Hell because of their sins, so donβt you partake of sin just because you know His wrath wonβt come on you.β What kind of person would continue in sin just because he knows he wonβt be punished for his sins?
There is an answer to that question. In New York, diplomats from all over the world meet to represent their countries in the headquarters of the United Nations. These ambassadors have what is called βdiplomatic immunity.β That means they can break the law without being prosecuted by the law. Occasionally diplomats take advantage of this by flagrantly violating our laws. We have words for people like that, and none of them are very pretty! The word βingrateβ comes to mind, because you have to be pretty ungrateful to your host country to act like that.
But the same word applies to us when we choose to break Godβs laws just because we are immune from His prosecution. Grace should teach us to deny ungodliness out of gratitude to God for saving us. If youβre not, why not begin to βlive in denialβ! Youβll be eternally glad you did. source
