BEING UNDER GRACE AND NOT UNDER THE LAW

Abstract

The theological debate around the subject of being under grace and not being under the law is

a contemporary issue that calls for an exegetical investigation in order to explore it further for

the purpose of addressing it. The law and grace are the singular divine character of God of holiness.

They are the two sides of the same coin of the holy nature of God. It is the justice and mercy of God

at play. Some Bible scholars and theologians view the Old Testament law as having been abrogated

by Jesus Christ when He died on the cross. His death at crucifixion, therefore, ushered in a new era

of grace apart from the Old Testament law. This view has an implication in that the law of God ceased

to constitute the holy character of God at the cross. Moreover, the perspective insinuates that the law

of God operated only in the Old Testament dispensation and that the God of the Old Testament law

was stern and judgmental, but the New Testament God of Jesus is gracious and loving.

Thus, there is no concurrent existence of the law and grace in the Old Testament and New Testament

respectively. This inference presents one side of the coin of the holy character of God of grace in

the New Testament while effacing God’s holy character of law in the same and vice versa.

The questions which are raised by the theology of being under grace and not under the law are:

What entails to be under grace and not under the law? Is there a relationship between grace and law?

This article argues that the nature of God of holiness, comprising of the law and grace is indivisible,

for God is one. To be under the law is to be condemned by holy God through His holy law.

To be under grace is to be redeemed from the condemnation of the law by God through the grace of

Jesus Christ and being brought under the dominion of God’s mercy. The methodology used in this

research is inductive. An exegetical approach is employed to explore the following terms, phrases,

and concepts: grace, law, under, under grace, and under the law. This is for the purpose of exploring

their meaning and their relationship. A conclusion will be drawn based on the exegesis and theology

of the Biblical texts under investigation.