CHAPTER 3
Lecture 9
26 For you are all the children of God, by faith in Christ Jesus.
27 For as many of you as have been baptized in Christ have put on Christ.
28 There is neither Jew nor Greek; there is neither bond nor free; there is neither male nor female. For you are all one in Christ Jesus.
29 And, if you be Christ’s, then are you the seed of Abraham, heirs according to the promise.
Here the Apostle shows that the Gentiles obtained the fruit of grace without serving the Law, whereas the Jews obtained it by keeping and serving the Law. Concerning this he does three things:
First, he states his proposition;
Secondly, he elucidates it (v. 27);
Thirdly, from this he proceeds to his argument, (v. 29).
He says therefore: Verily, we are not under the Law, i.e., under a pedagogue, or under restraint, because we are the sons of God. In like manner, you, too, are neither under the Law nor under a pedagogue; for you have attained to grace. Hence you are all the children of God by faith and not through the Law: “For you have not received the spirit of bondage” (i.e., of fear which was given in the Old Law), “but you have received the spirit of adoption of sons,” namely, of charity and love which is given in the New Law through faith (Rom 8:15); “He gave them power to be made the sons of God, to them that believe in his name” (Jn 1: 12). If, then, you are the sons of God by faith, why do you wish to become slaves by the observances of the Law? For faith alone makes man the adopted son of God. Indeed, no one is an adopted son unless he is united to and cleaves to the natural son: “For whom he foreknew, he also predestinated to be made conformable to the image of his Son; that he might be the firstborn among many brethren” (Rom 8:29). For faith makes us sons in Jesus Christ: “That Christ may dwell by faith in your hearts” (Eph 3:17). And this in Christ Jesus, i.e., you are sons of God through Jesus Christ.
Then when he says, For as many of you as have been baptized in Christ have put on Christ, he expounds his proposition. Concerning this he does three things:
First, he proposes to explain the proposition;
Secondly, the elucidation of the explanation (v. 28);
Thirdly, he assigns the reason behind the explanation (v. 28): For you are all one in Christ Jesus.
With respect to the first, he shows how we are sons of God in Christ Jesus. And he says: For as many of you as have been baptized in Christ have put on Christ. Now this can be explained in four ways. In one way, so that as many of you as have been baptized in Christ means that it was by Christ’s appointment that you have been instructed for baptism: “Go ye into the whole world and preach the gospel to every creature. He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved” (Mk 16:16). In another way, as many of you as have been baptized in Christ have put on Christ, i.e., through a likeness and a configuration of the death of Christ: “We who are baptized in Christ Jesus are baptized in his death” (Rom 6:3). Or: in Christ Jesus, i.e., in the faith of Christ. For baptism comes about only through faith, without which we derive no effect from baptism: “He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved; but he that believeth not shall be condemned” (Mk 16:16). Or: in Christ Jesus, i.e., through His power and operation: “He upon whom thou shalt see the Spirit descending, he it is that baptizeth” (Jn 1:33). Therefore, as many of you as have been baptized in any of those four ways have put on Christ.
Here it should be noted that when someone puts on clothing he is protected and covered by it and his appearance is that of the color of the clothing instead of his own. In the same way, everyone who puts on Christ is protected and covered by Christ Jesus against attack and against the heat; furthermore in such a one nothing appears except what pertains to Christ: “Put ye on the Lord Jesus Christ” (Rom 13:14). Again, just as burning wood takes on fire and shares in fire’s activity, so he who receives the virtues of Christ has put on Christ: “Stay you in the city till you be endued with power from on high” (Lk 24:49). This applies to those who are inwardly clothed with the virtue of Christ: “Put on the new man, who according to God is created in justice and holiness of truth” (Eph 4:24). And note that some put on Christ outwardly by good works and inwardly by a renewal of the spirit; and with respect to both they are configured to His holiness, as is mentioned in a Gloss.
He elucidates this teaching when he says, There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither bond nor free: there is neither male nor female. As if to say: Truly have I said, that as many of you as have been baptized in Christ Jesus have put on Christ, because there is nothing in man that would exclude anyone from the sacrament of the faith of Christ and of baptism. And he mentions three differences among men to show that no one is excluded from faith in Christ by any of them: the first difference concerns one’s rite. Hence he says: There is neither Jew nor Greek. As if to say: Since you have been baptized in Christ, the rite from which you came to Christ, whether it was the Jewish or the Greek, is no ground for saying that anyone occupies a less honorable place in the faith: “Is he the God of the Jews only? Is he not also of the Gentiles? Yes, of the Gentiles also. For there is one God that justifieth circumcision by faith and uncircumcision through faith” (Rom 3:29). Again: “There is no distinction of the Jew and Greek; for the same is Lord over all” (Rom 10:12).
But this seems to militate against what is said in Romans (3:1): ‘What advantage then hath the Jew? Much every way.” I answer that Jews and Greeks can be considered in two ways. First, according to the state in which they were before faith. In this way, the Jew was greater because of the benefits he derived from the Law. In another way, according to the state of grace; and in this way, the Jew is not greater. And this is the sense in which it is taken here.
The second difference is with respect to estate, when he says: there is neither bond nor free , i.e., neither slavery nor freedom, neither high estate nor low makes a difference so far as receiving the effect of baptism is concerned: “The small and great are there, and the servant is free from his master” (Job 3:19); “There is no respect of persons with God” (Rom 2:11).
The third difference concerns the condition of the nature: there is neither male nor female , for sex makes no difference as far as sharing in the effect of baptism is concerned.
The underlying reason for this explanation is set forth when he says, For you are all one in Christ Jesus. As if to say: Truly, none of these things makes a difference in Christ, because all of you, i.e., believers, are one in Christ Jesus, because through baptism you have all been made members of Christ and you form one body, even though you are distinct individuals: “So we, being many, are one body in Christ, and everyone members one of another” (Rom 12:5); “One body, one Spirit, as you are called in one hope of your calling” (Eph 4:4). Now where there is unity, difference has no place. Indeed it was for this unity that Christ prayed: “That they all may be one, as thou, Father, in me, and I in thee” (Jn 17:21).
Then when he says, if you be Christ’s, then are you the seed of Abraham, heirs according to the promise, he argues to his main proposition in the following manner: I have said that the promises were made to Abraham and to his seed; but you are of Abraham; therefore, to you pertains the promise made to Abraham about obtaining the inheritance. Then he proves the minor premiss: You are the adopted sons of God, because by faith you are united to Christ, Who is the natural Son of God. But Christ is a son of Abraham, as was said above, as of one, and to thy seed, which is Christ . Therefore, if you are of Christ, i.e., in Christ, you are the seed of Abraham , i.e., sons, because Christ is his son. And if you are the sons, you are heirs , i.e., the inheritance belongs to you according to the promise made to Abraham : “Not they that are the children of the flesh are the children of God; but they that are the children of the promise are accounted for the seed” (Rom 9:8).