What does 'but now' introduce after the condemnation of the law?
'But now' introduces a whole different set of circumstances: Christ has died, paid the sin debt, been buried, raised, ascended, and intercedes. It introduces the righteousness of God without the law—not human righteousness—manifested and witnessed by the law and prophets, putting legalism out in the cold.
Les explains that the three-letter word 'but' marks the flip side. Under the law, all it could do was condemn; man could not keep the law except through ritual and sacrifices to get back into a good relationship with God, but the law itself could not do it. 'But now,' Les says, we are under a whole different set of circumstances. Christ has died, paid the sin debt, been buried, raised from the dead, and ascended to the Father's right hand, interceding for us. 'But now' also introduces the righteousness of God without the law—not the righteousness of the human individual—so legalism is put out in the cold. That righteousness is manifested or put in the spotlight, being witnessed by the law and the prophets, meaning the Old Testament. Les illustrates this by recalling men who wanted no Old Testament taught; he said he had nothing to teach without it, because all Scripture, Old and New, dovetails together.