John 1:17 English Standard Version (ESV) For the law was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ.
Unbelievers need to know the difference between the law and grace.
John 7:19 a,b English Standard Version (ESV) Has not Moses given you the law? Yet none of you keeps the law.
The law is successful only if the law is kept. History shows us what happened to Israel because they did not keep the law. No one has ever kept the law except Jesus Christ.
Galatians 5:2-4 English Standard Version
2 Look: I, Paul, say to you that if you accept circumcision, Christ will be of no advantage to you. 3 I testify again to every man who accepts circumcision that he is obligated to keep the whole law. 4 You are severed from Christ, you who would be justified[counted as righteous] by the law; you have fallen away from grace.
This explains to us that the purpose of the Levitical Law was to be seen as righteous in the sight of God. Since they did not keep the law, they failed to receive the righteousness they sought.
Galatians 5:3 English Standard Version (ESV) I testify again to every man who accepts circumcision that he is obligated to keep the whole law.
Who among us has studied all 613 Levitical laws? If violating any one of these laws nullifies our right standing before God, even those laws we do not know about. What chance do any of us stand in becoming righteous in God’s sight?
If we look to the second side of John 1:17 we see Jesus came with grace and truth. How does grace and truth differ in relationship to righteousness than keeping the law?
When we look at the definition of grace it is found to be “unmerited favor”. What this means is that God looks favorably on us apart from keeping the works of the law? So if we cannot earn this grace, how do we obtain it?
That is the subject of the 3rd step found in Ephesians 2.