Jesus And The Law of Moses
Scripture
“Don’t misunderstand why I have come. I did not come to abolish the law of Moses or the writings of the prophets. No, I came to accomplish their purpose. “
~Matthew 5:17, NLT
Quote
“The law was given that grace might be sought; grace was given that the law might be fulfilled.”
~Augustine
My Thoughts
Jesus did not come to abolish the law of Moses. Grace and law are not enemies; they do not antagonize one another. Law without grace is legalism; grace without law in antinomianism. Antinomians sees grace as a license to sin. In truth grace and the law work hand in hand. The Jewish religious establishment, including the priest and scribes had grossly misunderstood the law and what Jesus does in the sermon on the mount is to reinterpret the law as God had intended. The heart and intent of the law had been obscured by all the man made regulations that the Jews had attacked to the law of Moses. There are some things the Jews did not consider that we must consider if we are to understand Jesus sermon.
- First of all, the SPIRIT of the law matters, not just the letter. The Jews had gone to seed on the letter but had completely missed the spirit. Take for example the commandment, “Thou shalt not murder.” The Jews believed they had kept this law perfectly so long as they did not murder another person. But this is not the intent: God’s intent if for us to love our neighbor as much as we love ourselves. Anger and hate toward our fellowman is a violation of the sixth commandment.
- Conformity to the law must not be thought of as actions only. Thoughts, motives, intent and desires are also important. This is why number 10 convicted Paul. The tenth commandment does not address and action, it is directed toward an attitude.
- The law is not negative. The object of the law is not merely to prevent us from doing things that hurt ourselves and others; the real object is teach us how to relate to God and others so that the quality of our life can be enhanced. Think about it: would you want to get on the highway today if there were no traffic laws? Without law enforcement, the highways would be ruled by the biggest and the fastest.
- The law is not intented to make us legalist, judges and fault-finders; the real purpose of the law is to build character; to make us salt and light.
- The law is not an end in itself. We don’t worship the law; we worship the One who gave it. The ultimate object of our love and devotion is to Jesus. Disciplines are good, even essential but we don’t worship the discipline. The purpose of the discipline is to cultivate a deeper relationship with Christ. You might say the ultimate purpose is to make us Christ-like.
[footnote: you can find these thoughts in D. Martyn Lloyd-Jones book STUDIES IN THE SERMON ON THE MOUNT, pages 190-193]
Extra
Ty and I got the field lines completed and covered yesterday: we are ready for a little rain, just not a deluge. LORD willing we will slow down a little today and get ready for worship tonight. Talked to my good friend Jerry Allen Newby last night and he told me they have already planted about 2,000 acres of corn and beans. The beans surprized me: I didn’t know you planted them this early. I planted some squash and okra yesterday due to the warm earth. I would have planted some corn but didn’t have any seed.
LORD willing we are going to Dot’s for lunch today… Hembree Machine Shop Easter celebration. I am excited.
I totally forgot one Doctor’s appointment this week and missed another. It is rare but Big Mama forgot the appointment also. She had probably rather me not share that info. It is all a part of the senior adult world. If you live, you will understand someday.
I hope you have a good hump day, Thanks for reading the blog.
Extra/Extra
~Sunrise Service at New Center April 5 at 7:00 am followed by breakfast
Fish Fry April 8, 6:00 pm
Mem’s Breakfast April 11, 8:00 am
~National Day of Prayer May 7, 5:00 am-11:00 am {Grace Point has from 5:00 am to 6:00} We gather at the Associational Office on highway 31.