WAS THE LAW REMOVED?

I'd like to begin with Jesus’ own words

“Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them. For truly, I say to you, until heaven and earth pass away, not an iota, not a dot, will pass from the Law until all is accomplished. Therefore whoever relaxes one of these commandments and teach others to do the same will be called least in the Kingdom of heaven, but whoever does them and teaches them, will be called great in the Kingdom of heaven.” Matthew 5:17-20

This statement sets the tone for everything that follows. Jesus didn’t come to tear down what was given through Moses. He came to reveal its full meaning; to translate it from stone tablets to living hearts(which the word calls tablets of the heart). In a much clear sense, to translate it from the natural to the spiritual. To bring about the full expression of what it is. To complete it. 

As depicted in the following verse Matthew 5:21-22-- 'You have heard it was said to those of old, "Do not murder, and whoever murders will be liable to judgement" But I say to you that everyone who is angry with his brother will be liable to judgement, whoever insults his brother will be liable to the council, and whoever says "You fool" will be liable to hell fire'

>BEFORE THE LAW...

Before Moses, before Sinai, before commandments were written on stones, there was Abraham. Scripture calls him the father of all who believe (scripture reference; Romans 4:11). Abraham lived by faith. There was no written code telling him what was right or wrong. Yet he walked with God, obeyed His voice, and trusted His promises; which was credited to Him for righteousness. And Paul explains this beautifully in Romans 4:15: 'For the Law brings wrath, but where there is no law, there is no transgression'

>USE OF THE LAW...

So why did the law come? The law came to reveal. To show the sin. It exposed what was already broken. And once exposed, man tried to fix it by striving to obey. But striving without love becomes duty. And duty without faith becomes religion(obligation/ practices/customs)

 >THE LAW IS A MIRROR...

So was the law pointless? Absolutely not. The law is a mirror. It shows us God’s standard of goodness. It reveals the contrast between His holiness and our brokenness(which is failure to follow God's dictates and following man's perception of good. And with that, everyone has their own outlook on life and so, 'good' becomes distorted and subjective by human standards; which is flawed. Take an example; a soldier will say it's good I killed a terrorist or a threat to my nation and it is commended, BUT when a common person murders a fellow citizen because of a misunderstanding, it essentially is viewed as a crime. These are systems placed by human beings to weigh what is write and wrong according to their own ability and understanding. BUT the ultimate Law comes from the one who has created both soldier and common citizen and has laid out platforms into which people are to operate. We can see it in how God himself instructs on how the temple priests are to conduct themselves and how the people of Israel are to live). The Law is not the cure, but the diagnosis.

>THE NEW COVENANT...

God is a covenant God. From Eden to Noah, Abraham to Moses, David to the Christ, He always works through covenants. And covenants come with terms of agreement. They’re not just casual promises; they’re binding agreements, often sealed by something: in this case, majority of the past covenants were sealed with blood.

The New Testament is not just a collection of writings. In it's original name , it is called New Covenant. And it was foretold long before Jesus walked the earth:B

"Behold the days are coming, declares the LORD, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and the house of Judah, not like the old covenant which I made with their fathers when I took them out of the land of Egypt, my covenant which they broke, though I was their husband, says the Lord. But this is the covenant which I will make with the house of Israel after those days, says the Lord: I will put my Law within them,and will write it upon their hearts: and I will be their God, and they shall be my people. And no longer shall each man teach his neighbor and each brother 'Know the Lord', for they shall all know me from the least of them to the greatest, says the Lord: for I will forgive their iniquity and remember their sins no more."

This new covenant, emphasized the Laws wouldn’t be written on tablets, but on hearts as the Lord declared. It wouldn’t be sealed with animal blood, but with the blood of God’s own Son.

 >WHEN RELIGION REPLACES REVELATION...

Over time, man distorted the law. Possibly added to it. Twisted it even to fit convenience. Maybe even used it as a means of control, not to conviction to change hearts. So, it's not God who changed but man. What then was God’s response?

Isaiah 1:11-17 "The multitude of your sacrifices, what are they to me?” says the Lord. “I have had enough of burnt offerings, of rams and the fat of fattened animals; I have no pleasure in the blood of bulls and lambs and goats. When you come to appear before me, who has asked this of you? this trampling of my courts? Stop bringing meaningless offerings! Your incense is an abomination to me. New Moons, Sabbaths and the calling of assemblies. I cannot bear your iniquity and worthless assemblies. Your New Moon feasts and your appointed festivals I hate with all my being. They have become a burden to me; I am weary of bearing them. When you spread out your hands in prayer, I hide my eyes from you; even when you offer many prayers, I am not listening. Your hands are full of blood! Wash and make yourselves clean. Take your evil deeds out of my sight; stop doing wrong. Learn to do right; seek justice. Defend the oppressed. Take up the cause of the fatherless; plead the case of the widow."

God wasn’t rejecting worship, He was rejecting 'empty worship'. Countless Rituals without relationship. Feasts without faith. Checklist of items to do and get back to life.

>WHAT WAS GOD'S SOLUTION THEN?

Jesus: The Word Made Flesh

Then came Jesus. Not just a teacher, but the Word made flesh (John 1:14). He didn’t just quote the law,He embodied it. The physical manifestation of the Law. 

With his teaching, through the Beatitudes (Matthew 5), He showed that the law goes deeper than actions,it touches the heart. The Law of God starts from your heart. Not what you can do and how much you can do for God. Because God is already perfect, and He is still God without man. Nothing we can do or not do will add to His status. So true Law keeping is meant to change our hearts.

For example, Jesus Christ demonstrates  “You have heard that it was said… ‘You shall not murder.’ But I say to you that everyone who is angry with his brother will be liable to judgment…” Matthew 5:21-22.

He didn’t raise the bar. He revealed the bar had always been higher than we thought. That it went beyond what we could see but our posture towards the command. In my understanding, If I loved my neighbor, I wouldn't steal from him, I wouldn't sleep with his husband, I wouldn't gossip about him, I wouldn't bear false witness about him. If I genuinely loved my neighbor from the posture of my heart. We as human beings and all creation, before God we were supposed to live in harmony. God's design for us was for goodness and mercy. 

Jesus Himself being the Word manifest in flesh/ the dictates of God manifest/the Law of God manifest, came as flesh. Like in the days of old, God had specific instructions for everything and anything concerning the temple, the day to day lives with His Son Israel and so on. They were done as instructed and produced the exact imprint of God's manifestation of His Word to what was seen. To what was flesh. To what was physical. When Jesus through sacrifice on Calvary, offered himself, he offered up the flesh. As you can see by the way people bruised and beat on him, was a picture of how human beings we have trampled on the Laws of God. Being a manifestation of God's Word, we spit on him, we called him names, we beat, we pierced, and finally we put down. And when we thought that it was gone, that He was gone, God himself resurrected the Messiah. And something shifted, He was glorified. Or rather translated. From what was flesh to what was living and eternal. A sacrifice that was made once and for all to which coming generations would believe by faith. As the word says, there is no other sacrifice for sins..

(Jesus, also called the perfect Lamb of God, fulfilled every requirement. Just as Abraham believed God would provide a lamb (Genesis 22:8), we now believe He has. Jesus entered the heavenly tabernacle,not made by human hands, But the original Tabernacle in heaven (remember, we cannot see heaven, not now anyway, so spiritual); and offered His blood once for all. What is not made by human hands is permanent, it's not physical but spiritual and eternal. He didn’t abolish the law. He fulfilled it. He translated it. He made it plain. He put it out in the open for all to see and to seek it in truth and in spirit. As it is written, now He is our High Priest, the bridge before God and us. We can't see Him but through faith we believe.

>LIVING BY THE SPIRITS

So how do we live now? What dictates our livelihoods?

"And new heart will I give you, a new spirit I will put within you; and I will take out of your flesh a heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh. And I will put my spirit within you, and cause you to walk in my statutes and be careful to observe my ordinances." Ezekiel 36:26-27

(A heart of flesh is a heart that feels. A heart that's not hardened by sinful ways but inclined to follow God's path of right/righteousness)

Also,

"And without faith it is impossible to please Him, for whoever would draw near to God must believe that He exists and that He rewards those who seek Him." Hebrews 11:6

As New Covenant believers, we don’t follow a checklist. We follow the Spirit. We don’t obey out of fear, we obey out of love. We don’t strive to earn, we respond to grace.

Someone once said. Grace is(God married together with Human Race). And from that, we can accomplish what He as our Maker desires for us. Which the scriptures says, He desires us good.

Final Thoughts

The law wasn’t removed. It was fulfilled. It was lifted from stone and written on hearts. It was translated from duty to desire, from ritual to personal relationship. Just like Abraham who followed God to a land he didn't know but believed, to sacrifice his son when God asked because he believed and was led by the Spirit of God. 

We are not lawless, we are Spirit-led. And the Spirit leads us into all truth, all righteousness, all love.

Was the law removed?, we answer with reverence; No. It was fulfilled, revealed, and glorified in Christ. And Everyone under Christ is not under the written code of Law but is rested/walking in the revelation of the Law that comes from the heart.

Shalom

@TalithaCumi

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