What’s the deal with Jesus and the Law?

What’s the deal with Jesus and the Law? Matthew 5.17 …

Just had a short note in response to one of my recent Morning Briefings—“Thank you for the message, kindly keep on sending.”

EDWARD, From Delhi (INDIA)

I can picture Edward some 8,000 miles away, looking at his computer monitor and reading the words that are inspired by Jesus’ teaching in the Sermon on the Mount, beginning in Matthew Five. The Beatitudes were somewhat captivating, I believe; just the consideration of having these character qualities, these heart traits elevates our thinking and dispositions, does it not? And then talking to his disciples—both his original ones and those of us who claim his name today, Jesus talked about how flavorful, how positive, and how distinctive we should be in the world; people ought to be attracted to how we live life!

But then, Jesus seems to change course in his message, and says, “Do not think that I came to destroy the Law or the Prophets. I did not come to destroy but to fulfill them.” I picture Edward’s face as he thinks, ‘now this California pastor-lady has lost me…’ Edward, my brother, please stick with me on this—as the message Jesus gives here is critical to our choosing him, Jesus only, as compared to many of the Hindu gods, or Allah, or just opting to be a ‘good’ person. Jesus masterfully shows the difference in his interpretation of the Law, and the Jewish leaders’ hyper-religious understanding of the Law.

When Jesus said, “Do not think that I came to destroy the Law or the Prophets. I did not come to destroy but to fulfill them,” it was a mission statement—he came as a fulfillment of the Law and the Prophets—which in essence means Jesus was the fulfillment of the Old Testament. With regard to the Law, Jesus is the only person who ever lived a perfectly holy life, and he was also the fulfillment of all of the Old Testament prophecies made about him.

Now what was Jesus talking about when he referred to the Law? First and foremost, Jesus was referring to what we know as the Ten Commandments, which God gave to Moses while the Israelites were in the desert. Remember, Moses went up on Mt. Sinai and God dictated them to him? Perhaps a visit to the foot of the mountain to recall them is in order here:

The 10 Commandments List, Short Form1

1 You shall have no other gods before Me.

2 You shall not make idols.

3 You shall not take the name of the LORD your God in vain.

4 Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy.

5 Honor your father and your mother.

6 You shall not murder.

7 You shall not commit adultery.

8 You shall not steal.

9 You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor.

10 You shall not covet.

>For the Ten Commandments in full, see Exodus 20.2-17; Deuteronomy 5.4-21

But the Jewish people held the Torah or the Pentateuch (first five books) as their complete sacred Law, which included 613 points of Law, that dictated every area of life, from the washing of hands, to the handling of food, to the definition of work, etc. Truth be told, Jewish legalists had a passion for definition. So they asked: ‘What is work?’2 Initially, the simple explanation of work was ‘to carry a burden’ on the Sabbath; but then the question came, ‘what constitutes a burden’? Thus following the Torah was the Oral Law, contained in the Talmud and Mishnah. Over the years, religion became a legalistic system of petty rules and regulations, with those who upheld all of them most closely being deemed the most righteous. In Jesus’ day they were the Pharisees and Sadducees.

The Jewish leaders felt Jesus was a threat to their piety and (self) righteousness. Because he was such a radically different teacher than they had ever seen, they were certain that Jesus was going to abolish the Law! At the very least, they accused him of relaxing the Law.

So in the successive verses, Jesus lets the people know it was not just about following the letter of the Law—for indeed in God’s eyes it wasn’t just the act of adultery or murder that was sin, but the lust or hatred that proceeded them—no, Jesus was not just after their actions, Jesus was after their hearts. He would uphold the Law on their behalf, in ways none of them ever could—though their inability to keep the Law did point out their sin, and need for the Messiah! And Jesus alone would fulfill what the prophets had predicted about him hundreds of years earlier.

Here’s the thing: your standing with God is not based on what you have done or not done - your position before God is not based on your keeping of the Law; your position before God is secured through your relationship with Jesus Christ because of what he came to do, and in fact, did.

I’ll choose Jesus over the Law every day of the week…you?

Christine
PastorWoman.com

1 – The Ten Commandments, Short Form – Life, Hope and Truth.com

2 – When is the last time you studied the Ten Commandments??

3 – William Barclay