T.O.D.A.Y. Ministries
14745 Merrilltown #1611
Austin TX 78728 Good
morning!
I'm
continuing with the "love" verses that say that the
instruction in them 'fulfills the law and the
prophets'. In Matthew 5:17 - 18 Jesus says, "Think not
that I am come to destroy the law or the prophets; I am
not come to destroy, but to fulfill. For verily I say
unto you that not one jot or one tittle shall in no wise
pass from the law, till all be fulfilled."
There were three categories of law in the Old
Testament; ceremonial, civil and moral. God's purpose
in the ceremonial laws was to point forward to
Christ. Well, Christ came just as prophesied and became
the perfect "sacrificial lamb" of God. So we are no
longer bound by those ceremonial laws; although the
principals behind them - to love and worship Holy God
- still apply. It is no longer necessary to bring
perfect animals or the fruits of our crops to the Priest
- who had to put on ceremonial clothing and sacrifice
those things for us, in a specifically prescribed manner
– and do this over and over for us. Jesus became the
perfect sacrifice ONE TIME for all of us. Jesus did
fulfill all of the requirements of ceremonial law. We
receive salvation by Grace - based on the sacrifice
Jesus was for all of us.
Civil law had to do with daily living in Israel at that
time. We live in a different world now both culturally
and socially. A lot of these laws had to do with eating
and preparation of food, how to deal with the 'unclean'
or sick among them and basically how to rectify 'wrongs'
between the people. But with the advent of modern
medicine and refrigeration - to name just two changes,
many of these civil laws seem archaic to us today and
are unnecessary. Modern law has replaced many of them -
and in many cases modern law is based on the ancient
civil law. I can't help but think of my own earthly
Father when I think of these laws. He gave me rules and
boundaries that were for my own good. And God
had the Israelites’ best interest at heart when these
laws were given to them. We can certainly look to them
as guidelines for today - even though we are under the
Covenant of Grace.
I
believe moral law is still valid today. This includes
the Ten Commandments.
Moral law reveals the nature and will of God. He is the
same yesterday, today and tomorrow - so He has not
changed His mind about any of the moral laws. And
again, I think He has our best interest at heart with
these issues as well. The difference between the days
when these laws were given to the Israelites and today,
is that Jesus has ALREADY paid the sin debt that any
infraction of the moral law would have cost. So we
don't have to keep a bunch of livestock in our backyard
to sacrifice for our sin. We can repent and receive
complete forgiveness through Jesus. (I John 1:9)
As
Karen told us last week - the bottom line is to
love God and love others. If we focus our energy on
loving like we are supposed to, the other things won’t
be a problem for us.
Have
a blessed Day! (Luanne will be back on Monday!)
Judith Luttrell
T.O.D.A.Y. Ministries
“A pen of a
ready writer” for T.O.D.A.Y. Ministries
Psalm
45:1
www.todayministries.org
