- It’s hard for some people to believe that anything from the Old Covenant could be done away with, or simply even changed in any way at all. But all believers have now been made into a priesthood of believers, and we are now all priests (1 Peter 2:9), therefore we should study these verses of Scripture:
- Hebrews 7:12, “For the priesthood being changed, of necessity there is also a change of the law.”
- Hebrews 8:7-10, 13, “For if that first covenant had been faultless, then no place would have been sought for a second. Because finding fault with them, He says: ‘Behold, the days are coming, says the Lord, when I will make a NEW COVENANT… this is the covenant that I will make… I will put My laws in their mind and write them on their hearts… In that He says, “A New Covenant,” He has made the first OBSOLETE. Now what is becoming obsolete and growing old is ready to vanish away.” [The Old Covenant fully vanished in 70 AD].
- Ephesians 2:14-15, “For Christ himself has brought peace to us. He united Jews and Gentiles into one people when, in his own body on the cross, he broke down the wall of hostility that separated us. He did this by ENDING the system of Law with its commandments and regulations. He made peace between Jews and Gentiles by creating in himself one new people from the two groups.”
- Romans 3:21, “apart from the law, a righteousness of God has been revealed.”
- 2 Corinthians 3:5-11, “our sufficiency is from God, who also made us sufficient as ministers of the NEW COVENANT, not of the letter but of the Spirit; for the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life. But if the ministry of death, written and engraved on stones [the letters written on stone were the 10 Commandments, which were the fundamental, indispensable part of the Old Covenant], was glorious… how will the ministry of the Spirit not be more glorious? For if the ministry of condemnation had glory, the ministry of righteousness exceeds much more in glory. For even what was made glorious had no glory in this respect, because of the glory that excels. For if what is passing away was glorious, what remains is much more glorious.” This passage tells us that the 10 Commandments “written on stone” was actually the ministry of “death” and “condemnation,” but now that the 10 Commandments have passed away we have something more glorious, which is to be led by the Holy Spirit, and, “if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under the law,” (Galatians 5:18).
- Continuing in 2 Corinthians 3, in verses 14-17, “their minds were blinded. For until this day the same veil remains unlifted in the reading of the Old Testament, because the veil is taken away in Christ. But even to this day, when Moses is read, a veil lies on their heart. Nevertheless when one turns to the Lord, the veil is taken away. Now the Lord is the Spirit; and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty.” Young’s Literal Translation puts it this way; “at the reading of the Old Covenant… which in Christ is being made useless.”
- Colossians 2:13-17, “having wiped out the handwriting of requirements that was against us, which was contrary to us. And He has taken it out of the way, having nailed it to the cross…So let no one judge you in food or in drink, or regarding a festival or a new moon or sabbaths, which are a shadow of things to come.” Jesus Christ is now our Sabbath rest, and then in verse 20, “Therefore, if you died with Christ from the basic principles of the world, why, as though living in the world, do you subject yourselves to regulations?” To rephrase, SINCE WE ARE A NEW CREATION IN CHRIST AND HAVE THE HOLY SPIRIT THAT LEADS US, WHY SHOULD WE SUBJECT OURSELVES TO OLD REGULATIONS?
- This is what Paul taught in Romans 7:1-6, “Now, dear brothers and sisters- you who are familiar with the law- don’t you know that the law applies only while a person is living? For example, when a woman marries, the law binds her to her husband as long as he is alive. But if he dies, the laws of marriage no longer apply to her. So while her husband is alive, she would be committing adultery if she married another man. But if her husband dies, she is free from that law and does not commit adultery when she remarries. So, my dear brothers and sisters, this is the point: You died to the power of the law when you died with Christ. And now you are united with the one who was raised from the dead. As a result, we can produce a harvest of good deeds for God. When we were controlled by our old nature, sinful desires were at work within us, and the law aroused these evil desires that produced a harvest of sinful deeds, resulting in death. But now we have been released from the law, for we died to it and are no longer captive to its power. Now we can serve God, not in the old way of obeying the letter of the law, but in the new way of living in the Spirit.” As this passage teaches, in order to be married to Christ we must die to the Law.
- Galatians 2:16-21, “a man is not justified by the works of the law but by FAITH in Jesus Christ, even we have believed in Christ Jesus, that we might be justified by FAITH in Christ and not by the works of the law; for by the works of the law no flesh shall be justified… For through the law I died to the law so that I might live for God. I have been crucified with Christ; it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me… for if righteousness comes through the law, then Christ died in vain.”
- Galatians 3:19-25 teaches us, “What purpose then does the law serve? It was added because of transgressions, till the Seed should come to whom the promise was made… if there had been a law given which could have given life, truly righteousness would have been by the law. But the Scripture has confined all under sin, that the promise by FAITH in Jesus Christ might be given to those who believe. But before FAITH came, we were kept under guard by the law, kept for the FAITH which would afterward be revealed. Therefore the law was our tutor [strict childhood guardian] to bring us to Christ, that we might be justified by FAITH. But after faith has come [now that Christ has come and we are now mature sons and heirs in Christ], we are no longer under a tutor [no longer under the law].”
- Yes, the Law can convict us of sin (because the Law is the ministry of death and condemnation), and was given to the Israelites before Christ came, but after being saved by grace, the law has already fulfilled its purpose and is not only no longer necessary, but is actually counterproductive, as is taught by 1 Corinthians 15:55-57, “O death, where is your sting? O hades, where is your victory? The sting of death is sin, and the strength of sin is the law. But thanks be to God, who gives us victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.” As is taught in Scripture, the Law only strengthens sin. The Law is now no longer helpful, and instead, we are to have “victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.” What kind of Gospel or Good News is it if a preacher leads people to a saving relationship with Christ, only to then attempt to put them back under the Law? The Law is the law of death, it is not the Good News. That is not the True Gospel, and is contrary to the message clearly taught in the New Testament.
- In Matthew 28:20 we are told to follow what Jesus tells us to do, in Hebrews 3 we see that Jesus is greater than Moses, and in Mark 9:7 right after Jesus had been standing beside Moses and Elijah, we then see that the Father says, “This is My beloved Son. Listen to Him!” (also taught in Matthew 17:5 and Luke 9:35). Because of all the verses like these, rather than being obligated to try to keep the Old written Laws, we now have the law written on our hearts which is the indwelling Holy Spirit that we are to obey, we have the Law summed up when Jesus taught that we are to love God and everyone around us, and we have the Law of Christ which is to bear one another’s burdens. Simple as that. Romans 13:10 even further simplifies what the intention of the law had been, by stating, “love is the fulfillment of the law.”
- We are clearly told to follow what Jesus taught, rather than what Moses taught, and Jesus has now been given all authority, “Jesus came to them and said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to ME. Therefore go and make disciples… teaching them to obey everything I have commanded” (Matthew 28:18-20). To repeat, Jesus said to obey everything that HE commanded. Jesus didn’t say to obey the commands of Moses, but instead, we are to obey Christ. “Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom, teaching and admonishing one another” (Colossians 3:16). This is again repeated in 1 John 2:3-6, when we are told to follow His commands and walk as He walked (again, this is referring to Jesus and not Moses).
- In John 12:15-26, Jesus said, “If you love Me, keep My commands. And I will ask the Father, and He will give you another Advocate to help you and be with you forever— the Spirit of Truth… He lives with you and will be in you… Whoever has My commands and keeps them is the one who loves Me… Anyone who loves Me will obey My teaching. My Father will love them, and We will come to them and make Our home with them… the Advocate, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name, will teach you all things and will remind you of everything I have said to you.” According to that passage, the Holy Spirit teaches us what Jesus Christ said, not what Moses said.
“Helping People See Jesus and Exploring All That He Has Fulfilled” 