The study of the Jewish Law that God gave to His people through the man of Moses is important and interesting. I cannot even begin to cover all aspects of the Law in this blog; but lets look at some of the basic facts about it.
Jesus said, as He began His sermon on the mount in Matthew 5, "Do not think that I came to destroy the Law or the Prophets. I did not come to destroy but to fulfill."
Jesus kept the Law during His lifetime. He was born a Jew, of the tribe of Judah, a descendant of king David. He demonstrated His keeping the Law, even to the last, as He took the passover feast just before His death. But His death was to begin a totally new era. As he took the Passover feast, He instituted the Communion, the Lord's Supper. "..this is My blood of the new covenant, which is shed for many for the remission of sins." There never had been remission of sins under the Jewish Law. But Jesus was bringing a "new covenant."
In Colossians 2, Paul compares the circumcision of the flesh, the Law (Jewish) to a new circumcision "made without hands.." He says in verse 14, "..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." The conclusion here is that the Law of the Jews has now been "nailed to the cross," taken out of the way, fulfilled, to be followed no more. It ended with the cross, the death of Jesus.
The entire book of Hebrews is a treatise that makes clear that Jesus has replaced the old Law, the old covenant with a new one, with a new way. Hebrews 7:22 says, "..Jesus has become a surety of a better covenant." Hebrews 8 and 9 give much more detail and explanation of the significance of this change. In discussing the old covenant made with the Jewish people, he says at the end of Hebrews 8, "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."
So what good was the Law? Was it never useful? This is answered in Galatians 3:19-29. Verse 24: ".the Law was our tutor (schoolmaster) to bring us to Christ, that we might be justified by faith. But after faith (in Jesus) has come, we are no longer under a tutor." Thus it is clear that the Jewish Law has been fulfilled, and was fulfilled with the death of Jesus. It is no longer in effect....and is no longer to be followed....and was not followed by the apostles.
Thanks for reading and have a great week.
Saturday, August 31, 2013
Sunday, August 25, 2013
Organized Religion
Many today are disappointed in "organized religion" for various reasons. Often people feel that today's denominations are not meeting their needs. Looking at the religious world today, it is easy to see why people feel that way. There is such a splintering of beliefs, and often disagreement between religious groups. The religious world, and Christianity in particular, looks more contentious than loving and supportive. To see the best answer to the question of what is right, we should look at what the Bible, God's inspired Word, tells us about the need, or lack of, for organization of His followers.
When we look at the beginnings of the book of Genesis in the OT, we see a rather disorganized form of worship to God. These early people knew that they were to worship God, and we see that they even knew what was expected of them; what was good worship, pleasing to God, and what was not. An early example of this knowledge can be found in Gen. 4 where Abel gives a better sacrifice to God than Cain does.
As time goes on, God gives His people a Law to follow, and it is a highly structured Law, complete with many do's and don'ts. Their religion at this time is definitely well organized.
When we come to the New Testament, we find that Jesus is with man to bring us a new Law. Jesus lived during the time of the old Jewish Law; He was a Jew and kept the Jewish Law during His lifetime. But He came to bring something better; a new law of faith. He told His disciples in Matthew 16, "..On this rock (that He is 'the Christ, the Son of the living God') I will build My church." During the life of Christ, He had not built His church yet. As we read in the book of Acts, He would leave it to the apostles to build it, building it on their faith in Jesus.
As we follow the acts of the apostles, we see them going about setting up an actual organization of the church. Each church is watched over by elders....and each church is autonomous, self governing. There is no other organization in today's church. And, in fact, there wasn't any other organization in the church of the NT except for the guidance given by apostles. If we had apostles today, it would be appropriate for them to be watchful over the various churches, aiding and instructing the elders of the churches. But with the death of all the apostles, the churches are now self governed, following simply the teaching of the New Testament.
The problem today then, is not "organized religion," but rather the way churches are organized. It is important that we just follow the examples given in the NT.
Enough. Thanks for reading again. May God bless you.
When we look at the beginnings of the book of Genesis in the OT, we see a rather disorganized form of worship to God. These early people knew that they were to worship God, and we see that they even knew what was expected of them; what was good worship, pleasing to God, and what was not. An early example of this knowledge can be found in Gen. 4 where Abel gives a better sacrifice to God than Cain does.
As time goes on, God gives His people a Law to follow, and it is a highly structured Law, complete with many do's and don'ts. Their religion at this time is definitely well organized.
When we come to the New Testament, we find that Jesus is with man to bring us a new Law. Jesus lived during the time of the old Jewish Law; He was a Jew and kept the Jewish Law during His lifetime. But He came to bring something better; a new law of faith. He told His disciples in Matthew 16, "..On this rock (that He is 'the Christ, the Son of the living God') I will build My church." During the life of Christ, He had not built His church yet. As we read in the book of Acts, He would leave it to the apostles to build it, building it on their faith in Jesus.
As we follow the acts of the apostles, we see them going about setting up an actual organization of the church. Each church is watched over by elders....and each church is autonomous, self governing. There is no other organization in today's church. And, in fact, there wasn't any other organization in the church of the NT except for the guidance given by apostles. If we had apostles today, it would be appropriate for them to be watchful over the various churches, aiding and instructing the elders of the churches. But with the death of all the apostles, the churches are now self governed, following simply the teaching of the New Testament.
The problem today then, is not "organized religion," but rather the way churches are organized. It is important that we just follow the examples given in the NT.
Enough. Thanks for reading again. May God bless you.
Sunday, August 18, 2013
Non-Recurring Events
To understand the New Testament development/flow, it is helpful to note the non-recurring events. There are some that are obvious, like the birth of Jesus, the death of Jesus, His resurrection. And in a sense, the resurrection of Jesus can be looked at as a recurring event; He only rose once, but He showed that we would follow.
As we look further at non-recurring events, we see that the apostles were appointed, they were given power by the Holy Spirit in Acts 2 after Jesus had left. There was the appointment of the 12th apostle after Judas had betrayed Jesus and died (Acts 1), and Paul being visited by Jesus in a miraculous way, allowing Paul to meet the qualification of being an apostle (recorded in Acts 9, 22, 26). These events are key to the development of the church and Christianity, but we don't find a continuation of the appointment of apostles.
Another example of non-recurring events is the baptism of the Holy Spirit. This occurred in Acts 2 in Jerusalem bringing miraculous powers to the Jewish converts to Christianity. It occurred a second time in Acts 10:44, "While Peter was still speaking these words, the Holy Spirit fell upon all those who were listening to the message. And all the circumcised believers who had come with Peter were amazed, because the gift of the Holy Spirit had been poured out upon the Gentiles also." The fact that these events never occurred again in the Biblical record has been missed by most Pentecostals today. They still believe that God is pouring out the Holy Spirit powers in the use of speaking in tongues, healings, and other "miracles." That is not happening today.
The Jerusalem conference in Acts 15 is a further example of non-recurring events of the NT. Dissension occurred in Antioch because some were teaching that Christians needed to be circumcised according to the Jewish Law. To solve this problem, men were sent up to Jerusalem to the apostles there for a discussion and decision. Note the letter that was sent back to Antioch: "The apostles and the brethren who are elders, to the brethren in Antioch and Syria and Cilicia who are from the Gentiles, greetings. Since we have heard that some of our number to whom we gave no instruction have disturbed you with their words, unsettling your souls, it seemed good to us, having become of one mind......" This is a one time event, orchestrated, solved, by the apostles. The reason that one church appealed to another here is that they had apostles who were being led by the Holy Spirit. They knew that the apostles in Jerusalem would have the answer, so they went to them. We don't have apostles today, nor do we need them. We have the Bible given to us through the works of the Holy Spirit, God-breathed. Churches today are autonomous, self ruled according to the pattern given in the NT. We don't have Jerusalem conferences because we don't have apostles.....and we don't need them.
Things were different in the early church. They had apostles still alive, eye-witnesses of the teachings of Jesus, miraculous gifts--the ability to do miracles, no Bible. We have to realize that was then, this is now. For direction, we have all that we need in the written Word.
Thanks for reading with an open mind. Have a great week!
As we look further at non-recurring events, we see that the apostles were appointed, they were given power by the Holy Spirit in Acts 2 after Jesus had left. There was the appointment of the 12th apostle after Judas had betrayed Jesus and died (Acts 1), and Paul being visited by Jesus in a miraculous way, allowing Paul to meet the qualification of being an apostle (recorded in Acts 9, 22, 26). These events are key to the development of the church and Christianity, but we don't find a continuation of the appointment of apostles.
Another example of non-recurring events is the baptism of the Holy Spirit. This occurred in Acts 2 in Jerusalem bringing miraculous powers to the Jewish converts to Christianity. It occurred a second time in Acts 10:44, "While Peter was still speaking these words, the Holy Spirit fell upon all those who were listening to the message. And all the circumcised believers who had come with Peter were amazed, because the gift of the Holy Spirit had been poured out upon the Gentiles also." The fact that these events never occurred again in the Biblical record has been missed by most Pentecostals today. They still believe that God is pouring out the Holy Spirit powers in the use of speaking in tongues, healings, and other "miracles." That is not happening today.
The Jerusalem conference in Acts 15 is a further example of non-recurring events of the NT. Dissension occurred in Antioch because some were teaching that Christians needed to be circumcised according to the Jewish Law. To solve this problem, men were sent up to Jerusalem to the apostles there for a discussion and decision. Note the letter that was sent back to Antioch: "The apostles and the brethren who are elders, to the brethren in Antioch and Syria and Cilicia who are from the Gentiles, greetings. Since we have heard that some of our number to whom we gave no instruction have disturbed you with their words, unsettling your souls, it seemed good to us, having become of one mind......" This is a one time event, orchestrated, solved, by the apostles. The reason that one church appealed to another here is that they had apostles who were being led by the Holy Spirit. They knew that the apostles in Jerusalem would have the answer, so they went to them. We don't have apostles today, nor do we need them. We have the Bible given to us through the works of the Holy Spirit, God-breathed. Churches today are autonomous, self ruled according to the pattern given in the NT. We don't have Jerusalem conferences because we don't have apostles.....and we don't need them.
Things were different in the early church. They had apostles still alive, eye-witnesses of the teachings of Jesus, miraculous gifts--the ability to do miracles, no Bible. We have to realize that was then, this is now. For direction, we have all that we need in the written Word.
Thanks for reading with an open mind. Have a great week!
Saturday, August 10, 2013
Relationships
The Bible teaches us a lot about the importance of relationships and how we are to conduct ourselves. Ephesians 5 and 6 in the NT tell about our responsibilities toward others. In Eph. 5:15, Paul makes the general comment, "Be very careful, then, how you live--not as unwise, making the most of every opportunity..." He then goes on to discuss the responsibility of wives to husbands and husbands to wives. And the Bible talks a lot about the importance of each loving the other and respecting each other. This is covered in detail at the end of Ephesians chapter 5.
In a very practical way, the New Testament discusses in some detail some of the other common relationships that we form in life. Eph. 6 begins with teaching to children: "Children, obey your parents in the Lord, for this is right. Honor your father and mother.."
Fathers--"Fathers, do not exasperate your children; instead, bring them up in the training and instruction of the Lord." For this to be addressed to fathers shows that it can be a common problem. It is important that fathers consider carefully their responsibility to the children.
Slaves--"Slaves, obey your earthly masters with respect and fear, and with sincerity of heart, just as you would obey Christ. Obey them not only to win their favor when their eye is on you, but like slaves of Christ, doing the will of God from your heart. Serve wholeheartedly...." This teaching would apply to anyone who works for another. This teaching is not given to support slavery, nor for that matter to abolish it; but realizing that it was a common practice, it teaches how one, anyone, is to serve.
Masters--"And masters, treat your slaves in the same way. Do not threaten them, since you know that He who is both their Master and yours is in heaven, and there is no favoritism with Him." We see how people who have others working under them are to treat those. It could be summed up by treating others in the way we want to be treated.
"Finally, be strong in the Lord and in His might power." It certainly isn't always easy to serve the Lord in His way, but it is what we must do. Have a great week!
In a very practical way, the New Testament discusses in some detail some of the other common relationships that we form in life. Eph. 6 begins with teaching to children: "Children, obey your parents in the Lord, for this is right. Honor your father and mother.."
Fathers--"Fathers, do not exasperate your children; instead, bring them up in the training and instruction of the Lord." For this to be addressed to fathers shows that it can be a common problem. It is important that fathers consider carefully their responsibility to the children.
Slaves--"Slaves, obey your earthly masters with respect and fear, and with sincerity of heart, just as you would obey Christ. Obey them not only to win their favor when their eye is on you, but like slaves of Christ, doing the will of God from your heart. Serve wholeheartedly...." This teaching would apply to anyone who works for another. This teaching is not given to support slavery, nor for that matter to abolish it; but realizing that it was a common practice, it teaches how one, anyone, is to serve.
Masters--"And masters, treat your slaves in the same way. Do not threaten them, since you know that He who is both their Master and yours is in heaven, and there is no favoritism with Him." We see how people who have others working under them are to treat those. It could be summed up by treating others in the way we want to be treated.
"Finally, be strong in the Lord and in His might power." It certainly isn't always easy to serve the Lord in His way, but it is what we must do. Have a great week!
Saturday, August 3, 2013
What God Wants Most
It is interesting to note what God says when He speaks. To look at this, we should summarize the progression of how God speaks as it is recorded in the Bible. As the Bible begins, it shows God speaking to early people directly. And we see people worshipping in a rather simple way, using altars and often offering animal sacrifices. As time progresses, God brings the Law, a special law for His special people, the Jews. This law becomes the standard all of the way through the rest of the Old Testament. As the NT begins, we find that God is not speaking directly to His people, but does so through His Son, Jesus. Then as Jesus departs the earth as finally recorded in Acts 1, God through the Holy Spirit speaks to and through the apostles. Knowing that these men will not live forever, God through the Holy Spirit, has these men and a few others write words approved by God, breathed in by God; thus, the NT books. God now speaks to us through His Word which has been completed and provided for us to follow. It is a beautiful progression....and produces a beautiful result in us.
Now with all of that summarization completed, I want to focus on a couple of common things that God would often say. Many times, over and over in the OT, God would say these two things when He began to speak to His people:
1) "I Am the Lord your God....." (Note Exodus 20:2 where God gives the 10 commandments). And:
2) "...who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage."
It was very important, imperative to God, that His people understand and believe that HE IS GOD. And secondly, He wanted His people to remember that He is a god who takes care of them. This brings to mind Hebrews 11:6 in the NT:
"...he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him." This is a restatement of exactly what God said in Exodus 20. It is obviously important to God for us to remember these two things: that He is....and that He is a rewarder; He was then; He is now.
A final thought is that when God speaks/spoke, He never said was or will be about Himself. It was always is IS. God IS. "I AM!" This seems to be the definition of His name, Jehovah: I AM, emphasizing that God always IS. And remember that Jesus said many times about Himself, "I AM......" I am the light of the world, etc. Let us always honor Him by observing these two things about the Lord, our God.
Thanks for reading. Have a great week!
Now with all of that summarization completed, I want to focus on a couple of common things that God would often say. Many times, over and over in the OT, God would say these two things when He began to speak to His people:
1) "I Am the Lord your God....." (Note Exodus 20:2 where God gives the 10 commandments). And:
2) "...who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage."
It was very important, imperative to God, that His people understand and believe that HE IS GOD. And secondly, He wanted His people to remember that He is a god who takes care of them. This brings to mind Hebrews 11:6 in the NT:
"...he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him." This is a restatement of exactly what God said in Exodus 20. It is obviously important to God for us to remember these two things: that He is....and that He is a rewarder; He was then; He is now.
A final thought is that when God speaks/spoke, He never said was or will be about Himself. It was always is IS. God IS. "I AM!" This seems to be the definition of His name, Jehovah: I AM, emphasizing that God always IS. And remember that Jesus said many times about Himself, "I AM......" I am the light of the world, etc. Let us always honor Him by observing these two things about the Lord, our God.
Thanks for reading. Have a great week!
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