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Many times we promise people eternal life, freedom, rest and refreshing when they believe in Jesus and confess Him as
Lord. But the moment they do, we quickly saddle them down with a list of “do’s
and don’ts” right out of the OT Law. Then they fail - as they should - and are plagued
with guilt, shame, fear and condemnation. They struggle thinking God is sorely
displeased with them, is counting their sins against them and can't wait to
pounce on them. They end up feeling even more bound and frustrated than they
were before they believed in Jesus as their Lord and Savior. Their view of God becomes skewed, their confidence in approaching Him is shaken and they wither away, spiritually speaking...What has gone
wrong? May I humbly submit to you that we have burdened them with the Law of Moses
when we should have been teaching them to live from their new natures, free
from sin consciousness.
Whatever happened to the rest, light
burden and easy yoke Jesus promises in Matthew
11:28-30? Have we forgotten that Christ is the end of the Law for righteousness to anyone who believes? Have we forgotten that when one is born of God, they have the
Spirit of God in them? Have we forgotten that salvation is not behavior modification
but a new nature? If anyone is in Christ they are a new species of
being...
You see, the Law of Moses was absolutely
holy and perfect, no doubt… but it couldn't make anybody righteous. You see, God
never intended for the OT Law to perfect anybody, but rather to show us how
woefully inadequate we were and our desperate need for a savior. No one
could keep it perfectly except Jesus who fulfilled it and nailed it to the
cross. So it’s over….
Besides, the OT Law was given to the Jews only, no other nation or people group was given this Law, let alone required to observe it. Why was that? I believe all this was part of God's master plan in orchestrating the salvation of the entire human race using the Jewish nation to that end. Didn't He promise Abraham that through his Seed shall all the nations of the earth be blessed?
Besides, the OT Law was given to the Jews only, no other nation or people group was given this Law, let alone required to observe it. Why was that? I believe all this was part of God's master plan in orchestrating the salvation of the entire human race using the Jewish nation to that end. Didn't He promise Abraham that through his Seed shall all the nations of the earth be blessed?
God's wisdom is unfathomable, really!
Think about it, when Satan was championing the crucifixion of Christ, little
did he know that was his own undoing....as the Good Book says, "had he(Satan)
known, he wouldn't have crucified the Lord of Glory". And just when he
thought he had the upper hand…BAM…He was thoroughly vanquished and humiliated by
Christ!
I digress...let me get back to this
"Law" thing pronto...
After the church, made up of predominantly Jewish believers, was dispersed from Jerusalem by way of persecution, the Gospel spread to the nearby regions and eventually to the non-Jews aka gentiles who heard and believed the Gospel. Following a Divine directive, Peter preached the Gospel to Cornelius and his household who were Romans and they believed and were filled with the Holy Spirit. As time went by many gentiles continued to believe in Jesus and the Kingdom of God continued to expand.
Now, some Jewish believers were determined to get gentile believers to observe the OT Law of Moses, from circumcision to the whole nine yards, and after much disagreement or as the NKJV puts it... "Therefore...Paul and Barnabas had no small dissension and dispute with them" - Acts 15:2… they finally decided to send the matter to the apostles and elders of the church in Jerusalem. To call their response eye opening is an understatement. Here is part of what the apostles, elders and brethren had to say (the full account can be found here: Acts 15: 1-29):
After the church, made up of predominantly Jewish believers, was dispersed from Jerusalem by way of persecution, the Gospel spread to the nearby regions and eventually to the non-Jews aka gentiles who heard and believed the Gospel. Following a Divine directive, Peter preached the Gospel to Cornelius and his household who were Romans and they believed and were filled with the Holy Spirit. As time went by many gentiles continued to believe in Jesus and the Kingdom of God continued to expand.
Now, some Jewish believers were determined to get gentile believers to observe the OT Law of Moses, from circumcision to the whole nine yards, and after much disagreement or as the NKJV puts it... "Therefore...Paul and Barnabas had no small dissension and dispute with them" - Acts 15:2… they finally decided to send the matter to the apostles and elders of the church in Jerusalem. To call their response eye opening is an understatement. Here is part of what the apostles, elders and brethren had to say (the full account can be found here: Acts 15: 1-29):
28 For it seemed good to the Holy Spirit, and to us, to lay upon
you no greater burden than these necessary things:29 that
you abstain from things offered to idols, from blood, from things strangled,
and from sexual immorality. If you keep yourselves from these, you will do
well. Farewell. – Acts 15:28-29
NKJV)
Source: Google Images |
Notice, it was the Holy Spirit who guided
and endorsed the decision that was made by that council. So if you were still
wondering if you should keep the OT Law, that fact alone should settle it for
you. You have the Spirit of Jesus in you to guide you into all truth, His New
Commandment, according to John 13:34
has been written on your heart. In Christ we have been set free from the OT Law!
So enjoy the freedom that is yours in
Christ today!
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