JD Abshire

The Lord stated in Matthew 5:17 "Think not that I am come to destroy the law, or the prophets: I am not come to destroy, but to fulfil."
Matthew 5:18 "For verily I say unto you, Till heaven and earth pass, one jot or one tittle shall in no wise pass from the law, till all be fulfilled."

If we look at Hebrews 10:9 it says: "Then said he, Lo, I come to do thy will, O God. He taketh away the first, that he may establish the second." Considering the context, the writer is not talking about the law being taken away but the sacrifice. The argument is that animal sacrifice could never take away sin. If it could there would have been no need of repeating those sacrifices and ordinances every year.

Hebrews 10:12 "But this man, after he had offered one sacrifice for sins for ever, sat down on the right hand of God;"

In his incarnation, Christ fulfilled the law and then in ONE supreme sacrifice forever, sat down at the right hand of God. There was no chair in either the tabernacle or the temple. Why? Because the high priest's job was never finished. By contrast, when our Lord offered himself he sat down on the right hand of the Father signifying his complete, finished plan of redemption. As he said on the cross: "It is finished". 

So was the law removed? No, it still stands. Has man ever been able to keep the law? No, no one but the Lord Jesus Christ.
What was the purpose of the law? 

Galatians 2:16 "Knowing that a man is not justified by the works of the law, but by the faith of Jesus Christ, even we have believed in Jesus Christ, that we might be justified by the faith of Christ, and not by the works of the law: for by the works of the law shall no flesh be justified."

Galatians 3:24 states: "Wherefore the law was our schoolmaster to bring us unto Christ, that we might be justified by faith."

Is God's law still if force? Of course it is! Is every human being responsible and culpable for keeping it? Sure. Does keeping the law make someone righteous and justify them before God because they have been a good little boy or girl? No, no one can attain to God's righteous demands. This is why God came in the form of human flesh so he could die and satisfy God's righteous demands and pay the penalty for those who believe.

Let me ask, what security or faith does an individual have in what Christ did if salvation is dependent performance? If an individual thinks they can keep it based on moral performance then one must also believe they are now somehow righteous. 

The only righteousness anyone has is imputed righteousness. Believers are declared righteous positionally. We still retain the sin nature evidenced by our thoughts, words and deeds. A believer who is only one year into their salvation experience is just as righteous as one who has been saved 30 years. Why? Because it is Christ's righteousness that was imputed, laid to their account. Both remain sinners by nature for life which will only cease upon death or when the Lord returns. I do not understand how an individual can state they are saved by grace and declared righteous. Afterwards, grace and imputation supposedly transition into a works system whereby they become righteous by their good deeds.

Obviously I have a much different view of God's righteousness v/s man's depravity than some of you but for the sake of your never dying soul and eternity make sure you get it right according to God's Word. 

Paul states in Galatians 2:20 "I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me."

v.21 "I do not frustrate the grace of God: for if righteousness come by the law, then Christ is dead in vain."

April 17 2014 • 15 responses • Vote Up • Share • Report

Ariel HaNaviy Messianic Jew and Torah Teacher with Messianic Congregation 'The Harvest'

Q: If I obey the Old Testament Law (Torah) today, am I pleasing God or the devil?
A: The entire Bible flows in the direction of being pleasing to God if you obey his Words. The fullest expression of obedience is the “obedience of faith” by which I mean, surrender to his Son Yeshua HaMashiach (Jesus Christ). We cannot fully do everything the Torah (Law) asks of us because of missing elements (priests, Temple, sacrifices, theocracy, live in the Land, etc.). Also, some parts were given to priests, some to men, some to women, etc., so not all parts are expected to be performed by every single person. Make sense?

Q: It is granted that in the Old Testament, the devil tried to lure people to disobey God's Law. Is it true, then, that in the New Testament, the devil now tries to lure people to obey God's OT Law?
A: I would say the Adversary (devil) tries to get people both to obey and to disobey Torah. He tries to get people—both believers and non—to disobey, probably because he knows it displeases God. And he tries to get people—both believers and non—to obey it for wrong reasons (such as legalism, judgmental spirit, religious pride, etc.), probably because he knows it displeases God as well.

But make no mistake: since the Torah points the way to Messiah (Rom. 10:4; Gal. 3:19) obedience to Torah is something God most assuredly desires of all of his children in Messiah. Consider this logic: Jesus kept the Law, did he not? Delighting after the Law of God in his inner being is something Paul did (read Rom. 7:22), and he served the Law of God with his mind (read Rom. 7:25). Shouldn't we be imitating Paul as he imitated Christ? (read 1 Cor. 11:1) To be sure, if a person is living according to his flesh, according to his old desires, he CANNOT please God: “For the mind that is set on the flesh is hostile to God, for it does not submit to God's law; indeed, it cannot. Those who are in the flesh cannot please God.” (Rom. 8:7) Living in the flesh most CERTAINLY pleases the Adversary. But not God.

Christianity originated in Judaism. One wonders, then, why there are so many disparaging words to say about Law-keeping in Traditional Christianity. In Judaism, safeguarding and keeping the Torah is central to performing the will of God. Indeed, as properly understood from God’s point of view, the whole of Torah was given to bring its followers to the "goal" of acquiring the kind of faith in God that leads to placing one’s trusting faithfulness in the One and only Son of God, Yeshua HaMashiach. To this end, the Torah has prophesied about him since as early as Genesis 3:15, and continues to speak of him until its conclusion in Revelation 22:20. In this capacity, the Torah acts like its etymological counterpart "yarah" (an archery term) in that it "teaches" its adherents how to properly identify with God by helping them to "reach the mark.” To be sure, one of the most common Hebrew verbs used to identify "sin" (chatah) literally means, "to miss the mark.”

Because the Messiah has already come, the Torah is now a document meant to be lived out in the life of a faithful follower of Yeshua, through the power of the Ruach HaKodesh (Holy Spirit), to the glory of God the Father. It should not be presumed that it could be obeyed mechanically, automatically, legalistically, without having faith, without having trust in God, without having love for God or man, and without being empowered by the Ruach HaKodesh. To state it succinctly, Torah observance is a matter of the heart, always has been, and always will be.

September 02 2015 • 11 responses • Vote Up • Share • Report