A lot of Christians today do not believe that the scripture of the Old Testament has authority. Jesus though, stated many things about the Old Testament. Here are just some examples of what Jesus said about the Old Testament. Jesus taught the Old Testament was a “source of authority”. When Satan confronted Jesus, Jesus used the Old Testament as His foundation for His authority by saying “It is written,” (Matt. 4:4). The Old Testament is unbreakable, “Scripture cannot be broken,” (Jn. 10:35). Jesus used it as His source of Doctrinal Authority. Jesus always referred back to the Old Testament when correcting false doctrine, “You are wrong, because you know neither the Scriptures nor the power of God” (Matt. 22:29). He confirmed the truthfulness of the Old Testament, “Your word is truth” (Jn. 17:17). Finally, He taught that the Old Testament was the accepted books in Jewish Scripture. Jesus referred to the entire Old Testament by mentioning all the prophets from Abel, the first martyr to Zechariah, the last martyr (Matt. 23:35).
The law was central to God’s old covenant with the people of Israel, and many Jews in Paul’s day still saw it as critical to how God’s people lived. Therefore, in Romans, Paul frequently deals with questions about the law. The pinnacle of his treatment comes in Rom 7, where Paul powerfully argues that the Law of Moses, rather than having a positive effect on people’s lives, stimulated sin and brought death. The law does not and cannot bring victory over sin and death since sin is defined and even promoted through the law. But those who have died with Christ are set free from sin and the law.
Paul states in “Or do you not know, brothers —for I am speaking to those who know the law—that the law ...
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...fe of the Israelites. But God never intended that people should view it as a way to earn salvation, namely: by keeping it perfectly.”
As Christians if we are obeying Jesus’ command of “loving God” and “loving our neighbor” we are following the Ten Commandments, because they all flow into these two commands given by Jesus. The Old Testament Law was condemning, as all men are sinners and unable to fulfill the law and it pointed the way for mans need for a savior (Rom. 7:7-9; Gal. 3:24). Since we could never obey the Old Testament Law, God sent His only begotten Son Jesus Christ. If we “love our God” and “love our neighbors,” we will be following the two greatest commands Jesus gave to his followers. As unworthy sinners we should praise and honor God for the gift of salvation He provided to us. It is in Jesus Christ that Old Testament Laws are fulfilled.
Much like the laws in the Old Testament, the law is God solving a problem before it occurs (Maxwell, 2010). As Reggie Joiner reminds us: “Relationship comes before rules” (Maxwell, 2010, 176). If a relationship forms, rules are easier to embrace. Rules are a tool to keep the ship and everyone on it going in the same direction. Shared systems of values strengthen partnerships minimizing the possibility of comprise. Values determine our actions. Our conscience can be a fickle thing if not tended to. A good study of 1 Timothy 1:5 will sharpen the cause for keeping the conscience in order and know that a good conscience is the product of a pure heart. Finally, we trust fully in God’s promises to comfort us, but need to share that same comfort through an empowerment to do so from God himself. Kept promises are the glue that holds all the guidelines together and shuttles them into the heart and soul of mankind by building
justified by the works of the Law but through faith in Christ Jesus”. This is the message that Paul asserts from his introductory comments in chapter one to his closing comments in chapter six.
The Old Testament and the Bible itself has been studied extensively for centuries. Archeologists and Scholars have labored and pondered over texts trying to decipher its clues. It does not matter how many times the Old Testament has been studied there will always be something new to learn about it or the history surrounding it. In the book Reading the Old Testament: an Introduction, the author Lawrence Boadt presents us with a few different authors of the Old Testament that used different names for God and had a unique insight into the texts. These four sources are titled P for priests, E for Elohim, J for Jehovah, and Y for Yahweh (95). These four unique sources help us realize that there is more than one author of the Pentateuch. These authors took the text and adapted for their culture. This independent source is used by scholars to help gain insight into what was behind the texts of the bible so we are not left with an incomplete picture of what went into the creation of the bible. Julius Wellhausen used these four sources to publish a book to able us to better understand the sources and to give it credibility with the Protestant scholars at the time (Boadt 94). These sources that is independent of the bible as in the DVD Who Wrote the Bible? and the Nova website aide in shedding light on the history that surrounded the writers who wrote the text and what inspired them to write it in the first place. The DVD shows the discovery of The Dead Sea Scrolls and the extensive history of the texts and all its sources in an effort to try to find exactly who wrote the bible (Who Wrote). These scrolls have aided scholars immensely by giving us some of the oldest known manuscripts of the bible in the world today. It shows that the bible w...
As we have seen before in Galatians 4 v4, his humiliation was made under the law, even as the Law giver.
Holding true to obedience of God’s laws and proceeding with honesty and integrity may jeopardize Paul’s standing; however, such is the cost of being true to one’s faith and the Christian worldview (DiVincenzo, 2014).
The Old Testament law is seen as irrelevant by most modern Christians today. Christians are now under the blood of Jesus Christ which is said to abrogate the Law. Galatians 6:2 says, “Bear one another's burdens, and thereby fulfill the law of Christ.” The law of Christ is to love God and your neighbor as yourself. This does not mean, however, that the Old Testament Law does not apply to Christians today. Author J. Daniel Hays expounds on this topic in his article, “Applying the Old Testament Law Today,” and focuses on the hermeneutical approach of Principlism. This approach allows the Old Testament Law to be viewed in light of the New Testament.
In Christianity, the emphasis is placed on love of God rather than on obeying his will. People must believe that God is merciful and loves them as well. As a reflection of God’s love, people must also love other people (and the whole humanity in general) and forgive their enemies.
It’s one long humid Sunday, and your sitting there listing to the Pastor drone on and on about sin. But his argument seems empty, so you open up your bible out of boredom. Turning to First John chapter three verse 3 and 4 you read, “Everyone who has this hope before him purifies himself, as Messiah (Christ) is pure. To commit sin is to break God’s law: sin, in fact, is lawlessness” (The New English Bible). The question forms in your mind burring to be asked and answered. Finally you get the Pastor’s ear and ask “What does this mean, here in First John 3:3-4? What law is John Talking about”? The Pastor pulls out a pat answer, “The Law of Christ”, he explains, is what the text is referring to. His answer is just as empty as the other responses he’s given you about many other subjects. You might be asking yourself some of these very good questions yourself, but do you ever find a satisfying answer? Did you ever get a logical answer? Has it always been some sort of an explaining away of your question? I can show you how man’s traditions, have blinded us like a set of rose colored glasses do, to what the scriptures say plainly.
Romans 3:9, “What shall we conclude then? Are we any better? Not at all! We have already made the charge that Jews and Gentiles alike are all under sin.” The Jews have God’s law and think they’re righteous, however, they are actually breaking it in many ways (Hindson & Towns). In Romans 3:28-30 it is written that man is justified by faith apart from observing the law. Today, Christians face the cultural challenges, which involve the laws and morals within their society. An important element for a faithful Christian is the daily practice of sanctification. Sanctification, the impartation of God’s righteousness and through the believer conform him progressively to the image of Jesus Christ (Hindson & Towns) impacts the believer in Christ from a cultural perspective. The believers Holy Spirit must be nourished daily through their faith in Jesus Christ in the world of sin that we live. I know that I have to filter through all that I am exposed with in my culture. I have to make important decisions that fall in line with my beliefs. It is especially challenging with the ever changing secular movement which degrades and drifts away from our Christian values and
What did Paul mean ‘the law was contrary to us?' Isn't it honoring to the Lord to give some back for what He has given us? The truth is, the Law itself, all law, is contrary to us. When Jesus brought us to a relationship with God, it’s no longer about a law, but about loving, and serving Him without any threat above our heads. No matter the form of law, people who are mature and live their lives according to their conscience, any command which places under duress is not of faith, but is offensive, and contrary to true worship; contrary to the nature of love, which should be our motivation. We certainly should give back what God has given us, however, as soon as I respond to being compelled, I am back to being a slave, simply doing what I am
For centuries now Christians have claimed to possess the special revelation of an omnipotent, loving Deity who is sovereign over all of His creation. This special revelation is in written form and is what has come to be known as The Bible which consists of two books. The first book is the Hebrew Scriptures, written by prophets in a time that was before Christ, and the second book is the New Testament, which was written by Apostles and disciples of the risen Lord after His ascension. It is well documented that Christians in the context of the early first century were used to viewing a set of writings as being not only authoritative, but divinely inspired. The fact that there were certain books out in the public that were written by followers of Jesus and recognized as being just as authoritative as the Hebrew Scriptures was never under debate. The disagreement between some groups of Christians and Gnostics centered on which exact group of books were divinely inspired and which were not. The debate also took place over the way we can know for sure what God would have us include in a book of divinely inspired writings. This ultimately led to the formation of the Biblical canon in the next centuries. Some may ask, “Isn’t Jesus really the only thing that we can and should call God’s Word?” and “Isn’t the Bible just a man made collection of writings all centered on the same thing, Jesus Christ?” This paper summarizes some of the evidences for the Old and New Testament canon’s accuracy in choosing God breathed, authoritative writings and then reflects on the wide ranging
J. Daniel Hays debates two avenues for us to take in interpreting and applying the Old Testament Law. The first view is called the traditional approach (Hays 2001, Pg 22). This approach suggests the Bible reader can selectively choose the moral laws, while practically ignoring the civil and ceremonial laws. The problem is the distinctions into these three types of laws can be personally random; like the saying goes, “to each their own”. The author brought up a very good point in quoting Leviticus 19:18-19: “Love your neighbor as yourself” (Lev 19:18) “Do not wear clothing woven of two kinds of material” (Lev 19:19)
Paul continued to condemn the Jew for feeling superior to the Gentiles because of their entrustment to the special revelation of the Law, even though the whole time they were being hypocrites by not living by the Law themselves (2:17-22). They were dishonoring God and giving the Gentiles reason to blaspheme God (2:23-24). Some thought that being circumcised justified their actions, but Paul made it clear that the Law only had value to those who lived by it, not to those who simply possessed it (2:25). If the uncircumcised lived by the Law, his actions would make it as though he was circumcised, and he would be able to judge the circumcised who only profess the Law (2:26-27). To be a true Jew is not only a matter of lineage but also a matter of having circumcision of the heart and whose praise comes from God rather than man (2:28-29). Therefo...
Nor is the New Testament's approach to the law unique. Most Christians can probably think of nothing more unique than the Apostle Paul's approach to the law, but any student of ancient Greece knows otherwise. Many of the themes that fill Paul's writings were lifted from his Greco-Roman background. During New Testament times, the Greco-Roman world was filled with Mystery Cults, sporting such names as Eluesinian Mysteries, the Orphic Mysteries, the Attis-Adonis Mysteries, the Isis-Osiris Mysteries, Mithraism, and many others. A common feature of these secret cults was a belief in a heroic redeemer, a heavenly being who would visit earth in human form, battle evil, die a sacrificial death, rise from the dead and ascend to heaven, offering salvation from death to all who follow him.
The New Testament (NT) as we know it is a grouping of 27 books that make up a bigger picture. The word “testament” comes from the Greek translation of the word diatheke which means “a disposition or a contract. Covenant or testament” These are called the NT to fulfill the Old Testament (OT) prophecy in Jeremiah 31 where God promised the new covenant to wipe out all of the sins of the Jewish nation. When we read the Gospels, this is the main reason why Jesus continually went back to the OT. It was His method to defend Himself, but also to prove to the Jews that He is who He says He is.