God’s Plan of Salvation-4(Law?)

(한글판은 여기를 Click 하세요)

What, then, is the Old Testament law?
What does the law mean for Christians?
Jesus said, “Not the smallest letter or the least stroke of a pen will disappear from the law.”
(Matthew 5:17,18)
17. “Do not think that I came to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I did not come to abolish, but to fulfill.
18. “For truly I say to you, until heaven and earth pass away,
not the smallest letter or stroke shall pass away from the Law, until all is accomplished.

The Apostle Paul explains it as follows.
(Romans 15:4)
For whatever was written in earlier times was written for our instruction,
that through perseverance and the encouragement of the Scriptures we might have hope.

The Old Testament is also the Word of God and is very important to us.
It teaches perseverance and provides comfort through the Scriptures, giving us hope.

In a way, it is natural for Christians to feel compelled to follow the laws written in the Old Testament when reading it.
This is similar to watching an inspiring drama, being moved by it, and immersing oneself in the role of the protagonist, trying to act like them.
While it might be enjoyable to imitate the easy parts, trying to follow the difficult parts can be extremely burdensome.
If someone were to behave this way in everyday life, it would seem absurd—and in reality, no one does so.

Whether one chooses to follow it or not is a personal decision, but forcing others to do so or claiming that failing to do so is disobedience to the Word of God is utterly wrong.
It is deceptive.

Another analogy would be a father giving encouragement, discipline, and warnings to one of his children (the Israelites),
(commanding them to do this or not do that—this is essentially the content of Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy.)

Another child (a Christian), observing this, might think,
“Ah, so that’s what I should avoid doing, and this is how I should act.”
Most of the time, they would be correct in their reasoning and act wisely.

However, there is also a high likelihood of overreacting unnecessarily due to a lack of understanding.
It is often not the father’s intention for the other child to blindly follow the exact commands given to the one being disciplined.
In most cases, the father would likely say, “Why are you doing that? Who told you to do it?”

Certain commands are effective only when followed by the specific person to whom they were directed.
When someone who was not given the instruction tries to follow it, it often leads to unnecessary interference or misunderstanding.
The other child’s role is to discern wisely, applying the principles appropriately,
or to simply observe without acting unnecessarily.
(
  The commands may sometimes apply equally to the other child,
  but in most cases, they do not apply at all.

  Similarly, nearly 100% of the laws in the Old Testament do not apply directly to Christians.
  This is because Jesus Christ perfectly fulfilled all the requirements of the law,
  and Christians, through faith, are in Christ.
)
Therefore, the Apostle Paul writes in the book of Romans:
(Romans 15:4)
For whatever was written in earlier times was written for our instruction,
that through perseverance and the encouragement of the Scriptures we might have hope.

Paul writes in Romans that the law was written for our instruction,
to give us hope, but he never said it was meant for us to follow directly.

It is crucial to have a clear sense of one’s identity.
A discerning Christian should have the wisdom to look at the Old Testament law
and decide whether obeying or applying it to their life is appropriate.
They should be able to discern how best to practice it in a way that pleases God.

Clearly, Christians stand in the grace of Christ, unrelated to the law,
just as Abraham lived by faith before the law was given.
Though Abraham lived a life of reverence toward God, he did not follow the law
because the law did not exist during his time.
How could anyone keep a law that had not yet been given?

Christians are heirs of Abraham’s faith, not the law.

Furthermore, by obeying the commands of Jesus,
all the requirements of the Old Testament law are fulfilled.
Jesus has already satisfied every law and prophecy of the Old Testament,
and Christians, being in Christ, share in that fulfillment.

As Jesus Himself said:
(Matthew 22:37-40)
37. And He said to him, “‘YOU SHALL LOVE THE LORD YOUR GOD WITH ALL YOUR HEART, AND WITH ALL YOUR SOUL, AND WITH ALL YOUR MIND.’
38. “This is the great and foremost commandment.
39. “The second is like it, ‘YOU SHALL LOVE YOUR NEIGHBOR AS YOURSELF.’
40. “On these two commandments depend the whole Law and the Prophets.”

The apostle Paul also said.
(Galatians 5:14)
For the whole Law is fulfilled in one word, in the [statement],
” YOU SHALL LOVE YOUR NEIGHBOR AS YOURSELF. “

For a Christian to attempt to become something before God by observing the laws of the Old Testament is an overreaction stemming from misunderstanding, a failure to recognize their identity, and a rejection of the atoning sacrifice of Jesus Christ on the cross, which fulfilled the requirements of the law.

This attitude reflects a belief that the atonement of Jesus Christ on the cross is insufficient and attempts to achieve righteousness before God through adherence to the law.
Such an approach constitutes an unforgivable sin, akin to crucifying Jesus Christ again.

To claim that the atonement of Jesus Christ on the cross is somehow lacking and to strive to attain righteousness before God through observing the law implies that Christ must be crucified again to forgive sins. This would suggest that Jesus must repeatedly come into the world and be crucified since the beginning of creation, as stated in Hebrews 9:26.
(Hebrews 9:25,26)
25. nor was it that He should offer Himself often, as the high priest enters the holy place year by year with blood not his own.
26. Otherwise, He would have needed to suffer often since the foundation of the world; but now once at the consummation of the ages He has been manifested to put away sin by the sacrifice of Himself.

The suffering of Jesus on the cross is sufficient once and for all.
The Apostle Paul rebukes the Galatian believers who are trying to keep the Law in the following way:
(Galatians 3:1-3)
1. You foolish Galatians, who has bewitched you, before whose eyes Jesus Christ was publicly portrayed [as] crucified?
2. This is the only thing I want to find out from you: did you receive the Spirit by the works of the Law, or by hearing with faith?
3. Are you so foolish? Having begun by the Spirit, are you now being perfected by the flesh?

This rebuke remains valid even today.
(Galatians 3:5-14)
5. Does He then, who provides you with the Spirit and works miracles among you, do it by the works of the Law, or by hearing with faith?
6. Even so Abraham BELIEVED GOD, AND IT WAS RECKONED TO HIM AS RIGHTEOUSNESS.
7. Therefore, be sure that it is those who are of faith who are sons of Abraham.
8. And the Scripture, foreseeing that God would justify the Gentiles by faith, preached the gospel beforehand to Abraham, [saying], “ALL THE NATIONS SHALL BE BLESSED IN YOU.”
9. So then those who are of faith are blessed with Abraham, the believer.
10. For as many as are of the works of the Law are under a curse; for it is written, “CURSED IS EVERYONE WHO DOES NOT ABIDE BY ALL THINGS WRITTEN IN THE BOOK OF THE LAW, TO PERFORM THEM.”
11. Now that no one is justified by the Law before God is evident; for, ” THE RIGHTEOUS MAN SHALL LIVE BY FAITH. “
12. However, the Law is not of faith; on the contrary, “HE WHO PRACTICES THEM SHALL LIVE BY THEM.”
13. Christ redeemed us from the curse of the Law, having become a curse for us– for it is written, “CURSED IS EVERYONE WHO HANGS ON A TREE”- –
14. in order that in Christ Jesus the blessing of Abraham might come to the Gentiles, so that we might receive the promise of the Spirit through faith.

From Genesis 17 to the time before Jesus came, all the contents of Scripture are commands given to the covenant people, the people of the Law—Israel. These are not words directed to Christians who participate in the faith and blessing of Abraham, which came before the Law.

The opening part of Genesis 17 describes God establishing His covenant with Abraham.
However, God’s blessing of faith was given prior to this covenant, as seen in Genesis 12 and 15.

(Genesis 17:1-10)
1. Now when Abram was ninety-nine years old, the LORD appeared to Abram and said to him, “I am God Almighty; Walk before Me, and be blameless.
2. “And I will establish My covenant between Me and you, And I will multiply you exceedingly.”
3. And Abram fell on his face, and God talked with him, saying,
4. “As for Me, behold, My covenant is with you, And you shall be the father of a multitude of nations.
5. “No longer shall your name be called Abram, But your name shall be Abraham; For I will make you the father of a multitude of nations.
6. “And I will make you exceedingly fruitful, and I will make nations of you, and kings shall come forth from you.
7. “And I will establish My covenant between Me and you and your descendants after you throughout their generations for an everlasting covenant, to be God to you and to your descendants after you.
8. “And I will give to you and to your descendants after you, the land of your sojournings, all the land of Canaan, for an everlasting possession; and I will be their God.”
9. God said further to Abraham, “Now as for you, you shall keep My covenant, you and your descendants after you throughout their generations.
10. “This is My covenant, which you shall keep, between Me and you and your descendants after you: every male among you shall be circumcised.

The nation of Israel is a people of the covenant and the Law.
They were under a binding obligation to observe it. However,
even they ultimately failed to fully keep the Law.

(Deuteromomy 29:10-13)
10. “You stand today, all of you, before the LORD your God: your chiefs, your tribes, your elders and your officers, [even] all the men of Israel,
11. your little ones, your wives, and the alien who is within your camps, from the one who chops your wood to the one who draws your water,
12. that you may enter into the covenant with the LORD your God, and into His oath which the LORD your God is making with you today,
13. in order that He may establish you today as His people and that He may be your God, just as He spoke to you and as He swore to your fathers, to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.

Considering the case of the Jews, they were unable to fully obey the Law given by God.
To receive forgiveness for their sins, they had to sacrifice animals—lambs, goats, or other offerings—as a sin offering.
This was a foreshadowing(symbol) of the ultimate sacrifice of Jesus Christ.

If one attempts to attain righteousness by keeping the Law, they will inevitably fail.
Consequently, according to the Law, they would need to offer sacrifices for atonement,
which in essence rejects the atoning sacrifice of Jesus Christ on the cross.

Seeking righteousness before God by observing the Law is same as crucifying Christ again—a profound contradiction in faith.

Christians are not called to live under the obligation of keeping the Law.
(Galatians 5:4)
You have been severed from Christ, you who are seeking to be justified by law; you have fallen from grace.

When Christians confuse their identity, they may find themselves engaging in such absurdities.
Christians are not Jews. They are connected to Abraham’s faith before he received circumcision prior to the Law, and as such, they partake in the blessings of Abraham before God.
(Genesis 12:2)
*You will be a source of blessing.*

Moreover, every part of the Old Testament, directly or indirectly, symbolizes or prophesies the coming of the Messiah, Jesus Christ. Without the Messiah, Jesus Christ, it is impossible to fully understand the Old Testament.

The Old Testament is the record of God’s plan and execution to send the Messiah, Jesus Christ, into the world for all humanity.
This plan is embedded within the covenant, the Law, the history, and the prophecies of Israel.

From Genesis to Malachi, the entire focus of the Old Testament is on God’s plan for the salvation of humanity through the Messiah, Jesus Christ.

At the starting point of this plan stands Abraham, the father of faith. The Jewish nation was chosen to bring forth the Messiah. This is why they received the Law and the covenant of the Messiah.
They were selected by God as the people through whom the Messiah would come.
(
  Thus, the Jews were chosen to be a priestly nation tasked with making the Messiah 
  known to the Gentiles. This is what it means to be God’s chosen people.
  However, misunderstanding this as being specially chosen to be superior to other nations is problematic.

  Indeed, the nation of Israel failed to fulfill this role properly.
  In Scripture, God declares that Israel was the smallest of all nations:”

  (Deuteronomy 7:7)
   “The LORD did not set His love on you nor choose you because you were
    more in number than any of the peoples, for you were the fewest of all peoples,”

  Similarly, when church leaders (pastors) who are appointed to care for and serve the saints seek
  glory and honor for themselves,
  this too is a misunderstanding, a misconception, and a contradiction.
)
A Christian who has received Jesus Christ is someone grafted into the faith of Abraham,
the father of faith, before the Law was given.

Through the long process, God sent the Messiah, Jesus Christ, and by believing in Him, Christians participate in the faith and blessings of Abraham that existed before the Law.
For such believers to then try to draw near to God by relying on the Old Testament Law is a fundamental error in their understanding.

If this is misunderstood, one may naturally think that the Old Testament Law, being the unchanging Word of God, must be obeyed forever.
However, this is an error rooted in a mistaken starting point of logic.
(
  The reason this is easily overlooked is that the blessings of Abraham’s faith are briefly mentioned
  in Genesis 12–15, whereas the rest of the Old Testament, from Exodus through to the final book of 
  Malachi, continually discusses the covenant and the Law.
  This continuous focus on the Law leads to confusion.

  People often miss the broader context of the entire Bible. This is an easy mistake to make,
  even for Bible teachers and preachers.
  The key distinction between the faith of Abraham before the Law and the Law given later is
  easily overlooked in the midst of the ongoing narrative of the Old Testament.
)
If this distinction is not considered when teaching the saints, it can lead to confusion of concepts.
This opens the door for false teachings, heresy, and legalism to creep in.

On the one hand, sharing the message of salvation through faith in Jesus Christ is already a difficult task. Therefore, it might be even harder to teach Christians that they are not bound by the Law, as this concept challenges deeply ingrained beliefs and misunderstandings about the relationship between the Old Testament Law and the New Covenant in Christ.
(
  For example, in the Bible, God’s Word clearly says certain things,
  yet some may ask, “Why don’t you keep the Sabbath?”
  This kind of misunderstanding can naturally arise even among sincere Christians.
  It feels wrong, but it can be difficult to refute directly. People may end up in unnecessary debates,
  such as whether the Sabbath should be observed on Saturday or whether Sunday can be considered
  the Sabbath, and so on. This is an error born from not fully understanding Scripture.

  One must read the Bible carefully as a whole, paying attention to the entire context,
  to avoid such mistakes.
)
At the Jerusalem Council of the early church, it was decided that Gentile believers were to be freed from the requirements of the Jewish Law.
This meant that they were advised not to observe the Jewish Law, emphasizing that salvation was not dependent on keeping it.
(Acts 15:7,13, 19,20, 28,29)
7. And after there had been much debate, Peter stood up and said to them, “Brethren, you know that in the early days God made a choice among you, that by my mouth the Gentiles should hear the word of the gospel and believe.
13. And after they had stopped speaking, James answered, saying, “Brethren, listen to me.
19. “Therefore it is my judgment that we do not trouble those who are turning to God from among the Gentiles,
20. but that we write to them that they abstain from things contaminated by idols and from fornication and from what is strangled and from blood.
28. “For it seemed good to the Holy Spirit and to us to lay upon you no greater burden than these essentials:
29. that you abstain from things sacrificed to idols and from blood and from things strangled and from fornication; if you keep yourselves free from such things, you will do well. Farewell. “

The Apostle Paul argues that Christians are not grafted into the Jewish covenant and Law.
Instead, Christians are the descendants of faith, grafted into the faith of Abraham,
which predates the Law.
Christians share in the promise given to Abraham through faith, not through the observance of the Law.
(Rom 1:17)
But if some of the branches were broken off, and you, being a wild olive,
were grafted in among them and became partaker with them of the rich root of the olive tree,

If one attempts to keep the Law (or seeks to be justified by the Law), they fall away from God’s grace.
Do not keep the Law. To try to observe the Law in order to be justified is to crucify Christ again.
(Galatians 5:3,4)
3. And I testify again to every man who receives circumcision, that he is under obligation to keep the whole Law.
4. You have been severed from Christ, you who are seeking to be justified by law; you have fallen from grace.

The Apostle Paul says that for Christians, who have received the reality of Christ, to cling to the shadows is an error.
This includes practices like eating and drinking regulations, festivals, new moon observances, Sabbaths, and, further, the customs of the Jewish people.
These are all shadows pointing to Christ, and believers should not become overly focused on them now that the reality—Christ—has come.
(Colossians 2:16,17)
16. Therefore let no one act as your judge in regard to food or drink or in respect to a festival or a new moon or a Sabbath day–
17. things which are a [mere] shadow of what is to come; but the substance belongs to Christ.

This is not to say that the Old Testament should be ignored.
Learning from the past records and determining our actions based on those lessons is very important.
However, the message is clear: do not be bound by the Law of the Old Testament.

The writer of Hebrews makes the same point. If we claim to believe in Jesus Christ and His atoning sacrifice on the cross, but then try to live according to the Law, we are denying the efficacy of Christ’s sacrifice. By doing so, we disregard the power of His atonement, effectively crucifying Jesus again.

Do not try to keep the Law.
(Hebrew 6:4-6)
4. For in the case of those who have once been enlightened and have tasted of the heavenly gift and have been made partakers of the Holy Spirit,
5. and have tasted the good word of God and the powers of the age to come,
6. and [then] have fallen away, it is impossible to renew them again to repentance,
since they again crucify to themselves the Son of God, and put Him to open shame.
(
  There can be misunderstandings about what the Law is.
  For example, if a sincere Christian sets personal goals, such as praying every day,
  reading the Bible once a year, or attending church on Sundays,
  and then evaluates the effectiveness of these practices, this is a good and commendable thing.
  If someone calls such practices “legalistic,” that would be a misunderstanding
  or an improper extension of the term “legalism.”
  It seems more like an accusation with an impure motive of criticism.

  Such resolutions are voluntary, and if they prove ineffective or too difficult,
  the person can choose to stop or continue freely.
  This is a positive attitude that should be encouraged.

  Using the term “legalistic” in a broad, unfounded way is also an error
  and may subtly involve criticizing others.
  It can even be seen as a kind of moral judgment or crime.
  The term “legalism” should not be overstretched in its interpretation.

  The proper, narrow understanding of “legalism” is when someone tries to keep the written laws
  in the Bible and, if they break them, seeks to offer sacrifices to atone for their sins,
  as was practiced under the Old Testament Law.
  This is the correct and limited meaning of legalism.
)