Thu, Feb 23rd - 10:08PM

The Law Fulfilled

Jesus stated, “Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them.” (Matthew 5:17 NIV) From the time of Moses to the time of Jesus what we had to follow to bring us closer to God was the Ten Commandments and the Law written by Moses. Until that time we had nothing defining the Law of Righteousness to us. Through Moses, God set forth these laws to inform us what sin was. As the Apostle Paul stated in Romans 7:7 “… Indeed I would not have known what sin was except through the law.” (NIV)

True, prior to the time of Moses there are examples of God’s punishment for living apart from Him. The mark Cain was to bear for the murder of his brother, the great flood during the time of Noah, to the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah. However, sin was not spelled out for us until God gave the Ten Commandments to Moses and then through Moses wrote the law for the nation of Israel. The Law was not un-obtainable, as stated in Deuteronomy chapter 30 the word (the word of God) is very near to us, in our mouths and in our hearts. It was set forth to we would know the consequences of sin and the reward for obedience. As the Apostle Paul explained in the book of Romans, the law explained to us what sin was, so that sin might be recognized as sin.

When Jesus started His earthly ministry He explained that He was here to fulfill the Law, not to abolish it. “I tell you the truth, until heaven and earth disappear, not the smallest letter, not the least stroke of a pen, will by any means disappear from the Law until everything is accomplished.” (Matthew 5:18 NIV) If you read the Sermon on the Mount you see that Jesus is reiterating the Ten Commandments. He is restating God’s Law. The Law that Jesus is will disappear when everything is accomplished is the law written by Moses, referred to as Mosaic Law. Mosaic Law contains the blessings and curses written to identify sin to the Israelites, to bring them through its observance to a closer life with God. Paul was correct in his statement that the law brought the knowledge of what sin was. The annual Day of Atonement was a day declared by God for the Nation of Israel to atone for personal sins as well as the sins of then nation and to bring them all closer to God.

When God sent His only Son to be with us He came closer to us. God has always been there but our sinful ways widened the gap between us and God. With Jesus coming to live as example among us, living a righteous life, teaching us how to be closer to God, Jesus is the living example of how we must live to be closer to God. Jesus himself became the atoning sacrifice for all of our sins.

With the statement “It is finished” (John 19:30 NIV) Jesus fulfilled the law, He fulfilled the prophecies of the Old Testament. Jesus was the perfect sacrifice, the lamb of God who’s blood was shed for our sins. Paul said that we are not under the law but under grace. It was God’s grace that sent Jesus to be the atoning sacrifice for the sins of man. Paul further states that we are to serve in the new way of the spirit being released from the law. What the law was not able to do, being weakened by the sin of man God himself did by sending Jesus in the likeness of man to live a sinless life fulfilling the righteous requirements of the law. A sacrifice for all who call Him savior. In Romans 10:4 Paul says gives the word “Christ is the end of the law so that there may be righteousness for everyone who believes.” (NIV) As Christians we are to honor the sacrifice of Jesus on the cross by living an obedient, righteous life of faith.