THE LAW OF MOSES AND THE GOSPEL OF JESUS CHRIST

The Law of The Old Testament given to Moses bears witness to the grace of God and directs ahead to its climax in the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

The Law was the God-given regulation of the life for the people of God being in a covenant relationship with Him. As the command of God it enables and provides structure to the relationship between God and human beings as well as between fellow human beings.

The Law and legal traditions governed every aspect of the life of the Old Testament covenant people. The criminal, civil, social, health and religious laws were conditions by which they were to conduct their lives.

The Gospel does not abolish the Law but fulfils it as it permits it to be seen in its correct appropriate light. The dispensation (an act of systematic, order and management) of The Law was from Moses until John The Baptist who prepared the way for God’s Messiah who sets His people free from the condemnation and oppression of the Law.

The Law itself was a limited presentation of the truth but when Christ arrived, He was The Truth.

Human beings cannot fulfil the Law by human effort and the Law brings the knowledge of human sin and the need for redemption. The Old Testament regulations point to the arrival of Jesus Christ, the incarnate Son of God. This necessary event was God appearing in the form of human nature. This was the fixed and permanent dwelling place of God on earth as opposed to a temporary manifestation of His presence or theophany. God The Son took upon Himself a fleshly body.

Believers are not acceptable to God through works of the law, but only through their acceptance of the acknowledgement and belief in the atoning work of Christ. The Law remains valid for believers and The Holy Spirit enables believers to fulfil their principles through Jesus Christ.

Strict observance of Old Testament regulations looses sight of the recognition that the aim of the law is to explain the motive for the coming of Jesus Christ. Rigid adherence to the Law is frequently followed by insincerity as well as double standards and results in the neglect of God at the centre of a person’s life, which then tends to overlook the putting others before themself.

There are some laws that have had an overemphasis placed on them forgetting the importance of obedience and right attitudes outweigh that of outward actions. He demonstrated many instances of this problem.

Jesus established His authority over the Sabbath, of which He was accused of breaking. He challenged the leaders to think about principles and not rigid traditional rules; also He asserted the continuing validity of the Law. Jesus himself was obedient to the Law and its commandments.

Jesus Christ, supernaturally conceived, was born under Old Testament Law and accepted the authority of it. He also knew His coming was to fulfil its purpose. While the teachers of Law accused Jesus and his followers of not following tradition, He in turn accused them of hypocrisy and continued to show many examples where human tradition is kept and acted upon rather than God’s law.

The Gospel of Jesus Christ is the good news of God’s redemption (deliverance) of sinful humanity and the curse of The Law through the birth, obedient life, atoning death, physical resurrection from the dead and ascension into heaven of His Son. It is freedom from the law, which led to death because nobody except Jesus could obediently keep it perfectly without sinning.

The curse under which man lives is removed through the death of Christ. The curse cannot simply be abolished. Deuteronomy 27:26 is unbreakable, and those who fail to keep even one point of the law fall under a curse. From this burden, however, redemption is possible, because Christ becomes the substitutionary receiver of that affliction. Application is made to the law to confirm that Jesus’ death as one hanged on a tree is cursed (Deut. 21:23).

Galatians3:10 All who rely on observing the law are under a curse, for it is written: "Cursed is everyone who does not continue to do everything written in the Book of the Law."

11 Clearly no one is justified before God by the law, because, "The righteous will live by faith."

12 The law is not based on faith; on the contrary, "The man who does these things will live by them."

13 Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us, for it is written: "Cursed is everyone who is hung on a tree."

The trustworthiness of The Gospel of Jesus Christ rests upon the fulfilment of Old Testament prophecies concerning Him. The Apostles, including New Testament disciples were eyewitnesses to these and His ministry including His Death, Resurrection and Ascension. God the Father witnessed to His Son.

The main aspect and basic guideline of the Gospel of the New Testament is that Jesus Christ is both Lord and Saviour universally. The Lordship of Jesus Christ can only be known through divine inspiration and revelation.

As the promised Messiah He fulfilled everything that was required in the Old Testament Law and in prophecy to save His people. He accomplished God’s righteous needs for a perfect atonement for sin and gained victory of death for all who believe in His Name.

The controlling power of sin leads to death. The Law was never able to overcome sin however it did condemn sin but it could not remove it, only cover it up. Christ, unlike other men was sinless. His sacrifice fulfils the Old Testament sacrificial system and liberates totally his people from the guilt of sin.

Christ as God’s provision for sin was necessary because of God’s love and His readiness to forgive sin. Jesus provides cleansing, purification, reconciliation, healing, protection, freedom for people held captive and brings them unto Himself for eternal safety.

The Law does play a role in the life of a believer, not as a means of salvation but as a moral and ethical guide, obeyed out of love for God by the authority of the provision of The Holy Spirit.

Deliverance from sin and God’s wrath of sin can only come through Jesus Christ, by accepting and believing in who He is. To all who believe, the promises of the Gospel, which are, forgiveness of sin, new spiritual life, eternal life, peace with God, gift of The Holy Spirit and adoption into the family of God, are given as gifts from God The Father.

The Gospel cannot be pledged to half-heatedly or in part; it must be accepted or rejected. It demands an obedient response to all that God has done in Jesus Christ for humanity. It is not acts of religious rites but a sincere covenantal relationship.

Romans 8:1 Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus,

2 because through Christ Jesus the law of the Spirit of life set me free from the law of sin and death.

3 For what the law was powerless to do in that it was weakened by the sinful nature, God did by sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful man to be a sin offering. And so he condemned sin in sinful man,

4 in order that the righteous requirements of the law might be fully met in us, who do not live according to the sinful nature but according to the Spirit.

5 Those who live according to the sinful nature have their minds set on what that nature desires; but those who live in accordance with the Spirit have their minds set on what the Spirit desires.

6 The mind of sinful man is death, but the mind controlled by the Spirit is life and peace;

God’s righteous requirements were met through Him by sending The Son so that believers would be able to understand the true and full intentions of the Law.

God gave His gift of unfailing love so people might accept His graciousness. Believers believe in the Name of Jesus Christ, and that means to accept who the Person is. Being a child of God does not come about by human physical ancestry, nor is it attributed to human decision or the action of mankind. It is a sovereign work of God that provides for and accomplishes our salvation.

The deliverance of the people during the Exodus with Moses foreshadows the redemption achieved by Jesus Christ, as predicted. The Old Testament points ahead to Him as a new liberator giving greater freedom. Jesus fulfils all the Old Testament prophecies of Him as Deliverer.

SCRIPTURES Deut. 27:26, Deut. 21:23, Galatians 3:10-13, Romans 8:1-6.
QUESTIONS 1] Who is cursed? 2] Why are they cursed? 3] How was Jesus able set believers free? 4} From what did He set believers free? 4] How do believers benefit?

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Last Updated March 2011