Why did the Lord send us the law?

[FlyingDove]

Yes, it seems strange to me that most posters do not believe the old testament is truth spoken by God. They see the giving of blood of animals in sacrifice for sin as something that God did not give to man, as if God wasn't God as He told of the sacrificial system. They see the temple as not from God, but something done away with.

Even for those who discount the old testament as scripture giving truth, they are told in the new testament they believe in to look at all scripture yet they don't even believe that verse! 2 Tim. 16 From infancy you have known the Holy Scriptures, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus. 16All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for instruction, for conviction, for correction, and for training in righteousness,

When that was written there was no new testament.

Brief background:
70 nations (see Gen 10) God chose ONE/Israel. He cuts a covenant at Sinai with this one (not all nations) particular people (Ex 19). They ALL (Israel only) agree! To do ALL that God will ask of them!

2 notable problems here:

1st; they don't even know what they've agreed to.

2ndly; 430 years before the Sinai covenant. God made unbreakable covenant promises to Abraham based on Abrahams faith (Gen 12 & 22).

Gal 3:17 And this I say, that the covenant, that was confirmed before of God in Christ, the law, which was four hundred and thirty years after, cannot disannul, that it should make the promise of none effect.
(MY NOTE: The Mosaic covenant cut at Sinai 430 after God's covenant promises made to Abraham. CANNOT/DIDNOT annual Gods Abrahamic covenant promises. Today's new Christ centered/mediated covenant is grounded in Abrahamic covenant promises)

Genesis 22:14 Abraham called the name of that place Jehovahjireh: as it is said to this day, In the mount of the Lord it shall be seen.
(MY NOTE: The LORD provided a ram in Isaac place. Abraham names the place: JehovahJireh which means: "The LORD Will Provide" Christ is the sacrificial provision fulfillment of this promise)

In heaven's rule, sin is a big deal, it requires blood as a payment. Scripture proclaims life is in the the blood (Lev 17:11). God gave His chosen people a sacrificial system to COVER (it couldn't take a way/remove) sin until the promise.

Sin covering analogy:
Picture a credit card, a debt owed, is placed on the card. The card itself isn't the payment. Christ's sinless God blood was the promised provision & Jesus death/blood of the new covenant PAID ALL sins owed debt.

A sinless Christ became sin & a curse, took upon Himself (although He owed nothing) ALL judgment/punishment/curses owed for mankind's sin.

Jesus once for all time (Heb 10:10) God Blood payment. Retired the old (never to be needed again) Levitical sacrificial system.

 

[Dino246]

How could the word of God not contain the law, or how could it be the entire word? I think you are confused.

I assure you: you're the one who is confused. You consistently demonstrate that you are unable to read my words without completely misunderstanding them.

 

[eternally-gratefull]

Paul told us

Gal 3:
What purpose then does the law serve? It was added because of transgressions, till the Seed should come to whom the promise was made; and it was appointed through angels by the hand of a mediator. 20 Now a mediator does not mediate for one only, but God is one.
21 Is the law then against the promises of God? Certainly not! For if there had been a law given which could have given life, truly righteousness would have been by the law. 22 But the Scripture has confined all under sin, that the promise by faith in Jesus Christ might be given to those who believe. 23 But before faith came, we were kept under guard by the law, [f]kept for the faith which would afterward be revealed. 24 Therefore the law was our [g]tutor to bring usto Christ, that we might be justified by faith. 25 But after faith has come, we are no longer under a tutor.

 

[Ahwatukee]

There is no scripture saying that we must choose between working or faith. They are two different subjects, why do you insist one cancels the other? It is an eternal truth that the Lord does not and never has given salvation based on works of the law, that is the only way they relate.

When we are saved through faith, we accept Christ within. It would be impossible to reflect Christ and reflect lawlessness. Works of the law are then part of us or we don't have Christ within.

If you didn't get it after reading that Galatians chapter that Provided, I don't how else to explain it to you.

Did you understand the part about when Abraham received the promise through faith 430 years before the law was given? And that the giving of the law did not do away with the promise?

Did you read the part that says that the purpose of the law was to show people how utterly sinful they are?

Did you read the part that states that the law was only meant to last until the promised seed which was Christ and that Christ is the end of the law?

How about the following?

"What then will we say? That the Gentiles, who did not pursue righteousness, have obtained it, a righteousness that is by faith; but Israel, who pursued a law of righteousness, has not attained it. Why not? Because their pursuit was not by faith, but as if it were by works. They stumbled over the stumbling stone"

"All who rely on works of 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.” Now it is clear that no one is justified before God by the law, because, “The righteous will live by faith.” The law, however, is not based on faith; on the contrary, “The man who does these things will live by them.”

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.” He redeemed us in order that the blessing promised to Abraham would come to the Gentiles in Christ Jesus, so that by faith we might receive the promise of the Spirit.

"In the passage above He says, “Sacrifices and offerings, burnt offerings and sin offerings You did not desire, nor did You delight in them” (although they are offered according to the law). Then He adds, “Here I am, I have come to do Your will.” He takes away the first (law of Moses) to establish the second (salvation by grace through faith). And by that will, we have been sanctified through the sacrifice of the body of Jesus Christ once for all."

No one who is trusting in the keeping of the law will inherit the kingdom of God. Those who attempt to keep the law, it will have the opposite affect, keeping the individual from eternal life.

As the scripture says, anyone who is trusting in the law is obligated to keep the whole law, not just some of it. And if you break it in one place, you've broken the whole thing.

"The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law. But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ!"

I really wish that you would take off the blinders and understand the truth of this matter.

"God saved you by his grace when you believed. And you can’t take credit for this; it is a gift from God. Salvation is not a reward for the good things we have done, so none of us can boast about it."

What would the purpose of Jesus fulfilling the law be, if we are still obligated to keep? In that case it would mean that it is still unfulfilled and in operation for us.

What would be the point of Jesus coming and shedding His blood if we could be saved by performing the works of the law? If that was the case, He would have died for nothing.

 

[Ahwatukee]

Paul told us

Gal 3:
What purpose then does the law serve? It was added because of transgressions, till the Seed should come to whom the promise was made; and it was appointed through angels by the hand of a mediator. 20 Now a mediator does not mediate for one only, but God is one.
21 Is the law then against the promises of God? Certainly not! For if there had been a law given which could have given life, truly righteousness would have been by the law. 22 But the Scripture has confined all under sin, that the promise by faith in Jesus Christ might be given to those who believe. 23 But before faith came, we were kept under guard by the law, [f]kept for the faith which would afterward be revealed. 24 Therefore the law was our [g]tutor to bring usto Christ, that we might be justified by faith. 25 But after faith has come, we are no longer under a tutor.

I wholeheartedly agree with this post. It seems that there are blinders on for those who want to put themselves under the works of the law.

 

[Ahwatukee]

Yes, it seems strange to me that most posters do not believe the old testament is truth spoken by God. They see the giving of blood of animals in sacrifice for sin as something that God did not give to man, as if God wasn't God as He told of the sacrificial system. They see the temple as not from God, but something done away with.

Even for those who discount the old testament as scripture giving truth, they are told in the new testament they believe in to look at all scripture yet they don't even believe that verse! 2 Tim. 16 From infancy you have known the Holy Scriptures, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus. 16All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for instruction, for conviction, for correction, and for training in righteousness,

When that was written there was no new testament.

Paul is talking about the scriptures in the OT that pertain to Christ. And what Paul told Timothy above became scripture.

 

[Blik]

Ephesians 2:11-12 made that pretty clear to me, what our state was during the Old Testament.

without Christ,
being aliens from the commonwealth of Israel, and
strangers from the covenants of promise,
having no hope,
and without God in the world

No wonder you are so mixed up! Christ and what Christ did for us is spoken of in the old testament, what Christ did is in eternal time. The sacrificial system is a shadow of Christ, Christ completed (fulfilled) it. We are told in Lev. 17:11 that it is the blood God gave on the altar for atonement of our souls.

 

[Blik]

I wholeheartedly agree with this post. It seems that there are blinders on for those who want to put themselves under the works of the law.

Your idea that we are not to work for the Lord because the Lord gave us grace is in error. Why you want sin in your life because Christ forgives you sins is beyond belief.

Being under the law means asking the Lord for salvation based on our obedience to the law and is a COMPLETELY different thing from having Christ within. Having Christ within means that we accept how Christ is within us and Christ is not disobedient. Christ within results in our working.

 

[Dino246]

Your idea that we are not to work for the Lord because the Lord gave us grace is in error. Why you want sin in your life because Christ forgives you sins is beyond belief.

Why you get that out of Ahwatukee's posts when he has said nothing of the sort is beyond belief.

 

[Guojing]

No wonder you are so mixed up! Christ and what Christ did for us is spoken of in the old testament, what Christ did is in eternal time. The sacrificial system is a shadow of Christ, Christ completed (fulfilled) it. We are told in Lev. 17:11 that it is the blood God gave on the altar for atonement of our souls.

Leviticus is written to Israel, you keep forgetting that.

 

[Evmur]

Isaiah 55: 10 “For as the rain and the snow come down from heaven and do not return there but water the earth, making it bring forth and sprout, giving seed to the sower and bread to the eater, 11 so shall my word be that goes out from my mouth; it shall not return to me empty, but sit shall accomplish that which I purpose, and shall succeed in the thing for which I sent it.

What are the things for which the Lord sent the law?

The verses in Isaiah would indicate that the Lord sent the law to us at creation. That law is based on love, yet if we follow the law legalistically, it does not have love.

We are told that if we did not have sin in us, there would be no need for the law. Sin is in our fleshly nature, so there is need for the law.

In the 23rd Psalm, it speaks of the Lord’s rod and staff, and that rod and staff is the law that guides us to green pastures. The 119th Psalm tells us how wonderful that guidance is for us. Yet in Galatians we are told the law has been cancelled.

We are told to repent of our sins and Christ will wipe us clean of those sins, but we need the law to point out our sins. Christ made this law incapable of causing our eternal death, for through repentance and asking forgiveness the law has no power over us to kill.

What do you think God’s purpose is in giving us the law? Is it cancelled?

"so shall My word be" why do you equate that with the law?

God has never given us the law, He gave the Jews the law because they sinned against Him, and Peter said it was "a yoke which neither the fathers nor we [the apostles] have been able to bear, why therefore are you putting God to the test by trying to put it upon the Gentiles" Acts 15. The letter James wrote exonerates the Gentile christians from being in obedience to the written law of Moses.

What God has done for us is more wonderful, He has written His law upon our hearts.

 

[Guojing]

"so shall My word be" why do you equate that with the law?

God has never given us the law, He gave the Jews the law because they sinned against Him, and Peter said it was "a yoke which neither the fathers nor we [the apostles] have been able to bear, why therefore are you putting God to the test by trying to put it upon the Gentiles" Acts 15. The letter James wrote exonerates the Gentile christians from being in obedience to the written law of Moses.

What God has done for us is more wonderful, He has written His law upon our hearts.

I always find it interesting that, while many Christians are 100% clear that the Old Covenant of the Law, made with Israel in Exodus 24, was never for us.

Yet, at the same time, even though Hebrews 8:8 tells us, just as clearly, that the New Covenant will be made with the House of Israel and the House of Judah, these exact same Christians, like yourself, proclaim with the same 100% confidence that "He has written His law upon our hearts" (Hebrews 8:10).

 

[Blik]

Leviticus is written to Israel, you keep forgetting that.

And Christ came for Israel. Why are you on a site about Christ? You are gentile.

 

[Guojing]

And Christ came for Israel. Why are you on a site about Christ? You are gentile.

My point is that you should not be using us and our in that post.

 

[Evmur]

I always find it interesting that, while many Christians are 100% clear that the Old Covenant of the Law, made with Israel in Exodus 24, was never for us.

Yet, at the same time, even though Hebrews 8:8 tells us, just as clearly, that the New Covenant will be made with the House of Israel and the House of Judah, these exact same Christians, like yourself, proclaim with the same 100% confidence that "He has written His law upon our hearts" (Hebrews 8:10).

Do you wish to be under the curse? is that what you want? "all who are under the law are under the curse"

No wonder the christians are so confused, baffled ... they see all the great and many promises God has made to them, healing, blessing, deliverance from evil, prosperity ... dominion over sin, peace, gladness of heart.

But in every instance they have to confess that they have the opposite experience of those things in their lives, they remember the gladness of heart and peace they received when first they were saved but that was long, long ago.

They are under a curse, the curse of the law. They think they can mix it all up together with grace, you know like a glorious stew.

You can't mix up grace with law and commandments. Grace and law are two different things.

Do you want to be killed? is that what you want? "the letter of the law written on stone killeth"

Come out of it, have done with it altogether. We have received the Spirit who giveth LIFE, we live and walk in Him ... or we ought to.

IF we are filled with God's Spirit which of His commandments will we be breaking?

The commandments of Christ are not the same as the commandments of Moses.

 

[Guojing]

Do you wish to be under the curse? is that what you want? "all who are under the law are under the curse"

No wonder the christians are so confused, baffled ... they see all the great and many promises God has made to them, healing, blessing, deliverance from evil, prosperity ... dominion over sin, peace, gladness of heart.

But in every instance they have to confess that they have the opposite experience of those things in their lives, they remember the gladness of heart and peace they received when first they were saved but that was long, long ago.

They are under a curse, the curse of the law. They think they can mix it all up together with grace, you know like a glorious stew.

You can't mix up grace with law and commandments. Grace and law are two different things.

Do you want to be killed? is that what you want? "the letter of the law written on stone killeth"

Come out of it, have done with it altogether. We have received the Spirit who giveth LIFE, we live and walk in Him ... or we ought to.

IF we are filled with God's Spirit which of His commandments will we be breaking?

The commandments of Christ are not the same as the commandments of Moses.

No, what I am saying is this

The Old Covenant of the Law was made with Israel. It made demands of Israel to keep it, but it does nothing to help Israel to do so.

The New Covenant of the Law will also be made with Israel. This time, the Law is written in their hearts, so all Israel will automatically be able to keep it.

We in the Body of Christ are saved apart from the Law, we are neither in the Old nor New, we are saved by being in Christ's body.

 

[Blik]

Do you wish to be under the curse? is that what you want? "all who are under the law are under the curse"

No wonder the christians are so confused, baffled ... they see all the great and many promises God has made to them, healing, blessing, deliverance from evil, prosperity ... dominion over sin, peace, gladness of heart.

But in every instance they have to confess that they have the opposite experience of those things in their lives, they remember the gladness of heart and peace they received when first they were saved but that was long, long ago.

They are under a curse, the curse of the law. They think they can mix it all up together with grace, you know like a glorious stew.

You can't mix up grace with law and commandments. Grace and law are two different things.

Do you want to be killed? is that what you want? "the letter of the law written on stone killeth"

Come out of it, have done with it altogether. We have received the Spirit who giveth LIFE, we live and walk in Him ... or we ought to.

IF we are filled with God's Spirit which of His commandments will we be breaking?

The commandments of Christ are not the same as the commandments of Moses.

Are you saying that because we have grace we may not listen to the law? Is being guided by the law mixing it up with Grace?

It seems absolutely unreasonable to me how those who accept the forgiveness of the Lord through Christ, then insist Christ tells them they can ignore anything God tells them about living with Christ within. It is almost like preaching that God did had nothing to do with inspiring the 119th Psalm.

 

[Blik]

No, what I am saying is this

The Old Covenant of the Law was made with Israel. It made demands of Israel to keep it, but it does nothing to help Israel to do so.

The New Covenant of the Law will also be made with Israel. This time, the Law is written in their hearts, so all Israel will automatically be able to keep it.

We in the Body of Christ are saved apart from the Law, we are neither in the Old nor New, we are saved by being in Christ's body.

The old covenant is simply stating the simple truth that there are blessing for a life lived God's way and curses for disobedience. Another way of saying it in secular terms is "if you steal you go to jail". The old covenant does not give salvation for obedience, that is only through Christ. They had the shadow of Christ. We are free through Christ--not bound through the wages of sin.

Under the old covenant, salvation was apart from the law. That is an eternal truth, not an old testament vs. new testament truth. There is no scripture saying salvation is one of the blessing of obedience. Not in the old testament or in the new testament.

 

[Guojing]

The old covenant is simply stating the simple truth that there are blessing for a life lived God's way and curses for disobedience. Another way of saying it in secular terms is "if you steal you go to jail". The old covenant does not give salvation for obedience, that is only through Christ. They had the shadow of Christ. We are free through Christ--not bound through the wages of sin.

Under the old covenant, salvation was apart from the law. That is an eternal truth, not an old testament vs. new testament truth. There is no scripture saying salvation is one of the blessing of obedience. Not in the old testament or in the new testament.

I never said anything about salvation in that post, about the 2 covenants.

 

[Dino246]

The old covenant is simply stating the simple truth that there are blessing for a life lived God's way and curses for disobedience.

No, it is not "simply stating the simple truth...". It is LAW, and it was given TO ISRAEL, not to everyone.