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imported post -
10-06-07, 05:10 PM
Dr James,
I agree with HLF, the law is not Jewish, it is from God - and intended to reach out to all mankind, it was given to the Jewish people, but the moral demands of it are on all people, since what is to be known about God is plain (Rom 1:19)
You know why we don't offer sacrifices, and why we do not condemn people by stoning! Yeshua fulfilled the sacrificial part of the law, and Hebrews chapters 9&10 explain this. Yeshua also told us not to judge, James tells us there is one judge and one lawgiver, and Paul writes:
[10] For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, that each one may receive what is due him for the things done while in the body, whether good or bad. (2 Cor 5:10)
If stoning people were part of actions permitted under the new covenant, some people would not have a chance to repent of their sins, but we know about the grace afforded by the new covenant, and that it is God's desire for all men to repent of their sins.
If you read Matthew 5:17-20, Romans 3:31, 1 John 5:1-5, and Revelation 12:17 & 14:12, you will see that the law still stands, though we are not under a mandatory obligation to obey every law, that was what the old covenant demanded. The new covenant is hinted at in the "Old Testament" (Jeremiah 31:31-31), and in the "New Testament" this is repeated (Hebrews 8:8-12). Note Hebrews 8:12 and compare 1 John 3:4, we must let the bible interpret itself - sin is clearly transgression of the law. However, the main difference between the old covenant and the new covenant is that the old covenant required people to do all that was required of the law from their own strength without God's continual assistance. We recognise that the Holy Spirit guides those who have been baptised into it, and enables us to do all of God's will, whether it be obedience to the law, prophecy, tongues or anything else.
Blessings...
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