2002-01-01
Good Morning Faithful Ones,
When Paul was writing to the Galatians in GA 3: 10, he said, “Those who depend on obeying the Law live under a curse. For the Scripture [DT 27: 26] says, ‘Whoever does not always obey everything that is written in the book of Law is under God’s curse.’” If one was just thinking of the Ten Commandments which were given to us by God, this statement might not make much sense. We all need the original ten commandments in order to have a righteous, God-led life. However, over the years the Jewish rabbis and teachers had added and elaborated on those laws, bringing the number of laws for Jews to obey up to 613! These are found in the Talmud, a series of rabbinical commentaries and other cultural stories on the Law. What made this a curse is that no one other the Jesus Christ Himself was perfect enough to obey all those laws. That is why this is commonly referred to as the Law with a capital “L.” When we see God’s laws with the small “l,” then we can assume that what is being referred to as God’s teachings found directly in the Scriptures, not rabbinical commentaries. It is easy to see here that the problem is the placement of a human intermediary between the believer and God, which in my humble opinion shouldn’t be there. While a rabbi, priest, or a pastor is supposed to serve God and be a worship leader, this person should encourage the believer to communicate directly with God through the Scriptures, prayers, etc. Instead, so many of these clergy feel they are the only ones who can explain what God is saying to their congregations. I say let God explain His teaching.
In some versions of the Bible, RO 10: 4 is translated by saying, “Christ is the fulfillment of the Law.” I must admit that confused me initially. Another version puts it this way, “For Christ has brought the Law to an end, so that everyone who believes is put right with God.” That seems clearer. My understanding of this is that once Christ died on the cross for us, we were no longer in a Law economy, but instead are under a grace economy. This doesn’t mean that we had license to break God’s laws at all. Instead, it means that Christ has ended the curse of the Law as described above. EPH 2: 14-18, helps illuminate this point. “For Christ Himself has brought us peace by making Jews and Gentiles one people. With His own body He broke down the wall that separated them and kept them enemies. He abolished the Jewish Law with its commandments and rules, in order to create out of the two races one new people in union with Himself, in this way making peace. By His death on the cross Christ destroyed their enmity; by means of the cross He united both races into one body and brought them back to God. So Christ came and preached the Gospel of peace to all-to you Gentiles, who were far away from God, and to the Jews, who were near to Him. It is through Christ that all of us, Jews and Gentiles, are able to come in the one Spirit into the presence of the Father.” The man-made barriers between Jews and Gentiles are broken down, and prejudice is no longer allowed to rule. Our relationship with God is now a Covenant of Grace relationship, not a Covenant of Law relationship.
In many of his epistles, Paul often speaks about God’s purpose for the church. That is the unification and edification of the Body of Christ. Some places to look for that are: RO 10: 11-13; EPH 2: 19-22; EPH 4: 3-6, 15-16; EPH 5: 29-30, to name a few. I love the metaphor used in EPH 2: 19-22 of the Body of Christ symbolized by a building “built on a foundation of prophets and apostles, the cornerstone being Christ Jesus Himself. He is the One Who holds the whole building together and makes it grow into a sacred Temple dedicated to the Lord. In union with Him you too are being built together with all the others into a place where God lives through His Spirit.” The edification of the Body of Christ comes from obeying JN 13: 34-35, “This is a new commandment that I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you should love one another, then everyone will know that you are My disciples.” Loving one another means genuinely caring about each other, the way Christ cares about each of us. It also means encouraging, sharing the Scriptures with, and praying for each other. We should never lose sight of God’s purpose for us or for the church. It is stated for us in RO 12: 2 when we are told we should not conform ourselves to the standards of this world, but let God transform us by the renewal of our minds. The standard to which we should try to conform is Jesus Christ. For the church, it is unification and edification. These are what I believe should be our goals as we live “in Christ.” Working on these goals is my idea of how we can be good covenant partners with God.
I am awed by the promise that Christ has given us about prayer. JN 15: 7, “If you remain in Me and I in you, then ask for anything you wish in My name and it will be given you.” For success in this, it is necessary for us to know God’s will. The only way we can do that is to study His word and to have an active, dynamic prayer life with Him. Pastor Bruce Wilkinson taught me an important lesson. God not only wants us to serve Him, but He wants us to abide in Him, i.e. be His friend. When this is done, one feels His presence all the time, not just when he is in an attitude of prayer. It’s like leaving the lines of communication open all the time, always listening for His direction. As friends do, we should share all our thoughts and feelings with God and allow Him to do the same with us. That is food for thought in determining how we can do this in our individual lives today.
PRAYER: O Lord, we are truly a blessed people. Instead of being mired in the impossibility of keeping all 613 elements of the Jewish Law, You gave us Christ on the cross to protect us from that curse. What a great sacrifice Your only Son was! Through His death, burial, and resurrection, You gave us a chance for salvation and eternal forgiveness for our sin. But that is not all. You also gave us the wisdom of Your teaching through Him, the hope that we too will one day be resurrected to eternal life with You in heaven, and the Holy Spirit to help guide us through the difficulties of living in an evil world. Through Christ’s Atonement, You have found a way for us to break down the man-made barriers between Jews and Gentiles and opened us to carrying out Your purpose for the Body of Christ, which is unification and edification. The church is Your way of bringing us into a Covenant of Grace relationship with You and with each other. We can’t make the changes that we need to make in order to conform to the paradigm You gave us in Jesus Christ without Your help and the support and encouragement of other believers. You invite us to join You in Your work, Dearest Abba, and we accept that invitation with joy in our hearts. We are grateful that You want us not only to serve You but to abide in You. For the blessings You shower on us daily and for the wonderful opportunity of eternal life You made possible by the sacrifice of Your Son, we dedicate ourselves to living faithfully “in Christ” forever. In humility we offer You our worship, adoration, loyalty, diligence, trust, obedience, honor, glory, praise, and utmost thanksgiving. In Christ’s name, amen.
Tomorrow, we will look at Christ, Who God has made our Advocate and Intercessor in heaven as part of keeping His covenant promises to us. If there is space, we will also look at some of the truths of the new Covenant of Grace which has replaced the old Covenant of the Law. Every day of our lives, our Father in heaven watches over us, always eager to bless, ready to guide, and anxious to lead us to righteousness. That is real love of the kind available from no other source. It is life-giving love, the kind we should emulate toward each other. Peter and I send you our love too.
Grace Be With You Always,
Lynn