Before we get started, grab your Bibles so you can follow along.

Artists sometimes offer limited editions of their works. They number each of these so that you will know there have been only so many pieces made and which piece you have in your hands. The Ten Commandments were a limited edition. There are only ten of them. Those ten have been cussed and discussed for ages by scholars and street urchins. They have been adopted by societies and governments as a guideline for acceptable behavior. They have been modified to assuage the guilt of liberals wanting to somehow get into heaven, yet ignore what God commands them to do.

Before we can reasonably discuss the Ten Commandments we need to discuss the validity of keeping the Mosaic Law in our Christian lives. The Law of Moses is the whole body of the Mosaic legislation (1Ki. 2:3; 2Ki. 23:25; Ezr. 3:2). It is called by way of eminence simply the Law (Heb. Torah, Deu. 1:5; Deu. 4:8, Deu. 4:44; Deu. 17:18, Deu. 17:19; Deu. 27:3, Deu. 27:8). As a written code it is called the book of the law of Moses (2Ki. 14:6; Isa. 8:20), the book of the law of God (Jos. 24:26). The Mosaic Law refers at once to the commandment of God as the foundation of all human duty. The Hebrew word for Law is halachah, whose root meaning is walk or way.

Many Christians hold firm the belief that the Law was abolished when Jesus died and rose from the dead. Jesus doesn't agree.

Matthew 5:17-20
17 Do not think that I have come to abolish the law or the prophets. I have not come to abolish but to fulfill.
18 I tell you the truth, until heaven and earth pass away not the smallest letter or stroke of a letter will pass from the law until everything takes place.
19 So anyone who breaks one of the least of these commands and teaches others to do this will be called least in the kingdom of heaven, but whoever does them and teaches others to do so will be called great in the kingdom of heaven.
20 For I tell you, unless your righteousness goes beyond that of the experts in the law and the Pharisees, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.

The 19th verse is fairly clear, isn't it? " but whoever does them and teaches others to do so will be called great in the kingdom of heaven." Remember, these are Jesus' own words.

Even Christians that say the Law is no longer in effect support the validity of the Ten Commandments, which make up a portion of The Law. This is an obvious spiritual contradiction and we need to decide if the Law is in effect or not. If it is, then we should keep the law. If not, then the Ten Commandments are invalid and we can kill other people, sleep with each others' wives, etc.. You can't have it both ways. Either you are keeping the Law or you aren't. Anyone who fails to make a decision one way or the other is clearly categorized in Revelation 3:15-16. We can't say that part of the Law is in effect and the other parts aren't unless we have scriptural proof and there isn't any. We do, however, have scriptural proof that the sacrifices have ceased because Jesus was the supreme sacrifice for our sins. No other blood sacrifices are necessary.


Hebrews 10:8-18
8 When he says above, Sacrifices and offerings and whole burnt offerings and sin-offerings you did not desire nor did you take delight in them (which are offered according to the law),
9 then he says, Here I am: I have come to do your will. He does away with the first to establish the second.
10 By his will we have been made holy through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all.
11 And every priest stands day after day serving and offering the same sacrifices again and again sacrifices that can never take away sins.
12 But when this priest had offered one sacrifice for sins for all time, he sat down at the right hand of God,
13 where he is now waiting until his enemies are made a footstool for his feet.
14 For by one offering he has perfected for all time those who are made holy.
15 And the Holy Spirit also witnesses to us, for after saying,
16 This is the covenant that I will establish with them after those days, says the Lord. I will put my laws on their hearts and I will inscribe them on their minds,
17 then he says, Their sins and their lawless deeds I will remember no longer.
18 Now where there is forgiveness of these, there is no longer any offering for sin.

Did you notice the phrase in verse 16? I will put my laws...

The word for laws here is nom'-os, from a primary word νέμω nemō (to parcel out, especially food or grazing to animals).

This is the same word that Jesus used in Matthew 5:17. It is also the same one used in Ephesians 2:15 which says:

when he nullified in his flesh the law of commandments in decrees. He did this to create in himself one new man out of two, thus making peace,

Many like to use this verse to prove the law was abolished. This is not the case at all. To understand this passage, we need to read it in context.

Ephesians 2:11-22
11 Therefore remember that formerly you, the Gentiles in the flesh who are called uncircumcision by the so-called circumcision that is performed on the body by human hands
12 that you were at that time without the Messiah, alienated from the citizenship of Israel and strangers to the covenants of promise, having no hope and without God in the world.
13 But now in Christ Jesus you who used to be far away have been brought near by the blood of Christ.
14 For he is our peace, the one who made both groups into one and who destroyed the middle wall of partition, the hostility,
15 when he nullified in his flesh the law of commandments in decrees. He did this to create in himself one new man out of two, thus making peace,
16 and to reconcile them both in one body to God through the cross, by which the hostility has been killed.
17 And he came and preached peace to you who were far off and peace to those who were near,
18 so that through him we both have access in one Spirit to the Father.
19 So then you are no longer foreigners and noncitizens, but you are fellow citizens with the saints and members of God's household,
20 because you have been built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, with Christ Jesus himself as the cornerstone.
21 In him the whole building, being joined together, grows into a holy temple in the Lord,
22 in whom you also are being built together into a dwelling place of God in the Spirit. Here is an excerpt from the translation notes found in the NET Bible regarding the word nullify. "Many other translations use the term abolish (so NRSV, NASB, NIV), but this term implies complete destruction which is not the author's meaning here. The verb katargevw (katargew) can readily have the meaning to cause something to lose its power or effectiveness (BDAG 525 s.v. 2, where this passage is listed), and this meaning fits quite naturally here within the author's legal mindset. A proper English term which communicates this well is nullify since this word carries the denotation of making something legally null and void."

There was hatred between the Jews and Gentiles because of the Law that separated them. Jesus, by His blood, brought both groups together, nullifying the power of the Law that separated them. He became the Messiah for the Jews and Gentiles. The Law no longer has the destructive power over us because of God's divine grace and forgiveness through the blood of Jesus. This passage of scripture, however, does not contradict Matthew 5:17-20 by saying that man can now do whatever he wants to do because he is forgiven. Rather, the ressurrection nullifies the power of death that is a result of not keeping the law. We are saved by grace and not the law of works.

Christians dance around the necessity of obeying the Law specified in the Old Testament, specifically, the first five books of the Old Testament, because they can't make a decision. They feel that if they support keeping the Law, they somehow deny they are saved by grace. Nothing could be further from the truth. Simply stated, we are to obey the Law, but obeying the law does not earn us salvation. We are saved by grace, but must still obey the Law. Most Christians will reluctantly agree with that statement. Now we have to determine how much of the Law we must obey. Obviously, the sin sacrifices have been abolished because the Lamb of God was the supreme sacrifice for sin. (Hebrews 9:22) No other sin sacrifice is necessary or possible. So that part is obviously retired, or rather, fulfilled The rest has been debated since the first person read the book of James. Many Christians don't like to read the book of James. It places responsibility on the way we live.

James 2:18
18 But someone will say, "You have faith and I have works. Show me your faith without works and I will show faith by my works.
19 You believe that God is one; well and good. Even the demons believe that and tremble with fear.

Anyone can say they have faith, but only those who really have faith show it by their works. I'll paraphrase verse 19 for you. "You say you believe in God? Big fat hairy deal! Even the demons believe and they TREMBLE with fear." Believing means nothing if it does not move you to action. Case in point: Say you have been notified you are in the path of a hurricane and you just sit there. Your belief meant nothing. If you are told that you have inherited one million dollars and just sit in your house and do not go get it, you are still poor. Your belief meant nothing.

James 2:24
24 You see that a person is justified by works and not by faith alone.

OUCH! This verse goes against what many people preach in the church. In fact, most people refuse to acknowledge the existence of this verse. If you are going to believe what is in the Bible, you have to believe the entire Bible or we are back to that whole Revelation 3:15-16 reference. Remember?

Doing good works is not enough to substantiate your faith. You have to abstain from evil. You have to keep the Law because Jesus said, "until heaven and earth pass away not the smallest letter or stroke of a letter will pass from the law until everything takes place." (Matt. 5:18) If you are a Christian and fail in keeping the Law, will you go to hell? No, because in verse 19, Jesus said, "So anyone who breaks one of the least of these commands and teaches others to do this will be called least in the kingdom of heaven..." They are still in the "kingdom of heaven" but considered the least. In other words, you can still get in to hear the music, but you will have to sit in the cheap seats. The rest of that verse says, " but whoever does them and teaches others to do so will be called great in the kingdom of heaven." I like that "great" part, don't you?

We realize that there was no way possible for man to keep the law. The sin sacrifices were instituted to atone for man's sin when he broke the law. Jesus came as the supreme sacrifice for sin. He could only be that sacrifice because He lived a completely sinless life. He kept the Law. Let's say that again. Jesus kept the Law.

As revolutionary as this may sound to some, nothing has changed over the years except the watering down of the Gospel which makes the Bible appear to be full of contradictions. For example, saying that Jesus was speaking of His death and resurrection when He said "until everything takes place" in Matthew 5:18 only serves to confuse the statement that follows in verses 19 and 20. One lie leads to another.

After reading this message, there will be those who will quote Galatians 3:6-14 in rebuttal. To them I would state, if we are no longer bound to obey the Law, then I am free to sleep with your wife and murder your children, right? Of course both statements are ludicrous.

Most Christians still think we should keep the laws that effect us, but are not bound to the ones that affect God. In other words, we shouldn't kill, sleep with another's wife, dishonor our parents, etc., but the sanctity of the Sabbath is not so special anymore, neither is the whole graven image thing. Again, the whole lukewarm issue in Revelation 3:15-16 is applicable. Luke 10:25-28 captures the essence of the Law by telling us we should love God with all of our heart, soul, strength and mind, and love our neighbor as our self. No one will argue that those are in effect and if we keep those two, we will keep all ten, right? You cannot love the Lord with all your heart, soul, strength and mind and your neighbor as yourself, yet dishonor The Law. Read the commandments and you will see what I mean. If you love, following those commandments will come naturally.

We can see by these and other scriptures that we have an obligation to keep the Law even though our sins have been forgiven. Jesus has given us his druthers and we should listen. He'd rather us obey His commandments than not, to put it mildly. He won't kick us out, but there is always a price to pay in one form or another.

We are justified by faith, not by keeping the law, but we are responsible to obey the law that He has written on our hearts, which is the same Law that Jesus said He was not going to abolish. When we devise a false doctrine, the scriptures appear to contradict themselves and when Jesus' words contradict what is preached from the pulpits, it is time to scrutinize that doctrine. If it makes you feel uncomfortable thinking that God still wants you to keep the Law described in the Old Testament, focus on the two described in Luke 10:25-28. Either way, you still have a responsibility to keep the Law. It may be a matter of semantics to some, but it is imperative that we purify our theology and put an end to doublespeak from the pulpit.

Read James 2:8-17

Remember, Jesus kept the law. He didn't do it so you wouldn't have to. He did it as an example. In fact, He kept the Mosaic Law and the Rabinical Law. Don't be one of those Christians who believe they serve a God who expects nothing from you. That doctrine is deadly.

(Just so you know, there are not 10 Commandments, there are 631)


- Rod

Copyright (c) Rod
Use without permission is prohibited

James 2:26
For just as the body without the spirit is dead, so also faith without works is dead

• Topic: Bible Study

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