| Vivid Christianity |
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| Teaching Christians how to live a "vivid" Christian life. | |
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Covenants, Dispensations, and the Ten Commandments - Part Three of Three
Introduction
In Part One we saw that a covenant is essentially a contract between two parties, such as between God and humans. For example, when I lived in an apartment in Seattle, I had a contract with the apartment management there. No one else in the world was required to obey that contract, and no one else in the world could violate that contract. Before I moved back to Houston, I fulfilled the obligations of my old contract in Seattle, and that contract was canceled. Neither I nor the management in Seattle are required to obey the terms of that old contract anymore, and we can't break or violate the terms of that old contract. I now have a new contract with my apartment management in Houston. The analogy is that the Old Covenant has been completely canceled as we'll see, and Christians are under the New Covenant. When God gives commands to people under a particular covenant, those commands do not apply to people who are not under that covenant. Remember, my apartment contract only applies to me and the apartment management. It would be completely wrong to assume that my apartment contract applies to anyone else. This is a very important issue to understand because many Christians have formed wrong conclusions by assuming that the commands in a particular covenant apply to people who were not under that covenant. For example, the Old Covenant was specifically between God and the Jews (Exodus 19:3-6). All of the non-Jews (Gentiles) during that time were not under the Old Covenant and therefore they were not required to obey the Ten Commandments or any of the other commands in that covenant unless they converted to Judaism or were servants of Jews (Exodus 12:43-49, 20:10) as we saw in Part One. In Acts 9:10-12, Jesus told a Christian named Ananias to lay hands on Saul of Tarsus to heal him. Since Jesus told a Christian to do that, does this automatically mean that all Christians must lay hands on Saul to heal him? In Acts 16:9-10, Jesus told the apostle Paul and his companions to go preach the Gospel in Macedonia. Since Jesus told Christians to do that, does this automatically mean that all Christians must go preach the Gospel in Macedonia? In Matthew 17:27, Jesus told the apostle Peter to catch a fish and take the coin from its mouth to pay their taxes. Since Jesus told an apostle to do that, does this automatically mean that all Christians must catch fish to get coins from their mouths for paying our taxes? The answer to these questions is clearly no, which shows that just because we see something in the Bible, or just because Jesus told people to do something, this does not automatically mean that those are commands for all Christians to follow. As my article called How to Study the Bible shows, we need to do our best to see the full picture of each doctrine or topic in the New Testament in order to understand what God wants us to believe and to do. In exactly the same way, just because Jesus told some people to pay their tithes (Matthew 23:23) and He talked to some people about properly observing the Sabbath (Matthew 12:1-13), this does not automatically mean that Christians must pay tithes (see my article called Christians Are Not Required to Pay Tithes) or observe the Sabbath as we'll see in this article. Some denominations (e.g., Seventh-day Adventists) teach that Christians must follow the commands in the Old Covenant such as observing the Sabbath, paying tithes, and following the kosher dietary laws, but this is based on a complete misunderstanding of the Old Covenant. It's easy to assume that some of the commands in the Old Testament period (such as the Ten Commandments) were brought forward into the New Testament period. But we're going to see that no one today is required to obey any of the Ten Commandments, and no one today is able to sin by breaking or violating any of the Ten Commandments, because those commandments were only in force under the Old Covenant. However, the New Covenant includes the essentials of nine of the Ten Commandments (there's no Sabbath under the New Covenant). Therefore, we must still obey the requirements of the Ten Commandments (except for the Sabbath), but we do it by obeying the New Covenant. The Law of Moses Is Consistently Treated as One Single Unit throughout the Bible
As we saw in Part One, the content of the Old Covenant was the Law of Moses, which contained a total of 613 commandments. To make them easier to study, pastors and Bible teachers often group these 613 commandments into the categories of moral laws, ceremonial laws, and civil laws. Some people believe that the entire Law of Moses was canceled at the cross. Other people believe that the ceremonial and civil laws were canceled at the cross, and only the moral laws are still in effect. Some people believe that the Ten Commandments are included in the moral laws and therefore everyone today is required to obey the Ten Commandments. In addition, there are those who believe that Christians are obligated to observe the Sabbath (the Fourth Commandment) on Saturday, just as the Law of Moses commands, while other people believe that the Sabbath has been changed to Sunday. Then there are those who believe that church services should be held on Sunday (which some people refer to as "the Lord's Day"), but they don't believe that Sunday is the "Christian Sabbath." All of this confusion comes from a lack of properly understanding how covenants work. What we should keep in mind is that the Bible never groups the commandments of the Law of Moses into separate categories such as ceremonial laws, civil laws, and moral laws. Instead, the entire Law of Moses is consistently treated as one single unit throughout the Bible. For example, James pointed out that if a person disobeyed just one commandment under the Law of Moses then he was guilty of breaking the entire Law of Moses: "If you really keep the royal law found in Scripture, "Love your neighbor as yourself [Leviticus 19:18]," you are doing right. But if you show favoritism, you sin and are convicted by the law as lawbreakers [Leviticus 19:15]. For whoever keeps the whole law and yet stumbles at just one point is guilty of breaking all of it. For he who said, "Do not commit adultery [Exodus 20:14]," also said, "Do not murder [Exodus 20:13]." If you do not commit adultery but do commit murder, you have become a lawbreaker. Speak and act as those who are going to be judged by the law that gives freedom" (James 2:8-12)In the above passage, James used several examples from the Law of Moses to show that disobeying any part of the Law made a person guilty of breaking all of the Law, which indicates that the Law of Moses was considered to be one single unit. Then James pointed out that Christians are under a different law, "the law that gives freedom" (James 2:12, above), which is the Law of Christ as we'll see later. The apostle Paul made a similar statement about the Law of Moses when he wrote to the church in Galatia and said that if a man lets himself be circumcised (because it's commanded in the Law of Moses) then he's obligated to obey the whole Law: "Again I declare to every man who lets himself be circumcised that he is obligated to obey the whole law." (Galatians 5:3)Jewish boys were circumcised on the eighth day of life according to the Law of Moses (see Leviticus 12:2-3, Luke 1:59, 2:21, Philippians 3:2-5), so Paul was speaking about Gentile (non-Jewish) Christian men being circumcised in the above passage. The point here is that if a person broke any of the 613 commandments in the Law of Moses then he or she was guilty of breaking the entire Law, which indicates that the Law of Moses was considered to be one single unit. Here are some examples from most of the books of the Bible to demonstrate that the Law of Moses was considered to be one single unit: "Then Eleazar the priest said to the soldiers who had gone into battle, "This is the requirement of the law that the LORD gave Moses"" (Numbers 31:21)The above passages demonstrate that the entire Law of Moses is consistently treated as one single unit throughout the Bible. Separating the 613 commandments of the Law of Moses into the categories of moral laws, ceremonial laws, and civil laws might make it easier for us to study them, but these categories are artificial because the Law of Moses is never divided into these categories anywhere in the Bible. This is an important point because if the New Testament says that the Law of Moses has been canceled then it means that the entire Law has been canceled, including the Ten Commandments. The Law of Moses Has Been Canceled
Again, the Law of Moses (often referred to as "the law" as we've seen) was a set of 613 written commandments and regulations, and ten of them (the Ten Commandments) were engraved on stone tablets (Exodus 24:12, 31:18, 32:15-19, 34:1-4, 28-29). With that in mind, notice that the New Testament clearly says that the Old Covenant and the Law of Moses have been canceled, and Christians are under the New Covenant and the Law of Christ: "For sin shall no longer be your master, because you are not under the law [the Law of Moses], but under grace [the Law of Christ]. What then? Shall we sin because we are not under the law [the Law of Moses] but under grace [the Law of Christ]? By no means!" (Romans 6:14-15)Here are some of the important points in the above passages:
We've seen that the Law of Moses is consistently treated as one single unit throughout the Bible, and the above passages tell us that the entire Law was totally and completely canceled at the cross. Therefore, the Ten Commandments, the tithing laws, the kosher dietary laws, the Sabbath laws, etc., have all been completely canceled because they were part of the Law of Moses. Later in this article we'll take a close look at the Sabbath and kosher laws, and we'll see that they're no longer in force under the New Covenant. In addition, my article called Christians Are Not Required to Pay Tithes examines every passage on tithing throughout the Bible and shows that the modern form of tithing being taught in churches is a complete fiction that does not honor God because it bears absolutely no resemblance to any form of tithing found anywhere in the Bible. The above passages clearly say that after the cross, no one is required to obey any of the 613 commands in the Old Covenant and the Law of Moses, and no one is able to sin by breaking or violating any of those 613 commands. Jesus Did Not Destroy the Law, He Fulfilled It
The passages in the previous section make it clear that the entire Law of Moses has been completely canceled in Christ, but people sometimes have trouble reconciling that with the following passage: "Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them. I tell you the truth, until heaven and earth disappear, not the smallest letter, not the least stroke of a pen, will by any means disappear from the Law until everything is accomplished. Anyone who breaks one of the least of these commandments and teaches others to do the same will be called least in the kingdom of heaven, but whoever practices and teaches these commands will be called great in the kingdom of heaven." (Matthew 5:17-19)In the above passage, Jesus said that He was not destroying or overthrowing the Law of Moses, nor did He ever teach anyone to ignore or disobey the Law. This is because the Law of Moses (which included the Ten Commandments) was still in effect during Jesus' entire lifetime before the cross. For example, notice what Jesus said to a rich man who wanted to inherit eternal life: "As Jesus started on his way, a man ran up to him and fell on his knees before him. "Good teacher," he asked, "what must I do to inherit eternal life?" "Why do you call me good?" Jesus answered. "No one is good - except God alone. You know the commandments: 'Do not murder [the Sixth Commandment], do not commit adultery [the Seventh Commandment], do not steal [the Eighth Commandment], do not give false testimony [the Ninth Commandment], do not defraud, honor your father and mother [the Fifth Commandment].'"" (Mark 10:17-19)Notice that Jesus told this rich man to obey the commandments in the Law of Moses, which demonstrates that the Ten Commandments were still in force during Jesus' lifetime. During His life, Jesus perfectly fulfilled the commandments of the Law, and then He canceled it on the cross: "When you were dead in your sins and in the uncircumcision of your sinful nature, God made you alive with Christ. He forgave us all our sins, having canceled the written code, with its regulations, that was against us and that stood opposed to us; he took it away, nailing it to the cross." (Colossians 2:13-14)In Mark 10:17-19 (above), Jesus had not yet gone to the cross and therefore the rich man was required to obey the Ten Commandments and the rest of the Law of Moses. However, this has no bearing on anyone today because Jesus perfectly fulfilled the Law and then He took it away, nailing it to the cross (Colossians 2:13-14, above). Here are some things that various Bible commentaries say about this: "I came not to destroy, but to fulfil (ouk hlqon katalusai alla plhrwsai). The verb "destroy" means to "loosen down" as of a house or tent (2 Corinthians 5:1). Fulfil is to fill full. This Jesus did to the ceremonial law which pointed to him and the moral law he kept. "He came to fill the law, to reveal the full depth of meaning that it was intended to hold" (McNeile)." (Robertson's Word Pictures of the New Testament, Matthew 5:17)As these Bible commentaries point out, Jesus fulfilled the commandments of the Law of Moses and completed its purpose. Earlier we looked at Ephesians 2:14-15, which says that Jesus "destroyed the barrier, the dividing wall of hostility, by abolishing in his flesh the law with its commandments and regulations" (1984 NIV). Yet in Matthew 5:17 (above), Jesus said, "Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them." In our English translations of the Bible, these two verses appear to contradict each other. But when we look at the original Greek words for "abolish" in those two passages then we find something interesting: "For he himself is our peace, who has made the two one and has destroyed the barrier, the dividing wall of hostility, by abolishing [katargeo] in his flesh the law with its commandments and regulations. His purpose was to create in himself one new man out of the two, thus making peace" (Ephesians 2:14-15 NIV - 1984 edition)Prior to the 2011 edition, the NIV used the word "abolish" in both of the above passages, which makes it appear as if Paul's statement in Ephesians 2:14-15 contradicts Jesus' statement in Matthew 5:17. However, Paul and Jesus actually used different Greek words for "abolish" that have different meanings. In Ephesians 2:14-15 (above), Paul used the Greek word katargeo, which means "to render idle," "to render inactive," "to cause to cease," "put an end to" (see Strong's Hebrew and Greek Dictionary, Thayer's Greek Dictionary, and Zodhiates' Greek Dictionary). These meanings can be seen in the majority of the New Testament passages that use the Greek word katargeo: "What if some did not have faith? Will their lack of faith nullify [katargeo] God's faithfulness?" (Romans 3:3)In Matthew 5:17 (above), Jesus used the Greek word kataluo, which means "to destroy," "demolish," "throw down," "subvert," "overthrow" (see Strong's Hebrew and Greek Dictionary, Thayer's Greek Dictionary, and Zodhiates' Greek Dictionary). These meanings can be seen in the majority of the New Testament passages that use the Greek word kataluo: "Jesus left the temple and was walking away when his disciples came up to him to call his attention to its buildings. Do you see all these things?" he asked. "I tell you the truth, not one stone here will be left on another; every one will be thrown down [kataluo]."" (Matthew 24:1-2)So Jesus said that He was not overthrowing or subverting or destroying the Law of Moses, which is the meaning of the Greek word for "abolish" that He used. In contrast, Paul said that Jesus had put an end to the Law of Moses, rendering it inactive, which is the meaning of the Greek word for "abolish" that he used. In addition, the Greek word pleroo that Jesus used in Matthew 5:17 (above) has the basic meaning of "To make full, fill," and in context it can mean "To fulfill, bring to a full end, accomplish, complete...By implication, to fill out, complete, make perfect, accomplish an end (Matt. 5:17; Phil. 2:2; 2 Thess. 1:11)." (The Complete Word Study Dictionary of the Old and New Testaments, Dr. Spiros Zodhiates). As that New Testament Greek dictionary points out, the Greek word pleroo in Matthew 5:17 (above) indicates that Jesus fulfilled the Law and the prophecies about His incarnation, bringing those to an end. Here are some more examples in which the Greek word pleroo means that something was fulfilled and completed and brought to an end: "But after he had considered this, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, "Joseph son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary home as your wife, because what is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. She will give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins." All this took place to fulfill [pleroo] what the Lord had said through the prophet: "The virgin will be with child and will give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel" - which means, "God with us."" (Matthew 1:20-23)So the Greek word pleroo is often used in the sense of bringing something to an end. When Jesus said, "Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill [pleroo] them" (Matthew 5:17, above), He was saying that He was bringing the Law to an end by perfectly fulfilling it rather than by destroying it. As we saw earlier, the Law of Moses (under the Old Covenant) was intended to be a "schoolmaster" until Christ came: "But before faith came, we were kept under the law, shut up unto the faith which should afterwards be revealed. Wherefore the law was our schoolmaster to bring us unto Christ, that we might be justified by faith. But after that faith is come, we are no longer under a schoolmaster." (Galatians 3:23-25 KJV)In the above passage, Paul described the Law of Moses as being a "schoolmaster" or a "tutor" for children, and he said that there's no longer a need for such a "tutor" now that Christ has come. Here are some things that Bible commentaries say about this: "the law being called a schoolmaster, shows that the use of it was but temporary, and its duration but for a time; children are not always to be under, nor designed to be always under a schoolmaster, no longer than till they are come to a proper age for greater business and higher exercises of life; so the law was to continue, and did continue, to be of this use and service to the Jewish church during its minority, until Christ came" (John Gill's Exposition of the Bible, Galatians 3:24, emphasis added).As these Bible commentaries point out, a tutor is only needed until the child reaches a certain age, and then the tutor is dismissed. Paul said that the Law of Moses was a tutor for the Jews until Christ came (Galatians 3:23-25 KJV, above), and he said that since Christ has come, there's no longer a need for such a tutor. Just as a tutor is dismissed when he or she is no longer needed, the Law of Moses has been dismissed because it's no longer needed after the cross. Therefore, we're not under the Law of Moses in any way, which means that we're not required to obey any of the Ten Commandments, the tithing laws, the kosher dietary laws, the Sabbath laws, or any of the rest of the 613 laws, and we're not able to sin by breaking or violating any of those 613 laws. The Law of Christ
As we saw in Part One, the New Covenant contains the Law of Christ, which is also referred to as "Christ's law," and "the law of the Spirit of life," and "the new way of the Spirit," and "the perfect law that gives freedom": "Carry each other's burdens, and in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ." (Galatians 6:2)The Law of Christ and the Law of Moses contain a number of similar commands, which makes it easy to assume that some parts of the Law of Moses must still be in force under the New Covenant. For example, stealing is one of the sins in the Ten Commandments (Exodus 20:15), and stealing is also a sin in the Law of Christ (e.g., 1 Corinthians 6:9-10, below). However, we've seen that nothing from the Law of Moses is still in force under the New Covenant. So if Christians steal something today then they have violated the Law of Christ, but they have not violated the Ten Commandments, and this is where people have gotten confused. Even though certain commands in the Old Covenant are similar to certain commands in the New Covenant, this doesn't mean that the two covenants have been "combined," or that some commands from the Old Covenant have been "imported" into the New Covenant, or that some commands from the Old Covenant are "still in force" under the New Covenant. Those concepts are being taught by a number of pastors and Bible teachers, but as we've seen, the Old Covenant was completely canceled, so none of it is in force after the cross. To put this into perspective, my old apartment contract in Seattle stated that I must pay my rent on time, and my new apartment contract in Houston states that I must pay my rent on time. Since the same requirement is found in both contracts, does this mean that the two contracts have been "combined," or that a requirement from my old contract has been "imported" into my new contract, or that a requirement from my old contract is "still in force" under my new contract? Obviously not. Those are two separate and distinct contracts that have some similar requirements. My old contract was completely canceled, so I am not required to pay my Seattle rent anymore. In exactly the same way, the Old Covenant and the New Covenant are two separate and distinct contracts that have some similar requirements. The Old Covenant was completely canceled at the cross, and Christians are required to obey the commands in the New Covenant. No one after the cross is required to obey any commands in the Old Covenant. As we saw in Part One, all non-Christians after the cross (and also all Christians) are under the Adamic Covenant and the Noahic Covenant. In addition, all Jews (both Christians and non-Christians) are also under the Abrahamic Covenant and the Palestinian Covenant. After the cross, no one on earth has ever been under the Old Covenant or the Law of Moses. Notice that the New Covenant mentions most of the sins that are found in the Ten Commandments (Exodus 20:1-17) under the Old Covenant: "Know ye not that the unrighteous shall not inherit the kingdom of God? Be not deceived: neither fornicators, nor idolaters [compare this with the Second Commandment], nor adulterers [compare this with the Seventh Commandment], nor effeminate, nor abusers of themselves with mankind, Nor thieves [compare this with the Eighth Commandment], nor covetous [compare this with the Tenth Commandment], nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners, shall inherit the kingdom of God." (1 Corinthians 6:9-10 KJV)The New Covenant includes the requirements of nine of the Ten Commandments (there's no Sabbath under the New Covenant). Therefore, we must still obey the requirements of the Ten Commandments (except for the Sabbath), but we do it by obeying the Law of Christ. If Christians commit any of the above sins then they've violated the Law of Christ, but they have not violated the Ten Commandments or the Law of Moses because no one today is under the Old Covenant, and no one today is able to sin by breaking or violating any of the Old Covenant laws. The Sabbath
A moment ago we saw that nine of the Ten Commandments have counterparts in the New Testament, but the Fourth Commandment (observing the Sabbath) is missing. There's no New Testament counterpart for the Fourth Commandment. The Sabbath has been completely canceled, and no one is required to observe it. In Part One we saw that the Sabbath was the "sign" of the Old Covenant. When the Old Covenant was canceled, the "sign" of the covenant (the Sabbath) was made obsolete. For example, notice that Paul explicitly tells us that we're not required to observe the Sabbath: "One man considers one day more sacred than another; another man considers every day alike. Each one should be fully convinced in his own mind. He who regards one day as special, does so to the Lord." (Romans 14:5-6)When Paul referred to one day being considered as more sacred than another, the first-century Jews would have easily understood that he was referring to the Sabbath. Paul's point was that a day (such as Saturday or Sunday) can be considered as a special day, but it does not need to be regarded as sacred or special. Observing the Sabbath is not a requirement under the New Covenant. Here's another example: "Therefore do not let anyone judge you by what you eat or drink, or with regard to a religious festival, a New Moon celebration or a Sabbath day. These are a shadow of the things that were to come; the reality, however, is found in Christ." (Colossians 2:16-17)This passage follows Paul's discussion in which he points out that the Law of Moses has been canceled and has been nailed to the cross (Colossians 2:14-15), and this is how one Bible commentary describes the above passage: "No one should judge you by what you eat or drink because Christians are free from the Law's legalistic requirements (such as those in Lev 11:1-47; Lev 17:1-16; Deu 14:1-29). God does not condemn those who eat everything (Rom 14:1-4). In fact, God says that all foods may be eaten since they were "created to be received with thanksgiving by those who believe and who know the truth" (1Ti 4:3). The teaching that forbids this, Paul wrote, is "taught by demons" (1Ti 4:1) whom Christ has disarmed (Col 2:15). This liberation of believers pertains also to festivals such as a New Moon celebration or a Sabbath Day (cf. Gal 4:10). Those who would bring Christians under the bondage of the Law make artificial distinctions between the "ceremonial" and "moral" law, and so they say the Sabbath has not passed away. That this is false can be seen from the following: (1) The Sabbath command is the only one of the Ten Commandments not repeated in the New Testament. (2) The early believers, following Christ's resurrection and appearance on Sunday (Mar 16:1; Joh 20:1), met on Sundays (Act 20:7; 1Co 16:2). (3) The Bible nowhere distinguishes between the so-called "moral" and "ceremonial" laws (this distinction was not made before the 13th century a.d.) (4) This Colossian passage explicitly condemns those who command Sabbath obedience. (5) As Paul put it, the Old Testament Law (including the Sabbath) was only a shadow of the things that were to come. The reality or "substance" (soma, lit., "body"), however, is to be found in Christ (cf. Heb 8:5; Heb 10:1). What the Old Testament foreshadowed, Christ fulfilled (cf. Mat 5:17; Rom 8:3-4). A "shadow" (skia) is only an image cast by an object which represents its form. Once one finds Christ, he no longer needs to follow the old shadow." (The Bible Knowledge Commentary, Walvoord and Zuck, Dallas Theological Seminary, Colossians 2:15-17)Again, observing the Sabbath is not a requirement under the New Covenant. Here's another example: "But now that you know God - or rather are known by God - how is it that you are turning back to those weak and miserable principles? Do you wish to be enslaved by them all over again? You are observing special days and months and seasons and years! I fear for you, that somehow I have wasted my efforts on you." (Galatians 4:9-11)Bible commentaries tend to point out that in the book of Galatians, Paul was trying to counteract the teachings of a certain group of Jews (often called the "Judaizers" by pastors and Bible teachers) who were trying to force Gentile Christians to submit themselves to the Law of Moses. The "special days and months and seasons and years" are all related to the Law of Moses. The "years" are the sabbath years and the Year of Jubilee (see Leviticus 25:2-13). The "seasons" refer to the seasonal religious festivals (see Colossians 2:16-17 above, and also see the quotes below). The "months" are the New Moon celebrations (see Colossians 2:16-17 above) that occurred monthly. The "special days" include the Sabbath days. For example, this is what some Bible commentaries say about this passage: "Under the influence of the Judaizers the Galatians had at least begun to observe the Mosaic calendar. They kept special days (weekly sabbaths), and months (new moons), and seasons (seasonal festivals such as Passover, Pentecost, and Tabernacles), and years (sabbatical and jubilee years). (Cf. Col 2:16.) They observed these special times, thinking that they would thereby gain additional merit before God. But Paul had already made it clear that works could not be added to faith as grounds for either justification or sanctification." (The Bible Knowledge Commentary, Walvoord and Zuck, Dallas Theological Seminary, Galatians 4:10)In Galatians 4:9-11 (above), Paul was asking the Gentile Christians in Galatia why they were turning back to the weak and miserable principles of the Law of Moses. He feared that he had wasted his efforts on them, partly because they were observing "special days" (including the weekly Sabbaths). His point was that the Sabbath and all of the other commandments in the Law of Moses have now been canceled, so why would anyone want to become enslaved to them all over again? Therefore, once again we can see that observing the Sabbath is not a requirement under the New Covenant. What are the scriptural requirements for observing the Sabbath?
Now let's take a look at some of the scriptural requirements for observing the Sabbath: "Six days you shall labor, but on the seventh day you shall rest; even during the plowing season and harvest you must rest." (Exodus 34:21)The above passages describe some of the scriptural requirements for observing the Sabbath, and modern Orthodox Jews interpret those requirements by following laws such as these: "Orthodox Jews refrain from working on the Sabbath; driving or riding in a car or any other powered transportation; using a telephone or any other electrical appliance; cooking and baking. There are many many more unique laws. Laws that take years to study, but the basics are known to any young Orthodox Jewish child." (Working on the Sabbath - What are Jews not allowed to do on Shabbat?If any Christians believe that we are required to observe the Sabbath, then do they properly rest on the Sabbath? Do they refuse to do any kind of work on the Sabbath? Do they refuse to light a fire in their homes on the Sabbath? Do they refuse to carry a load on the Sabbath? Do they refuse to buy or sell any food on the Sabbath? Do they refuse to drive or ride in a car or any other powered transportation, or refuse to use a telephone or any other electrical appliance, or refuse to cook or bake on the Sabbath? Do they properly keep the Sabbath day holy? Do they put to death anyone who does any kind of work on the Sabbath (Exodus 31:12-15 and 35:1-2, above)? When any Christians observe the Sabbath today, they inevitably make adjustments to the Sabbath commands or laws, such as not following all of the above rules. But by making adjustments to the scriptural requirements for the Sabbath, they're observing a false Sabbath that they've invented. When they do this, it shows that deep down they don't really believe that the biblical Sabbath is a requirement under the New Covenant. Isn't the Sabbath a "Creation Ordinance"?
One way that people try to justify their Sabbath-keeping is by calling it a "Creation Ordinance." The argument is that the Sabbath has existed since Creation, and therefore it's a commandment for everybody throughout all time. They base this view on Genesis 2:2-3: "By the seventh day God had finished the work he had been doing; so on the seventh day he rested from all his work. And God blessed the seventh day and made it holy, because on it he rested from all the work of creating that he had done." (Genesis 2:2-3)For the sake of discussion, let's pretend that the Sabbath is a Creation Ordinance (in other words, it was established at the time of Creation). Does this automatically mean that observing the Sabbath is a requirement for everybody throughout all time? We can easily answer this question by looking at another Creation Ordinance in Genesis: "Then the LORD God made a woman from the rib he had taken out of the man, and he brought her to the man. The man said, "This is now bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh; she shall be called 'woman,' for she was taken out of man." For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and they will become one flesh." (Genesis 2:22-24)Marriage is usually considered to be a Creation Ordinance, and Jesus confirmed this for us: ""Haven't you read," he [Jesus] replied, "that at the beginning the Creator 'made them male and female' [Genesis 1:27], and said, 'For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and the two will become one flesh' [Genesis 2:24]?"" (Matthew 19:4-5)Jesus confirmed for us that marriage is a Creation Ordinance, yet the New Testament says that marriage is not a requirement for everyone: "Now for the matters you wrote about: It is good for a man not to marry." (1 Corinthians 7:1)In the above passages, Paul specifically said that it's acceptable for people to remain unmarried. So even though marriage is a Creation Ordinance (meaning that it was established at the time of Creation), this doesn't make it binding on everyone throughout all time. In the same way, if the Sabbath were a Creation Ordinance, this would not make it binding on everyone throughout all time. In reality, though, the Sabbath is not a Creation Ordinance at all. Let's take another look at that passage in Genesis: "By the seventh day God had finished the work he had been doing; so on the seventh day he rested from all his work. And God blessed the seventh day and made it holy, because on it he rested from all the work of creating that he had done." (Genesis 2:2-3)Notice carefully what Genesis 2:2-3 (above) says and what it does not say. This passage simply describes what God did on the seventh day, but it does not contain any commands for people to observe the Sabbath. The word "Sabbath" is not used in this passage, and in fact the Hebrew word for "Sabbath" does not appear in the Bible until Exodus 16:23. There are no commands concerning the Sabbath prior to Exodus 16:23, nor is there any record of anyone observing the Sabbath before Exodus 16:30. The Sabbath was not instituted until Exodus 16:23. It's not a Creation Ordinance. Another passage that has confused some people is Hebrews 4:3-9, which talks about Creation and then refers to a "Sabbath-rest": "Now we who have believed enter that rest, just as God has said, "So I declared on oath in my anger, 'They shall never enter my rest.'" And yet his work has been finished since the creation of the world. For somewhere he has spoken about the seventh day in these words: "And on the seventh day God rested from all his work." And again in the passage above he says, "They shall never enter my rest." It still remains that some will enter that rest, and those who formerly had the gospel preached to them did not go in, because of their disobedience. Therefore God again set a certain day, calling it Today, when a long time later he spoke through David, as was said before: "Today, if you hear his voice, do not harden your hearts." For if Joshua had given them rest, God would not have spoken later about another day. There remains, then, a Sabbath-rest [sabbatismos] for the people of God" (Hebrews 4:3-9)In the above passage, a "Sabbath-rest" for the people of God is compared to the fact that God rested on the seventh day after He finished His acts of Creation. The Greek word sabbatismos in the above passage means: "a 'sabbatism', i.e., (fig.) the repose of Christianity (as a type of heaven): - rest" (Strong's Hebrew and Greek Dictionary)This is not the Greek word for the weekly Sabbath observance, and in fact the Greek word for "Sabbath" is not used in Hebrews 4:3-9 (above) at all. This passage does not refer to the weekly Sabbaths, but instead it refers to the "Sabbath-rest" that Christians will enjoy in heaven when our earthly work is finished (see the Greek dictionaries quoted above). Hebrews 4:3-9 (above) does not contain any commands for Christians to observe the Sabbath, and this passage has nothing at all to do with the weekly Sabbaths. Wasn't the Sabbath meant to last forever?
Another argument that people sometimes make is that the Sabbath was a lasting covenant for the generations to come. The argument is that since the Sabbath was intended to last forever, then it could not have been abolished at the cross: "Then the LORD said to Moses, "Say to the Israelites, 'You must observe my Sabbaths. This will be a sign between me and you for the generations to come [dowr], so you may know that I am the LORD, who makes you holy...The Israelites are to observe the Sabbath, celebrating it for the generations to come [dowr] as a lasting [owlam] covenant. It will be a sign between me and the Israelites forever [owlam], for in six days the LORD made the heavens and the earth, and on the seventh day he abstained from work and rested.'"" (Exodus 31:12-17)In the above passage, God said that the Sabbath was a "lasting covenant" and was a sign "forever" and was meant to continue "for the generations to come." The words "lasting" and "forever" come from the Hebrew word owlam (according to Strong's Hebrew and Greek Dictionary), and the phrase "for the generations to come" comes from the Hebrew word dowr (according to Strong's Hebrew and Greek Dictionary). But do these Hebrew words mean that the Sabbath will never end? Here's an example of how one of these Hebrew words is used elsewhere in Scripture: "then his master must take him before the judges. He shall take him to the door or the doorpost and pierce his ear with an awl. Then he will be his servant for life [owlam]." (Exodus 21:6)Other versions of the Bible translate owlam as "forever" or "permanently" in this verse (see the ASV, KJV, NASB, NKJV, NLT, RSV, or TLB, for example). But we can see that owlam does not literally mean "forever" here, it simply means "for the rest of his life." Here's another example: "then take an awl and push it through his ear lobe into the door, and he will become your servant for life [owlam]." (Deuteronomy 15:17)Other versions of the Bible translate owlam as "forever" or "always" in this verse (see the AMP, ASV, KJV, NASB, NKJV, or TLB, for example). But once again we can see that owlam does not literally mean "forever" here, it simply means "for the rest of his life." Here's another example: "Hannah did not go. She said to her husband, "After the boy is weaned, I will take him and present him before the LORD, and he will live there always [owlam]."" (1 Samuel 1:22)Other versions of the Bible translate owlam as "forever" or "permanently" in this verse (see the ASV, KJV, NASB, NKJV, NLT, or RSV, for example). But once again we can see that owlam does not literally mean "forever" here, it simply means "for the rest of his life." Here are several more examples: "Then dress Aaron in the sacred garments, anoint him and consecrate him so he may serve me as priest. Bring his sons and dress them in tunics. Anoint them just as you anointed their father, so they may serve me as priests. Their anointing will be to a priesthood that will continue for all generations to come [dowr]." (Exodus 40:13-15)The Old Covenant priesthood, the showbread, and the animal sacrifices were all canceled at the cross as we saw earlier, yet in the above passages these things are called "lasting" (owlam) ordinances "for the generations to come" (dowr). The Hebrew words that are used in the above passages are the very same Hebrew words that are used when the Sabbath is commanded to be a "lasting" (owlam) ordinance "for the generations to come" (dowr). We can see that the Hebrew words dowr and owlam are used in the sense of "for the generations to come" and "until the end of his life." Therefore, the Sabbath command was given to Moses for the generations to come until the Old Covenant had reached the end of its life. The Sabbath requirement was completely canceled along with the rest of the Ten Commandments when Christ nailed the Old Covenant to the cross (Colossians 2:13-14). Observing the Sabbath is not a requirement under the New Covenant. Didn't Jesus and the apostles observe the Sabbath?
People sometimes argue that Jesus observed the Sabbath and that He explained what is lawful to do on the Sabbath, so therefore all Christians must follow His example by observing the Sabbath. However, Jesus was required to observe the Sabbath because He was a Jew who lived His entire life (before the cross) under the Law of Moses. Remember, the Law of Moses was not canceled until Jesus died. As we saw, the Old Covenant and all 613 commandments in the Law of Moses were completely canceled at the cross, and the New Covenant was initiated at the cross. If the New Covenant contained a Sabbath requirement then all Christians would be required to observe the Sabbath, but we've seen that there's no Sabbath requirement under the New Covenant. Another argument is that the apostles observed the Sabbath after the cross. But did they? Here's every New Testament passage that refers to the apostles and the Sabbath after the cross: "From Perga they went on to Pisidian Antioch. On the Sabbath they entered the synagogue and sat down. After the reading from the Law and the Prophets, the synagogue rulers sent word to them, saying, "Brothers, if you have a message of encouragement for the people, please speak." Standing up, Paul motioned with his hand and said: "Men of Israel and you Gentiles who worship God, listen to me!...Before the coming of Jesus, John preached repentance and baptism to all the people of Israel."" (Acts 13:14-24)These are all of the passages in the New Testament that refer to the apostles going to a synagogue or a place of prayer on the Sabbath after the cross. Notice that nowhere do these passages say that keeping the Sabbath is a requirement under the New Covenant, and nowhere do these passages say that the apostles were observing the Sabbath. In every case, the apostles were doing evangelism in synagogues (or places of prayer) on the Sabbath because that's where they had an audience of Jews who had gathered together. The Lord's Day
Is Sunday "the Lord's Day"? Has the Saturday Sabbath been changed to Sunday? Is Sunday the "Christian Sabbath"? Are church services required to be on Sunday? The New Testament tells us not to neglect meeting together (Hebrews 10:25), but we're never commanded to meet on a specific day. The New Testament never says that the Sabbath was changed to Sunday and it never commands Christians to meet on Sunday. Sunday is always referred to as "the first day of the week" in the New Testament (Matthew 28:1, Mark 16:2, 9, Luke 24:1, John 20:1, Acts 20:7). Sunday is never referred to as "the Lord's Day," and in fact that phrase only appears one time in the entire Bible: "On the Lord's Day I was in the Spirit, and I heard behind me a loud voice like a trumpet" (Revelation 1:10)Revelation 1:10 (above) is the only place where "the Lord's Day" appears in the entire Bible, and notice that it's not associated with any particular day of the week. Some people believe that since Jesus was resurrected on a Sunday (probably April 5, AD 33 - see my article called Who Wrote the New Testament?) then Sunday must be "the Lord's Day," but the Bible doesn't say that. Throughout the Bible, the expression, "the Day of the Lord," refers to the future seven-year Tribulation period (the time when God will pour out His wrath on the earth) plus the Second Coming and beyond (see my article called The Rapture of the Church - Part Five). For example, here's what a prominent Bible commentary says about 1 Thessalonians 5:2, 2 Thessalonians 2:2, and 2 Peter 3:10: "the day of the Lord will include both judgment and blessing. That day begins immediately after the Rapture of the church and ends with the conclusion of the Millennium. This day is a major theme of prophecy with its fullest exposition in Revelation 6-19." (The Bible Knowledge Commentary, Walvoord and Zuck, Dallas Theological Seminary, 1 Thessalonians 5:2, emphasis added)So in the New Testament, "the Day of the Lord" refers to a future period of time when God will pour out His wrath on the earth, as in the following passages: "The sun will be turned to darkness and the moon to blood before the coming of the great and glorious day of the Lord." (Acts 2:20)The apostle John was given visions about many of the things that will happen during "the Day of the Lord," and he wrote them down in the book of Revelation. Consider the following passages in Revelation: "At once I was in the Spirit, and there before me was a throne in heaven with someone sitting on it." (Revelation 4:2)The above passages tell us that John was "in the Spirit" while he witnessed "the Day of the Lord" in his visions. With that in mind, look again at what John said in Revelation 1:10: "On the Lord's Day I was in the Spirit, and I heard behind me a loud voice like a trumpet" (Revelation 1:10)John repeatedly said that he was "in the Spirit" as he witnessed "the Day of the Lord," and in the above verse he said that he was "in the Spirit" on "the Lord's Day." Notice that "the Day of the Lord" and "the Lord's Day" are two ways of saying the same thing, just like "the hand of the Lord" and "the Lord's hand" are two ways of saying the same thing. For example, take a look at how Jesus described the Second Coming: "For the Son of Man in his day will be like the lightning, which flashes and lights up the sky from one end to the other." (Luke 17:24)In the above verse, Jesus referred to the time period of the Second Coming as "His day." In other words, it's "the Lord's Day." So again, "the Lord's Day" is a reference to "the Day of the Lord," which is a future time period that will include the seven-year Tribulation plus the Second Coming and on into eternity. In addition, notice that John gave no commands for Christians to observe the Sabbath or to have church services on "the Lord's Day": "On the Lord's Day I was in the Spirit, and I heard behind me a loud voice like a trumpet which said: "Write on a scroll what you see and send it to the seven churches: to Ephesus, Smyrna, Pergamum, Thyatira, Sardis, Philadelphia and Laodicea." I turned around to see the voice that was speaking to me. And when I turned I saw seven golden lampstands, and among the lampstands was someone "like a son of man," dressed in a robe reaching down to his feet and with a golden sash around his chest." (Revelation 1:10-13)Again, Revelation 1:10 (above) is the only place in the entire Bible where "the Lord's Day" appears, and we can see that we're not commanded to observe the Sabbath or attend church on that day. We're free to attend church on any day(s) of the week because the New Testament never requires us to attend church on a specific day. There's not a shred of scriptural evidence that Sunday is "the Lord's Day," or that church services must be held on Sunday, or that the Sabbath was changed to Sunday, or that there's a "Christian Sabbath," or that there are any kind of Sabbath requirements after the cross. Did first-century Christians go to church on Sunday?
In Acts 20:6-11 we see the Christians in Troas meeting on Sunday (the first day of the week): "But we sailed from Philippi after the Feast of Unleavened Bread, and five days later joined the others at Troas, where we stayed seven days. On the first day of the week we came together to break bread. Paul spoke to the people and, because he intended to leave the next day, kept on talking until midnight. There were many lamps in the upstairs room where we were meeting. Seated in a window was a young man named Eutychus, who was sinking into a deep sleep as Paul talked on and on. When he was sound asleep, he fell to the ground from the third story and was picked up dead. Paul went down, threw himself on the young man and put his arms around him. "Don't be alarmed," he said. "He's alive!" Then he went upstairs again and broke bread and ate. After talking until daylight, he left." (Acts 20:6-11)The above passage says that the Christians in Troas met on the first day of the week, but it doesn't treat this meeting as a Sabbath (none of the Sabbath requirements are described here), and it doesn't say that the Christians were required to meet on the first day of the week, and it doesn't say that they had the custom of meeting on the first day of the week. This is the only passage in the entire New Testament that describes any Christians meeting on the first day of the week. All it says is that the Christians in Troas met together to have one final night of fellowship with the apostle Paul before he left them. It's easy to assume that "breaking bread" in the above passage refers to the Lord's Supper, which might imply that the Christians at Troas were having a church service on the first day of the week, but that's not necessarily the case. Apart from Acts 20:6-11 (above), here are all of the New Testament references to "breaking bread": ""We have here only five loaves of bread and two fish," they answered. "Bring them here to me," he said. And he directed the people to sit down on the grass. Taking the five loaves and the two fish and looking up to heaven, he gave thanks and broke the loaves. Then he gave them to the disciples, and the disciples gave them to the people. They all ate and were satisfied, and the disciples picked up twelve basketfuls of broken pieces that were left over. The number of those who ate was about five thousand men, besides women and children." (Matthew 14:17-21)These are all of the New Testament references to "breaking bread," so let's consider how this phrase is used in the above passages. It's used in descriptions of the Last Supper (Matthew 26:26, Mark 14:22, Luke 22:19, 1 Corinthians 11:23-24), and it's used in one description of the Lord's Supper (1 Corinthians 10:16), and it's used in descriptions of feeding a meal to the five thousand (Matthew 14:17-21, Mark 6:41-44, Mark 8:19, Luke 9:14-17), and it's used in descriptions of feeding a meal to the four thousand (Matthew 15:33-38, Mark 8:6-9, Mark 8:20), and it's used when two disciples sat down to eat a meal with Jesus (Luke 24:28-35), and it's used for some fellowship meals (Acts 2:41-46), and it's used in a description of food that was eaten before Paul's shipwreck (Acts 27:33-38). Notice that throughout the New Testament, "breaking bread" is most often used for eating a meal, which includes the Last Supper. So when the Christians in Troas came together on the first day of the week to "break bread" (Acts 20:6-11, above), this doesn't mean that they were observing the Lord's Supper in a church service. Instead, the passage describes a group of Christians having a meal together as they spent one final night of fellowship with the apostle Paul before he went off to Assos. When we look closely at this meeting in Troas, we can see that there are no commands here for Christians to meet on Sunday, and in fact this meeting is never referred to as a church service. All this passage says is that some Christians ate a meal together and that Paul talked for a long time and raised a man from the dead. There's one other passage that people sometimes use to justify their belief that church services were held on Sunday in the first century: "Now about the collection for God's people: Do what I told the Galatian churches to do. On the first day of every week, each one of you should set aside a sum of money in keeping with his income, saving it up, so that when I come no collections will have to be made. Then, when I arrive, I will give letters of introduction to the men you approve and send them with your gift to Jerusalem." (1 Corinthians 16:1-3)Since modern churches usually take up an offering during the church service, some people assume that this passage is describing a church service on the first day of the week. But all this passage actually says is that "each one of you should set aside a sum of money" on the first day of the week. Notice that there's no reference to church services here, and there's no command to have church services on Sunday. Paul simply asked the Corinthian Christians to individually set aside some money on the first day of every week so that when he visited them he could collect all of it and send it to Jerusalem. To summarize, if we claim that church services must be held on Sunday, or that Sunday is the "Christian Sabbath," or that Sunday is the "Lord's Day," or that the Sabbath was changed to Sunday, or that first-century Christians went to church on Sunday, then we're reading things into these passages that they don't actually say. Eating Kosher
When God initiated a covenant with all humans through Noah (centuries before the Old Covenant and still in force to this day as we saw in Part One), He said that all creatures are allowed to be eaten: "Then God blessed Noah and his sons, saying to them, "Be fruitful and increase in number and fill the earth. The fear and dread of you will fall on all the beasts of the earth, and on all the birds in the sky, on every creature that moves along the ground, and on all the fish in the sea; they are given into your hands. Everything that lives and moves about will be food for you. Just as I gave you the green plants, I now give you everything. But you must not eat meat that has its lifeblood still in it."" (Genesis 9:1-4)When God initiated the Old Covenant with the Jews through Moses, He was very specific about the creatures that they were allowed to eat or not allowed to eat (also see Leviticus 11): "These are the animals you may eat: the ox, the sheep, the goat, the deer, the gazelle, the roe deer, the wild goat, the ibex, the antelope and the mountain sheep. You may eat any animal that has a divided hoof and that chews the cud. However, of those that chew the cud or that have a divided hoof you may not eat the camel, the rabbit or the hyrax. Although they chew the cud, they do not have a divided hoof; they are ceremonially unclean for you. The pig is also unclean; although it has a divided hoof, it does not chew the cud. You are not to eat their meat or touch their carcasses. Of all the creatures living in the water, you may eat any that has fins and scales. But anything that does not have fins and scales you may not eat; for you it is unclean. You may eat any clean bird. But these you may not eat: the eagle, the vulture, the black vulture, the red kite, the black kite, any kind of falcon, any kind of raven, the horned owl, the screech owl, the gull, any kind of hawk, the little owl, the great owl, the white owl, the desert owl, the osprey, the cormorant, the stork, any kind of heron, the hoopoe and the bat. All flying insects are unclean to you; do not eat them. But any winged creature that is clean you may eat. Do not eat anything you find already dead. You may give it to the foreigner residing in any of your towns, and they may eat it, or you may sell it to any other foreigner. But you are a people holy to the LORD your God. Do not cook a young goat in its mother's milk." (Deuteronomy 14:4-21)The above passage describes some of the kosher dietary laws, which were the requirements for how and what the Jews were allowed to eat under the Old Covenant. As we saw in Part One, a Jew is a physical descendant of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. Again, the Old Covenant contained 613 commandments that are collectively called the Law of Moses, which were specifically given to the Jews. The Law of Moses was not given to any Gentile (non-Jewish) nation, and it was not given to the church. In fact, the Law of Moses with its commandments and regulations was designed to be "the dividing wall of hostility" that excluded the Gentiles from enjoying any of the blessings of the Jewish covenants (Ephesians 2:11-16). Gentiles (non-Jews) were never under the Law of Moses because the Law was specifically intended to set the Jews apart from the Gentiles as "a people holy to the LORD your God" (Deuteronomy 14:21, above). The Jews were forbidden from eating certain types of meat under the Old Covenant (Deuteronomy 14:4-21, above), but the Gentiles were allowed to eat all types of meat because they were under the Noahic Covenant (Genesis 9:1-4, above). We've seen that when Jesus died on the cross He completely canceled the Old Covenant and the Law of Moses (including the Ten Commandments, the tithing laws, the kosher dietary laws, and the Sabbath laws) and initiated the New Covenant. After the day of Pentecost (Acts 2:1-4), many Jews put their faith in Jesus as the Messiah, but it wasn't until Acts 10:1-11:18 that the first Gentiles converted to Christianity. There was a certain amount of friction when the Gentiles started coming into the church because some of the Jews felt that the Gentiles needed to follow the Law of Moses (Acts 15:5-6). The Jews had not yet learned that the Law of Moses was canceled, but then God showed the apostle Peter (and later the apostle Paul as we'll see below) that all types of meat are "clean" (allowed to be eaten) under the New Covenant: "About noon the following day as they were on their journey and approaching the city, Peter went up on the roof to pray. He became hungry and wanted something to eat, and while the meal was being prepared, he fell into a trance. He saw heaven opened and something like a large sheet being let down to earth by its four corners. It contained all kinds of four-footed animals, as well as reptiles and birds. Then a voice told him, "Get up, Peter. Kill and eat." "Surely not, Lord!" Peter replied. "I have never eaten anything impure or unclean." The voice spoke to him a second time, "Do not call anything impure that God has made clean." This happened three times, and immediately the sheet was taken back to heaven." (Acts 10:9-16)In the above passage (not long after the cross), the Lord showed Peter that all types of meat are "clean" (allowed to be eaten) under the New Covenant. The kosher dietary laws were all canceled along with the rest of the Old Covenant and the Law of Moses when Jesus initiated the New Covenant at the cross. The Gentiles were always allowed to eat all types of meat, but the Jews who converted to Christianity had grown up with the kosher laws and sometimes had difficulty with the idea that all types of meat are now allowed to be eaten. Therefore, the apostle Paul pointed out a number of times that even though all food is now "clean" (allowed to be eaten), we must not pass judgment on other Christians for their decisions on what to eat and what not to eat: "Accept the one whose faith is weak, without quarreling over disputable matters. One person's faith allows them to eat anything, but another, whose faith is weak, eats only vegetables. The one who eats everything must not treat with contempt the one who does not, and the one who does not eat everything must not judge the one who does, for God has accepted them." (Romans 14:1-3)In the above passages, Paul said that all food is "clean" (allowed to be eaten), but he also said that not everyone possesses this knowledge so we must not judge other Christians (or cause problems of conscience) based on what they choose to eat or not to eat. He repeatedly contrasted Christians who have the knowledge and faith that the Law of Moses was completely canceled vs. Christians who have a weak faith and a weak conscience. When modern denominations that follow the kosher dietary laws essentially order or require their members to abstain from certain foods, Paul harshly denounced them by saying that they have abandoned the faith and are following deceiving spirits and things taught by demons (1 Timothy 4:1-6, above). The above passages tell us that Christians are not required to follow any kosher dietary commands in the Law of Moses. Not everyone understands this, so Paul said that "it is wrong for a person to eat anything that causes someone else to stumble. It is better not to eat meat or drink wine or to do anything else that will cause your brother or sister to fall" (Romans 14:20-23, above). Therefore, if we're not around Christians who would object then it's perfectly fine to eat any meat or to drink wine (see my article called Alcohol in Moderation Is Not a Sin). It's also perfectly fine to choose to be vegan or vegetarian if that's our preferred way to eat, but if we're doing it because we think it honors God, what we've seen is that it does not honor God. If we're doing it in order to obey the kosher laws so that we'll be considered righteous in God's eyes then we're placing ourselves under a curse (Galatians 3:10-13). The Law Is Good
According to the apostle Paul, the entire Law of Moses was completely canceled at the cross as we saw earlier. But then why did Paul make the following statements? "Do we, then, nullify the law by this faith? Not at all! Rather, we uphold the law." (Romans 3:31)The above passages were all written by Paul, and in context they're all referring to the Law of Moses. Paul seems to be contradicting himself in those passages because in other passages we've looked at he said that the Law of Moses has been completely canceled. So why did he make the above statements? To answer this question, let's look at some things he said about the purposes for the Law:
Paul said that the Law of Moses is good "if one uses it properly" (1 Timothy 1:8-9, above). Since the Law makes people conscious of sin (Romans 3:19-20 and 7:7, above), this indicates that the Law (e.g., the Ten Commandments) can be useful in evangelism, even today, because it contains useful examples of sins. However, we should be careful not to imply that people are required to obey anything in the Law of Moses (such as the Ten Commandments, the tithing laws, the kosher dietary laws, or the Sabbath laws). Freedom in Christ
Notice that as Christians we have freedom in Christ: "Be careful, however, that the exercise of your freedom does not become a stumbling block to the weak." (1 Corinthians 8:9)This means that we're free from the Law of Moses, but we're also free to observe any parts of that Law that are not prohibited in the Law of Christ. For example, Paul participated in some Jewish purification rites in accordance with the Law of Moses: "When they heard this, they praised God. Then they said to Paul: "You see, brother, how many thousands of Jews have believed, and all of them are zealous for the law. They have been informed that you teach all the Jews who live among the Gentiles to turn away from Moses, telling them not to circumcise their children or live according to our customs. What shall we do? They will certainly hear that you have come, so do what we tell you. There are four men with us who have made a vow. Take these men, join in their purification rites and pay their expenses, so that they can have their heads shaved. Then everybody will know there is no truth in these reports about you, but that you yourself are living in obedience to the law. As for the Gentile believers, we have written to them our decision that they should abstain from food sacrificed to idols, from blood, from the meat of strangled animals and from sexual immorality." The next day Paul took the men and purified himself along with them. Then he went to the temple to give notice of the date when the days of purification would end and the offering would be made for each of them." (Acts 21:20-26)As a Christian, Paul was free from the Law of Moses, but he was also free to follow any parts of that Law that don't violate anything in the Law of Christ. In the same way, as Christians we have the freedom to observe the Sabbath (for example) if we choose to do so, as long as we don't violate anything in the Law of Christ. For help in discerning what the Lord does or does not want you to do, see my article called How to Discern God's Guidance. If we choose to follow anything in the Law of Moses (such as the Ten Commandments, the tithing laws, the kosher dietary laws, or the Sabbath laws), we must understand that we're not required to do it, and we must not judge other Christians who choose not to follow the commandments of the Law of Moses as we saw earlier. For example, notice what Paul said will happen if we seek to obtain righteousness or justification by following anything in the Law of Moses: "It is for freedom that Christ has set us free. Stand firm, then, and do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery. Mark my words! I, Paul, tell you that if you let yourselves be circumcised, Christ will be of no value to you at all. Again I declare to every man who lets himself be circumcised that he is obligated to obey the whole law. You who are trying to be justified by law have been alienated from Christ; you have fallen away from grace. But by faith we eagerly await through the Spirit the righteousness for which we hope." (Galatians 5:1-5)In addition, we need to be careful that the exercise of our freedom in Christ doesn't become a "stumbling block" to other people, and that we don't use our freedom as an excuse to commit any sins: "Be careful, however, that the exercise of your freedom does not become a stumbling block to the weak." (1 Corinthians 8:9) Back to Part Two. For the glory of the Lord Jesus, the Christ, the Son of God, who came in the flesh, was delivered over to death for our sins, and was raised to life for our justification. Dave Root home page and email: https://www.vividchristianity.com "Therefore I want you to know that no one who is speaking by the Spirit of God says, "Jesus be cursed," and no one can say, "Jesus is Lord," except by the Holy Spirit." (1 Corinthians 12:3) "Who is the liar? It is whoever denies that Jesus is the Christ. Such a person is the antichrist - denying the Father and the Son. No one who denies the Son has the Father; whoever acknowledges the Son has the Father also." (1 John 2:22-23) "If anyone acknowledges that Jesus is the Son of God, God lives in them and they in God." (1 John 4:15) "Dear friends, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, because many false prophets have gone out into the world. This is how you can recognize the Spirit of God: Every spirit that acknowledges that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is from God, but every spirit that does not acknowledge Jesus is not from God. This is the spirit of the antichrist, which you have heard is coming and even now is already in the world." (1 John 4:1-3) "And this is love: that we walk in obedience to his commands. As you have heard from the beginning, his command is that you walk in love. I say this because many deceivers, who do not acknowledge Jesus Christ as coming in the flesh, have gone out into the world. Any such person is the deceiver and the antichrist." (2 John 1:6-7) "He was delivered over to death for our sins and was raised to life for our justification." (Romans 4:25) |
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| All Scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from the HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION (R). NIV (R). Copyright (C) 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by International Bible Society. Used by permission of Zondervan Publishing House. All rights reserved. (Emphasis added.) |